K01 or wait to see if Pentax makes another fun Mirrorless camera

[revolver]

<p>so, I just got a small M4/3rds camera for like P/S situations when I cant have my big camera with me.<br /><br />I still love that K01 for the short time I had it and want to get another. but that design is so screwy.<br />do you think that Pentax has any plans anytime soon to put out a more normal looking not so clunky version of a mirrorless camera?<br /><br />I can get one for like $300 body only $429 or so for the 40MM flat lens<br /><br />is that 40mm lens worth the buck 30 or would that camera be just as well suited with the 18-55 mm kit lens<br /><br />?<br /><br />thanks</p>

[Member69643]

<p>I bought the K-01 when it went on fire sale. Here's my take on it:</p>

<p>Pros</p>

<ul>

<li>It's my only yellow camera so it's easy to find.</li>

<li>In certain environments it produces very nice images. Indoors mainly.</li>

</ul>

<p>Cons</p>

<ul>

<li>Handles like a brick.</li>

<li>Focus is slow in low (average indoor) light, even with the upgraded firmware.</li>

<li>Flimsy card slot door. I got around this by using an Eye-fi card so I never need open it.</li>

<li>LCD unusable in bright sun, just like every other digital camera in existence. No optical viewfinder nor any option for one.</li>

<li>No wireless flash.</li>

</ul>

<p>I like my K-01 but don't love it. For $300 it's a worthwhile megapixel upgrade over early Pentax DSLRs like the K100D or *istD, but it's not as usable.</p>

[revolver]

<p>Patrick,<br /><br />"Focus is slow in low (average indoor) light, even with the upgraded firmware."<br /><br />I got rid of mine because of that and before I heard about the update...disappointing it didnt help.<br /><br />"Flimsy card slot door. I got around this by using an Eye-fi card so I never need open it."<br /><br />agreed but what the hell is a eye Fi card???<br /><br />better than the K100D! I still use mine regularly<br /><br />:( lol<br /><br /><br /></p>

[mark_medin]

<p>I don't agree. My K-01 provides nice images, allows the use of every M42 and most K/M mount lenses (watch that Ricoh pin) and all later Pentax lenses. The brick shape is mere personal preference - my hands are happier with it. I dislike the Sony NEX series due to the lenses of mine dominating the body which forces me to cradle longer telephotos unless I find an accessory grip. The door has never bothered me. I do not suffer from slow AF as I use faster lenses, the LCD issue I solved using a Swivi which is a heck of a lot more comfortable to me than even EVF as it has a built in diopter adjustment which I need, and the eyepiece can be flipped up, converting it to a hood. Very handy and I can install it on any other camera with a similar sized screen. Oh, and the battery lasts many, many shots.<br>

<br />I would prefer a K5II for certain features, but for the price there isn't much else that's as capable. I got mine at a blowout price, of course, but they're coming out with more of them. Hopefully there will be more firmware upgrades. </p>

[revolver]

<p>Mark,<br /><br />you say they are reintroducing the K-01!<br /><br />cool<br /><br />looks aside it did sit nice in my hands too. I would like a K30 but not really "necessary" I got the K100D which is still a fine camera for my uses, just got an Olympus E-PL3 which is a great little camera with a 4/3rds sensor. I will look into the Swivi that will probably be the deal maker...I wear reading glasses now so I know exactly what you mean about needed the diopter<br /><br />Thanks!</p>

[DWScott]

I bought a blow-out priced K-01 and

the 40mm. I also have a K-5 (and a

long history of Pentax DSLRs and

SLRs.)

 

I simply love the K-01. The image

quality is even better than the K-5, and

the ability to properly shoot manual

focus lenses is amazing. Full time

mirrorless makes live-view on a DSLR

seem torturous and useless. The K-01

also offers real features I want --

selectable aspect ratio, manual video

controls.

 

The 40mm is alright but I gave it away.

I use my FA 43 Limited on the K-01

and it is a perfect match - lightweight,

high IQ, faster aperture.

 

Have I given up the K-5? No.

Sometimes you must have a

viewfinder. The K-5 is a wonderful

machine. But if Pentax's next

mirrorless is more like the Fuji XE-1

(includes a viewfinder), then I won't

need the K-5.

