K10D vs Sony Alpha

Sorry about the sacrilege in the thread title.

A mate is going on his honeymoon at the beginning of June, and wants a DSLR to take with him. He's never owned any SLR, and I've been suggesting the K10D or K100D, since he's very keen on in-body SR.

The Sony Alpha has this too I believe, and is similarly specified to the K10D, superficially at least. It's also quite a bit cheaper.

Is there anything obvious and compelling that might help him choose between the two?

If you look at the handling and if a camera is easy to use then a Pentax will win hands down.
A colleague has a Minolta (which is now called Sony...) and was really surprised when he handled my *ist-DS.

I agree with Golfdiesel, I had a go with my friends Sony Alpha and although it is well specified I just couldn't get on with the handling.

I suppose some people must like it, or they wouldn't sell at all. Your friends best bet is to handle each camera and see what he thinks but for me the K10D and even the K100D wins hands down.

Also the Pentax SR system is more advanced than the Sony, it can compensate for twist as well as shake. I don't know how much difference this makes in real life, but there we are.

Lenses for the Sony are horrid, especially their zooms... If you pay for a Zeiss or an old Minolta then it's better but Sony's lenses are just bad.

Optically bad, do you mean, or handling?

Optically, the resolution is not even as good as with Pentax's 'kit' lenses. Then again, not may standard or cheapish lenses are...

that's interesting because they are also ****** expensive. Sony seem to have a very high opinion of their own brand name, an opinion which I don't think is justifiable in the DSLR realm.

The old camera brands can expect automatic respect on the DSLR playing field, everyone else has to earn it. Samsung seem to have grasped this, Sony do not.

Sony survive off the name alone, people don't care what it is because it has Sony stamped on it. Their notebooks are 2x the price of most of their equivalents. PS3 is a jumble that will sell because of the name. Their TVs BlueRay... all the name that keeps it going thanks to ignorant people. Plus keeps the prices inflated.

Well the Sony Alpha is quite a lot cheaper than the K10D. And it comes out as "Highly recommended" at DPReview. I know that people here don't seem to like DPReview, but presumably the camera isn't a complete pile of poo.

I was hoping for an unemotional comparison, not a general slagging. As a K10D owner, it's not as if I need to be convinced - I just don't have any experience of non-Pentax SLRs.

yes but I am unconvinced that will work in the photographic world. Suddenly they are in a situation where Joe Public who knows nothing but wants "the best DSLR" will buy a Canon, not a Sony (sorry for the sacrilege, but it's true) . They need to grasp that in terms of cameras they don't really have a brand to stand on.

The camera is quite good as long as you don't need high ISO but the lenses available from Sony are rather bad.

Better ergonomics/handling
Better construction with weather sealing
Greater variety of "modes" - inc innovative variabe ISO
Very little need to use menus - nearly everything uses knobs or buttons
11 AF points versus 9
More WB options
More exposure compensation (3 stops versus 2)
IR remote
DNG
Made by a camera company
Better lenses
Greater owner satisfaction in DPReview study
DPR give it 9 for value against Sony's 8.5

G

I think everybody has more or less covered everything in the comparison. Your mate might want to look at the Samsung GX10 which is more or less the same as the K10d with a different badge but in this country it sells for up to £100 cheaper and you get a 2 year warranty as opposed to Pentax's 1 year.

Just a thought

carl

£599 for the GX-10 + 18-55 + 50-200

Apparently the Samsung Schneider lenses lack SMC coating, but so do all other lenses that don't say PENTAX.

http://www.warehouseexpress.com/?/photo/digicameras/Samsung.html#gx10

I was sorely tempted, but I want a Pentax (same kit though).

Then I'll wait for the DA*s and be happy with that...

I have hear and read this before, but I still haven't seen any real proof of this.