Lets face it Pentax lags behind on a number of fronts namely: 1. Sensor technology. 2. AF technology. 3. Speed (frame rates) 4. Incomplete lens line up 5. Incomplete body line up. 6. A number of silly niggles and quirks that annoy people and give pentax bashers fuel for criticism even if unwarranted.
On the upside They make great glass They know how to make an SLR body that is intuitive and a pleasure to use. The price is very competitive. I think it is their price competitiveness that is currently keeping them in the game but not for long. If pentax launched a Nikon D3 basher tomorrow and back it up with a complete line up of accessories and lenses that would really make heads turn People would sit up and take notice. I for one would be more than willing to cough up the $5000 for something like that but pentax have to work harder than N & C to make inroads into the market. They have to provide a better product at a competitive price point to attract the buyers. By competitive I don't necessarily mean cheaper but better value for money. Imagine offering a D3 basher but with built in SR for the same price.. It has an edge over the D3. One of the things that Pentax lacks ist a top end flaghship model that customers can oogle over and lust for even if they end up buying a lower end model. Another thing is that they need to show a clear product direction so that buyers into the system are reassured that they are supported and that their investment is protected. They also need to put that direction onto a fast track. Up to now I can't for the life of me understand why they killed their old lens line up without having replacements rolling off the production line. Look at nikon they have a very coherent lens line up . 14-24 f/2.8, 24-70 f/2.8, 70-200 f/2.8, 200-400 f/4 etc... And one more thing... Products must be available! I sometimes feel that buying a pentax product is a bit like searching for new subatomic particles... It requires bucketloads of patience, determination and perseverance. It should not be so. Pentax needs to move fast if it is serious about taking market share from the current market dominators. Rgds Patrick -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net