[Member69643]

<p>Well, using some rewards points and such, my K-01 cost me $183.00 so it was, and is, a good value. As I mentioned, the camera can make excellent images, it's just limited, even compared to the most basic DSLR. If you need a $350 Swivi to make the LCD usable, well, a camera with an EVF or better yet, an optical viewfinder makes more sense.</p>

[andrewg_ny]

<p>No idea whether Pentax will make a successor. Even though K-01 has numerous flaws, it still represents a pretty powerful picture taking machine for the money and for those who don't consider those flaws dealbreakers...and if you've used it before you already know what you're getting into.</p>

<p>Which m4/3 camera do you have, and what do you want from a K-01 that you're not getting from it?</p>

<p>For me personally it's bricklike design & shape aren't as big a problem as somewhat unergonomic button placement on top. I think it 'works' a lot better with smaller & lighter lenses, once you put larger lenses you might as well use a DSLR. The 40/2.8 is a pretty good lens for that price and is a nice match for the K-01 since it's barely bigger than a body cap.</p>

<p>The AF performance has increased a lot since the initial firmware release but it's still somewhat poor at grabbing AF lock in especially poor light.</p>

[revolver]

<p>Patrick, If I was able to get it for $183 I'd have gotten 2! lol<br /><br />David, thanks for the big thumbs up.<br /><br />Andrew,<br /><br />I picked up an Olympus E-PL3 and also a E-P3<br />I like the PL3 better even though the P3 is supposed to be a "better" camera and the PL3's big brother. I wanted a P/S type with a bigger sensor than 1.2/3<br /><br />what do I want from the K01 that I dont get from the Olympus......nothing. I loved the K01 but returned it too quickly because of the poor low light auto focusing problem. thought something was wrong with it.<br /><br />The Olympus is for times when a DSLR is too much to drag along, not allowed in places where "professional" camera's are not allowed and just all around snapping with a better sensor than your every day Canon Elf type camera's<br /><br />Basically I just "want" it and want it in my arsenal.......<br /><br />I play Bass guitar and have a few of them...different instrument for different applications...know what I mean ;)<br /><br />Thanks guys for your input</p>

[revolver]

<p>David,<br /><br />So you dumped the 40MM that it came with.....would you say that for the time being the 18-55MM kit lens or even one of my 50mm manual lenses from my K1000 would be just fine till I decide to go with a prime like the FA 43 you mentioned?</p>

[r.t. dowling]

<p>Last year I bought an Olympus E-PL1 on a whim. I just thought it would be fun, the price was too low to pass up, and I wanted to see how it performed with my old manual focus lenses. I didn't think I would end up using it more often than my Pentax K100D, but that is exactly what has happened. I can do things with the E-PL1 that I simply can't do with a conventional DSLR... and even though the sensor is slightly smaller, the image quality is very, very good. I've been able to take some positively gorgeous portraits with my E-PL1 and my Pentax 50/1.7 (with cheap K-to-Micro Four Thirds adapter). The Pentax lens acts like a 100/1.7 when I use it on the Olympus, which is wonderful for portraits. The Olympus 14-42 kit lens is surprisingly good too, and autofocus accuracy on the Olympus camera is far better than I was ever able to achieve with the Pentax.</p>

<p>I haven't ruled out getting an APS-C mirrorless camera at some point in the future, but I think I would be leaning toward the Sony NEX system at this point. I have nothing against the K-01 and in fact I think it's quite charming, but one of the things I enjoy most about mirrorless cameras is the ability to adapt lenses from other systems, and the K-01 doesn't allow that (other than M42 lenses).</p>

<p>If Pentax announced that they were going to come out with an APS-C mirrorless camera that allowed easy adaptation of lenses from other systems, I would definitely have to give it serious consideration.</p>

[andrewg_ny]

Eye-Fi card is SD card that also includes a wi-fi transmitter. Patrick is uploading pictures wirelessly from camera without

removing the card, so he doesn't worry about the fiddly rubber flap Pentax substitutes for a card door.

 

Where oh where has the magnificent card door of the K10D and K20D gone? Everything else pales in comparison...

