[pepperberry farm]

Unfortunately many newer K-mount DSLRs suffer from a problem which causes them to lose the ability to close the lens aperture (caused by failure of a solenoid). The K70 suffers from this but so did the models which preceded it: K30, K50, K-S1, K-S2). Having fallen victim to the first major failure since Pentax went digital (SDM focus motor failure in your 17-70mm lens) it would be very unfortunate if you fell victim to the second (solenoid failure).

Given that weight is also important to you I think the obvious type of camera for you would be an APS-C mirrorless such as those from Sony of Fujifilm, which are smaller and lighter than any DSLR while providing the same image quality. My own experience is with Fujifilm and I have to say both cameras and lenses are superb.

I know this is a Pentax forum but personally I cannot in good conscience recommend Pentax gear to someone who obviously would benefit from something different.

and I agree with this statement....

given that buying a second-hand consumer Pentax (K-30/50/70) is something of a gamble, I'd definitely be looking into a different make/model that would allow me to adapt all my current glass and not be concerned with solenoid failure....

[photogem]

Unfortunately many newer K-mount DSLRs suffer from a problem which causes them to lose the ability to close the lens aperture (caused by failure of a solenoid). The K70 suffers from this but so did the models which preceded it: K30, K50, K-S1, K-S2).

This is not quite true, it was only the first badge of the K70 which I explained in all detail HERE

So @mikesbike got it more precise:

I would certainly not buy a used K-70, unless the solenoid had been replaced with the white Japanese version. A new one from a high-volume dealer is the way to go.

Or:

Indeed, if you could find a K-S2 having the white Japanese solenoid already installed, this camera has the controls and other unique features of the K-70 and is yet more compact and even lighter in weight! It even has a unique selfie feature no others have!
It is a very good camera. I bought mine a coupe of years before getting my wonderful KP, and I still value it highly.

Some quite good Pentax photographers even prefer the K-70 over the KP. I have the KP and like it very much but I need it's performance for handheld lowlight, there it has an advantage over the K70 (AF as well, but I would be fine with the AF of the K-S1/2 and K-70).

But I think the TO got a good deal of answers, sometimes I feel a newcomer is kind of drowned with "good will hunting"....

[reh321]

and I agree with this statement....

given that buying a second-hand consumer Pentax (K-30/50/70) is something of a gamble, I'd definitely be looking into a different make/model that would allow me to adapt all my current glass and not be concerned with solenoid failure....

Unfortunately, Pentaxians seem to have long memories. I have seen zero evidence that the solenoid has continued to create problems, once Pentax made their latest mod and applied it to all latest production models of the K-70, but I would agree about the K-30, K50, K-S1, K-S2, and used K-70’s.

[krgroothuis]

Hello everybody!

I am astounded by the energy invested in all of the answers. Also the somewhat impatient ones I had totally not expected this. I shall give a little more background to my question.

The weight of the K200d is not a problem for a lack of muscles in my arms, but another thing I love to do is walk through mountains (Crete, often, and I carry ultralight stuff.Then, a 1,5+ kilo camera is really a lot. I used a canon powershot g7x mark ii for this, and it takes quite decent pictures. But I lost it last summer. I thought about replacing it with the same camera (there is no development in compact camera's) but I would like to have more control over the picture, and more zoom. I used my telephone for pictures on the track, and it is not too bad. And apart from that, I use maps, gps, and a lot of other useful apps on the phone. But I still miss a real camera. Also at home, which is Holland. I am a youngster, it seems, only 66.

So I again was faced with the question which leads to this thread. Obviously, by posting this on the forum, there is the hope that I can use my pentax stuff. Over time, I payed thousands of euro's (guilders) for it, and if I sell it, I might 10% of that. And I liked pentax. I photograph anything I fall visually in love with, landscape, people, nature. A phone is rather limited to work with. So I need zoom and macro and something in between..

I need time to digest all the feedback I graciously received here. It seems the DA 17-70mm lens is basically not usable which is a pity, I found it to be a fantastic lens, apart from the AF problems. I have tried a variety of battery's for my K200D, duracel, eneloop (not professional) and got an almost immediate 'low battery' signal. So this body seems not to be ideal. I see a K-70 is available, second hand, for 500 euro, or with SMC DA 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 ED AL DC WR for 880. And as I understand it, I can use my other lenses on this body? I still have a Tamron 28-300 1:3,5-6,3, Sigma 70-300 1:4-5,6, and a Tamron SP Di 90 mm 1:2,8 macro. From before I upgraded to the Pentax lens.

