Pentax 17 to be Shipped on July 18 (in Japan at least)

 See this info in the Japanese Amazon. It seems that the date of shipment of the 17 has been fixed.

And, there are some additonal technical information of the 17, in pictures with Japanese, which are almost self-explanatory by themselves.

Pentax 17 - An Olympus Pen after 60 Years?

The vertical 135 half frame, the purely-guessed manual zone focusing, manual winding and rewinding, automatic electric-eye metering, a slow fixed wide-angle lens, the very limited speed of shutter.. Now I believe that Pen stands for Pentax in 2024. ;-p And recently, I have been able to find two excellent condition Pens (of different models) each of which only costs me about 1/4th the cost of a brand-new Pentax 17, should I still need to go for the 17? :-D The Oly Pens could select the aperture which is impossible for the Pentax. In the mean time, it's time for me to pick my Canon 17 to shoot again shortly. Thank you, Pentax (Ricoh)! At the end of the day, the Canon 17 is a much more precise rangefinder anyway.

Pentax User Survey

 https://questant.jp/q/86PT0EYA

News from Ricoh - K-1 III is Still Under Development and etc.

From a latest post in the Xitek Pentax forum, an interview with the Ricoh senior officials (from the product development and planning divisions) in a recent marketing event in Taipei was cited.

The key messages delivered are summarised as follows: 

 

1. The K-1 III is still under development. More time is required with a higher precision aimed on the design as well as owing to the difficulty in sourcing certain components and parts for the new camera.

2. The film camera project is in good progress but further details will not be disclosed. Nonetheless, collaboration with other film product manufacturers will be made for determining a right selling price and marketing strategy.

3. Feasibility for the revival of the Q system is being carried out, subject to the requests made by the Pentax fans in Japan. But considering the limitation of the Q system, it would be unlikely.

4. The 645 system is in its end of development, production of the remaining products will last for a certain period of time.

5. Mirrorless is not a viable option for Pentax.

6. New DFA* wide angle lens(es) and replacement of the DA*50-135 are being considered according to market needs.

K-3 III Monochrome First Review (with Sample Photos and Video)

https://www.yaotomi.co.jp/blog/walk/2023/04/pentaxk3iii,monochrome-kyoto,sakura.html

(in Japanese)

My impression is that while the B&W photos do have more contrasts and better tonal representation than normal digital cameras' ones, they are yet not as solid as those images produced with better B&W films, even after they are digitalised via professional-grade film scanners.

Besides, there is a side-by-side comparison against the original K-3 III, look this:

(Credit: Yaotomi Camera at Twitter)

The difference is obvious. However, it is just that the B&W IQ of the K-3 III photo is just too low, IMHO.

Lastly, DC Watch reports that the Ricoh has stopped to receive pre-orders of the K-3 III Mono as the tailor-made sensors have already been out-of-stock owing to the overwhelming demand. Besides, Ricoh also said that their production capacity on the Mono units was indeed rather limited.

More Information about the Priced Gradual ND Digital Filter (for K-1 and K-1 II)

Now it is put on sales at the Japanese Ricoh online store (Google English translation of the page Here).

It is learnt that Serial Number of the camera shall be provided for the purchase of the license key for unlocking the function. The key is not portable across different bodies and one key is solely for one unique camera body. Besides, it should be noted that product keys for the K-1 and K-1 II are different. The price of the product key (without tax) is in Japanese Yens 10k.

Upon purchase of the key, Ricoh will send the buyer a QR code which the camera will read the code to unlock the function. It says it takes from several days to one week for Ricoh to generate and send back the code to the buyer. It seems that everything is being processed manually. The worst thing is that if the consumer has entered the wrong serial number of his/her camera, Ricoh will not be responsible for it and the correct code will not be resent?! :-|

As for the operation of the function, read the Chinese article here. The working principle is also briefed in the article.

In short, the camera takes two consecutive photos according to the maximum Exposure Value  (EV) difference. The camera will then process the photos and clone them into one with the selected gradual ND pattern. And, the pattern of dark/bright sections could be set by the user. It is recommended that the user should put the camera on tripod when using this function.

