Horrifying prospect for any digital M8 8.2 owner!!!

[I Love Film]

Several of the most competent tech posters on this site said that they believe it is possible to just swap LCD panels.

I asked this question and Leica refuses to address it.

Common sense says swapping identical panels should be possible.

It is an interesting question. Leica M8s are not some magical mystery devices, they should be repairable just like any other gizmo.

(I see you deleted three or four of your wild accusatory posts about "drivers" after you were proved wrong)

Lets assume you're a real smart guy.. and that I'm not so smart..

So, let me ask a "not so smart question"..

If the M8 replacement LCD module is easily sourced; why hasn't Leica purchased a supply and continued repairs on the M8, making this "Leica Loyalty" issue a moot point?

If I were Leica, that's what I would do.

Pricing for the module you cite is under $10 ea in quantity. Leica could certainly afford to stock a 5-10 year supply.


Is it possible that there other component, or component - interface issues that aren't, or won't be made public?

 

[Phil_F_NM]

Interesting. Having an opinion yourself and presenting it as somebody else's statement.
Or do you have a reference for this strange assertion other than your own train of thought?
Rather insulting to both the members of this forum who do buy Leica for a phletora of reasons and your fellow pros who do use Leicas successfully, I should think.

Leica has made it abundantly clear that they want to strictly cater to the luxury goods market and at the same time they are not making efforts to increase their user base. Yes, there will always be people who will want to buy Leica just because but many of these people will do so simply because of the exclusivity of the marque.
I'm not using all inclusive absolutes here so don't say I'm saying that about anyone in particular.
Leica used to be a company of amazing service and reputation for very high quality tools. They simply aren't that today and for most photographers who aren't wealthy, the investment into a camera at such an expense with such unreliability is not an option, pure and simple.
As for you Jaap, we've already gone back and forth on the differences between how Leica treats a person who is incredibly invested in their equipment as well as visible in their meetings vice the average frustrated user of a digital M body who has to wait 3 months for a repair under warranty or pay almost $700 for a rangefinder alignment if the camera is out of warranty.
Mind you, my anecdotal experience with digital Leicas only includes 2 different bodies of different generations and a total of 7 trips to the factory.

Phil Forrest

 

[I Love Film]

http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica...2127-lifetime-service-not-22.html#post2163258

http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica...2127-lifetime-service-not-29.html#post2164917

I delete most of my posts on any thread daily, especially if the thread is inactive. I don't like the Google Archiving. I'm not accurate all the time. I make lots of mistakes.

On Topic.. My guess is it's not the same module.. maybe the display hardware is the same, but likely (from experience - in and out of the camera market) a modified version. Maybe an attached flex cable of a specific length - with a hard to source or install connector. These cables often aren't soldered to the display - but micro welded, if at a stress point. Just guessing.

And I still question the Driver issue (hardware "a chip" a ROM one time flash not an EEPROM). This would be a much harder item to replace as it's likely a SMD FP or worse QFP and would require a skilled rework station tech - still risking board damage during repair. If they can't swap out a board, they are in trouble.. they didn't stock a very breakable display (camera's exterior) they likely don't have boards to swap.. again Just a guess.

 

[Godfrey]

Yawn. You guyz just want to go on and on.

Where's the popcorn?

 

[astro8]

Yawn. You guyz just want to go on and on.

Where's the popcorn?

 

[I Love Film]

Ask Leica, not me.

You continue to make all these improbable assertions to prove your non-existent point, plus you throw in a few Googled technical abbreviations for good measure to validate your "expertise". You're going to ride that "incompatible" horse till you fall off. And the "driver problem" is ludicrous.

Leica, if you can source the LCD, why not continue to repair the M8?? Ulterior motive?

I read from the attached threads. So the question is (if the module is the same) why isn't Leica using it?

 

[I Love Film]

And "owning a rework station" and "worked with 100 pin 25/ side SMD QFD" makes your erroneous claims more correct how?

Ask Leica, not me.
plus you throw in a few Googled technical abbreviations for good measure to validate your "expertise".

I own a rework station and have worked with 100 pin 25/ side SMD QFP.
SMD = Surface Mount Device QFP = Quad Flat Pack..


I used these terms figuring your knowledge was similar. So I think we're done..

