Polar 7 Solaron

[69xchange]

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An interesting lens, does anyone have a copy yet and if so, how does it feel in terms of build quality and what are the sample pictures like compared to the 7 element KoB?

 

Edited January 15, 2024 by 69xchange

[not sure]

It seems to be on sale from a camera shop in Hong Kong with 2 lenses in stock (at time of posting)

https://www.shcameras.com/product/polar-7-solaron-35mm-f2-for-leica-m-chrome/

 

[69xchange]

6 hours ago, not sure said:

It seems to be on sale from a camera shop in Hong Kong with 2 lenses in stock (at time of posting)

https://www.shcameras.com/product/polar-7-solaron-35mm-f2-for-leica-m-chrome/

 

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Yeah, I was thinking of grabbing one but want to see reviews first.

[farnz]

I wonder how - and how well - Spherical Aberration is controlled? 🤔

Pete.

[Danner]

That price, be still my heart.  Oh, wait, those are HK$, so about US$900.

Whew!!

[Greenhilltony]

They are doing a pre-order for the second batch of the lens, offering black chrome, silver chrome and bare brass version this time. They have just dispatched all the first batch products to the customers and making fine adjustments to the manufacture and exterior designs according to the feedback from the first batch users. Some users shared the sample photos in the WeChat group for the second batch pre-order. Their common opinion is the sharpness of the Polar 7 even exceeds the KOB from wide-open to stopped down. Another distinct point is the KOB seems to have better light transmittance than the Polar 7, when the shots are taken under the same exposure settings the images from Polar 7 are a bit more underexposed. There are some head-to-head reviews of the Polar 7, Germany KOB and Canada KOB on this blog (but in Chinese):

Polar 7 vs Canada KOB on film

Polar 7 vs Germany KOB vs Canada KOB on Sony A7R5 and GFX50R

Polar 7 on M9P straight out

Polar 7 on Nikon Z6

[69xchange]

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1 hour ago, Greenhilltony said:

They are doing a pre-order for the second batch of the lens, offering black chrome, silver chrome and bare brass version this time. They have just dispatched all the first batch products to the customers and making fine adjustments to the manufacture and exterior designs according to the feedback from the first batch users. Some users shared the sample photos in the WeChat group for the second batch pre-order. Their common opinion is the sharpness of the Polar 7 even exceeds the KOB from wide-open to stopped down. Another distinct point is the KOB seems to have better light transmittance than the Polar 7, when the shots are taken under the same exposure settings the images from Polar 7 are a bit more underexposed. There are some head-to-head reviews of the Polar 7, Germany KOB and Canada KOB on this blog (but in Chinese):

Polar 7 vs Canada KOB on film

Polar 7 vs Germany KOB vs Canada KOB on Sony A7R5 and GFX50R

Polar 7 on M9P straight out

Polar 7 on Nikon Z6

thank you!

[gaheris]

4 hours ago, Greenhilltony said:

They are doing a pre-order for the second batch of the lens, offering black chrome, silver chrome and bare brass version this time. They have just dispatched all the first batch products to the customers and making fine adjustments to the manufacture and exterior designs according to the feedback from the first batch users. Some users shared the sample photos in the WeChat group for the second batch pre-order. Their common opinion is the sharpness of the Polar 7 even exceeds the KOB from wide-open to stopped down. Another distinct point is the KOB seems to have better light transmittance than the Polar 7, when the shots are taken under the same exposure settings the images from Polar 7 are a bit more underexposed. There are some head-to-head reviews of the Polar 7, Germany KOB and Canada KOB on this blog (but in Chinese):

Polar 7 vs Canada KOB on film

Polar 7 vs Germany KOB vs Canada KOB on Sony A7R5 and GFX50R

Polar 7 on M9P straight out

Polar 7 on Nikon Z6

Bit of a shame about the light transmittance. The difference at this moment is too great IMHO. If they can match it with the original then I would love to get a black one. 

Other aspects such as rendering and color tones seem to be close. 

[Itsalwayssunn16]

Alright guys! I created an account just so I can post here.  I took one for the team and purchased one lol I too wanted to wait until someone had one to see how I feel about the lens but hadn’t found anyone on here or reddit who had yet.
 

Communicated directly with the shop and he took a video of the lens for me.   Lens seems to be extremely well built with an all brass construction.    I’ll keep everyone updated.  And will make a video when I receive the lens.  

[ChangshaNotes]

I picked one up. The lens is solid and feels very well made. The aperture ring is not very clicky and there is a slight play to it but not enough to knock it out of place. The focus ring is smooth with very nice resistance. I can't compare it to the KOB as I've never used or even touched one, but I do like this lens.

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Edited November 6, 2024 by ChangshaNotes

[kultflamingo]

On 11/6/2024 at 4:41 PM, Al Brown said:

This image is not particulary sharp. Could you post one without shake - or is this the sharpness of the lens?

Wonder the same. To me only the images in this review seemed sharp: Polar 7 vs Germany KOB vs Canada KOB on Sony A7R5 and GFX50R. All the other seemed a bit off.