[ThorThum]

According so some people on this forum and the blog-o-sphere, they are wishing the End of Life to my not a year old K200D. I did my research a few months ago when I was in the market for a new DSLR. I admit, I may have been lured into the DSLR market by trying to keep up with the Jones'. My neighbour, at the time, had just bought a new Canon 40D. It was a beautiful camera, and it amazed me how well it picked up colors even after sundown. Then I found out what he paid....$1000 for the kit. My dad, who owned a camera store in the 80s, and I quizzed him on the features. Finally I asked if it could take old Canon lenses, and he squirmed a little, and it came out the old lenses wouldn't work. What about image stabilization....again it was available on the new lenses, not the body. Hmm, I thought I'll keep looking, after all I had a 8mp PnS, and an old Pentax Program plus with some lenses, again from the 80s. Then I saw it.... on the MacRumors photo forum site... that the Pentax lenses were compatible with the new bodies. It piqued my interest, so I did some comparisons.... the 40D had 10.3 MP the K200D had 10.1, the 40D had a bit higher ISO, and faster frame rate, but the K200D had Shake Reduction, and less expensive and backward compatible lenses. Not to mention I found the K200D for about $500, that uses Secure Digital memory cards (which would interchange with my Pns) and AA batteries that could be bought on the road, with out having to have access to electricity to charge a propiaratary battery... The economics started to make more sense.... then I found out about the K200D's weather sealing.... I was sold. I pulled the trigger and have been enjoying my old equipment with the new and never looked back! My neighbour's face still gets a little red when I bring up the subject... But now there is some discussion about the K200D's EOL, poor sales, bad marketing from Pentax, the supposed underexposure problems (better than over exposure IMO) and I just saw the body new for $339.00 yesterday on the net. With the new benchmarks out on DXOmarks website, I did some more comparing of the two cameras..... the K200D scored higher than the 40D on thier sensor tests: K200D versus EOS 40D .... I haven't showed this to my neighbour yet, since it is a sore subject anyway.... but the Jones' might have to try to keep up with me... I ask again what's wrong with my K200D?

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Last edited by ThorThum; 12-11-2008 at 09:37 PM.

[maleek]

Good post. Reading your text makes me think why I bought the K100D. It is one generation older and lacks the precious weather sealing. But it is still my main photographic tool and have yet to let me down.

[shutterpuppy]

Good post. Reading your text makes me think why I bought the K100D. It is one generation older and lacks the precious weather sealing. But it is still my main photographic tool and have yet to let me down.

I also love your post,some people think less expensive = cheap,as in cheaply made. The fact is, the Pentax K series cameras have a stainless steel frame on the inside making much more rugged than the competition. Pentax just needs to advertise more to get the word out. I'm already bored to tears seeing Ashton Kutcher hawk every Nikon model they make now. I would do a TV spot with a side by side comparison against C and N, with a check mark next to each item, so everything you get STANDARD on Pentax is OPTIONAL or have to upgrade to more expensive model on C and N and by all means, mention that old Pentax lenses that might be in someone's closet still work on the newest Pentax cameras. If Pentax marketing team did that, C and N would be left in the dust.

Barry

[Kei]

......The economics started to make more sense.... then I found out about the K200D's weather sealing.... I was sold.

Yes the "economics" is what I can most related to your post, even tho I don't have any old lens prior buying my k200d. It seems to me people who bought into Pentax are either 1) long-time user of Pentax back in the film days; or 2) people who did more research and made educated choice; or 3) both.

[drewdlephone]

Awesome post! I too am a K200D owner, and pulled the trigger for the same reasons you did; primarily backwards compatibililty and economics. I also think Pentax's approach is different (and better) than most in the budget DSLR segment; the K200D is a solid piece of machinery, just not quite as fast as some of the competition. The Canon Rebel series, for comparison, is faster, but feels like a plastic toy.

I use my father's Pentax gear on my K200D; that is to say I have a few SMC Takumar lenses I like to play with. The fact that I can attach any lens from the last 30 years to my camera, and with a $20 adapter, anything back to 1955, is incredible. The idea just doesn't have any traction with people who "have to have it new", and hence don't keep their lenses when they could otherwise do so. There are Takumars out there that can lay waste to many a modern lens, given a skilled operator.

Underexposure is another issue that comes up fairly often with the K200D. After playing with 15 cameras today at work, yeah, I can safely say that the K200D "technically" undexposes under certain lighting. However, I've never seen this to be a problem whilst shooting, and rarely have I had to make post-processing tweaks to the exposure after the fact. Some people will like this little personality trait, some won't. It's a personal preference, but I don't think it's as big a deal as it's made out to be.

I love my K200D. I would probably upgrade to the K30D if I found I wanted the features, but not because of a lack of performance on my camera's part. I am, however, of the opinion that Pentax should get off their duff and market their equipment. It's not like they have anything to be ashamed of.

[aamir515]

when i bought my k100ds, my coworker (she had a d40x) looked down upon me as if i had bought some cheap equipment, but when we compared our photos from the same party, even she had to agree that my pictures looked better than hers.....
so theres nothin wrong with ur k200d, u shud just start lookin down on people who paid way more and got way less.....
peace

[shutterpuppy]

If anybody thinks that some camera brands that cost more are better,just tell them maybe Pentax cost less is because they don't spend millions of dollars in TV spots and magazine ads. Most things of the things you buy that are "name brand" cost more for the same reason. Do you buy store brand sugar sweetened corn flakes or Kellogg's Frosted Flakes because your kids see Tony the Tiger on TV? Marketing is expensive and is passed along to you, the consumer in terms of higher camera prices. I think Pentax should market their cameras too but it would probably result in higher prices for us.

