Price of Pentax K-r kits in Singapore.

How much does it cost to own a Pentax K-r kit in Singapore?

A local camera shop posted their Pentax K-r kit promotion prices valid from 14^th-31^st Jan 2011 on their Facebook in Singapore dollars:

1) Pentax Kr 18-55 kit $921 (Pink, White, Black)
2) Pentax Kr 18-55+50-200 Dual kit $1070 (Black)
3) Pentax Kr 18-55+55-300 Dual kit $1199
4) Pentax Kr 18-135WR kit $1520 (Black)
5) Pentax Kr 18-55WR+50-200WR Dual kit $1156 (Black)
With any kit purchase, you can purchase DA 35mm f2.4(Black) at only $288 (Usual $349).

My calculated budget was to get the best deal below S$1500, including the $288 prime lens. Which one would you choose? Kit 1,2,3,4 or 5?

Calculator went tapping and final choice was Kit 5 with a simple rationale:

Lowest cost + Better lens = Best value kit.

Lowest cost?

Obviously, Kit 4 went *pop* as it burst my budget.

I decided to sell off the 50-200 lens or 55-300mm lens since I have no need for them and checking through forums, 50-200mm deals at $180 and both 55-300mm/50-200mm WR deals at $300.

So in the end, here is the final tabulation.

Kit 1, 18-55 kit + Prime : $921 + $288 = $1209

Kit 2, 18-55+50-200 Dual kit + Prime (- lens sold) : $1070 + $288 (-$180)= $1178

Kit 3, 18-55+55-300 Dual kit + Prime (- lens sold) : $1199 + $288 (-$300)= $1187

Kit 5, 18-55WR+50-200WR Dual kit + Prime (-lens sold) : $1156 + $288 (-$300)= $1144

Kit 5 wins!

Better lens?

Kits 1, 2 and 3 are DAL kits lenses. Optically lens wise, they are the same as the more expensive DA ALII and WR versions but comes with plastic instead of metal lens mounts (less durable?), no Quickshift (1 less feature), no distance marking on focus ring (aesthetics) and most importantly no lens hood($18 involved).

WR lens are Weather-Resistant to resist minor weather conditions and less vulnerable to moist conditions (less storage issue and future upgrade compatible).

Kit 5 wins again!

Finally bought it from this great shop and realizes also that only Pentax had this price advantage unlike Nikon or Canon. Pentax kits are bundled economically with 1 more lens which you can sell off (later) to offset your final paying price. And I did just that:

Pentax K-r Body + 18-55WR lens + Prime lens: $1156 + $288 (-$320)*= $1124.

*Managed to sell it to a nice young lady at S$320.

My Best Value kit.

One less “Nope”. Finally, I got my Pentax K-r.

After 3 months of research and 3 days of persuasion to my wife, I got my Pentax K-r on 29th Jan 2011. It was a tiring uphill task to convince my wife to decide on the K-r amidst the strong presence of Nikon and Canon DSLRs snapping away in Singapore.

Her first initial remark: "Nobody buys Pentax. I dun wan to buy an unknown brand."

Yes, I am the one paying for it but we discussed to a mutual consensus whenever we buy items related to our son who will be the lead model in all our DSLR photos in the days to come in future.

The following 3 days was intensive research to back my explanation why Pentax K-r was the preferred choice over Nikon D3100 and Canon 550D. Allowable budget, street prices, future upgrade costs, comments/scoring from review sites, specs comparison, sample photos all came into play. The famous DPReview review site had not given it a full review yet (and maybe not) whilst local publicity of Pentax brand is nearly non-existent. Instead, what we see all around us are Nikons, Canons and the occasional Sonys. The final decision was sealed only after all persuasions, her trust in my better-than-hers gadgets research expertise and my personal lifetime warranty that the photos taken by the K-r will definitely be beautiful.

My all-black beauty: Black Pentax K-r with 2 lenses, Prime lens DA 35mm F2.4 AL and DA 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 AL WR Zoom Lens. It is a strange combination due to some calculated sums involved and if you are curious, my next post will reveal the truth behind it.