[Tonto]

I agree the Kx body is great. Add some styling cues to the K30. Add those essential features.
The spec doesn't need to have exactly what the Kr had as we have gone from a two body system to a 3-4 body system (not counting the k-01!).
Entry level is CRUCIAL, it has to be addressed, they are the future customers! Think of how many people who shoot Pentax who have fond memories of the film cameras.
Young people need a similar model to start with (price point wise), every dollar counts and people want the best value for the money they can scrape together especially at the cheaper end of the market.
Also I was a new shooter and got the K7 as my first DSLR- I bought the Kx when my wife kept nicking my camera! And she loves it and recommends it. Had it not existed I may have given Pentax a miss as it wasn't interested in beginner photographers.
That's why a range is important. It shows intention and builds aspiration.

[RioRico]

The first rule of marketing is that it is easier to sell more stuff to an existing customer than it is to acquire more customers. In my opinion, Pentax's marketing plan is to go the tougher route and try to convert long time CaNikon users.

Easier to sell to existing customers, yes. But Pentax hasn't enough existing customers. Conversion may not be enough either. Pentax-Ricoh needs to grab new customers, who aren't committed to a brand. That's where I see Q and K-01 aimed, at inexperienced users. Nikon's 1 system is aimed at the same target audience, the fresh buyers. Get'em while they're young, eh?

[luizpaulo]

I don't know if Pentax will release a DSLR for a K-r replacement. I believe that the K-01 fits most of the entry market demands: Price, better IQ, interchangeable lenses, smaller size (comparing to higher models) and it's easy to use. OVF is not that big of a deal, considering that most of this crowd is from using P&S. For those that want more, the K-30 seems to fit the bill very well and at not such a greater cost.

[causey]

I don't know if Pentax will release a DSLR for a K-r replacement. I believe that the K-01 fits most of the entry market demands: Price, better IQ, interchangeable lenses, smaller size (comparing to higher models) and it's easy to use. OVF is not that big of a deal, considering that most of this crowd is from using P&S. For those that want more, the K-30 seems to fit the bill very well and at not such a greater cost.

This is what I'm thinking: what could possibly be squeezed between the K30 and the K-01? Too little room...

[Mareket]

#1: Marketing

The one feature it needs more than anything else is Marketing.

[jmg257]

No need to have a bare bone camera to compete with other brands as the newcomers are usually biased toward Canikon because of popularity and other factors. May be a good marketing strategy is to let beginners think that Pentax only offers advanced camera models, e.g. think Leica

This is a tough call...once you start buying lenses and flashes, it is hard to shift brands when stepping up in quality. Kept me in Canon for years. Of course there is the notion that most entry level buyers never buy anything else, so that may not be a big deal.

I say screw Nikon and Canon and go for it! Pentax has some buzz and is getting more & more exposure - build on it!

I say try to get em 1st, and get 'em often with a good line. Give a good (value) place to start AND a good (features) place to grow (after the K-5, we almost NEED a FF next! (that and great AF)).

[cmohr]

For a Entry Level Dslr, IN camera USER Manual, like the entry level Nikons do. So many first time buyers have no idea about slr photography, and an IN camera user manual that they can just hit the "?" mark logo beside a fuction and it brings up the user manual on the back of the camera and explains things like sutterspeed, aperature, ISO, ect, ect, ect, would be a massive help to new users an a good feature to bring in users to Pentax. How many threads and questions do we see from first time users who are unable to read the user manual for their camera, having IN camera manuals would create a far more user friendly experience for them and probably stop them from blaming their cameras for problems because they can solve them there and then. We all have to learn, but some just give up slr's because they just can;t get the hang of it, and thats a shame, IN camera user manuals would change that significantly.

[Tonto]

For a Entry Level Dslr, IN camera USER Manual, like the entry level Nikons do. So many first time buyers have no idea about slr photography, and an IN camera user manual that they can just hit the "?" mark logo beside a fuction and it brings up the user manual on the back of the camera and explains things like sutterspeed, aperature, ISO, ect, ect, ect, would be a massive help to new users an a good feature to bring in users to Pentax. How many threads and questions do we see from first time users who are unable to read the user manual for their camera, having IN camera manuals would create a far more user friendly experience for them and probably stop them from blaming their cameras for problems because they can solve them there and then. We all have to learn, but some just give up slr's because they just can;t get the hang of it, and thats a shame, IN camera user manuals would change that significantly.

Great feature, I like it!

[RioRico]

For a Entry Level Dslr, IN camera USER Manual, like the entry level Nikons do.

I'm ambivalent about this. One one hand, all electronic devices should (and likely eventually will) contain built-in manuals. I think Vernor Vinge predicted that.

But OTOH, my experience here is with my submersible Olympus SW770, which has built-in documentation for each shooting mode. Skip to a mode, wait a moment, and an explanation pops up on the screen. With 25-odd scene modes, this is absolutely necessary, but also greatly slows-down switching between modes. A HELP button would be better.

Yeah, our toys should have integral HELP systems. But then these forums would be lonely places!