Well neither have I, but I did go and have a play around with a D300 - in lieu of the not yet out D300s - and a 24-70mm F/2.8 I have been eying, and I have quite the opposite concern to you; it seems far too heavy for the kind of video shooting I had in mind.

Will go back to confirm when it is finally out but I fear it's back to the drawing for me.

Agreed.

It would be very interesting to know when Pentax became aware of this issue and why they have chosen not do anything about it (the document is dated 21st July and it would presumably have been a simple matter to include a new setting in the firmware update of 29th July to reduce the available video time to ameliorate sensor overheating).

Nevertheless perhaps more interesting is the revelation that the board numbers several strict empiricists; of course this is a generally a laudable position that is typically the very essence of a scientific approach.

However, in the present circumstances the insistence that only the full manufacturer's data set on warranty claims can provide us with information about K7 defects is utterly perverse.

This data is not made publically available by any manufacturer. Therefore requiring it as a precondition of constructively speculating on the extent of the K7's design problems effectively serves to shut off all discussion.

This is in fact the antithesis of the scientific method, which requires a hypothesis to be formulated that can be tested for example experimentally or by the use of pure logic. Here the very formulation of such an a priori hypothesis has so far been quashed by what is in fact utterly spurious logic.

Did you see the link to the gallery above?

Full Gallery

Hogwash.

What has happened is entirely typical of industries that have been transformed by technology, in the case of SLRs first by the advent of digital, and now arguably by the introduction of video/dSLR combos.

In already established markets a shift in technology serves to unhinge the market and its competitive structure, regardless of whether this is driven by cost reduction or new customer features/benefits.

New models are initially rapidly introduced as experience is gained in technology application while companies' cost structures are fine tuned. In addition new entrants may try their hand in the market while existing players scramble for advantage. Eventually this results in a protracted competitive shake out as players exit the market who are unable to make the required financial returns/profits.

Meanwhile product life cycles progressively stretch due to design optimisation and lessening of competitive pressures, as industry leaders turn to 'harvesting' strategies.

I am sure many on this forum who could reel off scores of US, British, and German 35mm film camera manufactures from the 1930-50s who in their day churned out a variety of bodies but have long since closed their commercial shutters. There is nothing new under the sun.

LOL. Do you know what the difference is between Pentax with a product pipeline and without? Perhaps 2-4x in the valuation of the business. Going concern isn't purely a theoretical accounting term, and even if the board had taken the decision to unconditionally get shot of the business they would never admit as much until all possible avenues for a sale had been exhausted.

FWIW Hoya's Q1 financial results are now out and reveal astonishingly little about Pentax's camera business performance; a veritable masterpiece of classic Japanese gobbledegook obfuscation.

Best I can make out is they narrowed their operating losses in the division, which they are attempting to put a boolish spin on. In this vein I strongly suspect they rushed the launch of the K7 to get a full quarter's earnings contribution in order to try to paint Q2 profits. However, with the seemingly alarmingly high level of warranty returns this appears to be spectacularly backfiring.

Have you considered whether the 70-200 F/2.8 with a 2x teleconverter could do the job instead?

You might even be able to get a relatively good price on an existing model prior to the new one coming out before Christmas.

There are some of these in the non-HSM version going cheapish via Amazon at present. See link.

(all mounts are available :twisted

To paraphrase Oscar Wilde, it seems to me you would need to have a heart of stone to read George's original post without shedding a tear of laughter at the supposed injustices suffered.

But rather than take issue with his hypocrisy or petty prejudices, I would instead like to outline my anthropological theory regarding the underlying forum dynamic at work.

Without having been fully privy to of George's 5,000 odd posts over not much more than 5 years - itself an extremely prolific achievement raising legitimate questions as to quality control - it is clear that he is a forum "oldie" to use Malo's no doubt apt description.

Malo is himself an oldie, and so are most of the others that have weighed into this thread in favour of the original sentiments expressed; just do a members search and you will see these names at the top of the posting leaderboard and the clustering of joined dates around 2006.

However, although these people may be oldies they are not the progenitors of the forum; now try a search of members by joined date and a whole plethora of names crop up that I have never seen or heard from. This is unsurprising as the original members generally speaking were unable to generate much by way of posting, allowing the new oldies a clean canvas on which to make their mark.

In my view this backdrop creates the real possibility that the term oldies may in fact be a subliminal slip of the tongue that actually implies the term elders, specifically tribal elders, because is clear that the dynamic here is very much that of a tribe.

Seen in this way the otherwise meaningless zealotry regarding the use of proscribed language instead assumes highly ritualistic significance transformed as it is into magical incantation warding off the possibility of change in general, which is invariably deemed harmful to tribal society.

Of course going all the way back to Hearclitus man has been fearful of the effects of change on society - tribal or otherwise - and whether a metaphor for this is sought in the supposed decline in standards of language or that of the chief object of veneration Pentax, it impels an urge to arrest and if possible reverse it. A tall order indeed!

I believe the tribal analogy may be extended in many other interesting and often amusing ways but to stay on topic I will mention only one final thing; although George is clever at wrapping this up in a flowery albeit somewhat pompous literary style he has a tendency to be rude and abusive (I had thought he temporarily made an effort to curb this but he appears to be back to his old ways again).

However, it is a tribal taboo to point this out, and if anybody should ever accuse him of such a thing the tribe must immediately close ranks and shout down any offenders. For it is in the nature of the tribe to tolerate any and all behaviour, even severe literary deficiencies, if the transgressor pays due homage and reverence to relevant customs and ritual.

Indeed.

Look no further than http://nikonrumors.com/ for a recent purported leak detailing Nikon's camera and lens releases for the next few years.

First up - around the turn of the month - is the "D300s" featuring HD video and an improved autofocus system.