I Can't Get My Hands on a K-5

[Doug B]

I am in WA and have been waiting for my local Camera House to get me a new K-5 with 18-135 lens. They tell me the distributor can't supply any at the moment. They seem to be available from Taiwan on Ebay but I would prefer to buy in Australia if I can. I note on Ryda's website they say 'On order 2-7 days' which has been there for over a month. Anyone know of where I can get one now or have info on when the distributors are expecting stock?
Doug

[Lance B]

Try contacting CR Kennedy in Melbourne:
http://www.crkennedy.com.au/v1/index.cfm?pageID=551

[Kym]

CRK are waiting for new stock.
I was told they expect new stock at the end of January.

BUY LOCAL! You can get deals almost as good as grey, and the local warranty is really worth it (my K-5 is being replaced and is waiting for the new stock ;) ).

Someone else on another forum bought grey and now have some serious grief getting theirs repaired (back to HK, back to Japan etc.) i.e. months.

FYI some early batch K-5s have a sensor stain under the AA filter. IF you bought local it's a replacement no questions asked.

[Lance B]

CRK are waiting for new stock.
I was told they expect new stock at the end of January.

BUY LOCAL! You can get deals almost as good as grey, and the local warranty is really worth it (my K-5 is being replaced and is waiting for the new stock ;) ).

Someone else on another forum bought grey and now have some serious grief getting theirs repaired (back to HK, back to Japan etc.) i.e. months.

FYI some early batch K-5s have a sensor stain under the AA filter. IF you bought local it's a replacement no questions asked.

Very good advice, Kym. I cannot stress highly enough that you should purchase locally and not from a grey marketer.

A grey marketer from overseas may send you a K-5 that may have the sensor stain and you'll have a devil of a job getting it repaired. If you get it from a local dealer who is an official CR Kennedy agent, then there will be no issue as Pentax?CR Kennedy are aware of the sensor stain issue. As far as I am aware, the sensor stain issue has been resolved and was just a manufacturing fault with the first batch/batches.

[Doug B]

Thanks for the advice. I had read about the sensor stain and figured the new Australian stock would probably have addressed the problem. I have always bought local for the reasons you mentioned. By way of explanation, the reason I am getting a new camera is I dropped my K200D and cracked the base of it. The lens was jammed on and couldn't be removed. I took it back to Camera House where I bought it two years ago, he retrieved and printed out my original invoice from his computer, inspected the camera and gave me a letter stating the camera could not be repaired. I took both to my insurance company and they paid me the full value of the camera (less $100 excess). You wouldn't get that service from Taiwan! So now I've decided to put some (lots) of extra cash with it and upgrade to a K-5. I guess I'll have to wait until the end of the month. Cheers.
Doug

[Kym]

@Doug I pre-ordered by K-5 back in October and got it in early November ... If I were you I would do that now once you decide where to buy.
They sell out very quickly, and no wonder - they are the BEST APS-C camera bar none and rival many 35mm sensors.

[K10D]

I hung back on bying a K5 as I have another body that performs well at high ISO and AF speed. I looked again at Xmas and nearly bought one, yet just after the stain issue had quietened down, another issue of focus errors has appeared when the camera is used in low light (Pentax Forums). So I'm still sitting it out until there is a solution to that. I never had issues with my other Pentax bodies (within the limits of ISO etc.).

It would be a move in the right direction once Pentax resolve these issues.

Best regards

[Doug B]

Had a call from Camera House today. It's here! They said they were lucky to get just two from the distributor - one of which is mine! I'm no expert when it comes to photography so I guess the learning curve will be steep, stepping up from my K200. Some would see this camera as an extravagance for me, however I am looking at it as long term enjoyment, given we are now retired and spend months every year travelling this great country we live in. I recently purchased a Sigma 150-500mm to put in the bag with my Tamron 90mm macro. The camera comes with the 18-135mm zoom so I think I have most bases covered. Can't wait to get up north this winter.
Doug

[KevPride]

Show us some shots when you get it. I'm interested in the 150-500, would be interested in your comments how it performs on the K5 - have seen some excellents shots when mounted on Canon.

[NextPagePhoto]

I'd love to see some shots as well. I really want a K-5 but it will probably wait. Not that any of the local dealers have got 1 in stock yet.