 

[back alley]

i'm about ready to close this thread...mostly due to absolute boredom on my part and the growing nastiness on some of your parts.

first next nasty comment gets ya banned.

 

[wintoid]

Don't close the thread! Please! One of the reasons the thread is useful is because it demonstrates the depth of feeling over the issue to Leica (who are hopefully watching).

Following this thread, I examined my M8.2 and found I have a mild case of the coffee stain problem. I don't chimp. I almost never use the LCD. In many ways, the issue doesn't matter to me, but I'm sure it will affect resale value, so I'd prefer to fix it or move up, if the cost is not too extreme.

This thread is useful because (a) it hopefully shows Leica that some people are pretty stirred up about this and (b) it's helping me to see the up and down sides of my situation 😀

I am not horrified. I have contacted Leica but no response yet.

 

[Lss]

This thread is useful because (a) it hopefully shows Leica that some people are pretty stirred up about this

It would be interesting to see how many of the most vocal and horrified people are actual M8 users.

 

[rxmd]

It would be interesting to see how many of the most vocal and horrified people are actual M8 users.

Or former M8 users, or people considering buying an M8, or people concerned about their former/current/future M9, or people concerned about Leica in general, and so on.

 

[maitani]

we could turn this topic into a M8 camera-p* one

 

[JayM]

I had a nice time with my M8 and a 35mm.

Plus it taught me to never take photographs of people using cell phones which I'd like to think improved my photographs a bit 😱

 

[jaapv]

Proof? This is just your opinion. You should back it up with quotes, press releases etc.

Leica has made it abundantly clear that they want to strictly cater to the luxury goods market and at the same time they are not making efforts to increase their user base. {...}
Phil Forrest

 

[gdi]

True. And if you don't have the coffee ring by now, then you most likely won't.

Is there a time frame in which the stain must manifest, or it will never happen? I don't think that is the case. Has Leica ever explained what the stain was or what caused it; I haven't seen that they have, but maybe someone else has.

I saw a number of people report it before it was evident on mine, and I see that someone above just detected it. I would guess that it probably has something to do with various conditions - production batch, climate, humidity, etc. I would be very careful if I were buying an M8 or M8.2 now, whether it has the stain yet or not - but I am one who would be concerned about resale value, others obviously are not.

 

[Phil_F_NM]

Their product prices.

Phil Forrest

 

[Lss]

but I am one who would be concerned about resale value, others obviously are not.

Guilty as charged. The resale value is interesting the moment I consider an upgrade or need to sell. Until then the tools are just tools, bought to be used. The value is in the photographs.

 

[JohnTF]

Actually, probably not. They wouldn't replace the screen on my wife's 2006 macbook. "This is more than 3 years old" they said. "We don't have the parts for that" . . .

I returned a three year old Macbook for a friend in the Peace Corps, the first estimate was $70, but after several trips to Tennessee , it was claimed the case was abused, motherboard defective and the estimate eventually arose to $700.

There was a design flaw that allowed the keyboard to scratch the screen.

They replaced the motherboard twice, the case and keyboard, -- you get the drift-- every part save the charger, scratched screen, and hard drive.

With all the mucking about, and lots of phone calls, a very nice lady in charge of service, saying they have an all or nothing repair policy, repaired the item gratis, but the screen was not available.

I have swapped broken iPhones which are exchanged for refurbs when the repairs exceed the price of the exchange, which seems reasonable.

Just what is reasonable for Leica remains to be determined, I do not know what their situation actually is for the screen supply, but it does not seem to me to be beyond the realm of possibility and expectation that they might have been more aware and retained a sufficient supply to avoid the angst and long threads such as this one.

Perhaps there should be a patina warranty for cameras, they should last long enough to develop a patina from use, then becoming at the least suitable for display.


Regards, John

 

[jaapv]

Proof? This is just your opinion. You should back it up with quotes, press releases etc.

Leica has made it abundantly clear that they want to strictly cater to the luxury goods market and at the same time they are not making efforts to increase their user base. {...}
Phil Forrest

 

[rxmd]

Proof? This is just your opinion. You should back it up with quotes, press releases etc.

This post #438 is identical with post #432, and a number of other posts here got deleted. Anything out of the ordinary going on?