The Leica M-D thread - merged.

[Ecaton]

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The M(typ 240) is 0.6 mm thicker and exactly the same dimensions for the rest compared to the  M9.It has been explained a zillion times and still people persist...

 

Every ounce weights, every mm counts. Especially as already the first digital body felt obese as compared to its film ancestors and the newer versions grew in size and put on even more weight.

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[Ecaton]

 I guess Leica has hit the Apple syndrome .............run out of ideas, hence all the subtle variations     Looks like Leica's equivalent the the IPhone SE

 

Though this one is a million times more exciting and relevant than a Lenny Kravitz or purple Hermes version........, 

[Exodies]

use a wifi sd card & bingo! you can chimp on an ipad. seriously, though - well done Leica.

 

 

I hope Leica have put the SD card in a Faraday cage to prevent this form of cheating.

[Adam]

I want M-D Monochrome but I know it would then be ridiculously expensive due to even smaller number of anticipated units to be sold...

+1

[jaapv]

Every ounce weights, every mm counts. Especially as already the first digital body felt obese as compared to its film ancestors and the newer versions grew in size and put on even more weight.

You can feel a 0.6 mm difference? I'm impressed.

[FrozenInTime]

Do they still make WORM cards ? ( write once read many )

I think they were intended for tamperproof forensic evidence applications.

[reddawn]

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Hi

 

I know this is a frivolous query, but it wasn't clear if the top and bottom plates of the M-D are made from brass, as opposed to the aluminium of the M262. Was it mentioned anywhere in Leica's official literature about this? 

[pop]

Do they still make WORM cards ? ( write once read many )

I think they were intended for tamperproof forensic evidence applications.

I'm in favor or WOM: Write-Only memory.

[Paulus]

Hi

 

I know this is a frivolous query, but it wasn't clear if the top and bottom plates of the M-D are made from brass, as opposed to the aluminium of the M262. Was it mentioned anywhere in Leica's official literature about this? 

Yes it's mentioned in the official tech chart downloadable. Brass up and bottom. Makes me wonder what's wrong with the M 262 that they abandoned the aluminium top so easily.

[pippy]

Hi

 

I know this is a frivolous query, but it wasn't clear if the top and bottom plates of the M-D are made from brass, as opposed to the aluminium of the M262. Was it mentioned anywhere in Leica's official literature about this? 

 

I was wondering about this curious choice of wording used on Leica's official 'Details' page;

 

"...to the top plate in brass..."

 

No specific mention about what the base plate metal is but it's hard to imagine that they would produce a camera with mis-matched top and bottom parts. After all; when the black finish starts to wear-off the body might look a trifle odd.....

 

Pip.

 

EDIT : Ah, it seems to have been cleared-up as I was typing.

Thanks Paulus!

Edited April 29, 2016 by pippy

[reddawn]

Yes it's mentioned in the official tech chart downloadable. Brass up and bottom. Makes me wonder what's wrong with the M 262 that they abandoned the aluminium top so easily.

 

 

Well, the M262 was billed as being lighter in weight - as light as the M9 was.

That was one of the selling point - 100 grams lighter.... 

[wattsy]

I'm beginning to suspect that the true purpose of this camera and pricing is an clever ruse to get M240 adherents to accept the 262 as the second body of choice.  Certainly has me reconsidering it's value proposition given its pricing. 

 

 

I must admit that the M262 does look like the M digital camera of choice at the moment – the right balance of features and utilitarian design (and I write this as someone previously quite keen on the LCDless approach). The M-D looks pretty (although the ISO wheel on the back might look better if it was centred vertically with respect to the leather covering) but I think the focussing on the essentials idea is a little oversold and the camera does have a whiff of desperation about is as an attempt to revive M240 platform sales prior to Photokina. There was a time I would probably have bought the M-D but I no longer have the appetite to spend £4K+ on a camera every few years.

Edited April 29, 2016 by wattsy

[Bill Livingston]

You can feel a 0.6 mm difference? I'm impressed.

 

 

I would be too... 0.6mm is 0.0236"!!!!!!!

 

To be honest Jaap... there is so much misinformation or just plain bias attached to these dimensions that I have just given up. This isn't anything to do with fact, this is all emotional nonsense. 

