Leica UK price increase message has BIG typo!

[jonoslack]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

Hi There

In case you've been looking at the Leica UK price increase notice:

 

http://www.leica-camera.co.uk/news/news/1/5198.html

 

I've been speaking with them, and there is a typo in the message, which should read: £3390 NOT £3990.

 

Bad, perhaps, but not quite as crazy as it seemed.

I thought it worth mentioning quickly before the firestorm became too big!

[delander †]

Hi Jono,

 

OK it was a typo. Otherwise it would have been completely crazy.

 

But to me it still is crazy, it will put off prospective customers and makes me, a new Leica convert, worry about what I have got myself into. I am beginning to suspect that I am being taken for a ride.

 

Jeff

[Advertisement]

The Leica Q3 is available for pre-order at B&H Photo Video and Adorama

[jonoslack]

Hi Jono,

 

OK it was a typo. Otherwise it would have been completely crazy.

 

But to me it still is crazy, it will put off prospective customers and makes me, a new Leica convert, worry about what I have got myself into. I am beginning to suspect that I am being taken for a ride.

 

Jeff

Hi Jeff

My feeling is that when they launched the M8 they HAD to get it in under £3000, but if you look at Leica traditional prices, they were always around the same as the top of the range Canon film camera - and the M8 will still be more than £1000 less than the Canon top of the range digital.

 

I guess that they haven't been making much profit on it, and need to start making some now that it's proved to be something of a success.

 

But, what do I know?

[carstenw]

My guess is that the original price would have been fine if everything had gone well, but the introduction had a lot mistakes which were, and continue to be, expensive to fix, with each camera needing to return to Solms at least once. The fact that lenses have to be redesigned for the M8 cannot help, nor do the free filters, and the number of lenses coming out as within spec but unusable on the M8 must also be hitting the bottom line. I hope that once the lenses are under control and the camera has stabilised that the price can come down again.

 

It is kinda sad. I wanted to get a black M8 as a backup camera, but within this timeframe that is impossible.

[Eoin]

......It is kinda sad. I wanted to get a black M8 as a backup camera, but within this timeframe that is impossible.

 

LOL, I know how you feel and perhaps better than most understand where your coming from with the comment above. But cheer up Carsten, look on the bright side, with two bodies your voracious appetite for fine lenses would only increase , perhaps Leica is actually doing you a great service by putting the price up.

 

(Don't mind me, I'm openly jealous of your fine collection)

[jaapv]

In the end, the market will decide whether the pricepoint is correct....

[euston]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

In the end, the market will decide whether the pricepoint is correct....

 

Exactly. They don't seem to have any trouble selling as many as they can make. The price will go as high as the company thinks the market can bear. What it will tend to do is squeeze out hobbyists like me who couldn't really justify buying one at the old price let alone the new.

 

It shows real chutzbah on Leica's part, though. The prices of most digital cameras start to fall when they've been out for a year. It's Leica taking pride in being different, I suppose.

[carstenw]

LOL, I know how you feel and perhaps better than most understand where your coming from with the comment above. But cheer up Carsten, look on the bright side, with two bodies your voracious appetite for fine lenses would only increase , perhaps Leica is actually doing you a great service by putting the price up.

 

(Don't mind me, I'm openly jealous of your fine collection)

Yeah, you are not helping me here

 

I suppose that after I get the 75 Cron, I will let things settle a bit and then sell one or two lenses. As much as I love the WATE, for example, I find its use in practice to be a real pain in the rear, so given a decently priced 15-16mm f/4 lens, something a little better than the CV15 which can really only be considered sharp from f/5.6, and given a 21/4, I might sell the WATE. And so on. I now have one or two more lenses than I want to drag around most of the time, so some rationalisation is called for. The 75 situation was tough on me from the beginning, even before I got the 75 Lux. I would never sell that lens, but it just doesn't cut it for precise work below f/2.8, and this is exactly my favorite work, apart from portraits, where the 75 Lux is great. I hope that in the end I have a nicely spaced range of lenses, and a single focal length doubled up, and none of this extra-copy business.

[jaapv]

something a little better than the CV15 which can really only be considered sharp from f/5.6.

 

I'm not sure I agree with that asessment...

 

[carstenw]

At what aperture was it taken? There is no detail in the corners to assess. I find that with my copy at least, the far corners are softer than one stop down, and I imagine that on film the difference is dramatic. I do own a film M as well, so it must be sharp there too. A Leica 15mm f/4, sharp into the corners even wide open, would be welcomed with open arms, as would a 21/4.

[jonoslack]

As much as I love the WATE, for example, I find its use in practice to be a real pain in the rear,

 

HI Carsten - interesting you should say that - I really don't find it an issue at all. Of course, if you think of it as a zoom lens, then you're right, but if you think of it as three lenses, it's easier changing between focal lengths (and changing the menu) than getting a different lens out of the bag and putting it on (and still having to deal with the menu in the case of the CV15).

