Pentax K-01, Ugliest Camera Ever

^ OK, valid point about the touch screen.

However, with the same lens mounted, the K-01 is always going to be about the same size as the NEX (haven't looked up specs but you can't get around those 45.46mm of air, whether it's in the body or an adapter). Yet the NEX can be made much smaller if you go for RF lenses.

K-01 makes sense if you're invested in AF lenses. If your legacy glass is MF, all it does is lock you out of other mounts.
 
What about the GUI?

What about the GUI?

In general I like the design - refreshing and very "clean". It looks simple when compared to the K5 and I imagine a lot of novice camera users would find it more appealing than traditional dslr controls because of this.

I am wondering whether the GUI (Graphic User Interface) has also been "designed" to match the theme of the camera? I would hope so, to make for a total user experience, and I would imagine that Newson would not overlook this detail and insist on the appropriate changes and "look".

My real issues with the camera are functional - no eye level view finder, rubber memory card cover etc..

Cheers.

eck.
 
Jamie123 said:
I understand that but then I would assume that a lot smaller is worth even more for you which would certainly make other mirrorless cameras a more obvious choice.
But I'm really not trying to change anyone's mind here, just wondering what market segment the camera is aimed at. They say it's aimed at 'design and fashion' people but then I don't really know why these people would be particularly invested in the K-mount.
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I guess I'm not a 'design and fashion' person, but I like the concept. Maybe, you will see an in fitting adapter so you can use your LTM lens and maybe even M mount (plus maybe as the K mount registry is shorter than most SLRs adapters for all kinds of other lenses). I personally like the idea of a fairly high image quality digital almost P&S that is smaller than a DSLR. That also has M, Av, Tv settings.
 
charjohncarter said:
Maybe, you will see an in fitting adapter so you can use your LTM lens and maybe even M mount
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I don't see how that would work. You'll have the same choice of adapters you have now; the K mount has been around long enough that it's all been tried, I would assume.

charjohncarter said:
(plus maybe as the K mount registry is shorter than most SLRs adapters for all kinds of other lenses)
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Many, not most. PK is kind of in the middle. Konica, Canon, Minolta are shorter, so can not be adapted. Nikon, OM and Leica R are longer.
 
The appeal of mirrorless cameras is also about the versatility. I love the fact that my NEX-3 can mount every 35mm lens I own (with adapters). Of course I have no AF and electronic coupling but as it turns out, I hardly use the kit lens anymore. The Pentax brings a top sensor to the table with in body stabilisation, something the NEX cameras don't have.

It makes a lot of sense to make it K mount compatible, but I see no way it could mount for example M lenses. And I would have liked an EVF.
 
It may take great photos. I do realize that. But other than that it is just an DSLR without mirror and without viewfinder. Similar size and weight.

It may look strange - from the top a bit like GXR actually. I do not care much about that - all matters is how it sits in hand and how it operates.

True is - Pentax users wanted badly a mirror-less camera for their K-mount lenses (and wanted AF of course). So finally they get one.

Pentax is probably not strong enough (market wise) to bring out mirror-less camera with is own lenses. And they probably needed something fast - to keep foot in the door. Fair enough.

Of course - a K-mount for GXR could have been introduced, but it would most probably not deliver AF functionality. Only such a thing out there is the AF adapter for NEX cameras - and it is large of course.

I am MUCH more curios about the OM-D from Olympus that should be just around the corner ...
 
Jamie123 said:
They say it's aimed at 'design and fashion' people but then I don't really know why these people would be particularly invested in the K-mount.
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I follow a LOT of fashion stuff, including up to the second fashion blogs and style magazines, and trust me, this camera won't see the light of day in any of them, unless pentax pays for it to be there.

You'll see Leica M's, Nikon F's, even pentax spotmatics, hasselblads, x100's, but definitely not this.
 
CK Dexter Haven said:
I would never ask a grip or AV Pro for advice on interior design. Never. I'm pretty sure there's a huge divide between knowing how to light or mic something versus design something. Grips are not Set Designers. And vice versa. I used to be involved in music production - i know some people. I've been around those people. I'm in advertising now, and know some people. They are the last people i'd want to have anything to do with design. We are generalizing here, of course.

