Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
03-05-2018, 12:49 PM
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There still many specialized camera shop, but most don't specialize in Pentax. I am convinced you'll still find them in a few years, maybe less as the market is skrinking. But they'll be there anyway.
For me the change in brick or mortar stores is that you have to adapt. Before you just needed to pay for good location and there was no other choice so people brought from you. Today with the hyper markets, the internet and all you have to really provide a service beside having a physical place and some things to sell.
The manufacturer can help that, and sure that Canon for example is better at that game. No need to look for apple. But this also come from the store itself, what kind of service does it provide that I'd want ? Quality repear center ? Good advices ? Nice discount if I am a regular buyer ? Trust that they apply the warrenty and find me a solution fast ? All the models to try ? Maybe possibility to rent or try for a week ? Traning courses or advices ?
I am sure there a lot one can do !
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
02-21-2018, 03:18 PM
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For me at 6400 iso the difference is already clearly visible on most shots. Maybe if you shot at iso 800 or iso 100 for most shots there no visible difference but that's not the case of iso 3200 ou 6400.
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Forum: Pentax K-70 & KF
02-17-2018, 01:35 PM
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The interresting point of the story for me isn't the tripod that was well secured or not, great or not. Honestly it isn't even that the screen was destroyed neither. Actually I am not sure there even a point.
Yes an articulated screen is overall much more fragile than a non articulated one. That just how it is. But if you need an articulated screen, something quite conveniant when shooting with a tripod, I must admit. Then you get a camera with it. Too bad if it break... That happen.
If you don't need it, then there no reason to care for getting one. And maybe the other model without articulated screen as other quite interresting features for it too that you either don't care or on the contrary may be extremely useful.
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
02-09-2018, 01:49 PM
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Overall the Q was an interresting try. m4/3 market was already full. Q failed. But they tried something. m4/3 would have been "me too"
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
02-01-2018, 02:25 AM
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- I don't think people buy an FF sensor just for the MP count and a 30MP APSC sensor would require very expensive lenses to shine. On the opposite, people even buy modern 12 or 24MP FF no issue. Actually the most advanced FFs are all somewhat low pixel count.
- FF eat most of the 645z market already. Actually all major players have an FF camera that has enough pixels so that 645z does not shine thanks to its number of pixels... Be it Sony 42MP, Nikon 45MP or Canon 50MP, you don't buy a 645z for pixel count. How many pixels the new Pentax FF will have will not change anything on that topic... Except if they go very fa like 75Mp. This would be a game changer.
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
01-27-2018, 02:28 PM
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I use my cheap gear because I'am myself cheap guy that like the terrible cheap quality photos I take with it on vacation. Imagine that before the A7 and still available to me I have a K3, ever worse dynamic range, high iso, tonal range... Everything so much worse.
And I even used it with the 55-300... Difficult to go more cheap than me to reach 300mm... I actually had to get near equator to get enough light to get some photos out of that uter garbage... Quality is so bad I am not even sure you'll be able to tel appart the photos of the elephant from the one of gnus... Elephant by Nicolas, sur Flickr Morning Zebra by Nicolas, sur Flickr Wildebeests by Nicolas, sur Flickr The lion looking at its kingdom by Nicolas, sur Flickr
Seriously, I prefer to get a few day more there in vacations or in Vietnam, Cambodge, India, Icelad and so on than to get too much fancy gear...
Story of a cheap guy with its cheap: A7 + 28-75, K3 with DA15, DA21, FA31, FA77... Only cheap gear. I wonder how most of the forum should feel ? Uterly poor ?
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
01-27-2018, 10:44 AM
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Still independantly, I think the K1 is yes a bit expensive for what it is. In form of expensive DSLR, I find the D850 as the most interresting all rounder. If I was to buy an FF DSLR, it would be more a D610: better price, lighter in the bag, much better lens echosystem.
So yes I do think that Pentax shall adress the price driven consumers as well as the high end. K1 being alone is a bit limiting in the middle;
But with a K1-II, they can drop the price of K1, ensure to have an offering most would find very interresting with great value and also cover the high end for the one that want it. So I say great move.
