On Oct 26, 2005, at 7:57 AM, Tom C wrote:
... The point of it is, (NOW PENTAX, HEAR YE HEAR YE...) having been a Pentax user for 15 years, wanting to purchase a Pentax system for my brother, I couldn't bring myself to do it. That should be germane to someone, maybe to Pentax. ...
That's your problem, or Pentax' problem. I don't know why you feel I have to hear about it.
If they are banking on brand loyalty, they're making a mistake. I doubt they are. I neither have any brand loyalty nor do I think it's appropriate. A camera is a tool, I buy whatever tools work for my needs, which takes into account performance, usability and price.
Success does not come from brand loyalty. Success comes from high quality products that encourage new equipment purchases. Currently, the Pentax cameras are high quality products, particularly at the price, satisfying needs of many users very well. The notion of "competitive" is abstruse: measuring things against futures conjecture is valueless, to me. It's a camera, not a stock certificate. Value is returned as a function of use of the tool, not whether new things that are better will come into being in the future. .
The Pentax DSLRs work well, I've gotten everything I needed for them in lenses without issue, and they're producing good work for me ... they've proven to work well enough that I've replaced most of the older lenses I originally purchased with new ones to add to the capabilities, and my other cameras are sitting unused. In my opinion, that's both successful and competitive. Several other folks have bought the Pentax DS on my recommendation, and they all seem to be pleased with their purchase to date. On the other hand, my brother is buying a Canon 20D, also on my recommendation, because I think it's the best camera for HIS needs.
If the Pentax DSLRs stop being the tool that does best for me, I'll sell what I have and move on to something else that does, not whine and moan about why Pentax isn't making what I think I want/need. I won't make much about it; I'm interested in the photographs more than the equipment.
Ok, that's enough from me. I have photos to work on and my coffee has finally kicked in. ;-)
Godfrey