The EV range could be from 0.3EV to 5EV. Some example results are as below:

(1EV Grad ND applied with less exposure at the top)

(With and without Grad ND Filter, a 3EV difference applied)

After all, how about using the camera's built-in HDR function to solve the problem, which is free of charge? ;-)

Why Pentax Has Failed at Mirrorless?

See what PetaPixel says about the failure of Pentax in the mirrorless market, despite the efforts paid in the past two decades.

By the way, for what PP has listed out for the 37 interchangeable lens digital cameras wich Pentax has ever produced, I have bought more than one-third of all the models as follows:

From 2003 to 2021: My Pentax APS-C bodies acquired: *ist D/DS/DL2, K-100D, K-m, K-x, K-r, K-5, KP and K-3III, total 10 out of the 29 models produced.

From 2011 to 2014: I bought the original Q and the Q7, hence 2 out of 4.

From 2016 to 2021: I got the K-1, but I don't think Pentax has really produced 2 full-frame bodies as the K-1 II actually is just a mild variant of the original K-1.

From 2010 to 2014: I purchased the 645D, 1 out of 2 for the medium format bodies.

So, I acquired a total of 14 Pentax models out of the 37 that they have produced.

Besides what PP has mentioned about the causes the failure, which I generally agree with, I think from the user's perspective and practical point of view, the K-01 and the Q series failed in two major ways, which are the lack of EVF and fast Wi-Fi support. I consider that these are basic essential features nowadays, especially for mirrorless cameras and for easy social media sharing on-the-go. All in all, the external LCD monitor is really rather difficult to view under bright light environment outdoor. Without an EVF, it is indifferent to shoot blindly and composition and shooting have become rather difficult with such handicapped mirrorless cameras.

K-3 III and GR T-shirts (by UNIQLO)

by UNIQLO..

Ricoh to Abandon Sales Distribution and to Stop Mass Production for Pentax

See what PetaPixel reports. And, their quoted official Ricoh source is here (in Japanese, Google English translation here).

After all, it seems that Pentax the brand is diminishing.. :-(

The K-3 III Variants

 

Accordingly to this "confidential" diagram, there are six variants of the K-3 III to come. The first one is a deep-black coloured body, the second one is with a modified shutter release button for a different touch, the third one is a monochrome model, the fourth one is a MF model (maybe with a MF focusing screen?), the fifth one is a gun-metal coloured body, and the last one is an astro-model with a modified sensor filter for astro-photography.

Btw, it was also told by Ricoh officially in their recent local marketing event that there will be no new Pentax full frame body in the near future and the K-1 II will still be the current model for the time being.

Pentax Online Event on November 27 (at Japan)

The event will be held tomorrow at Tokyo (in Japanese):

https://www.ricoh-imaging.co.jp/japan/event/2021/pentax_meeting_online2021/

(in Japanese)

Here is the tentative programme and rundown for the event:

- Development stories of the D-FA 21mm F2.4 Limited including interview with the developers who will talk more about the design and application of the lens.

- The evolution of K-3 Mark III will continue. New features are to come, via new firmware and other - But what does "other" means? What's the mean to do it?

- About future PENTAX products. The person in charge of product planning will reveal something.

- Q&As - Questions are to be submitted to Pentax in advance via form.

Let's see what will be told by then.

K-3 III to be Released Shortly?

Mr Nokishita has just twitted that three new Pentax accessories have been added to the list of goods for domestic dealers, namely, "Battery Grip D-BG8", "Hot Shoe Cover O-HC177" and "Eye Cup FU" which are the exclusive accessories for the upcoming K-3 III.

In view of this, should the K-3 III be released and launched into the market very soon?

K-3 III Has Eye AF, Firmware is Finalised

Two Chinese Pentax users posted at the Xitek Pentax Forum that they received an early production K-3 III which is confirmed to have the Eye AF function and the firmware has already been updated to V1.0 production version since 1st of March. One tester even posted the below viewfinder snapshot to illustrate the Eye AF does work, even with a flat displayed picture like this: 

It seems that the design is ready for the new body but yet Ricoh have faced difficulties for mass production so that they could not sell the new product, since they have not yet announced the revised launch date of the K-3 III.

