urgent action required!!

[adrianzg]

dear forum members, as some of you know, i've been thinking about an m8 for a while. i've now been offered an ex-demo body m8 chrome for about the same price as a black paint m8.2 from the grey market dealers on thebay. all if fine and dandy abt the ex-demo except for the "brown staining" of the lcd. i will be given warranty on the m8(minus the lcd).

do you guys think i should go for it? i've tried it and i like the images i see even though the body is terribly slow (using an old 32mb sd card and old firmware). i have about 16 hours to decide (gulp!)

 

[Roger Hicks]

The apparently small improvements to the M8.2 make it a disproportionately better camera. If you can possibly stretch to a legitimate import I'd go for that, but I accept that the grey discounts are attractive -- unless and until there are any warranty claims. Hard choice!

Cheers,

R.

 

[elshaneo]

I'd go for the black paint Leica M8.2 instead. So far, I never had any problems with grey market dealers...

 

[__hh]

My vote goes to 8.2 also

 

[baycrest]

I've purchased from the grey market before, but not from ebay.
If I buy grey, the stores will take it back within 7 days for a straight up trade for another grey. If Ebay does the same with there grey stuff, go ahead, otherwise its a lot of money for something you haven't even tested.

Best
Rob

 

[Rayt]

Go for the M8.2. If it is a brand new camera it will be covered by Leica for a year. It is grey so you'll have to send it to Solms yourself if you need servicing.

 

[JohnTF]

With the insurance, it cost me $35 to ship my M8 to NJ, so what are we talking, another $20 in shipping to Germany?

Assuming the Gray model has the international warranty?

I think the improvements are significant.

Prices on used M8's seem to be going up and down, so if you are not saving a bundle, I would go for the M8.2.


Regards, John

 

[jaapv]

I would wait a month....

 

[Jonas]

I would go for 8.2...

 

[adrianzg]

this is so tough i might just stab myself. on one hand the demo m8 is pretty much new, with full leica warranty, dealer support and i've tested it, no issues with banding. thebay m8.2 costs about the same, has the new shutter and sexy black paint but possibly without warranty, no dealer support and i have to factor in the import tax. (no idea how much for australia)

tough.. 🙁

 

[mikenic]

There may be even better deals out there after the M9 is released, so perhaps worth the wait as Jaap previously suggested.

If pressed, I'd probably go with the 8.2 (unless you need the extra speed to tame a Noctilux or similar).

My 2c anyhow, good luck with your decision. 🙂

 

[Leigh Youdale]

Oz Tax

Oz Tax

[ i have to factor in the import tax. (no idea how much for australia)

It's 10% of the invoice value at point of sale (whatever the currency) converted to $AUD. in other words, it's the same rate as GST. The old 22.5% Sales Tax was abolished when GST was introduced.

You might be lucky and avoid it if it's described a a second-hand camera but I wouldn't bet my house on it.

 

[wesley]

I would wait until 10th Sept...

 

[ferider]

What do you mean by "brown staining" ? If the LCD is broken, the M8 is practically worthless.

 

[ampguy]

coffee cup stain

coffee cup stain

Roland, the brown staining is an LCD cosmetic issue. With the non-sapphire LCD, high humidity or other issues cause the LCD glass cover to partially separate from the LCD itself, leaving a kind of brown ring on the LCD that doesn't affect the image.

Some folks have had theirs fixed under warranty, some even replaced with the upgraded Sapphire screen, others have just lived with it. I agree it should probably reduce the value somewhat though.

What do you mean by "brown staining" ? If the LCD is broken, the M8 is practically worthless.

 

[ferider]

Thanks, Ted. I was reminded of

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=75741

Roland.

 

[ampguy]

Here is a response that someone on the l-camera forum got regarding this:

**
Hallo Herr Hopf,

Normal ist das natürlich nicht und wir sind dabei, die Ursache zu ergründen. Passieren kann weiter nichts, wobei wir noch keine Erfahrung haben über die Zeit. Da es aber lokal am LCD liegt, ist die Kamerafunktion weiterhin gewährleistet.

mit freundlichen Grüßen / best regards

Leica Camera AG / Customer Service

**

If I had the issue, I wouldn't bother sending mine in, unless it needed something else. I only use the lcd for occasional white balance and clipping indications. The RD1 is really nice because you can just flip it backwards.

 

[tbarker13]

I'm an M8 owner, but if I were you I would go with the M8.2 - if you simply must purchase a camera now. But given the possibility that a new camera could be announced in September - you might want to wait.
If there is actually an M9 coming out, it's likely going to push down the prices fo M8s and M8.2s.

 

[MCTuomey]

first choice: wait, because prices and other terms of sale are volatile right now. it's possible, maybe even probable, that you'll have a better deal in just a few weeks.

second choice, assuming you can't wait: select the camera with the most likely to be honored warranty

there are enough repair/warranty issues with the M8/M8.2 to make a warranty an important element in your decision, imho.

 

[Ben Z]

i've now been offered an ex-demo body m8 chrome for about the same price as a black paint m8.2 from the grey market dealers on thebay.

To my way of thinking, and based on the way it was when there was a lot of gray-market Leica sold in the US (Don Chatterton, Jim Kuehl), the prices should be similar between a new gray M8.2 and an official demo M8.2. A demo M8.0 should really be significantly lower.

i've tried it and i like the images i see even though the body is terribly slow (using an old 32mb sd card and old firmware).

If it's an official Leica demo it should come with the latest firmware, and they would have fixed the LCD and given it a 1-yr Leica warranty. That it doesn't, suggests to me it isn't an official Leica demo. If so then you're basically getting a used camera with a store warranty, even if they're calling it a demo. A rose by any other name...


All said, I wouldn't normally agree with postponing purchase waiting for a rumored replacement to come along, but since the rumors are pegging a solid date and it's just a few weeks off, I probably would hold off. There are plenty of used/demo/gray M8/M8.2's around.