And it isn't me that decided that. If they come with a K1-II that would be Pentax actually doing it. I just said I find the strategy great.
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
01-27-2018, 10:27 AM
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Agree and it nice for all of us to find our style or admit we may not have the perfect setup. By definition most of us will not have the perfect setup if only because our needs change over time and the available products too.
I learned photography as amateur, with Pentax mostly. I gone to few forums, reads books, took many photos and all. Tried zooms, prime, fast, slow, big small lenses. Now I start to feel like I can settle a bit and see what correspond to me.
In the end the gear is far less important than the rest: subject lighting, composition. As such why bother with big/heavy/expensive? Make no sense as an amateur. As a pro, sure.
I feel like the cheap FF is a nice compromize: 99% of the quality of the high end FF for photos, better than high end APSC for the same price and on get it with cheaper slowers lenses. It is also more conveniant smaller/lighter in the bag.
For many APSC with kit lens and maybe one 50mm prime is better compromize, for most, it is whatever come with the smartphone. For other you need the best possible. Each to its own.
I was in aggreement with old Pentax philosophy. That's why I am there, and that why I have Pentax gear. Well not even, I got there because I read a review the K5 was a great high iso performer and I appreciated the limited after that. Recents changes do not fit me. Big/Heavy/Expensive. So if there no change, slowly yes, I'll sell my gear and go toward Sony. I'd stay if they release an FF K mount mirrorless before I sell my lenses. Do not look like they will. And really that's fine they produce what they want, I buy what I want.
My father gone to the same conclusion, except he is more drastic in his choice. He think with modern electronics performance, an m4/3 + kit lenses and a few prime is enough and now invest in that and no more in Pentax. Being much older than me he explain me that it was the trend in photography since its creation: lighter/smaller. Not the other way around. Being practical.
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
01-27-2018, 10:16 AM
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The smartphone market is huge like 100 time bigger, and apple has something like 15% of that market. In 1 year, apple is selling more smartphone than Pentax has sold camera in the last 30 years. Apple problem is finding ways to spend its money. Would they want it, they could buy Canon, Sony, Nikon & Pentax without having to ask a bank for a credit.
Apple managed be be back in business first with itunes and ipods and then with iphones. That 2 major innovation and products like Pentax when they did the Pentaprism or Sony the walkman.
But the different is that Pentax did it long long ago. Today people do not know about Pentax. Everybody know of apple. If you prefer this isn't about market share. This is about volume and absolute number for money.
You can be Boing and sell only a few hundred a year and make a profit, but there still lot of money to be made. But people don't pay 50 millions dollars for a camera, they don't buy a new one every 2 years neither and don't always have one in their pocket.
The market is small, and as such it is much harder to stay relevant as a tiny play. Not everybody can become Leica. That market itself is even much smaller... There also fixed cost, like designing a new AF sensor, implementing 4K video and so on. The less you sell, the less spread it is.
Canon may make more money on an entry level DSLR body than Pentax is making on a K1, because all their R&D cost is spread on 20-50 time more sales and things like manufacturing costs or advertising can be spread among more sales.
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
01-27-2018, 07:38 AM
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Deleted => to comply to moderator advice.
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
01-27-2018, 07:34 AM
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It would dig into K1 sales and it would broaden the sales overall by people more interrested by that set of compromizes. So it would be doing both.
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
01-27-2018, 07:04 AM
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I am not worthy enough for you with K3, DA10-17, DA15, DA21, FA31, FA77, FA135 to participate to Pentax forum because I brought gear from a competitor too ?
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
01-27-2018, 06:57 AM
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It is actually BECAUSE they don't have a strategy for people that want the price and don't have a body that can keep up with high end they are there.
The K1-II can fix both issue. I don't see why do you complain. Would that hurt you that much to have many happy people getting a K1 at a low price and people that want the latest greatest to get a more refined product than K1 ? Maybe BSI, 4K, new AF module, a bit faster bursts and deeper buffer...
What the issue with that, really ? You really want them to fail that much just because you got the K1 for $300-500 more when it came out? Come on.
