[Unsinkable II]

In an acronym... WIFI.

I said it on Pentax Forums shortly after the iPad was launched, and the luddites said there wouldn't be enough power for photo editing etc.

I'm now using dual-core ARM on my phone, and quad-core is basically here. These things fly.

It's not going to replace a pro's workflow, but for an amateur or enthusiast this rocks. I can take artful pictures from an inferior sensor on my phone, and email or upload my favourite(s) in moments. This is what the majority of people want to do.

If Pentax release WIFI bodies, together with iOS and Android matching apps, with all their usual intuitive software functionality, I believe they are on to a winner.

[Adam]

That would definitely be a cool feature- can't the same be accomplished with the eyefi cards, though?

[Docrwm]

That would definitely be a cool feature- can't the same be accomplished with the eyefi cards, though?

The reviews I have read indicate that they are painfully slow and intermittent in operation in the field. The technology is there to make this stuff really scream but the inherient size issues and location of the SD card itself make the eyeFi cards a bit more limited than in-body equivalent would be.

[johnmflores]

Cool idea, but let's go one step further and put an Android phone right into the camera. Imagine the looks you'd get as you put your Pentax to your ear to answer a call!

[Clavius]

The EYEFI cards aren't THAT slow. It will transfer JPG files a couple of seconds. I do it sometimes. Shoot, acces my camera via my android phone, and upload a picture.

It's to slow to transfer RAW image data though, but people surely won't post that on Facebook via a app.

I still think it's a good idea though. It would even have some pro applications. What about pro's that send data over to their colleague at the imagelab, so the latter can get to work immediately.

Maybe a batterygrip with integrated bluetooth and/or wifi?

[reeftool]

A good idea I agree but the best thing Pentax can do to get more camera's out there is to advertise a little. Get a few into stores so people can see and handle them. All the features in the world do no good if potential customers don't know you exist.

[Laurentiu Cristofor]

Wireless would be a useful feature to have, but it's not a "capture the market" feature. Not in DSLRs. The majority of people may want to upload their favorite moments to facebook, but that doesn't mean they want to capture them with a DSLR.

[panoguy]

Maybe a batterygrip with integrated bluetooth and/or wifi?

Yep, that's the way to do it. Wifi if you need it, and it would begin to justify the high price of those OEM pieces of plastic! (grips)

[RioRico]

How Pentax can capture more new business in just 3 easy steps:

1. Market
2. Market
3. Market

That means, put product on display and in stock. Put PENTAX in front of eyeballs. People usually don't voluntarily purchase hardware they can't see, can't touch, haven't heard of, etc. Features are nice. Quality is nice. But it's hard to sell invisible hardware from invisible makers. In much of the world, Pentax lacks presence, visibility -- there's no 'there' there. Q: What's a Pentax? A: About a nickel per Bic. Pentax won't gain much business till its name isn't a lousy joke.

[Clavius]

While I agree that a little marketing won't hurt Pentax, I still think a good product sells itself.

Look at Leica or Hasselblad. They aren't 'there' in the stores at (e.g.) Saturn/Mediamarket. Untill you get to the more serious camerastores, then they are there, together with Pentax. At least, that's how it is here in Europe.

[sam-joseph]

Mr Rio Rico's right. Pentax doesn't need fancy gimmickry in Wifi, or bloody iPad applications etc. Just PROMOTE the brand as the BEST imaging hardware available. A brand that doesn't need to produce a new camera every six months (Canon), and one that remains faithful to it's past lens configurations (ie NOT Canon/Nikon). We need a marketing presence, but having said that, I'm kind of glad that I'm unique in my choice of camera. Problem is, unique-ness does not make for a sound business. Hope this makes sense. I' m well into a bottle of Hunter Valley Red.
Regards

[RioRico]

While I agree that a little marketing won't hurt Pentax, I still think a good product sells itself. Look at Leica or Hasselblad.

I'll draw a parallel with the Cords and Auburns and Duesenbergs of the 1930s, each a superior machine that sold itself on its merits. And each sold in the... hundreds. Each was essentially hand-built, same as Leica and Hassy. To the tens of millions driving Fords and Chevs, those superb machines were quite irrelevant. To the tens of millions shooting CaNikon, L&H are equally irrelevant. Pentax needs to take steps to avoid becoming the next Studebaker.

[RonHendriks1966]

Good new products and marketing are more important at the time then gadgets that almost no-one wil use.

[dmort]

I see pentax's problem as being dual fold: At the lower price point, there isn't enough presence. Pentax isn't in target, walmart, what have you. Additionally, I've been shopping for a point and shoot for a while now, and no Pentax made point and shoot can compare to the Oly Xz-1, the s95 or the s100, the Fujifilm X10, blah blah blah. So they have to get the cameras in the store, and make something that competes!

Now at the other end, there just aren't enough pro options, we need more long glass, we need tele-converters, perhaps full frame (although I don't want to start that discussion here and I'm of two minds anyways)...

What pentax has done is create a great line of enthusiast to semi-pro offerings with dapples of amateur and pro quality. Those dapples need to be filled out.

And Marketing. Much more marketing.

I have this older friend (the wife of my deceased boss) who always needs help with her digital gear. Well, when I showed up today, to help with her wireless printer, I discovered she had a brand new s100! Apparently, she put it on pre-order once she read David Pouge's review of it in the NYTimes. Pentax needs that sort of exposure too, non-photographic specific, but wide reaching. Why didn't David Pouge write an article proclaiming how the K5 can be cleaned by running it under the faucet?

[bigdavephoto]

Getting the cameras back in the stores and the sales reps on the streets. That's the key.

I was talking to a salesman at a camera store and I said something about Pentax coming on strong in the next year, and this guy basicially boo-hawed me and said that with the amount of debt that Pentax has, he doubted if we would see anything new from Pentax at all.

If Pentax-Ricoh doesn't get the cameras back in the stores and big box stores, then they might as well close up shop.