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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 10-03-2018, 07:11 AM  
K3ii replacement
Posted By filmamigo
Replies: 2,451
Views: 236,257
The parallels are accurate, differing only in how fervently Nikon and Pentax insist that the D7xxx and KP are the top of the APS-C line.

D300/s users held their breath for seven years, stamping their feet and demanding a camera. That they finally got one after seven years seems like a mini miracle and more of a good will gesture from Nikon. I would love to see sales figures for the D500 and the D750 and D610. The number of people buying a D500 have to be vanishingly small when they could buy a full frame camera for the same price or less. Especially when Best Buy has the D610 and D750 on the shelves - I've never seen a D500 there.

I think both Pentax and Nikon have been surprised that every advanced amateur didn't quietly move en masse to full frame. But for all the people loudly asking for a flagship APS-C ... how many will actually buy an 1800+ US dollar APS-C camera?
Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 10-01-2018, 07:48 AM  
K3ii replacement
Posted By filmamigo
Replies: 2,451
Views: 236,257
Everyone asking for a Pentax K3 III reminds me of all the crying made by Nikonians waiting for a successor to the D300s. The D500 eventually came but it took SEVEN years.

It was clear that:

1) Nikon considered "serious" use of the APS-C/DX format to be dead - full frame was the real deal
2) The market agreed, as most sales were of entry-level APS-C, and pro sales moving almost entirely to full frame
3) The niche who wanted a "flagship DX" camera were small but vocal. They have real reason to want it, but they are in a really small minority, dedicated to birds-in-flight and similar small subsets of photography.

I bet Pentax sees the same thing. Now that most of the pro/serious market is served by the K1, and they offer VERY good entry level and mid-level APS cameras, the number of purchasers for a "flagship" APS-C camera has to be vanishingly small.

(My position is also coloured by having recently handled a KP. With a few tiny quibbles, this camera is "flagship quality." It clearly has 80% DNA from the K7/K5/K3 line.)
Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 09-27-2018, 06:24 AM  
K3ii replacement
Posted By filmamigo
Replies: 2,451
Views: 236,257
[Shrug]

Nope. The K-1 and KP look great, and look like a Pentax. Line up a Spotmatic, a K2, an LX, and the very well-liked 50th Anniverary K20D. Now put the real icon of Pentax pro cameras beside them -- the Pentax 67. The K-1 and KP all look like they belong to the same family.

As for the slightly innovative controls of the K-1 and KP? Pentax also has been willing in the past to experiment with controls. They led the marketplace to the dual-control-wheel design with the P-Z1p, but that didn't stop them from continuing to explore new ideas with the MZ-S -- still one of the most elegant modern camera control setups, and perfectly suited for digital cameras. The extra dials on the K-1 and KP are in line with other Pentax innovations, and answer some of the different ideas floating around. Want a more "retro" experience with a dedicated knob for ISO or exposure comp (like a Fuji X or Nikon Df)? You've got it with the K-1 or KP. But the extra controls on the K-1 and KP are more fleixble, because the functions are selectable -- very much like the MZ-S.

I hope Pentax keeps the design language of the K-1 and KP for a long time. It's distinctive, works well, and suits both modern (control wheel) shooters and traditionalists (who like dedicated knobs.)
Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 08-28-2018, 01:13 PM  
K3ii replacement
Posted By filmamigo
Replies: 2,451
Views: 236,257
I've been waiting for Pentax to do a "hybrid" viewfinder for a while -- there was a really cool patent filing from Pentax for a hybrid optical SLR/digital EVF viewfinder. That must be more than 5 years ago now...
Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 12-21-2017, 08:29 AM  
K3ii replacement
Posted By filmamigo
Replies: 2,451
Views: 236,257
Mee and Twilhelm, I agree completely.


I'm not surprised by any delay here. Pentax is not a behemoth, with tons of resources to throw at the wall. The K1 is a solid DSLR that should serve well for a large percentage of users who would be in the market for a K3 III+ class APS-C SLR camera.

Pentax must be scratching their head, watching the rest of the world and marketplace shift around them.

High volume consumers are vanishing, increasingly happy with the camera in their iPhone 6/7/8/10 (which frankly are darn good.) Judging by the questions I answer at work (where folks always ask me for camera advice) there is less and less interest in carrying a DSLR system. Many people bought one, and either have no need to upgrade, or they realized they never bring their DSLR anywhere because of size and weight.

Meanwhile, pros and dedicated amateurs are warming to mirrorless, lead there by the pro mirrorless cameras offered by Hasselblad, Fuji and Sony. Pentax is left with SLR-based MF digital and full-frame 35mm digital that suddenly look outdated and clunky.

Yes, there are times you want an optical finder of a DSLR -- birding and high speed sports. But I don't personally know anyone who shoots those, and judging by Flickr the majority of folks shoot landscapes or slow-moving people (portraits.) For this majority, there are real advantages to mirrorless, and the DSLR architecture starts to look clunky and rube-goldbergian.

As a manufacturer (whether it's Pentax or Nikon) you have to look at Sony and Fuji and Hassy and think .... here's a way to make desirable cameras that cost less to engineer, manufacture and support, and/or offer a better profit margin.

If Pentax (and Nikon) aren't having these thoughts, then I worry about them still being here in ten years time.

The move to mirrorless is inevitable. It's like the move from viewfinder/rangefinder cameras to SLR cameras in the 60's. The rational drivers are too strong to resist for most of the market and manufacturers. Those with a valid reason to prefer the older technology will continue to be served, but likely only by one manufacturer who stakes claim to the legacy form. With rangefinders it was Leica. With SLRs ... who knows. But do Pentax or Nikon really want to become even more of a niche brand? Especially as they don't have the Veblen glow of Leica?

Therefore any thought of the Pentax K3 II successor being mirrorless is music to my ears.
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