 

The digital M's are a little deeper than the film M's, but everything else is pretty similar and the M digitals are to all intents and purposes the same size... The additional width of the 240 was in one area only, the thumbwheel and rest, which is considerably smaller than a Thumbs up anyway... additional weight is the battery, which has a much better capacity and I have never felt the need to carry a spare and don't even take my charger when I'm away for a couple of days... so I could argue its a lighter package altogether...

 

I'm not particularly bothered about people complaining about 'chimping' (although I shot a lot of film over the years, some of it for newspapers, magazines and books and I would love to have been able to 'chimp' in those days... Nothing worse than getting rolls developed and realised you had cocked up!).

 

I suppose that for some people the equipment and the process is more important... and for many of them, buying into Leica is an emotional thing, for others, its the results. 

 

Its the same in traditional angling.

 

I fish Redmire Pool quite regularly. I am fortunate enough to know the 'right people' and therefore I have more opportunities than most... I often meet anglers who are so consumed by the history of the place that they forget to actually 'angle'. I know one guy who has the most beautiful collection of traditional cane rods and antique reels and knows the history of Redmire better than anyone... But in all the years I have fished there, he has never caught anything. Why? Because he limits himself with his gear and his angling methods.

 

I catch regularly and I have probably had more 20's from Redmire than anyone over the past ten years, but although I also have a 1957 cane rod and a 1932 original Aerial reel, I fish with my carbon rods and bait runners, using the very latest techniques.

 

That in itself wouldn't actually give me an edge though... what I do have is experience and what is known as 'watercraft'... I know where and when the fish are feeding (you can read the water) and I fish then...

 

It seems there are photographers and there are traditionalists in the world of Leica, too.

 

And of course there are some who are a a mix of both photographers and traditionalists (but they don't seem to get so hung up about 'size' or 'chimping' or film v digital...).

 

Nothing wrong with either position of course, my friend who fishes traditionally at Redmire enjoys his week there every bit as much as I do, just as I am sure collectors and users of traditional Leica cameras enjoy their cameras...

 

So although this may appear to be a patronising response, it REALLY isn't meant to be... you can put it down to my inadequate use of English early in the day... but I think that no matter how many times we explain, we are never going to convince the traditionalists that all digital Leica M's are pretty much the same size. 

 

I would like to think that for me, its the results and, if I can enjoy the process, then fab... 

 

Would I worry about a camera that was 0.023" or 0.6mm thicker?

 

I wouldn't even notice it... nor would most others, either. 

[Paulus]

All M's  are equal, but some M's are more equal than others.

[KoenM]

Just wanted a Leica Q : So, with EVF, no screen + interchangeable M-lenses....

 

Koenm

[wattsy]

I might prefer the M-D if it was meterless. Maybe I'll get one and take the battery out. :-)

 

 

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[mmradman]

I might prefer the M-D if it was meterless. Maybe I'll get one and take the battery out. :-)

 

 

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Only advance lever is permanently stuck.

[honcho]

I might prefer the M-D if it was meterless. Maybe I'll get one and take the battery out. :-)

 

 

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Yes, I made a tongue in cheek comment in a similar vein earlier. If all Leica can do with the (digital) M is prat around with what one model will include and what another won't, then maybe they should consider it's future viability more carefully. Surely the market at this microscopic level is unsustainable, unless I've missed the point, and Leica's appalling track record of unreliability, qc and lack of certain features such as dual card slots, buffering and low light performance with regard to digital M iterations since the M8 renders it out of the question for many professional photographers, including myself. Shame that Leica, from where I stand at least, seem to place more importance on releasing crippled products to feed bloggers and gearheads.

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Hallo,

Look here: Leica M

[Belle123]

Haven't read thru this whole thread, but I sort of like the idea of the M-D but not the price.  Those of us that shot the M with film, I had two M6s over time, will likely appreciate it more.  I find the screen and menus distracting.  Just give me a camera with Iso, shutter speed, and aperture and some metering and I am good to go!  If was reasonably priced, would consider.  But no way at this price point.

[Paulus]

Haven't read thru this whole thread, but I sort of like the idea of the M-D but not the price.  Those of us that shot the M with film, I had two M6s over time, will likely appreciate it more.  I find the screen and menus distracting.  Just give me a camera with Iso, shutter speed, and aperture and some metering and I am good to go!  If was reasonably priced, would consider.  But no way at this price point.

In a year or 5 it will be reasonably priced and the screen will not be outdated, because there is non.