Other lenses available, second hand, are:
- HD Pentax-DA 20-40mm F2.8-4 Limited DC WR €550
- SMC Pentax-DA 15mm F4 ED AL Limited €350
- SMC Pentax-F 28mm F2.8 €175

Since I have no experience with these lenses, advice would be appreciated. Apart what I already have in the lens department, should I get me one of these?

Thank you for bearing with me this far, greetings from Holland.

I think that you first should check what firmware is on your K200D. I also owned this camera. But I discovered improvement using Eneloops , after a software update. Afterwards it worked oke with the eneloops. You can buy a new set at IKEA. They sell rebranded Eneloops !

[reh321]

Hello everybody!

I am astounded by the energy invested in all of the answers. Also the somewhat impatient ones I had totally not expected this. I shall give a little more background to my question.

The weight of the K200d is not a problem for a lack of muscles in my arms, but another thing I love to do is walk through mountains (Crete, often, and I carry ultralight stuff.Then, a 1,5+ kilo camera is really a lot. I used a canon powershot g7x mark ii for this, and it takes quite decent pictures. But I lost it last summer. I thought about replacing it with the same camera (there is no development in compact camera's) but I would like to have more control over the picture, and more zoom. I used my telephone for pictures on the track, and it is not too bad. And apart from that, I use maps, gps, and a lot of other useful apps on the phone. But I still miss a real camera. Also at home, which is Holland. I am a youngster, it seems, only 66.

So I again was faced with the question which leads to this thread. Obviously, by posting this on the forum, there is the hope that I can use my pentax stuff. Over time, I payed thousands of euro's (guilders) for it, and if I sell it, I might 10% of that. And I liked pentax. I photograph anything I fall visually in love with, landscape, people, nature. A phone is rather limited to work with. So I need zoom and macro and something in between..

I need time to digest all the feedback I graciously received here. It seems the DA 17-70mm lens is basically not usable which is a pity, I found it to be a fantastic lens, apart from the AF problems. I have tried a variety of battery's for my K200D, duracel, eneloop (not professional) and got an almost immediate 'low battery' signal. So this body seems not to be ideal. I see a K-70 is available, second hand, for 500 euro, or with SMC DA 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 ED AL DC WR for 880. And as I understand it, I can use my other lenses on this body? I still have a Tamron 28-300 1:3,5-6,3, Sigma 70-300 1:4-5,6, and a Tamron SP Di 90 mm 1:2,8 macro. From before I upgraded to the Pentax lens.

Other lenses available, second hand, are:
- HD Pentax-DA 20-40mm F2.8-4 Limited DC WR €550
- SMC Pentax-DA 15mm F4 ED AL Limited €350
- SMC Pentax-F 28mm F2.8 €175

Since I have no experience with these lenses, advice would be appreciated. Apart what I already have in the lens department, should I get me one of these?

Thank you for bearing with me this far, greetings from Holland.

My needs are similar to yours. I use my KP at home and when my car can transport me, but I am finding it increasingly a burden if I have to walk any distance. My personal solution is a “Q”, but Pentax seems to have discontinued it, so it now requires careful reading of offers of used units, so I cannot recommend it. For example, I purchased a used Q-7 {that yellow camera in my signature photo} in December 2014 with a shutter count of around 50 for about $300. This past Fall, that unit began showing its age {wasn’t reliably responsive to button presses}, so I ended up with a Q-S1 with a shutter count of about 100 for about what I had paid in 2014, but I had to look and look at eBay. I found that most sellers are unwilling to do anything beyond what they advertise. My theory is that they record the facts they think are important, then pack it for shipping, and reversing the process to get new facts is a bother for them.

[Rob Gravelotte]

Aha! Well, yes.... uhm. Haha, For the newbee, him being me, it is a bit overwhelming. Again, I humbly bow to your enthusiasm, knowledge and willingness to place yourself in my small shoes! I have read every post several times, and I probably will do so a few times more. Can you imagine, I never even heard the term solenoid.

