John, I frankly do not. You might state that "The alternatives are irrelevant to me once I've paid my money", but in my view not that they are irrelevant to us. They are very relevant to me.

As a Pentax user (with 8 Pentax cameras) I feel I have a lot of interest in Pentax and for that reason I feel I have the right to be vocal about my views. And because I have paid my money, I am concerned about their future on which my investment depends.

Here you can find a thread discussing DA 31 vs Sigma 35 Art:

http://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/10-pentax-slr-lens-discussion/232758-new-sigm...

If you wanted something smaller you can find used copies of FA 35 2.0. Very close to the 31mm in performance….

Matt, I fully agree with your analysis!

My own comments are not about the quality of any Pentax cameras: as you also state, any serious camera delivers, except if you have very specific requirements. I think that for Richo to succeed they need to become a key player in the industry, and that is different from having the best product. Consumers choose for other reasons and, whatever we might like, that is all that matters.

What is the model of your netgear router? There seem to be many threads about Sony Xperia Z and Netgear connectivity

Have you by any chance restricted access to the router to selected devices (i.e.: currently your two laptops)? A long shot, but that is the way I had it long time ago, so any new device would have to be authorised by the router...

John, I am not sure I agree that Pentax has that covered. They might have a product in that space, but they do not have the space covered at all. Before Christmas we were flooded with advertisement by every department store, electronics chain, on line retailers, etc. with offers for entry level cameras. I do not think I have seen one advertising Pentax entry level cameras. So no, they do not have that covered.

I assume Ricoh might not like it as much, though….

IMO Pentax is stuck in the middle and should differentiate its products if they want to grow. In the space between M43 and FF Pentax only has APS-C. very crowded and with a lot of similar offerings. I think the example of the Sony A7 is valid: it is a different product that can attract also other brands' owners. Same with the Olympus OM-D and FF cameras. But I think it is much less likely that a Canon user will buy a Pentax K-3 over a Canon 700D or a Nikon user over a D7100…. They are very similar offerings.

If you have a smartphone with a data plan you can (in most cases) also use the phone 3G/4G connection with your tablet and save your self a separate fee….

up! Still for sale