Time marches on for the M8

[Artt]

I am becoming suspect of just what all is wrong with the performance capability of the M8, when will an actual authentic photo ever be released for the buying public to see just what is going come forth from this camera. I'm awar of the quick shot from Photokina, and the momentary lapse of private agreements of Mr. Puts, but what , when , and where do we mere mortals ever have the privelege of seeing something officially sanctioned as a Leica M8 photo, using any lens, The media hipe has worn itself out and time for show and tell is becoming more a farce than a committment. The line of #5K buyers does not stretch out to infinity nor does patience. If Leica has issues that they cannot solve or resolve lets see what they are.

 

[blakley]

Wow - it's been a week! You're impatient about international delivery already?

 

[jaapv]

Maybe it is that Leica does not like to use their paying customers as beta- testers?

 

[ywenz]

waayy too much hype for this camera and the images are much too late. If this camera is in the stores end of Oct, you'd think there would be some official images out already... something must be wrong.

 

[blakley]

If this camera is in the stores end of Oct, you'd think there would be some official images out already... something must be wrong.

Leica has already announced that the camera will be available in November. You can look here for a discussion of when the firmware will be done and why there are not yet any images for examination.

 

[ywenz]

Leica has already announced that the camera will be available in November. You can look here for a discussion of when the firmware will be done and why there are not yet any images for examination.

You can read the words here form a trusted member that the camera will be available in a couple of weeks... Thus, it does not explain why Leica is still tinkering with an unstable firmware in their shops...

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=29483

 

[Ben Z]

Maybe it is that Leica does not like to use their paying customers as beta- testers?

Yes, that philosophy was recently instituted by the new management 😀

 

[blakley]

So I haven't seen anyone from Leica, or anyone in a position to know, use the words "tinkering" or "unstable". It would not be surprising at all if they were doing a "regression test" and an "acceptance test" so that they don't run into problems in the field after they ship.

 

[ywenz]

So I haven't seen anyone from Leica, or anyone in a position to know, use the words "tinkering" or "unstable". It would not be surprising at all if they were doing a "regression test" and an "acceptance test" so that they don't run into problems in the field after they ship.

If that's the case, then the regression testing being performed will have no impact on the image quality out of the camera. Then why not give the public what it wants? I want this M8 to be as good as hyped... I'm simplying playing the role of the devil's advocate.

 

[Ben Z]

Then why not give the public what it wants? I want this M8 to be as good as hyped... I'm simplying playing the role of the devil's advocate.

A big chunk of "the public" just wants the M8 to be the best digital M-mount camera in the world, and I think that's pretty much a shoo-in 😀 And if devil's advocates were pennies, Leica would be the richest corporation on earth 😀

 

[Mark Norton]

I used to develop Supermarket Checkout Systems for IBM (back in the 70/80s when they were in their infancy) and we used to say that however much testing we did in the lab, the system would get a much more thorough test in the first morning of live operation.

And so it is with the M8. By the end of the year, they will have 2000 users taking, let's say 100 pictures a day and this will be a much more thorough shake-down of the camera than they could possibly achieve themselves.

So I'm all in favour of the camera being shipped on schedule. I'm happy to be a beta tester, Leica are going to get a vast amount of feedback, so best get started.

 

[ywenz]

A big chunk of "the public" just wants the M8 to be the best digital M-mount camera in the world

That would be a very low bar. I expect the M8 to be a serviceable digital solution in the image quality category with peers like the Canon and Nikon DSLRs. It should at least match the RD-1 in high ISO performance since the RD-1 uses the NIkon D70 sensor.

 

[blakley]

Leica could release images themselves - you're right, and it's not completely clear why they're not doing this. Mabye they prefer to let reviewers take their own images so that the coverage comes from disinterested parties. But in any event there are lots of explanations other than that there are catastrophic problems with the camera. I'm going to wait and see rather than speculate.

 

[Keith]

Three months from now this forum will be knee deep in M8 images from every speculator who was prepared to spend $5000.00 on a new gizmo.

Then we'll decide! 🙄

 

[Ben Z]

That would be a very low bar. I expect the M8 to be a serviceable digital solution in the image quality category with peers like the Canon and Nikon DSLRs. It should at least match the RD-1 in high ISO performance since the RD-1 uses the NIkon D70 sensor.

I think it's a safe assumption it will be equal or better than Nikon (their latest D200 has been getting some rather unflattering press concerning high-ISO noise). Canon is going to be very hard to beat, although I've seen a couple people claiming that the DMR bests the 1Ds-mark-II and 5D despite many reports its high-ISO performance leaves much to be desired over ISO 400. My wife's Canon S80 (8mp, 28-112 equiv. zoom) is light years better than the Panasonic/DLux-2 (similar specs) in the noise department, so it's a bit of a question whether the people at Leica have high-ISO noise as a priority at all.

 

[sdai]

It would not be surprising at all if they were doing a "regression test" and an "acceptance test" so that they don't run into problems in the field after they ship.

The best acceptance test is "market reaction". If it's good then people will buy it, if it is not good, SOME people will still buy it. 😀

 

[gdewitt]

Isn't the Internet fun? The initial announcement of the M8 was made less than four weeks ago and some people are already convinced that there must be catastrophic problems with it.

 

[Silva Lining]

Maybe there are no images available because they are sooo good they will just BLOW YOUR MIND! Maybe they are so lifelike, testers have had problems seperating images from reality and have been induced into a catatonic state.

Or maybe, because image quality is so important to Leica, they are concerned about how any pre-production images will be presented???

 

[gogopix]

Will all those who have commented, and work or operate a PRODUCT business please stand up
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))))))))))) I don't hear the scraping of chairs!🙄

 

[Gabriel M.A.]

Maybe the reviewers are so dumbfounded by the idea of not seeing through the lens, they've smashed their M8s not too long after they found out that they had left the lens cap on.