K-01 any fans?

I am looking for a 4/3 camera to play with and was winning an auction for a K01 when I decided to check out some reviews.
Photography blog really put me off principle because of size of camera and lack of view finder.
Are there many pentaxions out there who have one of these?
If so what's the overall verdict on the K01?
Does it offer enough difference & benefits compared with a Dslr?
Is it worth the money or is the Q series a better bet?
Really want to stick to Pentax as much as possible but the Lumix G5 is looking very tempting if only the 14-140 lens wasn't so darn expensive! !@@

Why? K-01 is not a 4/3.

I don't have one, but they do have a strong fan-base.

Don't read reviews, just buy and try. Your opinion is the only important one.

The K-01 is a great camera, takes great images and of course takes all the Pentax fit lenses you already have.
For me though the downside was a lack of a view-finder which is why sold mine in favour of a 2nd dslr body.

K-01 is based on K5 sensor so it's APSC takes K series lenses, lovely images, what more need be said.
OK so there's no viewfinder- you will get used to it but then again the Q doesn't have a viewfinder..
I've had two K-01s and wish I'd still got one but hey that's down to personal circumstances.

I had one for approx 2 weeks. As the others above have said, lovely image quality and nicely built. Takes all our Pentax glass (obviously) and controls/menus are familiar.

So why did i sell it so quickly?

Well i bought it to replace my long suffering Panasonic GF1 (a first gen mirrorless camera). On paper the K01 made perfect sense. One camera system, i had all the lenses, the IQ and build.

In my own personal opinion the K01 had all the cons of a mirrorless and none of the pros. Image quality aside the GF1 was better in every respect. So i sold the K01 and kept the GF1 for another year. Finally replacing it with a Fuji X-E2.

Just my experience. As the others say, buy a K01 and try it for yourself. You can try for free as you can sell it on for what you paid.

K-01 is so cheap now - £120 seems to be the going rate - that I bought one as a backup body that I can use with all my of existing lenses and flashguns. The focus peaking can be handy with manual focus lenses. It is noticeably smaller and lighter than the K5 series DSLRs but in my opinion the main advantage is the price, it is a bargain now. It would be better with a viewfinder. Sometimes I put the tiny Ricoh GR optical finder in my pocket to use on the K-01 if I am using a lens of similar focal length.

I bought one when the prices started to drop. I've never jelled with it though. Hardly been used really and is listed on gumtree for sale right now actually. The stills are great, the video is rubbish. I find the shutter sound to be very irksome. actually, I almost gringe each time I fire it. I bought it out of curiosity more than anything and it was a sensor upgrade to my then K-7, but I have since purchased a K-50 which does everything the K-01 can do plus more. Personally the Q is a much better hit with me than the K-01, the Q I'm keeping - pound for pound the Q is superior imho..

Aside from the Fisher-Price looks, the beast seems to have all the disadvantages of a mirrorless camera with none of the benefits. I like the retention of the K mount, but in doing so the camera had to be very large. It has no EVF. If I don't carry a DSLR then I use the MX-1 (which is also too big for what it is) or Canon's much maligned "M" which is tiny and yet has an APSC sensor. While no speed demon, the latest software has made it fine for the kind of pedestrian stuff I shoot.

I normally like "different" but really this one was a loser from the start. Still, the company learnt its lesson... no, wait a minute, they released the KS-1, so they couldn't have.

The K-S1 is a new lesson altogether

Even though I also own a Pentax K-01... It was a massive failure for Pentax.

Just the numbers for comparison, feel welcome to look up the sales numbers for items such as the Sony mirrorless line versus anything Pentax has ever come out with. K-01 = marketing and engineering failure

Show us the sales numbers, please.

I own one, it's a lovely camera, takes superb images, but I generally use it indoors, where it excels with manual focus lenses due to the focus peaking. I wouldn't use it in preference to a DSLR, except for indoors, but you have to bear in mind the value for money when buying one of these used. I bought two mint examples for £150 each, my son has one and I have the other. They are also good for video as long as you turn off the sensor shake reduction.

Regards
David

The K-01 has no sensor shake reduction for video, David.
Unless you mean't to say 'MovieSR' which I agree with, turn it off!

Yeah unfortunately the K-01 falls into the 'Movie SR' category. Basically no modern Pentax product actually uses the sensor for shake reduction purposes during video recording. Pentax have walked away from this, with the K-5 series being the last to have it.

What should be a Pentax strength is just another missed opportunity now, as others are doing it better with smaller sensors and with larger.

Thanks for correcting me guys, you clearly knew what I meant to say!

Cheers
David