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Pentax takes a step back into the past with the launch of the “Film Camera Project”

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Pentax is an odd duck, for sure. They’ve held onto DSLRs with a death grip against the onslaught of DSLRs, which could potentially become their undoing in a few years. Now, though, it seems that instead of taking a step towards the future, they’re taking one into the past.  But it’s not a backwards step! Film’s resurgence over the last decade or so is no secret. New film brands seem to be popping up regularly and even Kodak is struggling to keep up with demand.

It’s a trend that has not gone unnoticed by Pentax, who have always been a more familiar brand amongst film shooters than digital. So now, they’ve launched a new Film Camera Project. In a press release, the company said the project entails research and developing new Pentax brand “film camera products”, bringing together both veteran and younger engineers to take advantage of both old and new tech.

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Is Ricoh finally giving up on Pentax DSLRs and leaving the camera business?

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In a recent article on Japanese outlet Newswitch, Ricoh CFO Shun Kawaguchi says that the company is looking to essentially dump some of its business in order to be able to focus its time and money on more lucrative areas of the company. There was no explicit mention of Pentax, Ricoh’s own branded cameras or the Theta series of 360° cameras, although logically, they might be some of the first up for the chopping block – and probably in that order.

Pentax’s defiance of market trends and its steadfast refusal to enter the mirrorless market could be its downfall. Who could’ve seen that one coming, huh? Pentax proclaimed in 2019 that users would start switching from mirrorless back to DSLRs within 1-2 years. Well, it’s 2022, and that hasn’t happened. In 2020, they reaffirmed their commitment to DSLRs. And just last month, they released the entirely underwhelming Pentax KF – which is basically just a K-70 with a flippy-out LCD.

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Pentax has officially announced the new Pentax KF DSLR but it’s basically a K-70 with a flippy out LCD

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Pentax has now officially announced the new Pentax KF APS-C DSLR. I say “new”, but it’s not really that much different to the K-70. It’s had a few minor tweaks, but one major update is that it now has a proper flippy out LCD with a slightly higher resolution than its predecessor. It has some new custom image modes and features the special edition Kyushu and Katen Custom Image modes (with supported lenses).

Other than that, though, not much has really changed. It’s almost identical to the K-70 in its exterior other than the LCD, assuming you don’t go for one of the fancy limited edition Crystal Blue or White colour options, and you’d be hard-pushed to tell the difference between them if not for the fact it has “KF” written on it. It’s more of an incremental replacement rather than an upgrade.

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Ricoh Europe is killing off and replacing its EU website – existing accounts will not be transferred

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Ricoh has reportedly sent out an email to customers informing them that they’re shutting down their EU website at Ricoh-Imaging.eu on September 5th. It seems that the singular all-encompassing website is to be replaced by a number of brand-specific websites. This will allow them to target each specific demographic rather than having a single catch-all website for all their customers across all sectors.

According to the email sent out by Pentax, they “are currently creating new exciting websites for you. Our new websites will be brand oriented and will therefore have greater value for you. The first website will be opening soon” but some users fear that this may be Ricoh’s plan to split off Pentax to make it easier to sell off. Whatever the ultimate goal, existing Ricoh customers (in all markets) need to pay attention.

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Ricoh has announced a standalone version of the Ricoh GR IIIx Urban Edition camera

Ricoh’s limited-edition GR IIIx Urban Edition camera, released in March as a kit including some matching accessories now appears to have made it into the regular lineup. Ricoh has announced that the GR IIIx Urban Edition is going to be available to purchase as a standalone edition camera for $1,049.95.

It’s $50 more expensive than the standard Ricoh GR IIIx and $50 less expensive than the limited edition GR IIIx Urban Edition kit that was released in March. And for that $50 reduction, it seems that all you’re really losing out on is the matching leather strap compared to the Urban Edition kit.

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Ricoh’s new rugged and waterproof WG-80 is basically a WG-70 with a slightly redesigned shell and brighter ring light

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Ricoh has announced their new WG-80, the latest in their line of rugged and waterproof compact cameras designed for underwater, outdoor and industrial photography. With the newest iteration, it actually sees a slight (very slight) redesign of the camera’s exterior, although the specifications remain pretty much identical to its predecessor (and its predecessor’s predecessor).

Aside from the slightly modified shell, the Ricoh WG-80 also sees a new macro LED ring light that Ricoh says is twice as bright as that found in the WG-70. They also say it has “enhanced functionality”, but it all appears to essentially be the same as the Ricoh WG-70.

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Ricoh is releasing an “Urban” limited edition version of the GR IIIx with new focus and exposure modes

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Ricoh has announced a new Ricoh GR IIIx Urban Edition Special Limited Kit – bit of a mouthful. As the name suggests, it’s a new limited edition version of the GR IIIx which offers a metallic grey finish with a blue accent around the lens barrel along with some exclusive matching accessories. But it’s not just a pretty face. The GRX IIIx Urban, as we’ll call it from now on, also sports new exposure and focus modes that the standard GR IIIx does not have.

Other than the new exposure and focus modes – which will also be coming to the standard GR IIIx in a future firmware update – the specs are identical to the regular GR IIIx. And despite being a limited edition, the price difference over the standard model isn’t that bad, either. You’re only paying an extra $100 for your bragging rights.

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Ricoh Theta X 360° camera comes with a big touch display, 60MP image capture and real-time stitching

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Ricoh has today announced the new Ricoh Theta X 360° camera. Like the rest of the Ricoh 360° range, the Theta X is an all-in-one camera featuring a pair of lenses and sensors. It seems to represent a pretty big step up from previous Ricoh Theta cameras in terms of user interactivity, thanks to a great big new 2.25″ touchscreen display that lets you preview your shot (a Ricoh Theta first!) and better smartphone connectivity.

As well as the new touchscreen display, the Theta X brings along with it a couple of other firsts for Ricoh – although they are features that the competition has had for a while now. The battery is replaceable, so you’re not reliant on just an internal one. Swap out whenever you need. And while it still features internal storage (~46GB) it also sports a microSD card slot.

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Ricoh announces major restructuring – is Pentax about to be reborn or are they just dying?

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This announcement applies to Ricoh Japan only. For a statement from Ricoh USA, see the bottom of this post.

Ricoh, more specifically its Pentax brand of cameras, seem to have been particularly stuck in the past over the last few years. As every other single surviving camera manufacturer has made the transition to mirrorless, Pentax is still clinging onto its DSLRs. But is Pentax, as well as sister brand GR and parent brand Ricoh in more trouble than we thought?

A new press release from the company seems to suggest that they are struggling somewhat, but that they plan to do something about it, starting on April 1st. They’ve announced a major restructure of the company, stopping the mass-production of cameras and switching to a “workshop like” manufacturing process to strengthen the bond with its customers as well as promoting new Pentax and GR products in the coming future.

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Ricoh files new lens patents – Is Pentax finally considering going mirrorless?

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A few days ago, Ricoh filed a patent application in Japan for three new full-frame telephoto lenses, one of which is for mirrorless cameras. These aren’t the first they’ve filed, either, having filed patents for a couple of other mirrorless lenses a month ago. Could this be a turning point for Pentax, the one company that’s been holding onto DSLRs for dear life while the rest of the world goes mirrorless?

The three new lenses described by the patent aren’t particularly high end. They’re all variable aperture, although the one for mirrorless has a max variable aperture of f/2.8-4, so not too terrible. It’s doubtful, though that Pentax is planning to pursue the mirrorless market. At least, not yet.

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