Thanks and I will tomorrow at the first opportunity. What a shame as this camera is really something else. Unfortuate publicity wise for Pentax too.

Much like the banding problem on the Canon 7D, but that seems to have gone away.

Even my G10 was supposed to have had a sensor fault with a line of dead pixels, but mine was not affected.

Hopefully my K-7 will also be OK, but knowing my luck......

I have just unpacked mine, but not taken any photos yet. How does one test for this problem? Does it show up on the dust alert, or only on images?

Thanks.

I made a killing at Jessops when they stopped selling Pentax. Got the K20D grip for £35. I was sure then that was a realistic price. The 'real' price is, like so many things, a bit of a take on IMHO.

This is where the real profit lies.

Sell the grip with the K20D, you may get a better price, then but the new grip with the K-5.

I am a serious amatuer, I suppose. I am Chairman of a Photographic Club, so I do strive to win competitions. Image quality is an important ingredient of photography, but so is composition and subject. You do not need a top notch camera for the last two.

I have owned the K10D, K20D and now have the K-7. Each upgrade did lead to better image quality, but each was a slight dissapointment too. The K20D had brain damaged live view, poor metering and slow FPS rate, also the autofocus was prone to hunting.

The K-7 is much improved, but the high image noise is not as good above 800 ISO as I had hoped for. I do have a liking for nightime street photography, so the K-5 would help there. Also the improved autofocus would be useful for photographing moving subjects such as aircraft and birds in flight. I am happy with the improved metering and live view on the K-7. I think it is a shame though that Pentax cut the left side of the body off, as I think the K20D handles better. It also forced me to but another battery grip adding to the cost.

The K-5 has improved vidoe over the K-7 and although I thought this a gimmick, I have found the feature useful.

Regarding upgrading, this is a difficult choice. Buy now and take advantage of the cashback offer, or wait for the Amatuer Photographer full test report expected Mid January. I am sure, as happened before, the K-5 will drop in price by the spring. Pentax may even reintroduce the cashback, as they did with the K-7. I wonder if a full frame contender for the Canon 5D Mk2 is on the drawing board at Pentax. Now that could really be the one to wait for.

Very impressive. Oh dear, bang goes another grand from the savings!

When you guys get yours, I would be most interested in your opinions. I am very keen to get one, but I really made a bit of a mistake going from the K20D to the K-7, as it has not proved to answer either the slow autofocus, or the high ISO noise as I expected it to.

Just don't want to make another expensive mistake. I have yet to trace a test report on the K-5. Can you point me in the right direction please?

Thanks.

I wonder what the price will be in March next year?

I still find the K20D more comfortable to hold than the lop sided K-7. I do prefer the lower noise from the K-7 images, but they are still not as good as I would like. Having seen some shots taken with the K-5 at high ISO (see AP's forum - Pentax Chat), there does seem to be a considerable improvement.

I think Nikon may still be better in this respect, but a complete change of kit would provoke a divorce! A K-5 might just be tolerated.

Like most, I would like to upgrade, but I will wait for a 'body only' purchase option and see if the prices drop a bit in the new year, even with 20% VAT. I am pleased that the K-7 grip and batteries are compatible with the K-5. Oh, I also have a buyer for my K20D and grip, so that will kick off the funding.

Thank you indeed for the interesting information. This belonged to my father, so I will not be parting with it.

I have a book, Asahi Pentax Guide by W.D. Emanuel, 15th edition August 1972, published by The Focal Press (cost 75p), which describes the SV, but makes no mention of an early and late model.