Ricoh/Pentax just announced a new mid-range DSLR, the Pentax KF. What do Chris and Jordan think about this camera, and the state of Pentax in 2022? We'll tell you what we think Ricoh/Pentax needs to do next.
Agreed its not much of an upgrade to the K70 but the k70 is a excellent entry DSLR. I just find this review site baffling as it constantly chips away at its source of income, be it whatever camera system is either out of vouge or doesn't follow the trend of a gazillion megapixels. Cameras are just tools, each offering something for a different photographer and just because one camera doesn't suit your needs it doesn't mean it wont suit someone else's. The site really should change its name to DCreview because its seems to be about the capability of the cameras rather than photography... If Pentax are struggling financially , like Olympus its a lot to do with people being told they are out of vouge by so called influencers on Utube and then we see yet another excellent camera brand go to the wall... Also remember its the images that count that moment in time captured, if you don't have a camera you don't have the image no matter what camera it is
Nautilus survived the past several hundred million years w/o major changes, so Pentax obviously aims to be the living fossil of ILC camera industry.
Joking aside, I like the fact that at least one camera brand with a long history still offers DSLRs for those customers who prefer OVFs. Why not? OVFs on digital cameras also keep all photographers trained who still switch between digital and analogue cameras.
I used to be a Pentax user but switched to Sony due concerns about their ability to scale and maintain investment. While I appreciate the humor, your intro is a bit condescending and lacks respect for a well made camera system.
I have a couple of issues with this update. 1 - why the 18-55 instead of the collapsing 18-50 lens? 2 - why are you using the black grips on the special edition white model? On the KS2, the grip was off-white, and I really would have appreciated that (along with a blue or grey on the blue model). 3 - Why did you pop for the color body caps? How many people are using them on this model?
So sad, it would have been nice to see updates to the crazy Q series and the 645 series too, but given that Pentax can barely sustain the K series lineup this really is hitting rock bottom for Pentax.
PENTAX hanging-on as the world enters hyper-inflation squeeze. Apparently PENTAX enjoys a following that like their cameras. Interesting to know which region buys their cameras: Americas Europe Asia India China; not Russia. PENTAX cameras and lenses outsourced to an assortment of companies in order to survive. Time will tell. Answers on a postcard.
The K70 on CPR... You guys are hilarious! I just hope that Pentax survives until DSLR makes its come-back just like the Fiat 500, film roles and vinyl records. It would be such a shame to see a brand like Pentax disappear. I still have an ME Super, an LX and 645D on display in our studio.
You have them on display but do you use them regularly? And there's still plenty old ones to buy if you want to have old model. I don't see why DSLR should have comeback beyond small retro group who can buy working used gear that doesn't need servicing unlike old film cameras. And I say that as someone who has bought Canon D30, D60, 1Ds, 1D II for fun to see how usable cameras were 20 years ago. Now I'm happy with R5 and don't look back to previous models I had.
My first camera was the 110 Super. IQ worse than most modern ‘phones, but impossibly cute. I miss it, and would buy a digital version (MFT sensor?) in a heartbeat. Just do it, Pentax!
I have a Super 110 Auto kit too, complete with all the lenses, the flash and the winder. And you're right.... it is adorable. But I sure wouldn't drop a thousand dollars on a modern digital version of it, Not when I could get a Nikon Z30 or Canon R10 for less.
If you or I or anyone else would buy something "in a heartbeat" that just isn't a good enough of a reason to bring out a new camera with very limited appeal. Times are tough right now, and cute just isn't enough today.
It looks like Ricoh/Pentax will have 100% of the DSLR market soon ! LOL BTW I still have some Pentax DSLRs and SLRs but have not used them in many years.
!MummRa ... It is foolish for anyone to think they can make statements without implications being drawn from them, particularly when those statements are made in response to someone else's pleas.
@landscaper - Unclear why you dissed someone who was simply trying to give you useful facts, specifically that it takes some time for closed captions to be generated in YouTube videos. Here's something your should try: go find the K3iii review and see if there are CC (or look at any other recent DPR video review). It's only been a couple of days for this one . . .
I do not believe that reasonable accommodation means everyone has to wait while subtitles are prepared for a small percentage of the population. Most disabled viewers may not even be aware of this delay (unless they are early viewers).
I am not even sure why DPReview even care about this "update". It is just a continuation of K-70, where you have replaced some parts to parts that are available today. There is no development. Pentax need to do this if they shall have two APS-C options.
The only mistake by Pentax is to rename it. They could have continued to call it K-70 or maybe call it K-71 or K-70 II. But, marketing departments are what marketing departments are, maybe not the brightest on this planet.
If they had just ignored the release, as I interpret that comment, what response would you have anticipated from Pentax users who already feel disrespected here.
