Going to have to eat my earlier skepticism now...

[Guest]

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Ok, I freely admit it, when the M10 came out there were a lot of what I thought to be overblown reports about the camera, those that were lucky enough to get one at first shout were pretty much in lock-step in saying that the M10 was the best M since sliced white bread was invented and I the extremely happy owner of two M240's thought they were just blowing if only because yet again Leica had managed to empty their bank accounts with the latest and greatest. I too waded in with my 2 cents at the time with some unenlightened criticism, but now I am not going to look up whatever it was I said because that might be embarrassing.

 

But no, perhaps the new M10 owners had a point, actually more than one point as it happens.........and now in most part I am with them too.

 

So this Saturday morning after only three days of first deciding to get one, then searching around for dealers in this part of SW France I found and went to pick up a new Black M10 and I have to say that mostly the happy M10 folks are dead on. This is a beautiful piece of kit. so much so that one of my well loved 240's is going on the block.

 

So what's so good about it, from my perspective that is?

 

First and foremost image quality.

Perhaps not as smooth I guess as the 240's in my hands but the colour rendition is wonderful right out of the box especially in my very limited test the way it handles skin-tones, and unlike the 240 the reds are true at last without any tweaking, Somewhat like but with not so much as a pop as Kodachrome 25, more like Kodachrome 200, ( which for me was a long time favourite colour film ).

Later Saturday evening after the 500km's round trip I shot maybe a dozen or so test shots and right away I could see that this camera was going to suit me marvelously. Even a quick portrait, shot inside and lit only by yesterday's full moon, came out almost painterly. Hand held at f2 1/8th second at 6400 ASA. I was floored by the result. Lovely grain, or "noise", whatever.

 

Then there's the size, or rather the lack of thickness of the M10. I was sort of prepared for this having read so many comments on more than a few forums and reviews. What is it, minus 3-4mm?....Well it feels much more than that in reality. It's an M7 without the crank. Really superb. When I first handled in in the shop on Saturday I couldn't believe how good it felt, it was the new girlfriend that's for sure with the 240 sitting there in the bag knowing that exclusivity in our relationship was over, a thinner model had walked in.

 

Menu system, nice....Even simpler, though is it me but is the type smaller now?

 

ASA knob. Well here I stick with my sight unseeing evaluation of this feature. I still cannot see the point of it and it's probably just something that can, will and has gone wrong. There was never any problem in switching ASA with the other M's as far as I'm concerned, and anyway with Auto ASA set up the way you want it what's the point in a mechanical set knob. Looks cool though, so I suppose that's everything.

 

Viewfinder. Well here too I did notice the difference, clearer by a good step or more and easier to find that focus point in dimmer lighting conditions as I can attest with the frames shot last evening. But I confess that as primarily a WA shooter with the M's I was a little disappointed that I couldn't see the complete 28mm frame lines as cleanly as I had expected to or have read so in the reviews. I still have to move my eye around to find the corners of the 28mm frame. 

However, for me it is not really such a big deal not seeing all the 28mm frames easily because I've never relied of any M's frame lines for accurate framing, as long as my subject and whatever else I want is somewhere within the frame lines, that's all good for me. Final framing and crop to the image is done in post pretty much all the time.

You want framing accuracy? Get a SLR........But then with the M10 there's the Visoflex 020 option that'll sort all that. I've yet to try one.

 

Nice to know though that the mechanics and optics of the finder, everything under that hood, have been reworked and hopefully will prove to be even more reliable that the previous iterations of that mechanism have been for me.

 

​Frame lines lever? Same as the ISO Selector wheel, nice to see there perhaps as a bit of "retro'" but I think by now I know what lens to mount up next and I don't need the selector to help the choice, so........

 

The M10 feels really solid in the hand though, is it about the same weight as the 240? Feels that way to me, but that's all good. Being able to shoot last evening at 1/8th sec hand-held and have little or no camera shake says a lot.

 

Of course I'd still like clearer white "A" markings on the shutter selector wheel, but I've given up on that happening so my new M10 now sports a yellow camera tape arrow pointing out the "A" slot, just like my other M's have had for ever.

