Just a small correction Kenneth.
There is a "big two" not a "big three"
Sony leads the pack that will probably never catch Nikon and Canon.
Panasonic has made huge strides in the past couple of years, particularly in the point and shoot department but is also getting attention with the G1 and GH1.
If the K7 is a first rate camera that even comes very close to delivering on its promise, Pentax will challenge Olympus and Panasonic in the DSLR territory.
The trick is also developing a solid niche. When it comes to quality small prime lenses, loved by many, like me, who primarily do candid street type photography, it has a solid niche that may be significantly strengthened if the K7 delivers. Reasonable size, fast focusing, quiet shutter, great small lenses.
Nikon and Canon won't lose any sleep worrying about the K7; the others might.
I'm not worried about Pentax going out of business...just hoping the camera will be as good as I expect.
Mark
I handled this camera at the Henry's Photo Show this weekend and can find only 2 nitpicks. The camera is so solid and compact that every available space has a button or switch so stray placement of thumb or fingers will cause accidental triggering of functions. The second relates to the first -height is just a bit small to allow my pinky to fit comfortably on the grip. It's extremely well made with a great feature set. Although I'm invested into the Sony system, I was extremely disappointed in how few people were interested in this camera. Unfortunately Pentax has come to this level of the DSLR market too late to have much of an impact. The "big three" have such a large market share that I wonder how the rest will survive. This camera proves that it would be a pity if the small players were lost.