@RK, any convention used in renaming a 6-1/2 year old camera being rereleased simply due to lack of original parts becomes problematic. Ricoh understood that and clearly admitted why they had to change the name. A K70-II would likely require new features to be accepted as a new model. Ricoh may see sufficient sales to warrant continuing the camera, but doesn’t see sufficient market potential to invest in development of a truly new model at this level. Even K1-II with more significant changes is not fully accepted as a new model by many.
It is fully possible to change components in newer K-70 and still call it K-70. Many companies do it. Cameras over a certain serial number is different. No big deal. Even a K-71 or K-70b should be OK.
But, you are right. A K-70 II means mark II i.e. a better one. And I happens to be one of those that do not call K-1 II a true release. It is only a new motherboard and the same camera. So, sure K-70 II might assume to much. But, then choosing KF is, in my opinion, even stranger. That sounds like a totally different camera.
DPR cares about this because they were sent a press release. The Ricoh marketing department tried to make this into a bigger piece of news than it really is, with a misleading press release, that makes it sound like the KF is a new camera.
@Revenant - marketing department can be a pain in the behind, yes. The decision might also be made at the executive layer in the company. Which is even worse :)
Every evening when I look at my Oris Propilot X and put on a vinyl for dinner, I have to think about the latest iPhone and how old it will seem in 5 years. Sure, quarz watches made mechanical watches practically redundant, smartphones made those also redundant. Still, high quality long lasting items like HiFi equipment, automatic watches still have their market. If a smartphone can do most of the things your mirrorless camera can, there will be some changes in the market. If dedicated controls, great ergonomy and an optical viewfinder are something you appreciate, there is still nothing wrong with a DSLR.
The irony of Pentax..This is what I always expect from such videos. Is there a company that gives these packages in digital SLR, such as Ibis weather sealed body and pentaprism.?!
While there seems to be a fair amount of dissapointment about this model being very similar to the 70, I think it shows an amount of commitment. It is likely that having to complete thorough testing with new menus might have led to them missing the holiday season - every reason to think that there could be a follow-up model incorporating improvements in the pipeline. This suggests a commitment to making selling DSLRs pay and to ensuring continued production without cost saving cuts like going to a pentamirror....
This commitment seems like the last models Sony released for their A-mount, back then they at least included some nice innovations. This is rather like Canon introducing camera with 6 year old 18MP sensor and rest of features, which was widely mocked on this very site.
Do you know the connotation of the expression "living in the past"? In any case, if you concede now that "living in the past" has a positive meaning, all fine and dandy then.
To me, the only advantage of having a dslr today is the ovf. Battery life has gotten quite decent on mirrorless with newer releases (k-70 and I guess, by extension, the kf, don't have good battery life in dslr terms and just right compared to a mid range MILC). And I'm mentioning the viewfinder as a user who hasn't looked through a high res evf. Surely the panels with three and five million pixels are very good. But still that camera is there for people really wanting a stabilised dslr with that ovf. And I might be one of those. Sadly there's practically no market where I am for an already weak Pentax, and therefore no service or maintenance.
I just tried a Sony A7 IV which has 3.6m and I think it looks kind of crappy.
I would love to see what the 9m EVF on the A7R V.
I have a K1 II and Sony A7 IV sitting right next to me right now, and while the brightness of the EVF is nice in low light, I still MUCH prefer the OVF. I would really prefer to neither DSLR or MILC.. I would like a hybrid. I want a camera that has a pentaprism for the view finder, but then has Sony quality AF on the rear screen. Best of both worlds. If I had the performance of the Sony on the live view of the Pentax, I'd never pick up the Sony again.
This is sad to see. I remember back in the days, Chris was shooting with a K1 and loved it. It is so bad now that they do a comedy routine on a brand that brought so many innovations to the photography world.
I can only blame Pentax for this mess. They brought this on to themselves. So, Chris and Jordan, you guys have a ball making fun of a legend.
Well, after doing well with the Minolta brand, Sony has like 34% of the market share in cameras... so you know, maybe something like that. A real investment using the Pentax name could have had similar results, but Ricoh didn't have the vision or the nuts. Sony did, so now they're sitting with 34% market share while Nikon sits with 11% and Pentax sits under 1%. Obviously Ricoh made poor decisions, and continues to do so to this day.
The sad thing is, Pentax puts out great cameras. They just do so way too slowly because Ricoh won't put money into R &D and marketing.
@yoyoma007 Could not agree more. It is a shame for Pentax to die this slow death. I sold my K1 and miss it everyday. I shoot Sony A7RIV with Tamron lenses. The lens gap is getting bigger everyday. Tamron, Sigma, Samyang and a bunch of other third party lens manufacturers can't release enough lenses for Sony while there is near zero support for Pentax. Talk about writing on the wall. What a shame.