 

Ok, so, a couple of niggles, but none of them very serious at all. I have found so far nothing not to like about the M10, nothing that I can't just ignore and that's just fine, nothing gets in the way of using the camera.

 

I am surprised at how impressed I am with the M10 both in it's design and so far, ( less than 30 exposures, 6 more to go..............), the image quality is spot on right out of the box and the camera just feels so damn good! It's the dog's bollocks.

 

Perhaps more when I shoot a couple of more "rolls"..........

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[Peter H]

Peter, I'm in exactly the same boat as you. Thanks for setting it out so clearly.

 

I too was very sceptical and said so, but using the camera and then having for a while to return to the M240 its stead, I accept I was wrong. The advantages of the M10 are tangible and add up to very significant advance for people who enjoy the characteristics of M cameras.

[a.noctilux]

Resist M10 is very hard indeed.

 

January, when I first took it in my hands at presentation, I was very skeptic if it would replace my two M240/262.

 

Some days had passed and I returned to the shop to buy other things, by then I didn't know that I would order one.

But happily my wife insisted that it was for me, what I waited for long time.

She was right as usual .

 

When I received one, it changed my thinking of ideal M.

It is ideal M and in use M10 is very friendly in each topic... err maybe not in battery that last only 1/3 of M262, but that resolved with a second battery readily available.

 

Long life M10.

[adan]

It never hurts to be skeptical of new products - even Leica's.

 

The only thing that persuaded me to "adopt early" was the opportunity to download and try out some of the M10 .dng image files from dpreview.com - on the day of announcement. Which showed the ISO and noise performance and the improved color rendering. "Sold!"

 

Of course, I was coming direct from M9s, and thus some of the other M10 features were already proven in the M240, or bigger leaps: quieter shutter/wind, ISO beyond 2500, larger monitor. Size was not an issue except as it promoted the better finder (shorter "tunnel" through the camera body) - which I did have to take on faith, knowing that a good RF was Leica's "rice bowl."

 

Smaller type in the M10 menus? Probably, since the screen is higher-resolution. "8-pixel-tall" type will be physically smaller. OTOH, between the ISO dial and the thumb-wheel exp. comp., I use the menu about once every 500 pictures.

[tsleica]

It would even be nicer if they got rid of the frame selector and problem prone iso dial and lowered the price a K or 2..

[jdlaing]

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha.

 

No. Not likely.

[SiOnara]

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Been using mine since March and the bond only gets stronger. Such a lovely M camera.

 

 

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[pico]

You M10 enthusiasts are bad for me. Really.

My closest Leica dealer is 120 miles away.

Sometimes I am tempted to drive there and ask

for a quote on my two M9s, and maybe include

another rare M towards an M10. The little voice

in the part of my mind devoted to rational

finances says, 'NO'. I need an evil enabler.

[Tailwagger]

I need an evil enabler.

 

Resistance is futile.  Join us.  

[Eric1]

Lol, we all eat our own skepticism from time to time. That's what makes us human. The best thing for me is having all the controls right on the body and don't need to go into the menu at all. Takes me straight to film days. Simple and easy. Such a joy a shoot the m10.

[Ozytripper]

Menus belong to restaurants not in Cameras

Dials and knobs for me anytime

[friedeye]

I've had mine a few weeks now. At first, I was wondering if it was really that much better than my trusty M9, given the cost.  But it is, in spades. In fact, being of a certain age, I think this may be my final Leica body. Yeah, I see the eyes rolling -- but I'm serious. This camera will do everything I need a camera to do.

 

One thing that surprised me:  When I picked up the camera, I'd just come back from 3 weeks in Italy, carrying my M9 most of the time. I'm a Thumbs Up guy, who has them on 4 Leica bodies and my Ikon, and thought I couldn't live without one.  But, dang, day in and day out, I got really tired of having that thing jabbing my side and back when wearing the strap over my head and shoulder.  The M10's thumb bump doesn't do that, making a far more comfortable camera to wear, and giving it just enough grip to work for me. I've purchased a Thumbie for it, but am leaving it in my desk drawer.  I think the M10 might be just fine without it.

[01af]

I'm a Thumbs-Up guy who has them on four Leica bodies [...].  I think the M10 might be just fine without it.

