From: "John Forbes"
I take your point, Tom. I am guilty of judging you by association.
That's forgiveable John... :-) Not a problem.
However, I happen to believe that the message put out by Pentax users can,
does, and will, have a profound effect on the future success or otherwise
of the brand, or rather, the mount, as there are now two brands using the
K-mount for digital cameras.
To date, 1 brand two different nameplates... depends on the way you look at
it.
Your argument that one person doesn't make a difference (which I think you
put forward on a previous occasion) is an argument for not voting in
elections, or for not doing anything which requires collective effort.
On the contrary, provided enough people do something, they can have an
enormous influence. I'm not saying we should mislead people. But I do
think it is sensible
(to preserve our investment) to present a positive image to the world.
I know what you are saying, but I disagree simply because my one little
voice cannot outweigh Pentax's own moves, advertising, other review pages,
competitors, etc. I greatly doubt that all list members combined could
realistically make an impact. If a collective effort is needed by Pentax
customers to somehow 'preserve the marque', I would be thinking it's too
late. In any case, I'm not attempting to be pugnacious... I do understand
the "Horton Hears a Who" principle.
And there is much to be positive about. Samsung has embraced the K-mount,
and Samsung is on its way to becoming the world's largest electronics
company at a time when still cameras are on their way to being subsumed
into the world of electronics, just like movie cameras before them. There
was a time when Pentax, Nikon, Minolta, et al, made cine cameras or
camcorders. Now it's just Somy, Canon, Panasonic, JVC, Hitachi, Sharp,
and, of course, Samsung. The fact that the K-mount has been sponsored by
a major electronics company is therefore very significant.
What's also good news is that further developments in sensor technology
reinforce the idea that there is no need for a 35mm sized chip in order to
produce better than 35mm quality. This makes it more likely that the
dominant chip in the future will be smaller than 24x36, and within the
image circle of DA lenses. So not only is the future of the K-mount
looking pretty good, so is the future of DA lenses.
Time will tell... I understand your points and agree there could be positive
developments. I tend to sense Pentax/Samsung edging towards and being
deeply entrenched in mediocrity, or the Pentax camera division becoming
Samsung altogether.
Cheers!
Tom C.