I had bought a K1 II over black Friday. I just sent it back, and it hurt. I literally hugged the box before I sent it back, that's how stupidly attached to Pentax I am. I'm now demoing the A7 IV and trying to decide weather I want the slightly better autofocus, or the higher MP count of the R version. I can't afford a V as much as I would love to do so!
@yoyoma007 I shoot landscapes and the A7RIVa I have is unreal. I shot some images on the APSc setting which gives me 26MP files and the difference is noticeable and big.
If you do not do landscapes and do not need the mega resolution, the A7IV is a better hybrid photo/video camera.
Thanks for the input. I don't care at all about video, it just holds no interest for me. I like landscapes very much, but I do more portraits. I'm trying to balance the value between the two. For the IV I like the improved auto focus, better tracking, and newer menu system and better button customization. However the RIV would give me double the resolution, a better EVF and better rear screen. I'm just not sure how much I value those megapixels. I know I don't value video, but I do value great autofocus, auto focus is the only reason I'm switching away from Pentax. If their auto focus was good, I wouldn't have considered leaving. I wish I could get my hands on an RIV to compare the auto focus.
@yoyoma007 Inconsistent autofocus was the reason I let the K1 (and Pentax) go. A7RIV is a vast improvement but not totally foolproof either. Everything I see about the A7IV and A7RV point to better autofocus. If 24MP will suffice for you, take a look at the A9 line. They were built to have the best autofocus but are limited to 24MP.
For best autofocus performance, you need Sony glass. My Tamrons act up from time-to-time especially in low light. For example, the 17-28 in low light, when you choose a focusing spot near the edge, it refuses to focus and hunts without locking focus. My Tamron 28-75 G2 and 70-180 are much better but not 100% either. I had the Sony 24-105 for a brief time and that lens had no issue locking focus in all sorts of low light situations.
FYI, for landscape work, if I want the sharpest images, I always use manual focus and use focus peaking. It works like a charm. Autofocus works but it is not 100%.
The auto-focus on the A7 IV seems to be serving me quite well, and 33MP seems close to a sweet spot, I wouldn't want to drop to 24, so as much as I love the idea of the RIV I will probably stick with the IV as the best compromise between AF and MP. That's a great point about focus peaking. I have some Pentax glass I like for landscapes, and for 10$ I got the manual focus adapter. I'll definitely be using that for landscapes. The focus peaking on Sony is killer.
@yoyoma007 I kept eight K-mount lenses from my Pentax days. Five of them have aperture rings and I could use them with an inexpensive hollow adapter on the Sony. The problem is that the Tamron zoom I have are so good and so convenient, that I see no need to use the Pentax lenses. I have only done some test shots with the Pentax lenses and have not done any project work with them. Three of the Pentaxes are macro lenses a 50mm, a 100mm K-mount and a 120 from the 645 line. The 50 and the 120 are older lenses and have aperture rings. The 100 is a more recent lens with no aperture ring. I was contemplating getting the AF adapter for Pentax to Sony but it goes for $430 or so. I do not have an immediate need to spend the cash on an adapter that may not get used.
I agree with Chris' assessment. Seems Pentax wasn't planning to update this camera, but enough supply chain parts have been changed over the years that it would become a conspiracy theory if they kept calling it the K70.
Well, you guys still can make me laugh. As a Pentax shooter, all I can say is...that was actually pretty fair and honest. The KF checks a box and is the same bargain for Pentax shooters for what you get that the K70 was. The alternative was to delete the entry level line when they ran out parts, so this minor seeming refresh makes sense.
But... My question is... Will you EVER reshoot the K3 III studio scene with current FW and a known good new lens that Kai didn't play pickle ball with or set fire to from back when he still worked there? LOL
I miss DPR substantive lens reviews too... Video reviews are super fun to see how stuff handles in the real world, but sometimes it is nice to have some hard data, especially lenses and you guys haven't reviewed a lens by the numbers in a dogs age, reviews just kinda slowly tapered off and now I can't remember the last one.
Oops... Yeah, I did...never rush a post on your break, oh well, its got a D and R in it, just missing the P... heh. Request still stands... please don't use some ancient abused lens for reviews.
Ricoh did make cameras way before they bought Pentax. Since 1938 actually. And they produced digital compacts before they bought Pentax too. They were not just a printer corporation. Actually they built CPU: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ricoh_2A03 (Used in the Nintendo NES)
I had one of those. Wish they'd kept the EVF concept for the modern GR as an alternative to the optical finder, much like Sony did with the original RX1.
Incidentally the Sony EVF design is almost a straight copy of the Ricoh's mechanics but with rather better display panel.
Olympus VF-2 reminds me a lot too. I really liked it. I even used it with my E-M5 in certein cirumstances, just because it could be tilted. I was planning to build a connection cable to use it detached from the hot shoe. But then I never did it.
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