Lens Prices...

To be honest, I don't think this is a recent problem. I think that great design and poor promotion/marketing is endemic within the corporate culture of Pentax and has been for years.

Look back at all the many innovations in cameras and lenses over the years and count how many times Pentax broke new ground, often reinventing the way camera manufactureers did things (pentaprism, autofocus lenses, and so on) and then look how they failed to capitalise on this in market share.

Maybe they are just great designers and inventors but not great marketers.

Sony has proven what good marketing can do and Pentax really isn't strong with that. The Launch of the K-7 wasn't really noticed to be honest, only some review make it clear that Pentax has a new camera but that's it.
Haven't seen a poster or ad in any mag

Pentax UK prices are determined by Pentax Europe (now France) about every six months based upon an internal €/£ conversion.

Does that mean that if we don't like the current prices we will have to wait half a year then?

I have noticed that the K20D body+lens deals on SRS still follow the old lens prices, I am very tempted now LOL.

I believe your last statement to be very true up to very recent times, they believed the product alone was sufficient.

With Hoya in charge I think things may well become very different and that the large price rises for their more expensive lenses are designed to make the necessary returns to fund a much larger marketing effort (I notice that the body and kit lens prices are not nearly so large).

I think they took a long hard look at what other makes are charging for their good glass (look at Nikon, Canon, Olympus and Sony prices for their best glass) and have decided to be at the same level.

The other factor is that Pentax is about a tenth, or even less, the size of Canon and Nikon and certainly Sony and Panasonic, and their resources (budget and manpower) is appropriate. That alone makes a huge difference to their visibility, for example, who has seen a Ricoh advert recently (or ever)?

Probably even longer!

I think that it will be several months or even longer (year/s) before we see some re-alignment due to competition and currency levelling. But don't hold your breath!

The body and kit lens prices are probably not going to have such large increases, the big hits have been on the more expensive lenses.

The last lens I had wanted to complete my small (but eclectic!) collection was the 12-24 and it had the biggest increase. Typical!

They may be much smaller now, but that's my point. Years ago they led the market in many ways and could have capitalised and maybe been the same size as Nikon (Canon is different as they are a huge diversified conglomerate).

I have no problem with Pentax pricing themselves at comparable levels to Nikon etc, as long as they do it with equanimity and don't charge much high relative prices in the UK than they do in the USA

Doesn't really favor you though, the current exchange rate is much lower.

But it might be they are lagging behind 6 month.
At the end of 2008 the rate was
1 euro = 0.91 pound
Begining 2009 it was also very high for 3 months and now it is
1 euro = 0.86 pound

So those months before the price raise it was around 1 euro = 0.90 pound
Might explain some of it.

We live in a different world today where information is instantly available. There is no reason that they should adjust prices every six months, they can do it on a daily basis virtually UNLESS of course their business is run by bean counters and not marketing people. This is not an accounting decision, it's a marketing decision and should be made according to the market.

Noone expects them to make a loss, of course not, but there is no excuse for being able to buy the same item in the USA for $1300 as you buy in the UK for £1300 (I realise VAT is built in here, but the discrepancy is too great and this is a marketing faux pas)

US pricing is going up now as well, also remember that US retail prices are quoted without any sales tax (VAT). I agree that if you use actual exchange rates rather than tourist rates, many of the prices are still less that in the UK.

Up until recently UK prices were way below US or Australian prices, I suspect that they may level out over the next few months. Still it doesn't get away from the fact that we are all going to have to get used to higher prices than a few months ago.

I don't think that is the whole story, Richard. Prices have risen by much more than exchange differences would justify.

G

Richard Day wrote

Maybe for some of the newer lenses Richard , but certainly not in general. In early 2008 I purchased a FA 50 for the equivalent of £95 tax paid and delivered in the US. I also purchased a FA 35 for the equivalent of £142 again tax paid and delivered in the US.

Totally disagree with this comment, you have to market to win sales. Hoping for sales to arrive out of the ether without marketing is a seriously flawed strategy.

Pentax marketing is quite woeful, the launch and subsequent rollout of the K7 a flagship product is laughable.

For example I am a registered owner of Pentax equipment and I have not received anything from Pentax regarding the launch of the K7.

For the informed members of this forum and other enthusiasts maybe the current level of marketing is sufficient, but what about newcomers to DSLR's? The only serious places to go and try out Pentax kit are at the Pro Dealers. That might be fine if you happen to live in Watford and have the excellent SRS on your doorstep, but what about the majority who don't? The people who wake up on a Saturday morning and decide that they want to buy a DSLR. They might not be serious photographers in some people's eyes, but they are the growing part of the market and a segment that I believe Pentax needs to win a share of, because they bring volume and so reduce overall unit costs and increase profits.

If we go back to the launch of the KM, an entry level camera aimed at people moving up to SLRs. What did Pentax do to bring this to the attention of a growing market segment? Contrast this with the launch of the recent Panasonic G1.

Two weeks ago my niece had a 17th birthday party. She is studying photography as part of an Art and Design course and has been using my MZ6. She likes the camera and told me that her Father had offered to buy her a DSLR. I asked if she had any particular make/model in mind. She immediately said the Panasonic G1. When asked why it was purely on the basis of the TV ad and the message it conveyed. The KM maybe a better camera, I don't know, but the G1 struck a chord and another new customer has been lost.

I am aware that there are several KM owners on the forum, but I believe that is in spite of the marketing, not because of it. The question is how many like my niece have been lost?

I think you've hit on a very valid point here John. Having now had a play with a K-7, if I had to summarise the impression I came away with in one word, it would be "investment". It's not just a subtle variation on previous cameras, it looks, feels, and responds like a model from the big two. How many small incremental model changes did we see in the *istDS, and then the K10 to K20 shift? Lots. It was a series of small steps, but essentially the same building blocks underneath. Whilst I personally don't have anyproblem with this, the media, and consequently the buying public, did.

As an example, it used to wind me up when I saw a review saying that the Pentax menu design was terribly dated, and regard this as so low down the list of priorities to be near insignificant. Unfortunately, such features influence the buying public and tarnish the perception of the brand. With the K-7, it's clear that Hoya have decided to do something about it and we now have a model that is a step change from before in many, many areas.

This sort of change requires a lot of money, and, a wake up call from the top of the company. I think Pentax had previously been stuck in a rut, and didn't have the cash/kick up the backside to break out of it. Hoya have changed all that and I for one am glad of it. The Hoya investment has resulted in a good product that seems to be able to deliver.

Duncan

Thanks for that shim, some of your links are unbelievable, I don't know how you do it, but keep them coming, fascinating - Thanks.

There is no excuse for bad manners or such behavior, its an absolute disgrace and I feel for you and your staff that you are subjected like this.