[noisynoodle]

Just found this link to a US patent registerd on 5th August bt the pentax Corporation for in cmera IS:

http://appft1.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Pars...&RS=pentax

--NN

[slejhamer]

Good for them and for Pentax shooters, but how can they patent a technology that already exists and wasn't invented by them? :/

[noisynoodle]

Well, two points on that: firstly they originally patented an IS system long before Canon, Nikon or Minolta and secondly I presume this system differs in some way from the K-M version.....perhaps the patent application is to test that and see if the Pentax system is actually sufficiently unique to warrant a patent, and also to test whether there's any infringement on existing patents from other manufacturers.

Bearing in mind that Pentax have huge numbers of patents on all manner of things and that most are never brought to the market, even if they do get a patent on this there's no telling whether they'll actually put it into a camera....but here's hoping!!

--NN

[shuttertalk]

Wow... I guess Canon, Nikon, K-M have got it... might as well hop on the band wagon, eh?

[noisynoodle]

Just an update on this for anyone who's interested (though we Pentxaians are a little thin on the ground).

After all the hooha in the DPReview forums about the Canon 5D some idea of what Pentax are planning has been bandied about.

From a hitherto reliable source, it seems Pentax are focusing (no pun intended) on the bottom end of the market for the forseeable future, with the exception of the previously announced 645D. Any idea about FF from them seems to be at least a couple of years away and there's nothing in the rumour mill regarding IS

Looks like the upgrade to the D won't be here 'til next Spring at the earliest and it will likely still be APS-C with no IS.

But, reading between the lines, it's possible that once the 645D is into it's 2nd generation, the sensor from that (which is FF35mm size and will be made by Kodak) could appear in a FF 35mm DSLR.

Then again they may completely surprise us all!!

--NN

[shuttertalk]

Hm... I know they announced the DS2, which is just a DS with a 2.5 inch monitor...

I know megapixels aren't everything, but I'm a bit disappointed that Canon seems to be the only consumer level DSLR with a 8 megapixel sensor at the moment...