[kinega]

I've got a Pentax K5 & I'm very happy with it. I've had it 8 years & got a few lenses & accessories for it. Before the K5 I had a K10 so a long relationship with Pentax. I had an ME Super in the 80s.
But recently I've been thinking it would be nice to upgrade. I like the idea of a few more pixels to play with, better autofocus, better high ISO performance (though I think the K5 is great), a tilting screen & some sort of connectivity. It would be nice to use phone/tablet for remote use & preview image on larger screen. It would also be nice to tether to PC.

This led to some research and I've already posted a question in these forums about the KP. So my research has come to the following conclusions.
Pentax KP: the good bits- 24mp resolution, tilting screen, wi-fi connectivity, better AF & high ISO. The bad bits - mixed reviews about its size/suitability of the various grips. Looking at pictures with biggest grip it still doesn't look like much to hold & its difficult to physically see one in a shop at present. No top display, no IR remote. I know you can use wifi & your phone but I think this is going to take several seconds to fully connect & will irritate me. Different layout of controls, although I'm sure I would get used to it. Smaller battery & different to K5 so would need to buy another spare.

Pentax K3: good bits same size/design as K5, 24mp resolution, better AF & high ISO. Wi-Fi via the flucard which appears to be similar to the KPs builtin wifi functionality, cheaper as not available new so would be used. IR remote. Same battery as K5. Bad bits: no tilting screen, no built in wi-fi

Pentax K3 new version. Good bits: same size/design as K5, better resolution, AF & ISO performance, builtin wi-fi. Bad bits - no tilting screen, price- no firm price yet but likely to be £1200-1500

Nikon Z6. Good bits: good size full frame mirrorless, lots of functions/customisation, tilting touch screen. Bad bits- price, limited range of expensive lens, EVF (not sure how I would get on with this. Its high resolution & its very clever but would need to try one first, again not easy to go into shop & look) I can't justify the £2500 just for body & kit lens plus a longer lens at some point for likely the same money. If I win the Lotto this would have serious consideration.

So the current favourite option is a used K3 & flucard. It is almost identical to the K5 with better performance. If I need to use it in a low position where a tilting screen would be usefeul I can use liveview on my phone or tablet. My existing lenses & accessories will all be compatible.

Appreciate any thoughts or comments to agree or argue against this.

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Last edited by Sandy Hancock; 12-19-2020 at 03:01 PM. Reason: Naughty word

[C_Jones]

If you want to shoot full frame I would recommend the Pentax K-1 II. If you want to shoot APS-C I would recommend you wait for the new model K-3 III. I have a Pentax K-1 II and it is excellent. I also have a K-3 II and it is also excellent. The new K-3 III looks like quite an upgrade if you decided to wait for that.

[automorphism]

I would check to make sure the flucard and mobile solution is a workable one. I've heard a lot of poor experiences from wifi connectivity (both first party and third party). A better option for ISO would be the K1 or KP, both of which would be better than the K3, which is quite old now.


Also, I would recommend checking on the Nikon Z5 as well. They can be had used for under 1KUSD.

[Cerebum]

KP, all day long. If you can afford a K1, go for that,but I have a K3 & a KP and have no problem with the grip. By choice I use the medium one. It has an additional dial, like the K1, better AF than the K3, better IQ, and is proving to be very reliable. You can improve grip and battery life with a battery grip. I love mine and have been shooting more than 1k images per month

[aslyfox]

IMHO

[ btw, I am not a photographic expert, just some one who posts a lot ]

what are your photographic goals

the full frame sensor options - K 1 and K 1 II are good for some things and the ASP-C sensors good for others

check the reviews for more info

the K 5 II and K 5 IIs are good improvements on the K 5

the K 3 family ( K 3, K 3 II and K 3 III ) are still more of an improvement


Pentax K-5 II vs. Pentax K-3 vs. Pentax K-3 III vs. Pentax K-3 II - Pentax Camera Comparison - PentaxForums.com

what is your budget

what is your hurry

would you accept a free KP

Welcome to our surprise Pentax KP raffle!

Each day in from December 7th through December 26th, you can claim one raffle entry, for a maximum of 20 per member.

To claim your daily raffle entry, simply post a reply in this thread each day you want to enter. You first will need to have at least 6 other forum posts on any day you wish to enter. It's as simple as that!

On December 27th, in addition to randomly drawing one grand prize (Pentax KP) winner, we will also draw 3 runners-up who will win their choice of a Pentax Forums T-shirt.



