FA 35 F2 Discontinued

B&H have marked the FA 35 F2 lens as discontinued in their website:-

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/180121-USA/Pentax_22190_Wide_Angle_35mm_f_2_0.html

As a verification to the update, I have checked the official Pentax Imaging website, it is also found that the FA 35 has been removed from the lens section:-

http://www.pentaximaging.com/camera-lenses/#7

On the other hand, official Pentax Japanese website still lists the FA 35. But I bet it will not last longer, or it is just that the website has not yet been updated.

It is rather pity that this lens is discontinued, it is the indeed the best value lens in the current Pentax lens lineup with a very high price-performance ratio. It has very good optical quality but yet it is not expensive. Besides, I like much the favourable colour response of the lens and so do almost all Pentax FA lenses, in contrast to the unfavourable colour response of some of those DA/DFA "digital" Pentax lenses. The even strange thing is that when I use some of those "unfavourable" lenses on my 5D, the outcome looks (much) better again! (The body corrects the "errors"?)

While Nikon have just announced their latest 35/1.8 DX and the rationale why they have made it, Pentax, the one who have been emphasizing on an APS-C system, now discontinue a popular lens for their APS-C system. In fact, the FA35 is very practical and useful and just act like a 50mm standard lens on a 1.5X body (as Nikon have said this). Providing that Pentax have a better market share of the 1.5X bodies, the demand for this "standard" prime should be large. And, despite the FA 35 is priced similar to the upcoming new Nikkor DX 35, I am sure that the FA 35 is better built and at least it has the distance scale!

I bet the reasons for Pentax (have) to discontinue the FA 35 is not owing to that the FA 35/2 is not useful and not good on their APS-C bodies, but only that they have to choose to discontinue some of their lenses for many unfavourable factors/facts which they are thinking about, say: (lens) production factilities at Japan closed, shrinking of market share of their DSLR bodies (so market demand for their lenses must be shrinking too), "conflicts" with the DA 35/2.8 Macro (but really?) and so on..

With the discontinuation of the FA 35, this marks nearly an end to the Pentax excellent line of FA lenses. Now only the 3 FA Limited lenses are left in the Pentax's lineup, which probably are now made in the Pentax factory at Vietnam instead of anywhere at Japan, but how long will they last? (And, the new FA Limited could be different in Image Quality than the older/oldest ones, see this.)

Anyway, if you want to buy the FA 35/2, do hurry up! Grab one until stock lasts and get it anywhere you can find, e.g., Adorama still lists it (but you have to check if they really carries it, anyway). I did the same in 2004 when the FA 28 discontinued and got one from the last lots of stock.