You have a PM

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"The Japanese recommended selling price remains the same as for the OS version."

I can vouch for what Mike says about the Sigma 70-300. I had one myself and although it was an OK lens the difference in quality to the Pentax 55-300 is huge. The Pentax may cos a bit more but it is well worth it. Don't fall into the same trap as me and buy the first thing my pot of money would cover as it will prove to be wasted money, wait and buy the right lens first time and the 55-300 is awesome for the money.

Two fellow toggers I spend time shooting with. One has a K-r and from the few times I've used it there is a huge improvement in the build quality and functionality over the others' Canon 500d.

I little more satisfied thanks. Great shots, and so far looking like a great lens. The price is a little steep for my pocket bit it looks like a good buy to me.

For little read lot

Hi gedski,
The issues you worry about are pretty needless. The K-r is not a waterproof model that is the domain of the K-5 so it is advisable not to use it in heavy rain. There may have been one or two failures of the dial wheel but considering the millions sold worldwide it is a minor issue.
As for being discontinued, all model have a finite time span and this may be close to its end of life, however you should have years of use from the camera providing you look after it and you will have at least one years warranty in case it does inadvertently go wrong, two years if purchased from an official Pentax partner i.e. SRS.
Enjoy your camera and snap away to your hearts content. And don't forget to post some so we can enjoy them too.
As for focusing under tungsten lights, there is always manual focus.

Kind Regards
Steve

£134 new bargain, and gets rave reviews.
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Most people are honorable and trustworthy, unfortunately there are the odd few that spoil it for the rest of us

Nice shots Danny, but I feel teased, after reading your intro I was kind of expecting a few more photos. Stunning lens BTW is it 1:1 and, if you don't mind me asking, what did you pay for it?

Nice video, thanks Puma, it makes you pine for the summer though?