Restrictions:
[LIST][*]this raffle is open to all forum members worldwide[*]winners of PF camera raffles from 2017 and onward are not eligible for the grand prize, but can still win the T-shirt prizes[*]all contest times

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/16-pentax-news-rumors/416609-pentax-kp-g...ml#post5146347

[ramseybuckeye]

This led to some research and I've already posted a question in these forums about the KP. So my research has come to the following conclusions.
Pentax KP: the good bits- 24mp resolution, tilting screen, wi-fi connectivity, better AF & high ISO. The bad bits - mixed reviews about its size/suitability of the various grips. Looking at pictures with biggest grip it still doesn't look like much to hold & its difficult to physically see one in a shop at present. No top display, no IR remote. I know you can use wifi & your phone but I think this is going to take several seconds to fully connect & will p### me off. Different layout of controls, although I'm sure I would get used to it. Smaller battery & different to K5 so would need to buy another spare.

Appreciate any thoughts or comments to agree or argue against this.

I have the KP and will say this, when I first got it I didn't care for the grip (I use the large), it took a couple days to get used to, now the grip on the K-50 doesn't feel as good. The Pentax videos about the K3-III said something about the middle finger and grips, and I realized, they are right. I feel like with the KP I'm better at holding the telephoto (DA*300 and DA 1.4 converter), maybe it just seems that way, perhaps it is the better shake reduction of the KP. I formerly used the IR remote a lot, I started using two second delay and that works fine. If I ever feel I need to trigger from a long distance I'll buy a wireless release on Amazon for $20. I got over the top display after I replaced a K20D with a K-30. The tilting screen is huge for me, I shoot a lot of landscapes and nature using a tripod and using live view and manual focus, it is nice not having to lay down when shooting low. Until you have used a tilt screen you really don't know how nice it is. I have only connected wifi to transfer photos, I will say it connects easier than the Sony a6000 I had, but the Sony transfer files faster.

I struggle to see how using wifi to trigger the KP is a negative, but it's a plus on using live view on the K-3, is the flu card that much better than built in wifi? If you really want to use the phone screen why not wait for the K-3III, and don't forget the K-1 too. They are all going to be an upgrade, but also look at the year each one has been introduced compared to the K-5. My stock answer when new users come and ask what to buy is to buy the latest technology you can afford. You won't go wrong on any, but some may keep you from wanting to upgrade again sooner.

[Sandy Hancock]

The KP a great little camera - the first thing to go in my travel kit. Sigh.... remember travel??

Anyway, back on topic: the grips are fine. I have a video somewhere of me juggling my KP through my finger tips with the DFA150-450 attached. I'll try to dig it up.

I have missed the lack of IR remote a couple of times, but there are work-arounds as you mentioned. The lack of top LCD is a minor inconvenience, but not a deal-breaker.

I think you would find it a revelation compared to the K-5. It was a fabulous camera for its time and no doubt will continue to serve you well as a back-up to whatever you decide upon.

[Mooncatt]

I've looked into those Wi-Fi SD cards, and the reviews are so mixed that I wouldn't want to spend the money to test it myself. I have the K3 II, and I just ignore that functionality all together. The image quality of the KP will be better, but I think the difference between it and the K3 (original or mkII) is almost splitting hairs and wasn't a big deciding factor when I was looking at them. For me, it was all about the grip, and shutter button placement. You can swap the grips on the KP, but you'll still have to reach back further to take the photo. Coming from another camera with a grip similar to the K3's, that just didn't seem natural.

Something else the K3 has over the KP is dual SD card slots. If you want to explore the Astrotracer functions, the K3 II can do it out of the box with built in GPS in place of a pop-up flash. I'm pretty sure their shutters are rated at twice the usage of the KP as well.

I personally wouldn't hold out for the K3 III, unless you are just very patient and don't mind the high price tag it's expected to have.

[Jeff]

I've got a Pentax K5 & I'm very happy with it. I've had it 8 years & got a few lenses & accessories for it. Before the K5 I had a K10 so a long relationship with Pentax. I had an ME Super in the 80s.
But recently I've been thinking it would be nice to upgrade. I like the idea of a few more pixels to play with, better autofocus, better high ISO performance (though I think the K5 is great), a tilting screen & some sort of connectivity. It would be nice to use phone/tablet for remote use & preview image on larger screen. It would also be nice to tether to PC.