[revolver]

<p>andrew,<br /><br />thanks for the explaination of the eye-fi...I still forget to "google" stuff instead of bothering people...doh!<br /><br />lol<br /><br />RT<br /><br />I have the 14-42 lens that comes standard with the E-PL3. I see that there are other lenses too and seem very low priced but "with cheap K-to-Micro Four Thirds adapter" !!! tell me more!! that is very interesting. I can see my Tamron 70-300 sitting on the front of this PL3...lol<br /><br />The sensor thing is an issue for us isnt it. it just doesnt feel right if its too small. I dont even blow up shots bigger than 8X11 but I like to have the power under the hood.<br /><br />it might be silly but its just a preference</p>

[revolver]

<p>Just took my dog for a walk and brought the PL3 with me.<br /><br />I barely saw them at first but there is a mother and baby deer in there.<br /><br />then I thought if I had my K100D and the 18-250 I would have gotten a better shot! lol<br /><br /><br /></p><div></div>

[revolver]

<p>I put a couple more in my photos from the PL3 from today if you are interested. one is of a cropped flower and one is from the road outside West point Military Academy and just a couple others. No fooling with settings yet, just iAuto and landscape in scene mode</p>

[r.t. dowling]

<p>I'll say this much: the shots I'm getting with my E-PL1 are sharper and have less noise than the shots I get with my K100D, even though the K100D has a physically bigger sensor. I've taken some shots with my E-PL1 that I wouldn't hesitate to print at 16"x20", or maybe even bigger.</p>

<p>This is the adapter I mentioned earlier, which allows me to use K-mount lenses on the Olympus:<br>

http://www.amazon.com/RainbowImaging-K-mount-Adapter-Panasonic-USD24-99/dp/B003GRB4EK/<br>

It works great. Just mount it on the camera, and then mount the lens. Image stabilization works great too; just enter the lens's focal length in the stabilization settings menu.</p>

[revolver]

<p>RT,<br /><br />My daughter, who couldnt care less about my pictures most of the time thought the pictures from the Olympus were "vivid".....<br />High Praise from a 17YO. lol<br /><br />That Adapter is a must have and at 17 bucks why not. I see it is for a PL1 but I think its the same mount. I'll have to check but that seems like a cool thing<br /><br /></p>

[r.t. dowling]

<p>That adapter will work with all Micro Four Thirds cameras, as they all use the same mount. And you're right, at $17 how can you go wrong?! The only caveat is this: if you want to use a newer Pentax lens that doesn't have an aperture ring (such as the Pentax DA series), you'll have no way to adjust the aperture, and the lens will always shoot at the widest aperture. There is, however, a slightly more expensive (but still very affordable) adapter that has a built-in aperture ring, which would allow you to use those lenses and adjust their aperture:</p>

<p>http://www.amazon.com/Fotodiox-10-New--PK-M43-Adapter-Aperture/dp/B0048AG03Y/</p>

[revolver]

<p>awesome...Thanks R.T</p>

[ukhov]

<p>Carl Zeiss get heart attack for budget needs like so! </p>

[DWScott]

Christopher, I would dump the 40mm if you had other good Pentax lenses that will get you to 40mm at f/2.8.

 

But if all you have is an 18-55 or an old manual focus prime, keep the 40mm. It serves a purpose (speed and sharpness that are better

than the kit zoom.) The 40mm is cheap enough to play with and to make up your own mind.

[revolver]

<p>R.T<br /><br />I checked and only my Tamron 70-300MM and the 50MM from my K1000 has an aperture ring which is good but the 18-55mm lens I got with the K100D doesnt have it.....<br /><br />I guess for the few extra bucks I'd be better suited with the second adapter you posted.one thing I dont see is the numbers on the adapter....do you know if the F numbers are there?<br /><br /><br /></p>

[revolver]

<p>nevermind, I found their website and you can see that there are 4 positions on the adapter for aperture<br /><br />the amazon pictures arent as clear</p>

[r.t. dowling]

<p>Yeah, I don't think they put numbers on it because every lens has a different range of numbers... for instance, a fast lens might start at 1.4 and end at 16, while a slow lens might start at 4.5 and end at 32.</p>

[andrewg_ny]

<p>The m4/3 => K adapter I have has no numbers and more like 10(?) clickstops. I haven't looked at it for a while. I wouldn't think a 18-55 would be particularly useful adapted anyway -- a native m4/3 standard zoom with autofocus and full exposure control like that 14-42 would probably be far preferable. More interesting for less-frequently used glass or more special/high-performance glass like primes. That 70-300 would provide pretty impressive 600mm-equiv reach on a micro 4/3 body though.</p>