I didn't say designers NEED their products to look as good as their end product. The word is WANT.

And, i will dispute your claim that "functionality comes first" in any field. Simply not true. That's why there is a Fashion Industry. It's how they can sell jeans for $300 and suits for $3000. It's why there's an auto industry that can sell a Ferrari/Maybach/Bentley when a Hyundai can get you there in exactly the same amount of time, and probably with more reliability. It's why there's an Art World, when art serves no practical function.

You're going to have to face some facts. Chief among them is that THE EXPERIENCE is a critical factor with a great number of consumers. And the experience encompasses aesthetics and design. The next fact is that this camera is butt-ugly. I'm sorry.

Does it matter? Depends on who you ask. I used to shoot fashion when the Pentax 67 was The Camera. I hated the design of that beast. The "II" came along and fixed some of the issues. But, i still had an older model dedicated to a Polaroid back, and every time i had to pick it up, there was a 'shock to the system.' I exaggerate. A little. I am sensitive to sensual and aesthetic matters, sure. But, i'm not that unique.
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Nothing I can say to this.

But I still think youre wrong :D
 
Am liking how they handled K-mount support, everything else in this camera turns me off, but perhaps next model? Like Sony eventually brought NEX7.

Speaking of Sony, wonder could they have done the same with old Minolta mount, instead of inventing new E-mount.
 
Actually, I don't find it all that ugly. It has a blocky, toy-like charm. And what is a BIG advantage to me, is that the uninitiated won't know what to make of it. Chances are that it will be a very competent camera. I would order one in yellow ;)

To be honest, if it had a fully supported Nikon F mount, I'd most certainly would buy it.
 
Ronald_H said:
Actually, I don't find it all that ugly. It has a blocky, toy-like charm. And what is a BIG advantage to me, is that the uninitiated won't know what to make of it. Chances are that it will be a very competent camera. I would order one in yellow ;)
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Very good point. There are events where so called pro cameras are not allowed (pro vs non-pro is judged by security, usually black bulky small sensor superzooms are PRO). Bring this in yellow with pancake in hand and other lens in a bag and security will just smile at you.
 
No, Newson set out to produce something different and distinctive. I think he succeeded. Of course, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but something that's distinctly new, and different, can take time to appreciate.

In any case, for many of us it's the ergonomics rather than the aesthetics that kill it. Without a VF, I can't see the point, especially when Fuji and others have shown the way...
 
btgc said:
Nice or ugly, that's not that important. But 60mm eq. FOV - anyone?
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Super. The 40mm lens is one of my most used lenses on APS-C format. If I still had my Pentax DA21mm and FA43mm Limited lenses, I'd buy one of these in a second. In Bumblebee coloring.

I'm quite serious. Since I'm now shooting a lot with the Ricoh GXR-M fitted with Color-Skopar 21mm f/4 and Nokton 40mm f/1.4 lenses, there's little point to going out to spend the $2000 it would cost to reacquire those two lenses and get a K-01 body. But despite the toy-like styling, I suspect this is going to be a very nice camera for a lot of uses. If you have some nice Pentax lenses, it will be a delight. It's not so different in size from the GXR, just thicker due to the requirements of the lens mount, and compared to any of my SLRs it is quite small.

Pentax K-01 vs Leica M9
http://camerasize.com/compare/#285,213
 
btgc said:
Very good point. There are events where so called pro cameras are not allowed (pro vs non-pro is judged by security, usually black bulky small sensor superzooms are PRO). Bring this in yellow with pancake in hand and other lens in a bag and security will just smile at you.
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Indeed. That's why my NEX-3 is red. Traditional Leica loving folk scoff, security guys think it is a funny P&S or that I brought my girlfriend's camera. Suits me fine, stick a fast prime on it, crank to ISO12800 and you get pictures you would not believe were possible. And please realize a few short years ago these pictures really were not possible. At all.

The pic below is very heavily post processed, but the point is that there actually IS a picture. Sony NEX-3 at ISO12800 + 2/3rds of a stop 'push' on the raw file. Nikon 85mm f1.8 wide open. Yes, manual focus.


Concert photography by Ronald_H, on Flickr
 
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