Besides, two screen captures of the K-3III's Info screen and its AF options are also posted:

KP Discontinued

 http://www.ricoh-imaging.co.jp/english/products/#digital-slr

Whilst the K-3 III hasn't arrived yet and there is no expected delivery date of any, the KP is now discontinued. What's Ricoh doing in the meantime? They really do not want to sell other APS-C DSLR bodies but only the dated and low-end plastic-built K-70, which also had the infamous aperture-blocked problem for long?  :-(

K-1 II J Limited (in Four Colours)

 
Source: Nokishita @Twitter

But, I just wish to ask: How and what does these painted "new" bodies help Pentax and her fans?? :-(

Update (Feb 25): The K-1 II J Limited Special Site is now online (in Japanese only). It is mentioned that the golden lens mount is coated by Citizen Watch Co. with its "Duratect" technology. The wooden grip and its paint are also briefed. 

The K-3 III is Delayed and Here Comes the Re-packaged 3 FA Limiteds in HD

We all knew that the K-3 III was delayed without a new release or market launch date announced. :-(

Hence, Ricoh is "kind" enough to let us have something else "new", right before the CP+. ;-P

Here we go:

(Source: Japanese Nokishita Twitter via Cameota. In short, the new features of the re-packaged FA Limited lenses are HD plus SP coatings, round aperture and blades and guaranteed -10 deg.C temperature operation, there is no Weather Resistance, nonetheless. Anyway, my old FA Limiteds have never had any problem working in cold and snowing conditions under -10 to -20 deg.C in the past, so did my other film FA lenses, but getting the lenses wet might cause real problems. As for the aperture ring and aluminium casted lens bodies, these are indeed good old features but nothing new.

Update (Feb 25): The HD FA Limited Special Site is now online (in Japanese only). Online pre-ordering from the Ricoh web store is also made available. The offered prices are not cheap, though.

Too Much Bullshit about the K-New by Ricoh Pentax Recently

The talks by Ricoh Pentax become more and more absurd recently. This time they argue on keeping the old body design without any flipped monitor.

This move again disappointed many Pentaxians. Live viewing and framing will become difficult on quite some occasions. Even worse, it is widely believed that the K-New does not even have any GPS module built in. And, they compared the thickness of the K-New against the K-1, which is utterly nonsense.

A Pentaxian at the Chinese Xitek quickly compared the thickness of the K-new and KP and he proved that the two cameras actually measure similarly, even the KP equips with a flipped monitor.

 

 

So, the fact is simply that Ricoh Pentax has been too lazy and too mean to build a newer and better featured body but opted to modify the old K-3/II's one in a very moderate way. Period.

Yaotomi Camera Speaks More about the K-New (aka K-3 III Now)

Japanese Yaotomi Camera has just twitted yesterday and disclosed more information of the K-New, now tentatively named as the K-3 III.

And the launch/marketing date will be delayed to the year end, but should be within 2020.

Yaotomi originally also wrote about the expected price tag of the K-3 III but it was deleted shortly after that. Their explanation is that it was their own "guess" only so it was improper to write about it.

Nonetheless, Yaotomi still keeps their guess that the K-3 III is positioned between the D500 and D7500 if Nikon DSLR bodies are compared. Hence, we can expect the price should be somehow in between but closer to that of the D500, as it was normal that the Pentax new bodies were selling at higher prices than the competitors' comparable offers.

Last but not least, Yaotomi also disclosed that another two announcements would be made before and after the K-3 III announcement, for the K-1 II Silver body and also the three silver DFA lenses, respectively, in their original twitter post.

EISA Awards 2020-21 for Photo Gear

EISA has announced their awards this year for photographic equipment:

https://eisa.eu/awards/photography/

Without any surprise, there is no Pentax gear on the list. Just because there was only one new product of Pentax last year. And even worse, without any innovation, what achievement is expected? :-(

The Quickly De-coloured 100th Anniversary Hotshoe Cover

A Xitek Pentax user complains about his brand new O-HC171, which was purchased from official Ricoh channel, has turned its colour from silver to black just within two days after he removed the protective film of it:

https://forum.xitek.com/thread-1896215-1-1-1.html
(in Simplified Chinese, Google translation to English here)

And, another Pentaxian in the above forum thread reported that his O-HC171 had also turned dark.

Seems like oxidation took place. What a Quality of Ricoh! :-o