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
01-27-2018, 06:45 AM
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I brought the Sony A7 for Christmas, got it for €900 with kit lens. So that make it €750 body only. This is a great price. K1 isn't much better, no really better AF, heavier, bigger, back/front focus issues inherent to its AF system... Why shall I pay much more for that sort of things. Doesn't at all make sense.
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
01-26-2018, 01:03 PM
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Yes, as it will not happen today but in 6 months yes. And $1500 is only $300 bellow introduction price for something like 2 year later. What the problem ? This may be more substainable than make a low spec 24MP FF that may cost more to manufacture due to low volume. K1 is already available.
The K1 isn't really highend on some aspects, it is hard to justify the $2000+ segment but on the opposite, Pentax can't make much money from buyers with lot of money if they don't price it high.
With K1 + K1-II, market segmentation is possible. Because honestly this is that. The additional batch of K1 is maybe costly $300 to Ricoh per unit. Maybe less, maybe more, but this is a low price. Maybe K1-II will cost $200 more for the BSI sensor or something if they take it. They'll price it $1000 more so no issue. Most of the cost is R&D and also the bodies taking dust at shops or warehouses now that the early adopter all got their own. The cost isn't really manufacturing. The problem then is getting enough money to cover the cost and to make a benefit.
Bellow $1500, even better maybe $1200-$1300, you get many people that want to get they toes wet on FF but don't want to spend $2000-3000 on it. And at that price, maybe having pixel shift or 36MP or better high iso while the other FF in the price range are typically 24MP would give a differentiation, would give sales. The AF of Pentax K1 is soso, but the AF of theses FF bodies in the $1000-1500 isn't better while the FF in the $2000+ range kill the K1 for AF performance. If they could pay $3000+ they would already think of A7RIII, D850 or Canon 5D IV. Not a K1, and honestly likely not a K1-II except if it really have something outstanding, unique and well marketed that the other don't have.
Pentax has almost no market share and is behind technology wise. The echosystem is not as good as the competition. Many say go highend, but there still isn't a justification for anybody to get a Pentax vs something else if he isn't invested in Pentax and Pentax users are not expecting Leica out of Pentax. Otherwise they would have a Leica already.
By making things attractive, with price and packed with features, then you get people on board, and theses people will actually spend more over the years. If they brought a Canikon or Sony like 99% of them because pentax has nothing outstanding in the segment, they never switch later on. It is just not substainable for them to buy a 6D or D610, a lens or 2 and in two year upgrade to K1-III instead of a D810 or 5D mark IV. Why would they take the Pentax while they have Canon, Nikon or Sony lenses ? No way.
if Pentax doesn't provide more for the price as they are the underdog and have obvious shortcomings that detractors will not hesitate to mention, there no way they are going to make money. They'll never get enough volume to fund R&D for high end.
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
01-26-2018, 11:32 AM
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Agree with you, but that doesn't mean consumers don't act like that. Actually most of the consumers just buy a DSLR when the old one stop working of many every 10 years and just with the kit lenses.
Sure some buy a cheap body quite often changing it to the latest greatest gimmick, we have quite a few there that hope that the new body will mean the kit lens will suddenly perform as well as the pro f/2.8 zoom thank to the new electronics, but this usually doesn't work. We have people like that that brought K30 then K50 then KS2, then K70 and that brought old 55-300, then HD55-300 and now 55-300. Some don't even sell the old gear.
They spent more overall than if they got higher end gear once, but this isn't their way. They don't like what is big/heavy. They don't like to have to spend lot of money in a single run, they don't like they don't get the pleasure to get often a new toy... They are more interested in the electronics specs...
Anyway, in all case, if you want to sell to them, you have to a product that target them. The K50 was not even different than the K30 but people were thinking it must be better. K70 and KS2 are the same product except the K70 a bit better at high iso, but some people brought both...
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
01-26-2018, 10:11 AM
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To me a K1-II is great, it would provide justification to down price the K1 to maybe $1000-1500 in the mid term and make ot more competititive/attractive. it would provide the entry level FF offering that Pentax is really lacking. There the 28-105, if a 70-300 is released, there a complete cheap FF offering a user can even get an FA35 or FA50 on top.
