Otis wrote:
> Given the impact of the digital competitors on analog camera product line growth and
>what appears from personal
> observations to be a relatively lower Pentax 35 mm SLR volume compared to
>competition, it will be interesting to see if
> the Pentax 35 mm SLR line can successfully compete for sufficient capital within the
>Asahi corporate framework to continue
> to generate 35 mm SLR products having price/feature content that maintains their
>historical competitive position in the
> marketplace.
Well, we have already seen that new 35mm cameras are codeveloped with digital ones. I
doubt we will see any stand alone 35mm slr's anymore; at least not the upper price
bracketts. Of course, this depend on the price developments of digital chips but I
have no doubt that prices will come down with cost.
I basically believe that the 35mm slr market will in the future have to main areas;
the upper enthusiast market for the diminishing crowd of film users and the entry
level area where film based cameras will be cheaper than comparable digital.
Its hard to say how Pentax will fare in this market. If (or rather when) it turns into
a niche market, Pentax can do well provided that the bigger players loose interest in
this field. However, I suspect that all manufacturers will keep thir 35mm slr's in the
line-up until the demand become too small to support production.
What I worry about is not the price of the digital cameras, but that they most likely
will become obsolete and worthless when new and better technology reaches the market.
If you buy a Nikon D1 today, you can be sure that it will be close to worthless in a
couple of years.
Pål
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