Intermittent camera manufacturer Pentax has made a statement telling users that it will taking some time to consider exactly what a ‘new concept’ DSLR will look like, and that while it is thinking it won’t be making any more of its current models. The announcement seems designed to appeal for patience from users well accustomed to waiting, while at the same time offering hope of a new product that will take the brand forward. That hope is not only just that there will be a new Pentax camera that will use the company’s K-mount but also that it will be an SLR camera rather than a mirrorless model. Pentax is the only brand that is, or was, offering new DSLR type cameras.
The statement intends to reassure Pentax users that although nothing is happening with the brand’s line-up at the moment, something is on the horizon. And that the new concept, that will allow more people to enjoy photography, will be worth waiting for.
Pentax users have suffered from a lack of activity in their chosen brand a good deal in recent times, and have had to sit by while other brands steamed ahead with new models, lenses and technology. Fortunately the cameras Pentax has released have been very good and have carried features that have built a great deal of loyalty among its user group, but even so a great number of users have gone elsewhere. The company has released 7 DSLR cameras in the last ten years, but has offered products that no other brand does in quite the same way. Its newest DSLR is the Pentax K-3 lll Monochrome – a black and white version of the K-3lll it launched two years earlier. However, if you want a DSLR that shoots only black and white it is the only model available, and it sits at the heart of a lens mount with millions of excellent secondhand, low-cost, lenses.
On the bright side the owner of Pentax, Ricoh, is enjoying considerable success with the reintroduction of the excellent GR range of digital compact cameras, so hopefully the revenue from these sales will feed into the manufacture of the new coming DSLR.
Let’s hope the new concept camera comes along soon enough that there are still some Pentax DSLR users still alive to buy it when it arrives.
To find out more about the company and its K-mount cameras see the Ricoh Imaging website.
Statement from Pentax
PENTAX digital SLR cameras aim for a new stage
Ricoh Imaging Co., Ltd.
Dear Customers,
Thank you very much for your continued use of K-mount digital SLR cameras. PENTAX’s interchangeable lens digital SLR cameras began with the release of the “PENTAX *ist D” in 2003, followed by the “PENTAX K100D” in 2006 featuring a proprietary image stabilization system, and in 2016, the “PENTAX K-1” featuring our first full-frame sensor, showing various evolutions over time.
Currently, we are re-examining the “value of taking photos” and developing products that allow more people to enjoy the act of photography itself.
It is expected to take some time before this product fully materializes, but it is planned to be a completely new concept digital SLR camera that can fully leverage the K-mount lens heritage accumulated over more than half a century. Regarding the progress of new product development, we will provide updates as soon as information is complete, at appropriate times.
Accordingly, as we transition to a new stage, we will end production of the current K Series digital SLR cameras. We would like to express our heartfelt gratitude to everyone who has supported the K Series for many years.
At Ricoh Imaging, we will continue to pursue a DSLR shooting style, and we aim to deliver products that allow everyone interested in photography and those who want to try using a camera to experience the unique joy and excellence of photography unique to DSLRs.
While serving as a tool for photography, it also enriches the time spent shooting. Please look forward to a new stage for PENTAX digital SLR cameras.