 

Yes, exactly. The M10 is the first digital Leica M body that needs neither a hand-grip, nor a half-case, nor a Thumbs-Up. Naked it's just fine.

[AandW]

 I've purchased a Thumbie for it, but am leaving it in my desk drawer.  I think the M10 might be just fine without it.

 

I have found placing a small piece of gaffer tape where your thumb rests provides a little bit more grip.  It does wear smooth over time and needs to be replaced.

 

[Guest]

 I've purchased a Thumbie for it, but am leaving it in my desk drawer.  I think the M10 might be just fine without it.

 

 

I pulled the Thumbie off of one of the 240's, the one that's going to be sold, and fitted it on the M10.

I always liked the way the Thumbie worked with the 240's and sure enough it works really well for me on the M10 too.

The good thing about the Thumbie is that the hot shoe isn't blocked like with the Thumbs-Up or Leica's offering so you retain the camera support function even when you've mounted the EVF.

[bocaburger]

It's always good to hear that someone is satisfied after having shelled out thousands to upgrade to a new model.  It would be awful if such an expenditure turned out to be underwhelming.   As I am one who prefers to save thousandsm (especially as I like 2 identical bodies) by buying demo or certified-preowned Leicas, so I will not be in the market to upgrade any time soon, but it's good to know the M10 is a step forward in many areas.  None of its changes address my needs or wants except for the slimmer body, and the need to buy new EVF's without the option of a cheaper Olympus alternative is a downside, as is the less capacious battery, but having handled the M10 I do consider the slimmer profile more comfortable to hold.  I'm glad to see Leica moving forward in evolutionary steps rather than throwing the baby out with the bathwater.  

[evikne]

But happily my wife insisted that it was for me, what I waited for long time.

 

You are a lucky guy! I guess most of us have the opposite problem. 

[Sergius]

Viewfinder. Well here too I did notice the difference, clearer by a good step or more and easier to find that focus point in dimmer lighting conditions as I can attest with the frames shot last evening. But I confess that as primarily a WA shooter with the M's I was a little disappointed that I couldn't see the complete 28mm frame lines as cleanly as I had expected to or have read so in the reviews. I still have to move my eye around to find the corners of the 28mm frame.

But it's same like 240 or you can see better 28 frames than 240 ?

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[Tomek]

 

Viewfinder. Well here too I did notice the difference, clearer by a good step or more and easier to find that focus point in dimmer lighting conditions as I can attest with the frames shot last evening. But I confess that as primarily a WA shooter with the M's I was a little disappointed that I couldn't see the complete 28mm frame lines as cleanly as I had expected to or have read so in the reviews. I still have to move my eye around to find the corners of the 28mm frame. 

However, for me it is not really such a big deal not seeing all the 28mm frames easily because I've never relied of any M's frame lines for accurate framing, as long as my subject and whatever else I want is somewhere within the frame lines, that's all good for me. Final framing and crop to the image is done in post pretty much all the time.

You want framing accuracy? Get a SLR........But then with the M10 there's the Visoflex 020 option that'll sort all that. I've yet to try one.

 

 

I have exactly the same problem for 28mm lenses and bellow. That is a little bit against LEICA orthodoxy but LV is working great for me in that case. Screen focus feature is also working great. Visoflex 020 is my next thing to try.

 

BTW - LV could be also use for not LEICA lenses with good results. Recently I was using it with CANON 200mm zoom with Pixco Adaptor. Results were positively surprising. 

[Guest]

But it's same like 240 or you can see better 28 frames than 240 ?

 

 

Hello Sergius, I don't have the surviving M240 with me here to compare, ( it's on loan to a friend right now ), I sold the other one two days ago, but I was struck immediately with realizing that I couldn't see the corners of the 28mm frame lines well when I first picked up the camera.....So I guess yes, the M240 probably does show the WA lines better at least for me. Maybe it's the finder's "longer" viewing angle? As principally a WA shooter, ( very rarely above 50mm, 28mm being my "normal" ), with M's my favourite finder has always been the .58, but that's a memory now with the digital M's.

But it's no big deal because as I said I've always regarded the M frame lines as a rough not totally accurate guide and shoot accordingly.