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Survey: Would you buy the new Leica T?


Would you buy the new Leica T?  

649 members have voted

  1. 1. Would you buy the new Leica T?

    • Perfect camera for me, where can I buy?
      114
    • Would like one but too expensive.
      53
    • Let's wait and see how good the quality is.
      159
    • No, I don't like design and touch display.
      55
    • No, other cameras have better specs for less money
      99
    • I am not interested in the Leica T.
      172


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When the M gets a touchscreen interface you will be left trying to get used to it. I myself will be used to it by the end of this year if not sooner.

 

Left-eyed RF shooters are going to have to learn how to operate the touch screen with their nose. May be really fast swiping through images... faster if you have a cold. :D

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^

Setting a custom WB or setting exposure bracketing (especially for rapidly changing/developing situations) would require either syncing the camera to a mobile device or removing the base plate, changing settings, and reattaching the base plate?

Seems a bit too time consuming and/or awkward. I suppose the camera mentioned above would be a special purpose camera for an already niche group of photographers.

 

It would offer basically the same functions as a film Leica together with the simplicity and the "essence" that got us hooked in the first place. Those film Ms were fine even for rapidly changing light situations... Have we as photographers gotten that much worse at photography that we couldn't use such a camera anymore?

 

What if they made it compatible with the T's evf for menu navigating and image review?

 

But I do agree that this would be a niche product anyway.

On the other hand, this could be the digital CL that wouldn't hurt the sales of the M!

 

I gave a few thoughts about the sensor : x1,25 conversion, 18mp.

 

With 3 frames in the (.58) finder : 21 (frames like a 26mm), 28 (frames like a 35mm) and 40 (frames like a 50).

There are already many options for 21mm lenses, the 28 cron would be the standard, and Leica could reissue the famous 40 cron CL in a limited edition (made in Japan by the same company that makes the T lenses)

 

I reckon Leica would sell a few thousand of those easily (after all, they did sell 3600 DMRs), and it wouldn't really hurt the other lines of products. Plus of course, it would be a huge PR stunt : "Leica builds the first digital camera without a screen"! That product would get the brand more attention in the general public than any Leica launch before. That has to be worth something?

 

sent from a phone with auto-correct.

Edited by lenicolas
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Target market :

- old farts who want a camera with the least features and familiar operation.

- paranoid street photographers who want the most inconspicuous camera "look, its just an old film camera".

- treckers and adventurers who want the lightest camera with a battery that lasts for ages.

- photojournalists who don't want the distraction of the screen and want a fully weatherproof/rugged camera that doesn't fail.

- hobbyists who want "the essence" of photography

- hipsters who want bragging rights "yeah, my camera doesn't have a screen, it's more authentic"

- artists who will finally have have a digital heir to the film Ms.

 

Sorry for side-tracking the thread.

 

sent from a phone with auto-correct.

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SNIP

What if they made it* compatible with the T's evf for menu navigating and image review?

SNIP

*M w/o a screen.

 

 

^This bit is interesting. I dunno why, but it is (to me).

Edited by CaptZoom
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I guess I could go into a lengthy diatribe on this issue, and maybe feel better, but I do not think its worth the time.

 

If I were so inclined to purchase in this direction I would consider the X Vario despite the criticism, slow fixed lens, lack of a view finder and no hand polishing.

 

I think I need to go out and take some shots with my Standard E.

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Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 III First Impressions Review: Digital Photography Review

 

That I call smart: A pop-up EVF in the new Sony RX 100 III. A pity the Leica T doesn't have it.

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That I call smart: A pop-up EVF in the new Sony RX 100 III. A pity the Leica T doesn't have it.

 

I'm afraid this is just the beginning, as the next 6-18 months will most likely see full frame EVIL cameras from Sony and Fuji with better ergonomics, features and specs, making the T seem even more outdated. It seems Leica has learned nothing from the SLR wars that brought an end to the R.

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I'm afraid this is just the beginning, as the next 6-18 months will most likely see full frame EVIL cameras from Sony and Fuji with better ergonomics, features and specs, making the T seem even more outdated. It seems Leica has learned nothing from the SLR wars that brought an end to the R.

