More candy, less moolah: Pentax K-S1 gets a sweeter price and bundled Wi-Fi card

 

 

Eight weeks ago, Ricoh launched its Pentax K-S1 DSLR, an unusual camera whose styling divides opinions like few others. Today, the company has announced three new color variants of that camera which also add to the product bundle -- Lime Pie (lime green trim), Strawberry Cake (deep pink trim) and Blue Cream Soda (light blue trim). Dubbed the Sweets Collection, each of the three variants pairs its trim color with white body panels, for a very eyecatching look.

In the process, Ricoh has also shaved US$100 off list pricing for the entire Pentax K-S1 line, regardless of color and kit bundle, making the camera a rather more attractive offer. Doubly so when one considers that it sports a high 20.1-megapixel sensor resolution -- bested in the Pentax APS-C lineup only by the flagship K-3 -- as well as the smallest body of any current Pentax DSLR. Body-only variants will now list for US$650, 18-55mm kit versions for US$700, and twin-lens kits for US$800.

 

The cameras in the Sweets Collection come with a Pentax FluCard -- a $100 value -- included in the standard bundle.

New to the product bundle for the three additional models -- each of which ships with 18-55mm lens -- is Pentax's bizarrely-named FluCard. This is a Wi-Fi wireless networking compatible flash card that's similar to the better-known Eye-Fi card, but which adds remote control capability complete with live view. It isn't yet clear whether availability of the FluCard in the product bundle will be limited to just these three color variants, but given that the 16GB FluCard ordinarily costs US$100 by itelf, it's a significant addition to the bundle that will make the K-S1 kit even better value compared to Pentax's other models.

More details can be found on the Ricoh USA website.