$6999 for the M9, what about M8 and M8.2 prices?

Capital is like the tide. Comes and goes...

I'll await all the early adopters/testers opinions. But will eventually have one if it all pans out fine.

I should add, shooting the D700 has spoiled me and I'm not interested to go back to a cropper, so no M8 for me.
 
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Cheap M8

Cheap M8

My nice M8 is in the classifieds right now for only 2200 without the thumbs up or 2300 with it. I think we aren't going to see prices much lower than this for a while now.
 
It seems that the three zeros 000 don't mean much anymore these days; 3k,4k,7k ... etc. We are talking about thousands of US Dollars, aren't we?

I am still "non-digital". So be it.

Have a good day.
 
It may be that the price difference between the 8 and the 9 is so great that, even if we see lots of them in the classifieds, the prices won't drop because at the moment the only alternative is $7K.

However, when someone like Nikon, Canon, Zeiss/Cosina, or Panasonic step up with a FFRF... THEN the prices of the 8 will definitely drop. I assume that's sometime off yet, but if the 9 sales take off, there's do doubt going to be a lot of interest at the other companies, don't you think? :) !!
 
CameraQuest said:
Wow, $6999 for a USA M9. Most predictions were in the $7500 to $9000 range. Looks like Leica priced it right to increase sales. But of course $6999 is still a lot for a camera body, any camera body.

A lot of M8 and M8.2 owners will be trading up. So how much will used M8 and M8.2 prices fall over the next 3 months? It should be interesting, and a great time for many people to get into a digital M for the first time.

Stephen
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My predictions were far higher. $ 6,999 is very generous of Leica. Here in Norway a M9 will be 53.000 NOK with 20% VAT included. That will be $ 7,126 tax free, which will explain the long cues of Norwegians in front of B & H in New York in the weeks ahead. Buying a M9 tax free in NY and smuggle it into Norway would save them NOK 11.350. A flight ticket to and fro Oslo/New York, hotel and a Broadway show included is far less than that.

And the dollar is falling...

Americans that think that $ 6,999 is expensive for a M9 will experience the same as when M8 was launched; the M9 price will go up. It is obvious that, with a falling $, the $ 6,999 is not sustainable....
 
SolaresLarrave said:
How long will the M9 last before getting outdated?

Must admit, though... the price isn't as outrageous as that of the Nikon D3X. Only twice (and a bit) more than the D700 body's.

I may think about it...
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Just about for ever. Think about it - what follow-on could possibly make people think their M9 was obsolete? It would have to be some major advance in sensor technology. Sure that will happen, but who knows when?

/T
 
Tuolumne said:
Just about for ever. Think about it - what follow-on could possibly make people think their M9 was obsolete? It would have to be some major advance in sensor technology. Sure that will happen, but who knows when?

/T
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I've been thinking this for a while. Digital cameras are basically excellent now. The new Pentax is amazing--the only upgrade I'd ever want is an eventual FF camera that is just as small...but really, I don't actually give a crap about FF in a DSLR.

I can't think of anything I might want in a DRF that the M9 doesn't have. It is basically equivalent to the M7 in every way, right? Except of course for the film. There will likely be future improvements in IQ but it's hard to imagine longing too hard for them.
 
"Think about it - what follow-on could possibly make people think their M9 was obsolete? It would have to be some major advance in sensor technology."

That's got to be the scariest words Leica could ever hear. So after they sell their 20,000 M9's, what do they do next to get you to buy another camera?
 
There are only, what, 20,000 M8 and 8.2 owners out there? That's the figure I heard - not much of a supply, even if everyone cashed out at once.

I suspect that a lot of M8/M8.2 owners will dig in their heels and wait for the M9 to come down in price (once burned, twice shy...). Sure, there's depreciation in the meantime, but at least they still have cameras to shoot with. And it's easier to explain a lower sticker price (in the future) to a spouse than to explain you dumped an M8.2 you bought just last year at a $3K loss.

With the upgrade product being $7,000, the economics probably dictate that the prices of M8s and M8.2s will stay steady or even rise a little bit for the next year or so.

Dante


CameraQuest said:
Wow, $6999 for a USA M9. Most predictions were in the $7500 to $9000 range. Looks like Leica priced it right to increase sales. But of course $6999 is still a lot for a camera body, any camera body.

A lot of M8 and M8.2 owners will be trading up. So how much will used M8 and M8.2 prices fall over the next 3 months? It should be interesting, and a great time for many people to get into a digital M for the first time.

Stephen
Click to expand...
 
Pickett Wilson said:
"Think about it - what follow-on could possibly make people think their M9 was obsolete? It would have to be some major advance in sensor technology."

That's got to be the scariest words Leica could ever hear. So after they sell their 20,000 M9's, what do they do next to get you to buy another camera?
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They sell lenses. They do ala carte M9's... I think they will sell a lot more than 20,000 M9's.
 
Could the $6999 figure be an introductory price for a limited time? Does anybody expect Leica to increase the price of the M9 before the end of June?
 
Well, I am happy to see the $7K price for the M9, no minor feat by Kodak and Leica. We're not talking mass production here.

My Guess: EX conditon M8 at $1750, M8.2 at $2,800.
 
Tuolumne said:
Just about for ever. Think about it - what follow-on could possibly make people think their M9 was obsolete? It would have to be some major advance in sensor technology. Sure that will happen, but who knows when?

/T
Click to expand...

The inclusion of the Maestro chip, electronics miniaturization leading to a digital-M the size of the M6, better Dynamic Range and noise characteristics... When Leica release the M10 people will find the reasons to upgrade.
 
Nando said:
Could the $6999 figure be an introductory price for a limited time? Does anybody expect Leica to increase the price of the M9 before the end of June?
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As the Dollar continues to drop this year, it'll be totally on sale for Europeans, Asians, etc for Christmas!
 
I'm seriously surprised to see people letting their M8's go for less than $3000.

It really is worth a bit more than that. There is no functional difference between the M8 and the M8.2. I believe Leica is still offering the upgrade program as well.

I think the dramatic drop in used prices is perceived value. Because there is another/moderately better option out there doesn't mean the M8 is suddenly worthless.

There still is no other option out there for a digital rangefinder. For those who don't have $7k or are willing to spend that much for the user experience, there can only be an M8. So why are people letting them go so cheap? The only reason I can think of is that a lot of people who own M8's are not the original owners. They are people who bought the camera 2nd hand. Even some 3rd and 4th owners. Because a lot of people bought the M8 but didn't like it. So by selling is for $2200. They aren't taking as large a loss on it. And this price has become acceptable, even the standard.
 
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