I would like to respond to many things I read, but fear that it might make the thread explode. I shall limit myself to my conclusions this far.

I am not going to sell the whole batch. I followed one suggestion, to update the firmware, and to my enormous surprise, the K200d afterwards responded to the duracell non-rechargables with a 'full battery' icon. All the more surprising since I measured the charge in the batteries I took out (also duracell), and they all read 1,5. Maybe the camera did not want to be sold. So, I am going to give it a second chance, and find out, how long batterlife will be with these duracells, and also with eneloop rechargables, that are at this instant being refreshed. And I think yes, the k200d does suffer from battery problems. There are many threads about this, users report totally different experiences.

I also will find out if the camera takes good pictures, also in low light, which seemed to be an issue. Even in my room, in daylight, the red light starts flashing. I have to experiment.

If it does not satisfy, I'll look for a secondhand body, there were many suggestions, KP, KS-2. I understand that a jpeg taken by that camera, will tell me what year it was build. That should tell me if there is the danger of the ominous solenoid disaster.

For mountainwalking, I probably will use the phone, which really takes incredible pictures for such a small multifunctional thing. It sometimes makes things look better than they actually do! Colourwise.

Also, I'll probably buy a new lens, I love taking pictures in low light, and what I have, apart from the tamron 90mm macro, is not that good.
Money...

Again, thank you, you have inspired me to put in some effort!
Sincerely, Rob.

[UncleVanya]

ALKALINE battery life is pretty short. The non-rechargeable lithium AA batteries are pretty good (750 shots?) in my k100d super.

[mikesbike]

Also, I'll probably buy a new lens, I love taking pictures in low light, and what I have, apart from the tamron 90mm macro, is not that good.
Money...

Again, thank you, you have inspired me to put in some effort!

Glad to hear you got your K200D working. Nothing wrong with keeping it as backup, even if buying an updated model. You'd not get much for selling it. Its top ISO setting is only 1600. Even at that setting, performance is marginal- just barely "ok". For low light shooting, and much more, I'd say save up to get a low-use, perfect copy of the much-advanced KP. With a KP, ISO 1600 and much higher is a breeze for quality imaging. It is simply in a different league. Pro-level build and great controls- fast, comprehensive, and convenient. It is the advanced photographer's compact model, and very unique in this concept. It is also the only DSLR designed to compete as a compact model against the high-end mirrorless APS-C offerings of other brands, and does so with features (lots of them) and control advantages they do not have. Like them, it is not designed with the bulky right-hand grip common among DSLRs. But should come with its three detachable grips of different sizes to balance better with lenses of different sizes, and for holding preferences when handling the camera other than when shooting. Very unique. No solenoid, no problem. You'd be set for a very long time. My view is, when upgrading only after many years, might as well take a big jump!

Not forgetting, of course, a new K-70 combo with the DA 18-135mm WR lens as a prepackaged kit, from a reputable high-volume dealer should be a late-production camera and thus should be safe, and a bargain for what you get. It too is exceptional for low light shooting.

The very useful DA 18-135mm WR lens would also work beautifully on your K200D, complementing its WR design, as well as on recent models. Again addressing low light shooting, this lens can keep to f/3.5-4.5 between 18-70mm- only about a stop off the expensive 16/17/18-50mm f/2.8 constant-aperture zoom lenses which are quite expensive, large and heavy.

Another very good lens for low light use and for much more, look around for a perfect FA 35mm f/2 prime lens, which can deliver fine quality imaging, even at wide open aperture. This is also a good FL for a compact and useful walk-around prime lens. Although not really all that expensive, if you can get up the money, consider getting a new one- the new HD version (has High-Definition coatings, reducing flair and improving clarity, along with an upgrade in its body design), which is well worth the cost.

