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Next Round of M8 Firmware--What to Expect?


photolandscape

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Sorry to disappoint you, but it is definitely still there - as are all the other electronic reported malfunctions. I should know because I have two bodies with identical behaviour, one of which just returned from Solms and an extensive repair - with no effect whatsoever, apart from rangefinder calibration.

 

 

You might be right. I am sure I will experience later as I haven't used the camera much since the upgrade. Thank you for busting my hopes! ;) Anyway, so far mine seems fine. I will try it out in changing temperatures, I have a feeling the M8 doesn't like that very much....

 

Btw: I see you've been travelling with Hurtigruta. You have a set of nice photos! I have lots of things to do, see and photograph in my country, and one of those things to do is a trip with Hurtigruta.

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...The firmware updates seem to change parameters in order to work around the unreliable workings of the wheel or the arrow keys, for example. But an increased timeout for a movement of the wheel probably makes the camera too slow, a shorter time produces picture hopping or madly scrolling menus more often....

 

Hm, that`s hard stuff and I must say I don`t concur. Being in the computer industry for many years I believe the scrolling issues of the M8 have nothing to do with unreliable hardware. In fact the "bugs" can be reproduced quite easily and they are mostly "timing related" which means, the software gets the arrow-pressed-event reliably but when you change viewing direction (you go back one shot instead of forward) you have to wait for some "forward thread" to finish before the last picture displays... Also the "mad line scrolling" in the Set-menu appears only when Set is first activated.

 

Anyway - my bottomline is as easy as 1-2-3:

 

The GUI is kludgy.

The parts are great.

Leica can deal well with hardware - no surprise :-)

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Well any FW changes that manipulate the current hardware functions is definitely out. I thought everyone here was dreaming that Leica would ever do that, petition or no petition. That would compromise the printed manual and could be "dangerous" for users. :D

 

I expect we'll most likely see invisible mainframe improvements, better AWB, improved jpegs, and possibly better high ISO performance. Thais it folks. No quiet shutter modes, scroll wheel ISO setting, lens menus, etc. Unfortunately those things would be easy to code - the less sexy changes I have a feeling need a lot more time and testing.

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Well any FW changes that manipulate the current hardware functions is definitely out. I thought everyone here was dreaming that Leica would ever do that, petition or no petition. That would compromise the printed manual and could be "dangerous" for users. :D

 

I expect we'll most likely see invisible mainframe improvements, better AWB, improved jpegs, and possibly better high ISO performance. Thais it folks. No quiet shutter modes, scroll wheel ISO setting, lens menus, etc. Unfortunately those things would be easy to code - the less sexy changes I have a feeling need a lot more time and testing.

 

We'll just have to wait for the hacked firmware to come out of Russia then, I suppose ;):p

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Hi all,

 

The real question is what is going on in Leica right now?

What happen to the promise to release firmware update in a short time, to avoid big improvement in only one firmware and to proceed step by step?

It's a long time they realeased an upgrade large correction then Leica has only released an upgrade (1.10) to support new lenses.

 

Despite the fact that we need to use the camera anyway and that's a very good product (for sure the lenses are), there's a lot of features that need improvement, as mentioned on their answer to guy faq on the Leica website, like AWB, JPG quality and they also need to clarify if it's really possible to get support for SHDC card with the camera.

 

I will not complain if it will not be possible to have such correction/improvement with M8 but i think as all of you guys, we would like to get some answer some true answer to all our questions.

 

We are expecting something more from that German company from that "quality" product. I would Leica doesn't forget we are customer and we are giving to that company our faith and expection and if Leica is a really reresponsable and a quality company as it say and would be it has to do something more!!!

 

Andrea

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Guest s.m.e.p.

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...Despite the fact that we need to use the camera anyway and that's a very good product (for sure the lenses are), there's a lot of features that need improvement, as mentioned on their answer to guy faq on the Leica website, like AWB, JPG quality and they also need to clarify if it's really possible to get support for SHDC card with the camera. ...

 

I think this improvements will come with the M9.

 

Ask the DMR-Owners if they have got the final firmware they are dreaming of. :cool:

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Quote:

sk the DMR-Owners if they have got the final firmware they are dreaming of.

 

The question is here, if Guy would please forward that and if someone would be so kind to tell us the real things we and I will be very glad to know! :)

 

As i said before will be glad to know what's going on...

 

Andrea

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I think this improvements will come with the M9.

 

Ask the DMR-Owners if they have got the final firmware they are dreaming of. :cool:

 

If Leica fails to implement a 'fully' functional (i.e., glitch-free and updated to current standards such as SDHC) FW for the M8, the M9, R10 et al. are DOA. :cool:

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The only thing that would really help, I'm afraid, would be to replace parts with components of higher quality - which would be devastatingly expensive. Before you can put better parts into the M8, however, you've got to have them made, and this, I assume, is what Leica has not been able to achieve for the past year.

 

With respect to the manic scrolling / zebra / wrong image . . . I don't believe you for a second, I'm absolutely certain it's firmware.

 

I get the impression that 1.1 was getting the firmware back 'in house' rather than with Jenoptik, and that there will be more to come (I don't have any specific evidence of this)

 

Still, I agree with others - nothing's perfect, and the problems of the M8 (some of which were material) have now been reduced to irritations.

 

I'm expecting more, but, truth to tell, if they don't change a thing, I'm not getting any photos which are spoiled by the firmware.

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Guest guy_mancuso
With respect to the manic scrolling / zebra / wrong image . . . I don't believe you for a second, I'm absolutely certain it's firmware.

 

I get the impression that 1.1 was getting the firmware back 'in house' rather than with Jenoptik, and that there will be more to come (I don't have any specific evidence of this)

 

Still, I agree with others - nothing's perfect, and the problems of the M8 (some of which were material) have now been reduced to irritations.

 

I'm expecting more, but, truth to tell, if they don't change a thing, I'm not getting any photos which are spoiled by the firmware.

 

This is all firmware no question

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Guy, do You know will it be a substantial rework of the fw, or just some minor repairs, and the n we would have to wait for another version...

one might say that minor repairs are all that is needed, but when all put together, one might put to question M8s functionality...if there are buttons that, when pressed, do not respond properly, there is still possibility of a nice green blob on the side, off camera jpegs need work,

camera startsup slowly ( if possible to fix)...

 

 

M

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I still can't replicate the maniac scrolling after I updated the firmware. Before the firmware upgrade I experienced this "syndrome" almost all the time while changing ISO or so.

 

I am tempted to conclude that firmware 1.110 does in fact correct this error. Leica even announced that the "unintended scrolling" bug would be fixed in v1.110 (if I am not mistaking this with another "unintended scrolling" that I'm not aware ever existed).

 

 

This is all firmware no question
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I still can't replicate the maniac scrolling after I updated the firmware. Before the firmware upgrade I experienced this "syndrome" almost all the time while changing ISO or so.

 

I am tempted to conclude that firmware 1.110 does in fact correct this error. Leica even announced that the "unintended scrolling" bug would be fixed in v1.110 (if I am not mistaking this with another "unintended scrolling" that I'm not aware ever existed).

 

I must say, I can't replicate it either - and I seem to be getting the right image these days too. Maybe it's the good fairies, or maybe this stuff was fixed.

 

I think the point that I can't remember whether or not I've seen it lately rather proves how important these issues are!

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