Our reader Alvaro sent us the translation of a rumor tweeted by DSLRmagazine (Click here). The Spanish editor writes that “The new Pentax CSC will be a bit smaller than the and it is not sure that it wins -immediately- a beauty contest“..LOL!
In a second tweet he says the “New Pentax CSC will use standard K mount compatible with actual lenses. It will not have a eye level visor.“
Cannot wait to see that ugly beast :)!
Thanks for the translation Alvaro! 😉
55 Responses
LOL what a way to start off a rumor hype!
Bravo Pentax. 🙂
No “eye level visor”? If this has no evf, it would be quite disappointing. However, the k mount mirror-less idea is fantastic. Many tiny primes to use…
Personally, as long as a camera takes good photos, I don’t care how it looks.
i had an image of a rubber duck with k-mount when reading this news. i soo hope i am not psychic ….
Was hoping for Pentax to bring back the Super Program into the digital age. Check out how tiny that FF film SLR is. http://www.flickr.com/photos/raulm/4866913716/ (photo not mine)
Would’ve made a very nice competitor/alternative for the upcoming Olympus OM-D line.
Something like that would be nice. I also love those limited edition prime lenses. They are perfect for such small camera. But no VF, not really interested!
I still have my Super Program. It sits along side my FE2. I love both of them! Even the very loud shutter thwack the Pentax makes! Sometimes I even load some Tri-x into them and shoot for old times sake.
EVF is a must at least for me. I have not mastered the art of arm’s-length photography. It is a 1.5 stop disadvantage for me.
I hope Pentax will come up with a 30mm f/2 pancake. Need a fast(-ish) normal.
They already do, it’s the 31mm Ltd f1.8.
Don’t think of it as arm’s length: think of it as gut-height like a good ol’ medium-format waist-level finder. At least, assuming it has an articulating LCD screen, anyway 🙂
I’m a longtime Pentax users, but I don’t understand the point of a K-Mount mirrorless camera. Why stick with a mount designed 40 years ago with clearance for flappy mirror when that mirror is no longer there? IMO, Sony got this right. Create a new mount, then simply make a smart adapter for those that want to use their legacy lenses. Sticking with the K-Mount puts Pentax at an immediate size disadvantage. Further, just like Samsung they won’t be able to adapt Leica M-Mount glass. That’s a turn off for a good number of enthusiasts.
I understand Pentax already has a line of pancake lenses that should work well on a mirrorless body, but those lenses are also noisy screw driven AF lenses. Hardly the nice silent lenses we’ve all become accustom to in the mirrorless world.
I think Pentax is blowing this. I simply don’t see what they will offer that Sony or Samsung don’t already offer. Are Pentax DSLR users really begging for a viewfinder-less body to use their lenses on? On Pentax Forums I see more people asking for a full frame K-Mount DSLR than anything else. Perhaps if it were full frame then I could see the selling point. However, much like the Q, I really don’t get this at all.
Sure. But why would Pentax go to all that trouble to design and make a new mount and a bunch of new lenses. It’s far less expensive to just use the existing mount and existing lenses. I think you’re seeing this mirrorless Pentax as direct competition with all the other mirrorless cameras we’ve seen, but you’ve got it all wrong because it isn’t in direct competition with them. This is kind of a half way camera between mirrorless and dslr. Wether it was a smart move or not by Pentax, we’ll see in due time.
Like I said, I don’t see a point in it. As the saying goes, they can either piss or get off the pot.
Obviously Pentax likes making novelty cameras, but I have a feeling this is going to once again upset the users that have begged them for a full frame DSLR for years. Seems like a full frame digital Pentax LX would be a better use of their R&D money.
Many K-mount lenses are screw-driven and it is very difficult to design an AF adapter. AF lenses are not fun to MF because of the short focus throw and the lack of dampening.
Perhaps they can have a collapsible lens mount like the Mamiya 6. I very much appreciate the native support of the K-mount.
I hate mirrors and I do not understand why we still have them in cameras. It is just there to blur up my pictures.
Personally I think FF is not necessary. The 16MP and 24MP sensors are really pretty good. Perhaps the price of 645D will come down and take the role of full frame? I am a fan of medium format but I cannot afford/justify spending $10K on a camera body.
Wow, doesn’t sound too promising….
There is one way Pentax could make K-mount mirrorless and keep compatibility with old lenses: movable sensor with on sensor PDAF. When an “old” lens is mounted, sensor moves further, while with new lens, designed for mirrorless, it moves closer. With PD on sensor, there is no need for mirror, but there could be no OVF.
The only drawback is that body would be thicker than other mirrorless cameras. They could make “thin” models compatible with mirrorless lenses only.
Let me guess… they’re talking about this:
http://www.mirrorlessrumors.com/i-hope-marc-newson-can-make-a-better-pentax-k-design-than-that-one/
Ugly – check
No viewfinder – check
Very old prototype that won’t be put in production – chec.. oops!
It wasn’t the size of the K-5, in fact I thought that size, which is similar to a Canon Rebel, was about right. I just could see no need for a Rube Goldberg mirror box in the age of digital. Plus, unlike many others, I prefer contrast detect autofocus afforded by a mirrorless design (no front/back focus issues). But I would not under any circumstances own a camera without a viewfinder. As much as I adore those Pentax pancake lenses, no viewfinder, no sale.
sounds perfect to me.
built like a brick— by an industrial designer… I suspect it will draw inspiration from apple’s macbook pros…machined from a solid aluminum block….. that means it could easily be weather sealed! also means that like the 645d, it probably has tripod mounts on the bottom and side…
no built in evf, means optional evf or optical finders…most pro’s doing video with d-slrs are using Marshal or similar separate monitors anyways.. build it up or down depending on your shooting needs… nice!
keeping the k-mount is great… some compatibility for older lenses possibility of building new lenses that are small enough to sit recessed into the body (who other than Pentax has a rich history of miniaturizing cameras and lenses?)
if it can shoot 2 hrs of video without overheating (the unibody aluminum macbooks body works like a giant heat sinc to help cool the computer for eg) and can match the k5 for still image quality… people will learn to love it, even if some french magazine writer thinks it’s ugly.
First one is a small toy with professional price tag, then this one is a big ass without evf. Really? Pentax.
“Ugly is as ugly does” — Forrest Gump
The camera should look like a brick according to photorumours.com
No VF is something they could have gotten away with and could have made 3 years ago. then they would be “first”
If it has no VF it just goes to show how much attention they really have with the market.
It will be a quick shoot and miss, added to the pile with their Q system…
Sure is ugly. No way I’m buying that. Looks like my Holga, and I’d rather shoot the Holga…
It is a K-r replacement. It is meant as an entry level camera. People buying this thing are use to Powershots and Cybershots. They have never had a VF on a camera before. Why would Pentax put one it?
Pentax is making the best P&S camera on the market. They have hired a consumer designer and promised lots of pretty colors. The new Sony sensor has such good DR they don’t even have to worry about getting exposure right.
I think a lot of people will be disappointed when this comes out.
I suppose it will look like this, but no viewfinder and with a lens mount in the center of the body: http://www.dcresource.com/reviews/pentax/optio_33wr-review/index_pfv.shtml
I have my Sears KS-1000 (Ricoh XR-1) and collection of lenses from high school (early 80s yearbook photog.) still in my closet.
Gimme a MILC K-mount that isn’t mega$ and I might break out the old glass!