This led to some research and I've already posted a question in these forums about the KP. So my research has come to the following conclusions.
Pentax KP: the good bits- 24mp resolution, tilting screen, wi-fi connectivity, better AF & high ISO. The bad bits - mixed reviews about its size/suitability of the various grips. Looking at pictures with biggest grip it still doesn't look like much to hold & its difficult to physically see one in a shop at present. No top display, no IR remote. I know you can use wifi & your phone but I think this is going to take several seconds to fully connect & will irritate me. Different layout of controls, although I'm sure I would get used to it. Smaller battery & different to K5 so would need to buy another spare.

Pentax K3: good bits same size/design as K5, 24mp resolution, better AF & high ISO. Wi-Fi via the flucard which appears to be similar to the KPs builtin wifi functionality, cheaper as not available new so would be used. IR remote. Same battery as K5. Bad bits: no tilting screen, no built in wi-fi

Pentax K3 new version. Good bits: same size/design as K5, better resolution, AF & ISO performance, builtin wi-fi. Bad bits - no tilting screen, price- no firm price yet but likely to be £1200-1500

Nikon Z6. Good bits: good size full frame mirrorless, lots of functions/customisation, tilting touch screen. Bad bits- price, limited range of expensive lens, EVF (not sure how I would get on with this. Its high resolution & its very clever but would need to try one first, again not easy to go into shop & look) I can't justify the £2500 just for body & kit lens plus a longer lens at some point for likely the same money. If I win the Lotto this would have serious consideration.

So the current favourite option is a used K3 & flucard. It is almost identical to the K5 with better performance. If I need to use it in a low position where a tilting screen would be usefeul I can use liveview on my phone or tablet. My existing lenses & accessories will all be compatible.

Appreciate any thoughts or comments to agree or argue against this.

What is your budget? It would help in order to give a more tailored response to what is a very important question, and one that many of us have been through.

[ShutterPro]

Personally I have the K-70 and I took some amazing pictures with it. I'd recommend it. But if I had to choose a new camera I would go for APS-C - either the KP, or the K-3 III. But that's a question of your budget...
But the K-70 is great (just aging a bit by now).

[officiousbystander]

KP, all day long.

I also bought the battery grip which will take the K5 battery. If you're patient there are occasional KP+battery grip packages which are great value.

[david94903]

I moved from the K20d to the K5 to the K3 to the K-1. Truthfully, as great as the K3 is, I could have stayed with my K5 and been perfectly happy. The K5 series had sole. The K3 is a technically excellent body but to me was lacking in the sole category. That upgrade didn't feel significant for my shooting style, I was always a little disappointed on my return on investment. That being said, I've clicked a bijillion shutter actuations on my K3 and it still good as new. And the results are great.


However, the jump the the K3 to the K-1 was earth earth shattering (okay, that's probably a little over the top but...). The K-1 felt like my upgrade to the K5, but a bit more on steroids. The K-1 is amazing. The K-1 has that Pentax sole. It changed a lot about the way I shot, all for the better. The dynamic range difference alone is worth the price of admission. And it challenged me to be better. For me the return on investment value was there and immediate. Yes, I had to upgrade my kit to have more full frame lenses over time, and I had to leave behind a few old DA favorites, but I got to also dust off a few of my old M, F and FA lenses that really shine on the K-1. At the end of the day, upgrading to the K-1 was well worth it for me.


Ask yourself what it is you need, or want. Make a list. Does your current kit satisfy those needs and wants? If so, I'd stay with what you have. But if your current kit doesn't, I suggest looking to the K-1 if you are truly looking for more and not just more of what you have already.

[Cerebum]

I also bought the battery grip which will take the K5 battery. If you're patient there are occasional KP+battery grip packages which are great value.

I managed to get a KP grip, mint in box for £120, you just have to keep your eyes open

[DWS1]

The K70 is also a great camera.

[johnyates]

Truthfully, as great as the K3 is, I could have stayed with my K5 and been perfectly happy

This.

My K-5 was getting long in the tooth, so I bought the K-3 as a 'backup' as there were no 2nd hand K-5iis available at the time I was looking. I like the K-3 just fine, but my heart still belongs to the K-5.

One of the reasons I prefer the K-5 is the smaller file size. I don't need more resolution. Not looking forward to having to upgrade my computer. And the K-5 has a wonderful dynamic range.


And, every once in a while I shoot a vertical shot on the K-3, my neanderthal brow accidentally actuates the live view button.

My advice: upgrade to a K-5iis now and in a few years when they're cheaper get a preowned K-1.