I doubt if the mechanical linkage would go away; after all, if any new lenses I buy for a new body won't auto-focus on my *ist-D, then there's far less incentive for me to stick with Pentax.
But on the (very few) USM lenses I've seen in pieces, the motor looks as though it adds significantly less weight than the af shaft and/or gears on my Pentax lenses (not to mention probably weighing less than the zoom mode switch on the side of my power zoom lenses) So, of you want to save price, bulk, and weight, agitate for adding USM, but dropping the old mechanical auto-focus linkage :-) Oh, yes - while we're about it, let's drop any remaining mechanical aperture linkage, too, and control that by in-lens motors as well. On Mon, Mar 20, 2006 at 02:30:39PM -0500, Adam Maas wrote: > Not significantly to either for USM lenses. The motor adds about as much > weight as removing the mechanical linkage saves. It's cheaper to > manufacture, and adds only slightly to the diameter of the lens for most > lenses. > > -Adam > > > > Juan Buhler wrote: > >I might be wrong, but wouldn't an usm motor add to the price, bulk and > >weight of the lenses? > > > >j > > > >On 3/20/06, Godfrey DiGiorgi <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > >>How so? If they design the lenses and the new mount to be compatible, > >>it adds an option not subtracts one. > >> > >>Godfrey > >> > >>On Mar 20, 2006, at 10:51 AM, Juan Buhler wrote: > >> > >> > >>>I hope that doesn't happen. > >>> > >>>There are a few of us who couldn't care less about auto focus. If I > >>>want ultrasonic motors in my lenses I know which brand to buy. If > >>>Pentax goes that way, I see it as having yet one less option > >>>available. > >>> > >>>j > >>> > >>>On 3/20/06, Sylwester Pietrzyk <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > >>> > >>>>K.Takeshita wrote on 25.02.06 19:44: > >>>> > >>>> > >>>>>OTOH, I do not believe Pentax abandoned FF lenses altogether. We > >>>>>still need > >>>>>fast tele (200/2.8, 300/2.8 etc etc) and I just cannot imagine, > >>>>>Pentax > >>>>>being so well recognized as a superb lens maker as well, simply > >>>>>drop out of > >>>>>normal lens biz. I think the recent lens road map is really for > >>>>>the digital > >>>>>compatibility particularly on the wider end. > >>>> > >>>>Well Ken, if my (quite reliable) source of Pentax information is > >>>>right - > >>>>then new DA f2.8 lenses will have built-in AF motor (I guess > >>>>ultrasonic one) > >>>>and that would be a reason to change whole line of long lenses ;-) > >> > >> > > > > > >-- > >Juan Buhler > >Water Molotov: http://photoblog.jbuhler.com > >Slippery Slope: http://color.jbuhler.com
