What is the overall opinion of the M-E?

dave lackey

dave lackey

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Just wondering whilst awaiting yet another appointment with the blood-sucking vampire known as "the lab".😛

The M-E is an aesthetic quandry for me as I have yet to see one in person and I am a BP person anyway. But disregarding that...Is the M-E with a 3-year Mack Warranty at $5400USD from Adorama a better buy than a new M9 at $5999? Or even a used M9?

What is the concensus on the M-E vs. the M9?😕
 
I've never used one, but I saw one in the flesh a couple of weeks ago. It's prettier than I expected, that odd colour kind of works. As I understand the ME is basically the same camera as the M9 minus the frame selector and the USB port, so which you prefer I think comes down to how they look. I think at that price, a 3 year warranty is attractive, but it depends on how lucky you are really.
 
I haven't seen one and really can't afford one, alas. But, a few weeks ago (jan or feb), there was an article at guardian.co.uk by one Sarah Lee (I kid not) about why she bought an ME. Nicely written & some v. good accompanying photos. (She is a photojournalist so no doubt there's a tax write off there). From memory I believe she mentioned why she chose the ME over the M9.

It was that article that prompted me to resurrect my old SLR (Nikon), TLR (Yashicamat) and acquire a RF (FED3). Followed by a GAS attack and the imminent arrival of a Leica IIIc. Can't wait to explain that one to the wife.
 
Inevitably it falls to the consumer who bought the darn thing to engage in product promotion. Nice way for companies to outsource their advertising at no cost. 🙄

It looks great with chrome lenses, and fine with black ones, too.

I have trouble imagining how it will look once it gets brassed. Could be really ugly, or perhaps endearingly unpretentious.

Substitute a black dot for a red dot and it becomes elegantly understated.

The leatherite covering is the same used on the MM, and feels great in the hand.

The lack of any lettering to indicate model number on the exterior is a plus.

No USB and no preview lever would have been my preferences anyway, and I'm glad they are gone.

I think Leica should have pursued the minimalist tendency to its end and done away with the double frame lines, making it either a strictly 28-35-50 camera or a 35-50-90 one. I'd prefer the latter choice, since I don't work with 28, only 21 and 24 on the wide end. But I could live with either if I got single framelines in return

None of the above considerations should really make a difference in your decision. 😛

The warranty IMHO is the only really compelling reason to choose one over the other. If however the difference exceeds $1200-1500 (the lower figure is reportedly the cost of full sensor replacement outside of warranty), I would question the value of the warranty itself.
 
As to the aesthetic quandry...

Could the top and bottom plates be replaced with black or silver ones? How difficult and expensive would this be to do?

Another thing that would help the aesthetics (IMO) is switching the dial/shutter/etc to black instead of silver. I assume one could do this as well?
 
I thought the ME looked odd in photos, but in the flesh it's really nice looking. YMMV of course.

The M9 will have been sitting on a shelf for some time, so it's battery wont be a as fresh, but you'll need at least two batteries anyway.

- Steve
 
noimmunity said:
.....I think Leica should have pursued the minimalist tendency to its end and done away with the double frame lines, making it either a strictly 28-35-50 camera........
Click to expand...

Oh yes please! [And an update with the new M shutter/release].

.................. Chris
 
dave lackey said:
Just wondering whilst awaiting yet another appointment with the blood-sucking vampire known as "the lab".😛

The M-E is an aesthetic quandry for me as I have yet to see one in person and I am a BP person anyway. But disregarding that...Is the M-E with a 3-year Mack Warranty at $5400USD from Adorama a better buy than a new M9 at $5999? Or even a used M9?

What is the concensus on the M-E vs. the M9?😕
Click to expand...

This gentleman had an M9, wasn't thrilled, shot film for a year and some, then bought an M-E and is delighted. http://50lux.com

I have no idea. It looks very nice, to me. Component-wise, it's the same as an M9 other than the USB port and the frame selector, should produce the same thing. I'm happy with my black M9.

G
 
Saw one too. I think it looks cool - reminds me of my grey Bessa R2A. If someone offered me one in a straight swap for my steel grey M9, I would take it!
 
dave lackey said:
Just wondering whilst awaiting yet another appointment with the blood-sucking vampire known as "the lab".😛

The M-E is an aesthetic quandry for me as I have yet to see one in person and I am a BP person anyway. But disregarding that...Is the M-E with a 3-year Mack Warranty at $5400USD from Adorama a better buy than a new M9 at $5999? Or even a used M9?

What is the concensus on the M-E vs. the M9?😕
Click to expand...
I just went with a Black Paint M9 with 2300 shutter actuations for $3400. Have I gone to Heaven or what?😀
 
When the M-E came out my first reaction from the photos was "what an ugly thing". In meantime I saw it live and it looks quite good. Not as good as an M9-P but I would happily use it just like I'd use an M9 or M9-P
 
Dave, I was faced with the same decision a couple of months ago. I found a literally like-new black paint M9P with 1100 actuations and almost a year of warranty left for essentially the same cost as a new ME. In the end, the black paint won. I've bought and sold a lot of cameras over the years, but I've always wanted black paint bodies. Even though the warranty was better on the M-E, I indulged myself this time. BTW, I do find I use the frame selector from time to time, so that had a role in my decision too.

Good luck with your decision.
 
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