[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
If you're a new B&H customer or even a returning customer with a
> new credit card number, it takes longer to process an order. I've > spent a lot of money at B&H in the last year (just ask my wife:-), > and I did Paypal, so it was quick. I thought it best not to post
a notice here until I heard from you, since you had said that you
> were on the "notify" list. That's only fair. However, our > success in getting B&H to stock the lens may have been a result > of the number of requests from the PDML. That's a good thing.
Paul
I don't think it was a decision by B&H that made the FA35 f/2 so hard to get for awhile there. Their website and Adorama's both said that there was a backorder issue from Pentax.
Compare that to the FA135 f/2.8 (another lens I'm eventually going to acquire). On the B&H website, it states *that* lens is not a regular in-stock item. But it is listed as available, albiet with a slightly longer lead time than an in-stock item. In the case of the 135, Pentax must have them readily available so that B&H can get them in a reasonable timeframe.
Going back to the 35mm f/2. My guess is that Pentax USA anticipated lower demand, and didn't bring enough of them into the country to cover orders. They probably just plain ran out at Pentax USA, and had to wait for another container to come in from overseas.
Anyway, I've got my order in at B&H for the 35mm f/2. I can't wait.
I suspect that the popularity of the *ist-D(s) has caused some shifts in demand for Pentax lenses, and that some of those shifts were difficult to predict. After all, the MZ-S, high-end as it was, still didn't cause an instant shortage in primes and other higher-end lenses. But the MZ-S's sales were probably somewhat lackluster by comparison to the *ist-D/DS.
On top of that you have other phenominon at work too. A person buying a ZX-50, ZX-60, ZX-10, ZX-7, ZX-5n, etc., is a lot less likely to start collecting higher-end lenses right away. Those cameras were the most popular SLR's in Pentax's line for several years now, and yet they all retailed for under $250. A $250 SLR consumer isn't (usually) going to rush out and spend a couple thousand dollars on nice glass. They're (usually) going to be satisfied with their 28-80 kit lens and an 80-320 or 80-200 slow zoom.
But then along comes the *ist-DS. It's attractive to a broad range of consumers. Some of those consumers are higher-end amatures and even pros. And those people like nicer glass, and know what its worth. Plus, people buying an *ist-DS are spending $800 bucks. After spending $800 on a nice digital body, it's not as much of a mental leap to spend that much again on nice lenses.
A $250 SLR consumer might spend $200 on a second lens. An $800 DSLR consumer is probably not that put off by the notion of spending $700 on lenses.
And where does that lead? It leads to phenominal glass prices on eBay, and sudden unexpected out-of-stock situations in mid to high level pentax lenses at online dealers.
Just speculation...
Dave