This could justify a K1-II in the $2000-3000 range, allowing Pentax to make quite some money on the latest greatest and provide some missing feature of the K1 like:
- Better burst (FPS, buffer)
- 4K video, mandatory theses day if only as a check box (I don't care and we don't care, but that a check box you need).
- Bump the pixels to have as many as the others, say 42MP (I don't care and we don't care as 36 or 42 is the same anyway, but many care)
- Maybe improve other things like the AF (I think many care there).
- Overall ensure the like of D850 or A7RII / A7RII don't look that much better than the K1-II in critical areas.
An APSC body could come shortly after as APSC flagship providing the extra feature of the FF flagship to the APSC world... A bit like D5 vs D500.
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
01-26-2018, 09:56 AM
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People that go for high end APSC DSLR (= $1500-1800 by today standard) with expensive/big f/2.8 APSC lenses are quite similar to people that go FF. There are FF like the K1, A7, A7-II, 6D, 6D-II that are the same price or even quite cheaper. So I am not sure that so interresting you get far less sharpness, worse high iso, same body size and could just get an f/4 lens is size of the lens matter for you.
I think most sales are still APSC and are still in the bellow $1000 segment. Most of theses people buy nothing else or a 50mm prime, & maybe 55-300 or 17-50 f/2.8 from tamron.
I agree there are many high end APSC lenses sold but that because in the past FF was much more expensive and there many people invested in ASPC. And for Pentax, it was because there was no choice.
Now that there is choice, I am not sure so many people in Pentax would follow the ultra high end APSC route instead of mid-end FF route for similar price. In particular if the technology for the ultra high end APSC is not really there, but the price the same (think D5 AF in D500 for example...).
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
01-26-2018, 09:43 AM
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Agree on the short term. A K1-II would be brought by existing Pentaxians.
But if you have to rely on Canikon entry level models and lenses for people to get they foot in photography, they may never actually decide to switch to Pentax when wanting to upgrade to FF.
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
01-26-2018, 01:13 AM
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Go a defective DA15 with terrible decentering, pentax "repeared it" I paid for it., and got me back a failing terribly lens in another part of the image. Got another one paying for it... And it is better but still has some issue on some photos. O don't blame Pentax that much I understand what is consumer grade support and repear center, but I was not impressed neither.
Mostly agree except I don't see it as foresight but more that I don't care for fast burst at all and it doesn't make sense if the AF doesn't follow anyway.
But what sealed the fate of Pentax for me was it doesn't fit the basic requirement of what I wanted my next camera to be, and provided things I didn't care. End of story. Basically no small/light FF body and no constant apperture 24-105 f/4 lens to mount on it and an AF that even if it was to improve a lot would be subject to back/front focus like all DSLR. On top of it in the past years, they focussed on big/heavy lenses, something that I am not interrested in at all.
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
01-18-2018, 01:23 AM
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Ok let's do it again.
Let's search Pentax K1 and google and look at the best price and see what we get:
- Used offers on Rakuten and ebay 1709€.
- New on a well considered vendor still cheap: 1999€
- standard price on many most well known vendors: 2299€.
- The cheapest price on the grey market is by One Shop digital,getting it from Hong Kong at 1591€.
Let's search A7 with the 28-75 included as usually the price is no more than the body alone:
- 800€ on Rakuten
- Standard price on many most well known vendors: 999€.
=> In both case you can resell the lens for at least 150€, so that put the price of the body alone at something like 650-850€.
Let's search A7RII, body only:
- Used offers on Rakuten: 1789€
- New on well considered vendor: 2890€
- standard price on many shops: 2890€
- The cheapest price on the grey market is by E-Infinity Online Camera Store: 1759€
Sony offer 300€ cash back for A7RII and 100€ for A7, I didn't check for Pentax but I guess there a similar offering ?
The price of K1 and A7RII is similar on grey market and used. The A7RII is more expensive if you take standard shop, that's true. If you only want an FF body, the A7 price is much much better.
Having said all that, I don't see the K1 has that well positioned or cheap or whatever. If you just want an FF and don't care of super high resolution as basically 24MP is enough for most use cases, there many cheaper FF out there. The A7 is much much cheaper. It is 20% cheaper than the A7RII at standard price but that not especially surprising as the A7RII has some key features it deal better with: video/AF essentially. If you want to get K1 or A7RII at a great price either used or on grey market, price are similar.
