tom wrote:
>Michael Nosal wrote:
>> With the competition from Canon, Nikon and Kodak on the high end ($3K-$7K),
>> and the new 4MP cameras from Casio, Toshiba and Sony on the low end, I don't
>> see how Pentax could get away with pricing this above the $3000-$4000 range
>> when it comes out in the fall.
>
>Do any of these cameras have a full frame 6 meg sensors? I'm assuming
>the Casio, Toshiba and Sony don't have interchangeable lenses.
>
Only Kodak has 6MP cameras right now (560,660,760). They are based on the F5
and EOS bodies. The 760 goes for $7K. True, they are not full-frame, but a
1.3x focal-length multiplier isn't quite so bad.
Nikon's D1X is right around $5K.
If Pentax tries to price the MZ-S Digital around $7K, they are going to be
going head to head against the Kodak F5-digitals. Pro's will choose the F5
and EOS-based Kodaks over the Pentax MZ-S based digital. And Kodak is being
aggressive about dropping the prices on the DCS models.
Canon's selling *lots* of D30's at $3000, and they've let folks know an
upgrade is coming soon. Fuji's S1 Pro is also around $2800. Feature-wise, a
MZ-S digital is more similar to the D30 and S1 Pro than to the D1X and
DCS-x60 cameras. The 6MP sensor would make it stand out in this price range
without having to gob on lots of new features.
True, the low-end 4MP cameras don't have interchangeable lenses, but they
are also selling for around $1200 right now. It would be extremely hard to
convice these folks to spend 4x-5x for their digital camera.
>As far as I know, and I don't pay too much attention, the only
>competitor is the Contax that uses the same chip that's due out.
Contax can charge big bucks because they are Contax, and they don't have to
sell as many cameras as Pentax. The "Zeiss tax" if you will.
>
>Of course, only the Pentax takes Pentax lenses, and is the only one I'd
>consider.
But Pentax won't be able to base their sales on folks who are willing to pay
a $2K-$4K premium just to be able to use their Pentax lenses on a digital body.
There was lots of speculation about the price of the film MZ-S before it was
released. Now, in only its first month, its holding steady at about US$850,
lower than most folks thought. I think we'll be surprised by the price of
the MZ-S Digital when it's finally released.
Michael Nosal
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
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