[jglover]

... I ask again what's wrong with my K200D?

Yes, you are correct, your K200D is seriously flawed. Send it to me and I will take care of it for you!

[Conan]

According so some people on this forum and the blog-o-sphere, they are wishing the End of Life to my not a year old K200D. I did my research a few months ago when I was in the market for a new DSLR. I admit, I may have been lured into the DSLR market by trying to keep up with the Jones'. My neighbour, at the time, had just bought a new Canon 40D. It was a beautiful camera, and it amazed me how well it picked up colors even after sundown. Then I found out what he paid....$1000 for the kit. My dad, who owned a camera store in the 80s, and I quizzed him on the features. Finally I asked if it could take old Canon lenses, and he squirmed a little, and it came out the old lenses wouldn't work. What about image stabilization....again it was available on the new lenses, not the body. Hmm, I thought I'll keep looking, after all I had a 8mp PnS, and an old Pentax Program plus with some lenses, again from the 80s. Then I saw it.... on the MacRumors photo forum site... that the Pentax lenses were compatible with the new bodies. It piqued my interest, so I did some comparisons.... the 40D had 10.3 MP the K200D had 10.1, the 40D had a bit higher ISO, and faster frame rate, but the K200D had Shake Reduction, and less expensive and backward compatible lenses. Not to mention I found the K200D for about $500, that uses Secure Digital memory cards (which would interchange with my Pns) and AA batteries that could be bought on the road, with out having to have access to electricity to charge a propiaratary battery... The economics started to make more sense.... then I found out about the K200D's weather sealing.... I was sold. I pulled the trigger and have been enjoying my old equipment with the new and never looked back! My neighbour's face still gets a little red when I bring up the subject... But now there is some discussion about the K200D's EOL, poor sales, bad marketing from Pentax, the supposed underexposure problems (better than over exposure IMO) and I just saw the body new for $339.00 yesterday on the net. With the new benchmarks out on DXOmarks website, I did some more comparing of the two cameras..... the K200D scored higher than the 40D on thier sensor tests: K200D versus EOS 40D .... I haven't showed this to my neighbour yet, since it is a sore subject anyway.... but the Jones' might have to try to keep up with me... I ask again what's wrong with my K200D?

Great post!

[MoiVous]

Well though out post ThorThumb. The supposed EOL and poor sales of the K200D is a matter of perspective.

To answer your initial question - Absolutely NOTHING is wrong with your K200D!
The K200D is rugged, well designed and pretty intuitive. And there are some nice under the hood features like the green button shutter speed setting with manual aperture lenses. In terms of bang for buck, it leaves the others way behind.

Outside of the North America, I think it sells quite well (check out how many Aussies like me have got one lately). What's more, just because a camera ceases produced doesn't make it a poor camera. Seems that the P&S cameras get chucked every 6 months. And the so-called MegaZoom/Prosumers aren't far behind. As one Pentaxian mentioned in another thread, his old *iST is still going, taking great images even though its no longer produced.

There is also one bloggist out there hell bent on besmirching Pentax and the K200D. He's been wrong before and this is just another example. Didn't really issue a proper retraction about the web site error did he?

As for your neighbour - I think he's simply been conned by mass marketing. I dare say he buys what is heavily promoted - not what is the best value.

So well done in highlighting the positives about the K200D and Pentax in general! You can walk down the street proudly displaying your Pentax credentials.

[Kguru]

even she had to agree that my pictures looked better than hers.....

Your next assignment, should you wish to accept it, is to get her to agree that the K200D has helped make you look better than her ... then report back

[Bellakelpie]

Thorthum, Excellent post.

My 1st SLR was an Olympus 1/2 frame, which eventually gave way to a 2nd hand Spotmatic SP, after I borrowed one one day. Since then I have stuck to Pentax (apart from a little used Ricoh KR 5 Super II I picked up for nicks. Nothing wrong with it- basically a tough plastic K1000) and still have all my Pentax film bodies. M42's and K-Mounts. And they all still work just fine.

And I have continued to add to my collection of Super Takumar primes.

Then there is the lens question. Those old M42 Takumar primes can still be obtained for reasonable prices on "FLeabay", except for the 85 mm units, and yes, they produce superb images on DSLR's after you work out the settings for each.

Now, to add further weight to your argument, check out this website and read what is on the
home page.

Digital World for M42 screw mount lenses

And if you want to try one, get one soon as many in the DSLR world, including Canon and Nikkon owners, are buying up these lenses and they are not as cheap as they once were.

Like you guys, I have just bought myself a Pentax DSLR, a K200D. It looks solid and feels it too. Like my Spotties. Makes me feel "at home." Not like the Canon 40D I looked at.

I am sure that it will have the same longevity as my other 4 Pentax film bodies.

I haven't tried it with any of the Super Taks yet. Still figuring out this digital thing with the kit lens.

Why aren't Pentax a big Digital seller? Marketing!!!

The local distributor and the parent company just do not market enough. Certainly not in this country anyway. Even with their Point and Shoot Digitals. We never really come across any promo's for Pentax.

Maybe Hoya make more bucks from their optical division. (Spectacle lenses, lense filters etc) to worry too much about Pentax?