 

Hi Stephen! Let's hope Leica lenses for this class of APSc cameras is the decisive factor as it is in the M 33mm class of cameras. Pretty much all the APSc cameras (except the larger sensor M8) produce images pretty much the same. Maybe, Leica optics can win out over techy-features. As far as FF, that is a different class. Sony and Fuji are going head to head with the M-class. At least there, nobody bests Leica optics.

 

Have a micro-brew for me!

 

Your friend,

 

Rick

 

ps Like you, I wish Leica the best with the T, but is not for me or you.

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I feel like I'm in the minority around here where I don't really care that this is not a full frame camera. These days with good high ISO and more megapixels than I normally need what it really all comes down to is form and function. If I can get:

 

good user interface - controls and menus

comfortable camera to hold

ability to have small AF lenses

 

So, I get that I loose one stop of DOF control....for all the other full frame evangelists what else am I missing?

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I picked "I am not interested in the Leica T" I won't be buying one, as i have my perfect camera, an M240

but i am very impressed with the T, its a cool little camera, it feels good in the hand, very solid, the touchscreen interface is nice (other than probably not working with gloves or while wet)

but for similar money there is lot of other choices, which i would probably pick over the T

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I feel like I'm in the minority around here where I don't really care that this is not a full frame camera. These days with good high ISO and more megapixels than I normally need what it really all comes down to is form and function. If I can get:

 

 

 

good user interface - controls and menus

 

comfortable camera to hold

 

ability to have small AF lenses

 

 

 

So, I get that I loose one stop of DOF control....for all the other full frame evangelists what else am I missing?

 

 

My reservations about APS-C are depth of field and the familiarity of my lenses at 35mm - it's almost like I need to relearn how my lenses perform. Otherwise I agree with you. The T camera does seem to redefine cameras in this segment, and the form factor and user interface distinguishes the camera nicely.

 

I'm just disappointed that the sensor is just another Sony APS-C in a camera. It's apparently good (I hope it performs better than the one in the NEX-5n), but I would have been far more enthusiastic if it had been the 24MP CMOSIS sensor from the M(240). The combination of the all singing all dancing M(240) and the minimalist electronic T camera is very appealing.

 

The benefit of this approach is that those for whom the bling is important, the sensor isn't, so having a full frame sensor would be neither a plus nor a minus. But for those who care, it would be a huge plus. It will be a shame if the images (what ultimately count) are ho hum - too much opportunity for reviewers and gear freaks to say its just the same sensor as all the other APS-C cameras wrapped in expensive Leica marketing crap, so you're better to buy a NEX or one of the many Nikon DX cameras.

 

It's a shame, as those criticisms would have been avoided if they'd just used their own sensor.

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My reservations about APS-C are depth of field and the familiarity of my lenses at 35mm - it's almost like I need to relearn how my lenses perform. Otherwise I agree with you. The T camera does seem to redefine cameras in this segment, and the form factor and user interface distinguishes the camera nicely.

 

I'm just disappointed that the sensor is just another Sony APS-C in a camera. It's apparently good (I hope it performs better than the one in the NEX-5n), but I would have been far more enthusiastic if it had been the 24MP CMOSIS sensor from the M(240). The combination of the all singing all dancing M(240) and the minimalist electronic T camera is very appealing.

 

The benefit of this approach is that those for whom the bling is important, the sensor isn't, so having a full frame sensor would be neither a plus nor a minus. But for those who care, it would be a huge plus. It will be a shame if the images (what ultimately count) are ho hum - too much opportunity for reviewers and gear freaks to say its just the same sensor as all the other APS-C cameras wrapped in expensive Leica marketing crap, so you're better to buy a NEX or one of the many Nikon DX cameras.

 

It's a shame, as those criticisms would have been avoided if they'd just used their own sensor.

 

None of us know for sure at which factory the actual 'T' sensor is assembled into the camera. If it's part assembled somewhere in Japan before final assembly in Germany then there's a good case for using a Japanese sensor - rather than using a Belgian CMOSIS sensor. Maybe CMOSIS does not have a suitable APS-C sensor - but who knows what Leica and CMOSIS have up their sleeves for release at Photokina ;)

 

At some stage there has to be an EVIL FF Leica and if so it's likely to have a CMOSIS FF sensor - and without a rangefinder the cost is likely to be considerably less than e.g. the M240.

