The ideal DSLR

I work in a software company and we are using ideas forums, where partners and customers can post ideas of newa features in our software, other community members then have to vote on these ideas and the top votes might end-up in our development planning. Not sure, if Pentax is sing something similar - in case they don't, I thought it might be a nice idea to motivate them to do so, by starting a feature thread.
I am sure, everyone from us loves his Pentax camera but misses the one or the other feature - I would be interested (and I am sure, the product managers from Pentax as well) to hear some of these ideas. To make a starting point - here two of my most important topics on my wish list:

Geo-Tagging: I am one of these "Bulk shooters", meaning, I really create lots of pictures per year, and sometimes I loose a bit the control of still knwing what and where it was, what I see on my pics. If they would have the coordinates in the Exif information, I could easily check via google map, where I was, when I took the picture. As I don't want a bulky geo tagger on my hot shoe, I would like to have a DSLR with a built-in geo-tagger.

WLAN support. This is really one of the draw-backs of Pentax systems - they neither have a built-in WLAN support nor can you get a WLAN transmitter as an optional extra. When doing portrait series, it is great to see the results immediately on a laptop as you can check, if you have proper shots before you ask the model to switch position/posing. Basic WLAN transmitters mowerdays come even in small compact cameras, so it can't be a bulky and expensive feature - why can't Pentax DSLrs have such a transmitter???

I wouldn't want to have to pay for the cost of geo-tagging (which I would never use) when I buy a new camera. If you can't remember where you took the photos, there's little point in doing photography. Photographs are memories

You can get a Eye-Fi card that transmits back to your laptop.

Both of them are features I'd want in my camera. I'm sure Algernon didn't mean to be so dismissive about your desires

I also want a pop up flash that can pop all the way up so it can bounce off the ceiling.

Manual control of the on board flash (not just EV compensation but actual 1/1, 1/2, 1/4, etc settings). Should be simple enough in the firmware.

Other than that I'm pretty happy with my camera.

Yes! Like the one on the Leica Digilux 2 did. I often wondered why more companies didn't do that as it's such a simple but effective idea.

Oh I didn't even know it exists in other cameras! In that case I definitely think Pentax should get on the case! In fact while we're remodelling the pop up flash, make it so it can swivel left and right as well as vertically.

My Dad has a Digilux 2 - the flash basically has two positions when it pops up; straight ahead (like every other camera) or 45 degrees upwards. It's really not a particularly complex mechanism but being able to bounce with the onboard flash does make a huge difference. Can't think why others haven't copied it tbh.

I see the point that you dont want to pay for it - but I also have to pay for a built-in flash that I never use . Honestly - I do not always remember every street or Building name - I mean, I know the Eifel Tower and other important things - I think I have a quite good memory, but when I revisit my pics from a Norwegian small village years later, I find it difficult to remember very exotic local names.....
Yes I know the Eye-Fi card, but for what ever reason, this card does not officially support K20D (not sure, if it is a week power supply in the Flash-Slot of the K20D or if the magnesia body is preventing good signal transmission, but this 120€ card is not supported......

I've used an Eye-Fi in a K20D for over a year without any problems.
Prior to that a K10D and *istDS. I've not tried it in the K-5 yet, but it should be OK.

They can't say it's fully compatible if the camera won't let you mark favourites etc. to send straight to the likes of Flickr.

There's also a Geo-tagging card that uses Wi-Fi hotspots.

Mines just the basic card for sending Jpegs to my PC. Handy for doing white balance,focus and DOF tests as well as getting the exposure spot on.

cool - as I asked Pentax and EyeFi support and both gave a negative feedback..... I think the version with geo tagging is not worth buying (not accurate enough and does only work when hotspots are nearby) but another one I might try
Thanks for this info

For geotagging, a small gps logger (such as one of the QStarz ones) is really a much better bet than an in-camera solution. It'll not be draining the camera battery, will let you see exactly where you were over the full day (which might sound pointless, but if you also have an interest in mapping, then is fun in itself) and it only takes 5 mins to tag a couple of hundred pics with geosetter, a free bit of software. Considering all the extra bumpf we tend to take with DSLRs, IK don't see why you'd want it in the camera itself. Having said all that, I do see the point of geotagging in point and shoot cameras, as these are often the type you just grab on the way out the door without wanting a full bag of kit!

If you search the US Pentax forum there's a lot of positive stuff about Eye-Fi and no negative. Even some posts from Eye-Fi reps. themselves.

I often use mine in the garden and it usually transmits OK or it starts transmitting as soon as I walk into range. I could move my broadband router outside to increase the range if I wanted.

The only thing you have to watch is don't go off somewhere and take say 500 shots, because it starts transmitting back to the PC as soon as you come within range. I only use the Eye-Fi card when I want to transmit immediately.

Concerning the geo-tagging you could take a photo with a mobile phone that geo-tags and then copy the info to the Pentax photos.

I'd be more interested in geo-tagging if they used the UK National Grid Co-Ordinates for this country only. Too much trouble to have to convert everything.

I would like to see a proper shutter release socket on the K-x/K-r and the IR receiver mounted in such a way it can be triggered from front or back of the camera. Also mirror lock up on these cameras.
Dave
P.S - drop proof would be nice - see my topic above!!!

Ask and you shall receive (Pentax GPS) : link

Also a lot of other options and information on a PF thread here : link

From the same thread this looks interesting too : link

apples airport express is handy for extending range of your existing router, and adds remote speakers and usb printing to boot!