I use my WATE a lot, I find that not only are the corners better than the CV, but there is less vignetting as well (which matters for landscapes at least). Of course it isn't perfect, but the image quality is pretty good, and I certainly think it's better than fiddling about changing lenses.

Of course, get yourself a second body . . . . I have my wate on one of the bodies most of the time, at first I thought that the second body was for backup - now I realise that it's really good for keeping different lenses available.

[farnz]

Presumably part of the price increase is to offset the cost of supplying UV/IR filters.

 

Pete.

[jaapv]

At what aperture was it taken? There is no detail in the corners to assess. I find that with my copy at least, the far corners are softer than one stop down, and I imagine that on film the difference is dramatic. I do own a film M as well, so it must be sharp there too. A Leica 15mm f/4, sharp into the corners even wide open, would be welcomed with open arms, as would a 21/4.

This was wide open and of course the WATE is *a lot* better than the CV, especially in the corners- it would be calamitous if it weren't. But I tried to make the point that is is quite usable, especially for a photographer like me, who has no great talent for extreme wideangle anyway.

[carstenw]

Well, I don't know about that, your shot is great. Anyway, I don't think that the WATE is *much* better in the corners than the CV15, but it *is* better, at least my copies. I would just prefer single-focal lengths, or at least a better workflow.

 

Jono, when I don't use the finder, I have no complaints. Choosing the focal length when I turn the camera on is okay, as long as I don't want to take several shots, each at a different focal length, in which case it is on-choose-shoot-off-on-choose-shot, which is kinda annoying. But for accurate framing, the finder is needed, and then the real hassle starts. I just want to use it with a workflow closer to my other lenses. I really like the WATE itself, but working with it can be a real pain.

 

A second body with the WATE and finder always on it when there is a risk that I need it would take care of some of my complaint.

[matt736]

Here is what has been posted on WeyCameras website regarding the price increases,

 

Please note that Leica will shortly implement prices changes on the M8 and 16-18-21 Tri Elmar. from the 1st Oct the M8 will rise £400.00 to £3390.00 and the Tri Elmar will rise £700.00 to £3180.00 Order soon and make significant savings.

 

Never seen this before,glad that I brought them at the old prices !,

 

Cheers

Matthew.

[marknorton]

It will be interesting to see how that rise in the WATE+Finder is split between the two.

 

The announcement of the Summarits might have caused Zeiss some concerns. WIth their 18 and 21s waiting in the wings, this rise in the cost of the WATE will have them jumping for joy.

 

{I have, BTW, given up on my desire for a 28/1.4, 24/2 or 21/2. I don't think I could stand the stress of finding out what the price is...]

[jonoslack]

{I have, BTW, given up on my desire for a 28/1.4, 24/2 or 21/2. I don't think I could stand the stress of finding out what the price is...]

 

Hi Mark

be a MAN you can take it . . . . . . . I think the problem with these lenses might be carrying them rather than paying for them!

 

Truth to tell, I'd still like a 24, but I've never really understood the need for fast ultra-wide lenses . . . . . but then, there is a LOT I don't understand:confused:

[microview]

Leica has now corrected the former error on its announcement <http://www.leica-camera.co.uk/news/news/1/5198.html>. Even so ....... 13% more in one hit!

[ejd]

These are changes in the 'suggested retail prices'. I doubt the actual prices will change by so much. There are signs of some dealers beginning to offer discounts on the suggested prices. Wasn't there a similar price increase on the DMR some time before supplies ran out? As I recall some dealers then offered it at prices that were barely any increase over the inital price. (And there was an offer in the UK of a big discount on a R9+DMR combination. £700?) Besides, supply will catch up with demand. The competition will be getting cheaper and better. Second-hand items will start to appear more often. And here the DMR is instructive. S/H DMRs seem to be advertised for around £2k in the UK. No doubt Leica and the dealers are hoping to make more money while they can, but I expect there will be plenty of downward pressure on the prices. Old digital Ms will be like old (electronic) Rs -- only more so. They are very likely to drift down in price. The WATE may be different. Lens prices seem to defy gravity. It will be interesting to see how it develops.

[Advertisement]

Hallo,

Look here: Leica M

[ttriolo]

My guess is that the original price would have been fine if everything had gone well, but the introduction had a lot mistakes which were, and continue to be, expensive to fix, with each camera needing to return to Solms at least once. The fact that lenses have to be redesigned for the M8 cannot help, nor do the free filters, and the number of lenses coming out as within spec but unusable on the M8 must also be hitting the bottom line. I hope that once the lenses are under control and the camera has stabilised that the price can come down again.

 

It is kinda sad. I wanted to get a black M8 as a backup camera, but within this timeframe that is impossible.

 

What do you mean when you say that "each camera needing to return to Solms at least once"? I just ordered an M8. Are you saying I need to return it for some adjustment that the updated firmware and filters will not fix?