[Rob Gravelotte]

Glad to hear you got your K200D working. Nothing wrong with keeping it as backup, even if buying an updated model. You'd not get much for selling it. Its top ISO setting is only 1600. Even at that setting, performance is marginal- just barely "ok". For low light shooting, and much more, I'd say save up to get a low-use, perfect copy of the much-advanced KP. With a KP, ISO 1600 and much higher is a breeze for quality imaging. It is simply in a different league. Pro-level build and great controls- fast, comprehensive, and convenient. It is the advanced photographer's compact model, and very unique in this concept. It is also the only DSLR designed to compete as a compact model against the high-end mirrorless APS-C offerings of other brands, and does so with features (lots of them) and control advantages they do not have. Like them, it is not designed with the bulky right-hand grip common among DSLRs. But should come with its three detachable grips of different sizes to balance better with lenses of different sizes, and for holding preferences when handling the camera other than when shooting. Very unique. No solenoid, no problem. You'd be set for a very long time. My view is, when upgrading only after many years, might as well take a big jump!

Not forgetting, of course, a new K-70 combo with the DA 18-135mm WR lens as a prepackaged kit, from a reputable high-volume dealer should be a late-production camera and thus should be safe, and a bargain for what you get. It too is exceptional for low light shooting.

The very useful DA 18-135mm WR lens would also work beautifully on your K200D, complementing its WR design, as well as on recent models. Again addressing low light shooting, this lens can keep to f/3.5-4.5 between 18-70mm- only about a stop off the expensive 16/17/18-50mm f/2.8 constant-aperture zoom lenses which are quite expensive, large and heavy.

Another very good lens for low light use and for much more, look around for a perfect FA 35mm f/2 prime lens, which can deliver fine quality imaging, even at wide open aperture. This is also a good FL for a compact and useful walk-around prime lens. Although not really all that expensive, if you can get up the money, consider getting a new one- the new HD version (has High-Definition coatings, reducing flair and improving clarity, along with an upgrade in its body design), which is well worth the cost.

Thank you, Mikesbike. I might just take up your suggestions.

[Rob Gravelotte]

Well, an update from the newbee. I purchased a K-5, with 8000 clicks under the hood, and a sigma 17-70 1:2.8/4 macro hsm at MPB. Bit over 300 euro's for both. The body looks really good (supposedly in excellent condition), the lens also works, it is at first glance certainly better than my previous ones, except the Tamron 90 mm. It rattles a bit when I move the camera. But, for now. I am happy. One cannot call this a lightweight camera, but for this money, wow! I looked over some reviews on the lens, and I know there are + and -, but, so far, so good. And an accu!

So, instead of getting rid of the whole batch, I have now increased it.
And of course, I'll start looking for another lens with a little more zoom.

Again, thank you!

[MarkJerling]

The K5 is a really nice camera and was my camera prior to getting the K-1ii. The K5's only disappointment for me was low light performance, but it lives on with it now being my daughter's camera.
And it works as well for her as it did for me.

I think you'll find it a good step up from the K200D. Enjoy Rob!

[reh321]

Well, an update from the newbee. I purchased a K-5, with 8000 clicks under the hood, and a sigma 17-70 1:2.8/4 macro hsm at MPB. Bit over 300 euro's for both. The body looks really good (supposedly in excellent condition), the lens also works, it is at first glance certainly better than my previous ones, except the Tamron 90 mm. It rattles a bit when I move the camera. But, for now. I am happy. One cannot call this a lightweight camera, but for this money, wow! I looked over some reviews on the lens, and I know there are + and -, but, so far, so good. And an accu!

So, instead of getting rid of the whole batch, I have now increased it.
And of course, I'll start looking for another lens with a little more zoom.

Again, thank you!

“One more lens” seems to be part of the Pentaxian addiction.
And with the K-mount history, there is always an old one or a new one to lust for {or to wait for}.

See
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/16-pentax-news-rumors/445498-new-lens-re...d-fa-85-a.html
for a current example.

[UncleVanya]

That 17-70 is a good lens.

[ChristianRock]

The Sigma 17-70 should be a good companion for all-around use - good range, reasonably fast, not huge (for its ability especially).

Do try it sometime on the K200D as well, in good light you might get surprised at how much you get out of that old sensor. And for all your K200D pictures, we have a Club thread for old CCD sensors, and you are very welcome to join and post. It's here: The CCD Sensor Cult. I mean Club... - PentaxForums.com

[jumbleview]

It rattles a bit when I move the camera.

That could be effect of shake reduction system. In that case it is normal. And do not part with your K200D yet. Under the well lighted conditions it may give very special colors, which are hard to achieve with CMOS sensors.