If you'd want high-end offering. K1 isn't the most high end body by far.
K1 was great when it came out as an overall deal. It is still great if you have lot of K-mount FF investment already or if you really find something out of the Pentax DNA. But other than that today, with current prices for somebody not already heavily invested in Pentax, it doesn't have anything particulary interresting. The price isn't great, it is so-so. And if you are invested elsewhere or new on the market, there absolutely no reason to target it more than anything else.
To switch is mostly to see what fantastic things are there in another brand you want and Pentax may not offer. It will be by definition depend of what you value the most of course. But counting that the other brand have many differentiator vs pentax, it may be completely justified. The reverse is true, even if I tend to think that most of Pentax strength are also available on other brand now (pixel shift, IBIS, ergonomics, sturdy WR bodies) and Pentax has clearly shifted in term of price. it is no longer a value brand offering more for less.
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
01-17-2018, 02:14 PM
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If you are after a price now, you don't really care WHY it is expensive and not interresting right now and that it might be interresting in 5 years from now...
5 years from now, you just double check what is available at the time and decide then. If you are not yet invested somewhere else and if you still have some need to satisfy...
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
01-17-2018, 02:05 PM
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Actually I try to get the best price for things that tends to be costly. I don't bother necessarily if it cost a few hundred bucks, but for things that cost more than €/$1000, it start be somewhat significant money, a few day of work after taxes, a plane ticket to the other side of earh to get some nice vacation, the food for a few months... In that case, I tend to take more care, and if I can get a nice used offer, get an alternatve brand (like sigma/tamron) or if a different seller that I can check is serious can get me a better price, I'll go for it.
Of course if that pocket money for you, there no reason to even compare prices and In can perfectly understand it.
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
01-14-2018, 05:59 AM
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Exactly that except i guess that 24-105 f/4 you speak of... On my side I got the A7, less that half the weight and quite smaller than K1 and plan for getting the 24-105 soon. That's pragmatic, great quality, decent high iso, overall quite small/light kit for the quality packed inside and damn conveniant.
A7 + 24-105 f/4 is cheaper, ligher, smaller than K1 + 28-105 and more interresting. 24 vs 28, f/4 vs f/3.5-5.6... Interestingly even as Sony is extremely expensive already, there more cheap/affordable prime lenses avaible Samyang 14, 35, 50 AF lenses, Sony FE28, FE50 and FE85...
The only benefit of K1 is the max resolution and bit better high iso but that can be handled with an A7RII on grey market or used for same price as the K1... In exchange you get on top much better AF, video and a body that can AF most MF lenses thanks to the TechPro Art.
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
01-14-2018, 05:47 AM
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I don't agree at all for the new FF system. Many lenses are not there at all or from Sigma/Tamron, the older version as the new ones are not available at all.
Pentax has only expensive high end lenses available new even the 28-105 is not cheap just a bit cheaper than say the Canon 24-105 f/4 I... The affordable FF primes available new are restricted to FA35 & FA50. There no cheap 70-300 outside the older versions of sigma/tamron... The new f/2.8 primes for Pentax are extremely expensive and for some just rebadged tamron you can get at better price in Canikon.
If you go for Pentax FF you should go there because you love the brand and the specifities offered like pixel shift, astro tracer and other things like that. You'll not save money there if you are not already heavily invested in K-mount.
If you want small light, that more like Sony if you know what you are doing. If you want nicely priced AF lenses and lot of choice, that's Canon. If you want the best AF for action/sports that Nikon. If you want to play with MF lenses from any manufacturer and a great experience when focussing manually that Sony again.
Pentax is a small player that bring together some interresting stuff but it can't really compete with the others on their strengths. It doesn't compete well with price of lenses, AF, the variety of lenses or even manual focussing experience (no mirrorless).
It compete if you love the old FAltds, if you love the Pentax ergonomics, pixel shift, IBIS and astrotracer. And most of it was really a differentiator 5 years ago. Now the competition Panasonic, Olympus & Sony have most of it too.
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