Why do you WISH you had decided NOT to buy a Leica Digital M?

[Rob-F]

Actually I don't really wish I had decided not to buy one. I've questioned my decision at times though. Sensor problems, long wait time for repair/replacement; the nuisance of lens coding; sensor crop issue with the M8; UV/IR filters. All that, as opposed to just mounting a lens on the D700 and everything works fine.

What say you?

 

[Phil_F_NM]

I was a working photographer and needed a reliable camera system.

Phil Forrest

 

[Rob-F]

And what was your reliability problem with your Digital Leica?

 

[Ken Ford]

My aging eyes aren't up to a traditional RF any more, so the M-P 240 is going away.

 

[splitimageview]

After the M8 and the Q...nope. In my Q service case, the quote was 3 weeks; took 7 months. This was with one of their high-profile dealers pushing them behind the scenes...

 

[jaapv]

I don't. If I did, I'd have sold it.

 

[Phil_F_NM]

And what was your reliability problem with your Digital Leica?

I got an M8 about a year after it was released. Factory guaranteed used model. After three months, it needed the sensor remapped. This happened two more times during my year + owning the camera. Each trip to Leica for repair was 2-3 months. So, I owned the camera for ~18 months and about 7 months, the camera was out for repair.

I purchased an M9 in October of 2010 and sold it in June of 2012. On day three of ownership, the dreaded vertical line popped up (same as the M8) and the camera went immediately back to Leica for service. Came back in December and then it had a good run of a few months then another sensor remap from several vertical lines. 3 months out. Next time it happened, the camera got a shutter overhaul. Just under 2 months out. Final time I had a problem was in December of 2011 when the sensor developed a horrible set of thick magenta and cyan bands. Sent back to Leica for 3 months and the sensor was replaced as well as the shutter. All told, the camera was out for about 10-11 months over only 22 months of ownership. About 50% of my time owning the camera was spent out for repair. Ridiculous. I treated it with kid-gloves from the time it got back to the time I sold it. Barely shot with it because it was such a fragile piece of gear. I was a poor barely working stiff and I didn't get the gourmet treatment that many folks (a few on this forum, a few on other lists) get from Leica because I don't have as much invested in Leica gear, nor can I afford it. Leica drew their line in the sand with me then and I'll never buy another new piece of Leica gear, nor will I ever buy a Leica digital device, new or used. The Leica M9 was the worst financial and gear decision I ever made. Sold at a loss of 30% in spite of it being near mint and having come back from Leica just prior, with a new warranty. I traded it for a Nikon SP with a 5cm f/1.4 and a big wad of cash. That was one of the best gear decisions I ever made.

My 1969 M4 is a fantastic camera with a wonderful DR Summicron and a custom modified adapter to fit a 2.1cm O-Nikkor but those are arcane, ancient pieces of gear, not the host of Leica lenses I owned and used from 21 up to 135mm when I had the digital. From then on out, I used Nikon digital cameras for work that had a deadline and whatever film camera that suited my fancy for everything else.

Phil Forrest

 

[jsrockit]

Used the M8 for awhile and liked it. I bought the M9 brand new, sold it after a year... it was great when I used it, but I also used Fuji cameras. After awhile, I decided that I prefer mirrorless AF cameras. I still prefer aperture rings and shutter dials though, but my manual focus days are over unless my style of photography changes.

 

[RichC]

I bought an M8 in large part because of the promised perpetual upgrade. Turns out Leica lied to me. Will never trust them again. Scum.

 

[Rob-F]

I bought the M9 brand new, sold it after a year... it was great when I used it, but I also used Fuji cameras.

Yes, I have found you really can't go wrong with Fuji!

 

[splitimageview]

I bought an M8 in large part because of the promised perpetual upgrade. Turns out Leica lied to me. Will never trust them again. Scum.

I had forgotten about that debacle.

At this point they do offer a perpetual repair program; keep sending them in and they'll keep taking much too long to repair them. 😀

 

[YouAreHere]

I question my decision of buying the M-E brand new. Its upgrade was a very very lightly used M-D, purchased just four months ago. And I paid $1,200 less than the M-E!

 

[Chris101]

I decided not to buy a digital M, even though I love my M4-P. I have a plethora of digicams, but none of them try to emulate film cameras (the three Nikon DSLRs not withstanding.) Digital Leicas (in my most humble opinion) are trying to fool the photographer (and viewer) that they are film cameras (but better.)

ps, YouAreHere, I really dig your avatar picture. It's a great example of the 1950s commercial images, which is a thing for me. Do you by any chance, have a large version of this? I'd like to see it if you do!

 

[raid]

My eyesight is still very good, and I love my Leica digital RF cameras. Leica is a very special company, and its products are special.

 

[jsrockit]

Digital Leicas (in my most humble opinion) are trying to fool the photographer (and viewer) that they are film cameras (but better.)

How would they fool the viewer?

 

[Ko.Fe.]

Why just digital Leica? To me if you need just digital picture, no buy Leica, it sucks in general for digital, M10 is included.

But I'm RF shooter and this is it. RF is Leica.

 

[fireblade]

Actually I don't really wish I had decided not to buy one. I've questioned my decision at times though. Sensor problems, long wait time for repair/replacement; the nuisance of lens coding; sensor crop issue with the M8; UV/IR filters. All that, as opposed to just mounting a lens on the D700 and everything works fine.
What say you?

As above, but wanting a compact i tried a few and sold them until i bought the 109, no regrets there.

How would they fool the viewer?

A fool and his folly are hard to separate.

 

[Rayt]

I own the Monochrom (but it is in Germany waiting for sensor replacement) and mostly shoot b/w film. Liveview can replicate any benefits of a rangefinder so there no need to go for the M's when there are alternatives. These alternatives are not only cheaper but more reliable. I would not bother with digital Leica if I shot color at all. I will likely sell the MM when I get it back.

 

[Huss]

Turns out Leica lied to me. Will never trust them again. Scum.

Don't feel too bad. It wasn't just you.

 

[x-ray]

Mother board failure, sensor failure, slow small buffer, Leica lens compatibility issues, terrible quality LCD all made for a really bad experience with my M9. I bought it new and it spent nearly half of its life in the shop. It was on par speed and feature wise with the Nikon D1 that I bought when it came out but the M9 was much less reliable. The M9 was obsolete when it came out. Overall image quality was no better than the images I get routinely from my Nikons and Canons I had owned. It was so unreliable I couldn't carry it on a job without a backup Nikon.

In the end I had to threaten Leica with a lawsuit to get issues fixed.

I almost forgot the terrible customer service. Extremely slow with no pro support and I often had to return the camera at my expense to get the repair that was botched fixed.

I'm one that will never buy another Digital Leica and never buy a new Leica product.

There are too many superior choices unless you absolutely feel you must have an RF.