 

dunk

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My reservations about APS-C are depth of field and the familiarity of my lenses at 35mm - it's almost like I need to relearn how my lenses perform. Otherwise I agree with you. The T camera does seem to redefine cameras in this segment, and the form factor and user interface distinguishes the camera nicely.

 

I'm just disappointed that the sensor is just another Sony APS-C in a camera. It's apparently good (I hope it performs better than the one in the NEX-5n), but I would have been far more enthusiastic if it had been the 24MP CMOSIS sensor from the M(240). The combination of the all singing all dancing M(240) and the minimalist electronic T camera is very appealing.

 

The benefit of this approach is that those for whom the bling is important, the sensor isn't, so having a full frame sensor would be neither a plus nor a minus. But for those who care, it would be a huge plus. It will be a shame if the images (what ultimately count) are ho hum - too much opportunity for reviewers and gear freaks to say its just the same sensor as all the other APS-C cameras wrapped in expensive Leica marketing crap, so you're better to buy a NEX or one of the many Nikon DX cameras.

 

It's a shame, as those criticisms would have been avoided if they'd just used their own sensor.

But for the market they are aiming at size and weight are more decisive buying parameters than full frame or DOF. It is a very understandable decision. As for the sensor, I don’t care a hoot whether it was designed by Henry Talbot in the nineteenth century or Dr. Who twenty years in the future. It is the output that counts.

Edited by jaapv
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The T is not for me....but so what? Lots of things are not for me. I'm smart enough to know that neither the universe nor the marketplace revolve around my navel.

 

The screen interface is an interesting advance on the technology - for those whose photography revolves around the screen on the back. Again, that isn't me. If it shows up on the next full-frame rangefinder body, it won't make much difference for me one way or the other - since I pretty much use the screen only to change ISO or check the battery capacity.

 

If Leica wants to sell ME some cameras - that's not hard. Offer the M240 with a black chrome finish, and, down the road, offer an M360 (36 megapixels - otherwise indistinguishable from the M240). Instant sales. Until then, the M9s do the job I need them to.

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I feel like I'm in the minority around here where I don't really care that this is not a full frame camera...

 

Erwin Putts might agree with you. He reckons IQ of APS-C can sometimes even exceed sometimes exceed FF. What then are the implications for the M? Is the M-line in danger of becoming marginalized? | The TAO of Leica

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Erwin Putts might agree with you. He reckons IQ of APS-C can sometimes even exceed sometimes exceed FF. What then are the implications for the M? Is the M-line in danger of becoming marginalized? | The TAO of Leica

 

The future of Leica is luxury.

 

In 10 years time you will have to search hard in a Leica store for a rangefinder, just like you need to do today in a Montblanc store looking for a fountain pen.

 

Mr Puts will have to consider producing a limited brushed aluminium jacket for his next M publication.

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The future of Leica is luxury.

 

In 10 years time you will have to search hard in a Leica store for a rangefinder...

 

Well if that's how things go so be it, as long as there's still an appropriate digital platform on which to mount all of our M-lenses.

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First it was the SLR that was supposed to kill off the rangefinder camera, then it was AF, and now it's smartphones and touchscreen devices that will supposedly deliver the final knockout blow. Just a guess, but maybe reports of the death of the rangefinder are greatly exaggerated. There's still a demand for mechanical watches and vinyl discs, after all, so I find it perfectly plausible that rangefinder cameras will still be sought after -- not in high volumes, but in sufficient volumes for a sustainable business, which is the key thing.

 

Of course rangefinders are not so versatile but that has been the case for about half a century now. As Leica is now the only digital RF manufacturer, they have a point of difference they can exploit.

 

However, the T represents a break and a new direction, as Erwin Putts, David Pogue, and others have pointed out. Yet it still integrates with traditional Leica optics. I think it is likely we shall see two Leica lines: one classic, the other more contemporary and modern.

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