Time to Sell your M8 IF the M9 is near?

[CameraQuest]

The net is full of full frame M9 rumors predicting it is close to being announced.

IF that is true, what will it do to the used values of the RD1, M8, and M8.2?

The Epson RD1 is a cult camera and the lowest priced of the four digital M bodies. As the digital M entry point, I think used RD1 prices (all versions) will stay about the same with the M9.

The M8.2 is a MUCH improved camera over the M8, and will sell used for substantially less than a new M9 -- even with a lot of 8.2 owners selling them to get the M9. Prices may drop slightly, but demand and price point will keep prices substantial.

The ugly ducking of the foursome is the M8. It does not compare well with the 8.2, much less the expected M9. Worse, they are expensive to work on and many are going out of warranty by now.

Once the M9 is announced -- whenever that is -- I would not be surprised if used M8 prices took a 30% drop within four months. Time will tell.

Stephen

 

[rxmd]

The Epson RD1 is a cult camera and the lowest priced of the four digital M bodies.

Four?

Otherwise, it wouldn't be the first time that prices for model X drop as soon as model X+1 is announced.

 

[johnastovall]

No, I'll keep it. I sold a Leica once and learned not to sell my Leicas. I might even pick up an 8.2 if they fall.

But I don't expect any real news on an M9 until Photokina 2010.

 

[back alley]

if by some weird stroke of fate the rd1 dropped significantly in price i would try to get another one.
my hope for a full frame drf at a price that i could live with still lies with zeiss.

leica long ago stopped factoring in guys like me so i pretty much have done the same.
and living vicariously through old m's has lost all appeal to me.

 

[Sonnar Brian]

I'm thinking an M8 at the $2K mark is very tempting. A "Leica Certified Mint" with warranty for $2800 even better.

It would make it easier to check the collimation on Jupiter-3's and other lens hacks.

 

[Ben Z]

My M8 has already paid for itself in film and developing (including the upgrade), so I don't really care what the resale value drops to. I have a year warranty left on it (per upgrade), and no intention of buying an M9 until the bugs have been revealed and fixed, and demos are available. At that time if I get an M9-demo I will keep the M8 (and a handful of IR filters I guess) as a backup. Selling it wouldn't make any sense for me.

 

[hiromu]

I'm thinking an M8 at the $2K mark is very tempting. A "Leica Certified Mint" with warranty for $2800 even better.

It would make it easier to check the collimation on Jupiter-3's and other lens hacks.

My first M8 was Leica certified used and was already lower than $2800 several months ago...

Also, the good thing is that even if M9 is introduced, my M8 will not stop working (hopefully)...

 

[Keith]

The M8 may be the ugly duckling (runt of the litter) of the four but realistically it has the same IQ as the 8.2! If you can live with the noisier shutter, soft LCD screen and slightly less accurate frame lines then it's the bargain of the bunch IMO.

 

[eleskin]

I am keeping mine!

I am keeping mine!

When I buy an M9 next year sometime (I will wait until early summer so any bugs can be worked out if any) I will keep my M8 which has NEVER failed me (I have a flawless copy) as a backup. It makes little sense to sell it now at a much lower price when it will make a very good and economical spare camera. It also crops to the sweet spot of a Noctilux, so I may want that for some situations. Those who really need to sell need the $$$, but at $8000, a used M8 will not reduce the price by much, and by waiting half a year, the prices should come down.

 

[kbg32]

Time will tell.

Stephen

Time may tell, but I am keeping mine.

 

[MCTuomey]

The M8.2 is a MUCH improved camera over the M8, and will sell used for substantially less than a new M9 -- even with a lot of 8.2 owners selling them to get the M9. Prices may drop slightly, but demand and price point will keep prices substantial.

The ugly ducking of the foursome is the M8. It does not compare well with the 8.2, much less the expected M9. Worse, they are expensive to work on and many are going out of warranty by now.

Stephen

" ... MUCH improved ..." -- not wrt image quality, which is what really matters to most of us price conscious types

" ... ugly ducking (sic) ..." -- looks the same as the M8

" ... does not compare well with the 8.2 ... " -- not wrt image quality etc

" ... expensive to work on ... " -- and the successors won't be once they run out the warranty period?

pretty broad generalizations by way of comparisons, i think.

anyway, the M8's now and will continue to improve in affordability. a good thing for many who are price-sensitive.

 

[yanidel]

Unless I need the money, I will keep mine just like I kept the R-D1.
Also, I need to see the specs of the M9, FF is not a reason to buy it by itself.
Crop factor is an advantage on the tele side, my 60mm becomes a super fast 80mm 1.2.
Also, if the M9 is significantly bigger and heavier, this would be a killer.
So let's see this M9 first before deciding the M8 fate which by the way is still an amazing camera. Having a lot of fun with it this summer!

 

[Ken Shipman]

From what I've heard the M9 architecture is so different there's some proving-out to be done. Have they really overcome all the difficulties or are there some lingering new problems? Will the M9 have some limitations the M8 doesn't suffer? I'm very enthusiastic about the prospect of the M9, but I'm a little leery, too. For the short term I'll hold on to the M8.

 

[noimmunity]

My new one with 2 year passport warranty was less than 3K.

The M9 is simply outta my league.

I do a lot of work at MFD, so the framelines on the M8 are better (than the 8.2) for me, sometimes.

Really excellent high ISO would be MUCH more important to me than FF.

 

[JNewell]

The multi-year saga of getting the bugs out of the M8 would not encourage me to be an eary adopter for the M9, especially if it incorporates a bunch of technological leaps. 🙁

The other thing is that a 30% drop in M8 prices would not make its performance 30% worse - wouldn't change its performance at all, actually. 🙂

 

[jvan01]

It's not like an M8 will depreciate to the price point of yer basic DSLR, in the same way that an M7 doesn't go for Canonet-like prices today.

 

[Rayt]

The value I get from any electronic equipment is the use I get out of it. If I spend $2000 on a new Mac and get 5 years of use out of it then it only costs me a dollar a day and I do use it everyday. So I spent $5000k on the M8.2 and after 5 years it would have been 2 dollars a day after I sell it for parts. I am not going to worry about it too much as long as I get the use out of it..

 

[jeff laitila]

I just sold my M8, partly because of the M9 rumors, but mainly because I shoot with the R-D1 more often.

If true, the M9 sounds very interesting, but I doubt I'll pay the premium price for bleeding edge technology. I'll wait a year or two and then buy a used version.

 

[Al Kaplan]

The cost per day model is a great way to calculate just how expensivea a camera is to use. I picked up my well used button rewind M2 in May of 1972 for $100 and I've been using it ever since, aproximately 136,000 days. It's had one complete CLA years ago, and had the vulcanite replaced in the early seventies, at which time I had the synch sockets changed to M4 style. Figure $250 total in camera, maintanance, and "upgrades".
That'd be a tad over 1.8 cents a day. It's really a fairly clean looking "user" in great mechanical condition, the range/viewfinder is bright and contrasty, and I could likely get $500 for it today without much trouble. I can't see that happening with any digital.

 

[DRabbit]

My M8 was probably a once-in-a-lifetime type purchase. I NEVER see me spending that kind of money on a camera body again. In a perfect world I might be able to afford and justify the expense of an M9, but I'll have to live vicariously through all of you here.

Luckily, the release of the M9 won't make my M8 any less enjoyable. I play to keep using it as long as it keeps working. I love that camera.