> From: Darren Addy <pixelsmi...@gmail.com> > > I'm certainly a value/bang-for the buck kind of guy. I'm terribly late > to the K-5 party, but I'm hoping to snag one soon. I believe that it > is *still* near the top of the heap (if not at the top) of the best > APS-C cameras available today. I'm pretty pleased with the 20x30 > prints I've seen from APS-C cameras and frankly, I don't think there > are many images that I'm going larger than that with. I think it > provides a lot of bang-for-the-buck particularly if one can buy one > around $900 (body). I also think it is sort of amazing that I can get > *still* probably within $75 for what I paid for my K-x (which I > purchases as a low-mileage used kit) - which will help pay for the > upgrade. That's value too. > > Comparing that to the Nikon 800/E (which is 3x the price of the K-5) > is sort of like comparing a $25,000 Prius with a $75,000 Mercedes Benz > CLS. They aren't really targeting the same demographic. If your > discretionary income let's you afford some of the finer things in > life, more power to you. A lot of people are going to have a harder > time justifying an additional $2000 for a camera body, particularly if > it also means they start from Square One on lenses and other > accessories. (Frankly, a lot of the 800/E specs seem aimed more at > videography than still.) If *Pentax* released a full frame camera with > the 800's specs of only 4 FPS and top (real) ISO of 6400, you could > hear the PentaxForums screams in Nebraska. > > I don't think the fact that there are far more expensive cars out > there changes the bang-for-the-buck with the Prius and I'd say the > same for the K-5. Should Pentax announce a full frame camera (I'm last > of the true believers) particularly for in the neighborhood of $2700 > that can take advantage of all your K-mount stuff, I'd think that > would have to give one looking for another step-up pause.
Well, I'm not saying the K-5 doesn't deliver bang for the buck even now. For me it's just a bit late in it's life cycle. I bought late into the K20D and late into the K-7 (had I waited a few more months I'd have had a K-5). So I'm determined not to do that again. I appreciate the accuracy of your arithmetic. $1000 vs. $3000 and $25,000 vs. $75000 are both factors of 3. :-) There's a $2000 difference in the first case and a $50000 difference in the second. While being equivalent in magnitude, in real $ there's a huge difference. BTW, I'm not being argumentative, just blabbering. Let's start from the premise that most people wouldn't spend $3000 on a camera. I agree. In fact I can't justify it for myself (so I've compartmentalized that and hidden it away so I don't feel unduly guilty). The 645D is a $10,000 camera so even less people would purchase that. The 645D is a 40MP camera. The D800/E is a 36MP camera. Cost per MP calculation: 645D is $250/MP 800E is $92/MP (K-5 is $62.50/MP if priced at $1000) In those terms, the 800E is delivering a lot of bang for the buck and there's a full compliment of AF lenses available. The D800E has 90% of the resolution of a 645D yet the cost is only 1/3 that of a 645D. The K-5 has about 48.5% the resolution of the D800E and the cost is slightly less than 1/3 that of a D800E. Both the D800E and K-5 offer significant bang for the buck. I agree with your rationale on the K-5, It's why I continued to buy Pentax after Pentax, K-mount after K-mount. On the other hand many people will find themselves scrounging for, or purchasing new FF lenses in K-mount, were Pentax to come out with a FF body. Using only legacy non-AF lenses or APS-C lenses on such a body would negate many of the potential benefits. For me though, I think the time has come where I ask 'do I keep on spending money on Pentax?'. I think the 645D, the Q, and the K-01 are all further signs of a company that's out of touch with reality (I don't deny the same for myself sometimes). The fact that they don't have their DSLR's in mass-market brick and mortar retail outlets is another sign. Have they just awoken to the fact it may be a good idea? Looked at another way, if I'd not bought a K20D (or K-7), had not bought about $2500 of K-mount lenses in the past 4 years, I could easily have paid for a D800E. Tom C. -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
