Re: Whatever happened to Pentax?

On Mar 11, 12:14=A0pm, "Jeremy" <jer...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
> "Dudley Hanks" <hanks.dud...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message
>
> news:nWCAj.74916$w57.63673@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
> > Back in the '60s, '70s and even into the '80s Pentax was right up
there
> > with Canon and Nikon. =A0But, today, it seems like the company doesn't
e=
ven
> > get honourable mention in the brand wars. =A0What happened?
>
> They did what most of the other camera manufacturers did--they began
sucki=
ng
> the build quality out of their bodies and lenses. =A0At least Nikon
mainta=
ined
> a high-end line for professionals. =A0Pentax lost it whan they
discontinue=
d
> the LX without first creating a replacement model.
>
> When I compare the build quality of my "A" lenses to my SMC Takumars, I
ju=
st
> shake my head in disbelief. =A0The Spotmatic-F and the ES-II were the
high=

> water marks for Pentax. =A0Once they migrated to the K Mount, things
went
> downhill. =A0I have a P3n and a P30t which I use as my knockaround
cameras=
..
> They are made in China, they are so light that they feel like they're
just=

> made of air, but they take good photos. =A0Trouble is, they feel like
toys=
,
> relative to my older Pentax gear.
>
> Many (most?) of today's photographers don't remember what was out there
in=

> the early 70s, and thus do not know what they are missing.
>
> I would argue that--for advanced amateurs especially--cameras and lenses
> need to provide some tactile gratification in addition to just recording
> images. =A0If they feel like toys, the brand will be perceived as
another
> also-ran.
>
> Now, with Pentax mass-producing digital ameras in Vietnam, the problem
wil=
l
> only become worse. =A0Cameras are becoming commodities rather than
special=
ized
> optical tools. =A0Robotic assembly lines stamp them out as though they
wer=
e
> cookie cutters.
>
> Remember when audiophiles spent thousands on top-notch turntables and
> cartridges, in order to get that high end sound? =A0Now a cheap CD
Walkman=
 can
> outperform many of those old analog setups--and audiophile sound is
> available to Everyman, at low prices. =A0I suspect that
consumer/advanced
> amateur gear is headed in the same direction. =A0Cheap, disposable &
plast=
ic .
> . .

Did Pentax almost go under last year? If I am not mistaken, Hoya (the
makers of filter lens) planned to buy Pentax in 2006/2007. But I heard
that the deal did not fall through. Can someone confirm?
See the old news in Dec 2006:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml?xml=3D/money/2006/12/22/cnhoya22=
..xml

I saw an early development for a 6x4.5 format for digital Pentax
camera a few years ago (was it in Photokina?), but I don't know if
that was going anywhere either.

However, when I look around on opinions on the camera websites, people
who own/buy a Pentax digital cameras appear to like their camera.
Either the popular 2 leading camera makers are too over-rated, or
Pentax enthusiasts do not want to tell anybody that they have problems
with their cameras.

In the old days, I still remember the famous Asahi Pentax Spotmatix
SLR, as well as the Pentax 6x7 camera. I hope that the company is
making a come back with their K10D, and K20D models.