Yes, impressive features indeed. We know build quality won't be close to Pentax 17, but the rest looks like what fun compact camera should be.
Feature wise, it basically only lacks motorized film transport, but has full manual mode, multi exposure, manual ISO override, filter thread, zone focus, flash options... Lens won't probably won't be as good as Contax T/T2/T3, but still... If Pentax made such camera with their built quality and superb lens they would have a true winner in stead of a pretty niche 17.
Lack of motorized transport is a feature not a bug. The intended customer wants a manual advance.
How well do you know their intended customer?
I know nothing about their intended customer, but I know that nobody ever said they only wished their Contax T2/T3, Nikon 28/35Ti, Minolta TC-1, Hexar AF... had a manual film transport.
the lens on the MC-A is the same 32 mm as the Lomo LC-A Minitar-1 Art Lens
Because going by the 17 this is following the same trends. The 17 also has a manual advance. They made a huge deal out of it too. I know the intended customer because I just aged out of it. Many of my peers who are a bit younger than me really want a hands on experience. Motor transports aren't interesting to someone who's seen it already. To people who come into photography pre motors it's still something to be had. For those who are digital natives a manual film advance lever is desirable.
Yeah, the first 15 or so years of my photography 'career' (read: hobby) was all digital. I know it's silly to some, but probably the most immediate, concrete, and satisfying difference on my switch to film was the manual advance. Above anything else, it's the thing that really hits the cliché "it makes you treat every shot with care" button for me. I have a couple of modern AF film SLRs now, and they sit on the shelf because they feel too much like being back with digital. And I hate the sound of the film advance!
We all have our own personal levels of desired interactivity and 'labor' as far as shooting goes. Maybe manually advancing film is a bridge to far for some, or manually focusing for others. I myself find red-window advance a huge pain in the butt and would really rather avoid cameras that need it. I also don't mind going without a built-in meter for medium format, but in 35mm, for whatever reason, I have much less patience for it.
So yeah, I guess this was an entirely pointless post, but this MC-A really does come soooo close to ticking all the boxes for me. Just stick a better lens in the next one! Or better yet, figure out a way to make an AF version of the 7sii/Auto S3/QL17 cameras that somehow doesn't lose the actual rangefinder!
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