scott kirkpatrick Posted November 22, 2006 Share #1 Posted November 22, 2006 Advertisement (gone after registration) I think in all this discussion, we should make clear what fixes are necessary, and what can be promised soon to get most of us comfortable with reopening the delivery stream of M8s from the factory to us. And we do have to tell Leica, not just the faithful on this site. So I sent the following note to info@leicacamera.com : I am in the waiting list at Popflash Photo in the US for an M8, but since their policy is to swap cameras when there are early problems, I expect that your next shipments will still go to people ahead of me in line. So I am anxious to see the M8's problems resolved and shipment resumed, even though some parts of the solution (such as firmware and additional profiles for C1 with an IR filtration change) may be promised in the near future. Assuming that the streaks and mirrored blobs are the result of a hardware manufacturing error that can be corrected and is no longer happening, I need only to see the following in order to accept my M8: A commitment to providing IR filters in appropriate sizes to purchasers of the M8 or new Leica lenses to use with the M8, and a discount on Leica's filters for use with existing lenses, plus some procedure to track this commitment and make it work as the filters become available. Firmware or a schedule for release of firmware in which I can specify the focal length of a lens, and whether it is used with an IR cover filter. This firmware should correct for vignetting in luminance, and in color shift due to the filter, when the filter is present. A new profile from C1 for use with an IR-filtered lens, or an estimated date for availability of such a new profile. I believe that in a future upgrade to the M8 it should be possible to improve the IR filtration at the sensor without incurring problems with internal reflections, as both Canon and Nikon appear to have obtained proprietary solutions that achieve this. While it may have been necessary to avoid developing an expensive, time-consuming proprietary solution to IR filtration at the sensor in the M8, there will be no excuse not to do this in a successor. The M8's success, once it is in many hands, should make this possible. Hochachtungsvoll, scott kirkpatrick Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted November 22, 2006 Posted November 22, 2006 Hi scott kirkpatrick, Take a look here Getting the M8s flowing again . I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
Advertisement Posted November 22, 2006 Posted November 22, 2006 Hi scott kirkpatrick, Take a look here Getting the M8s flowing again. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
j. borger Posted November 22, 2006 Share #2 Posted November 22, 2006 Scott, Do you seriously think Leica has time to read this kind of mails .. imagine every current M8 user starts mailing their own specific wish-list for now and the near future (M9??).. they have enough on their mind and hands at the moment i guess;) And to be honest ....i find the remark about IR filtration in relation to Canon/ Nikon DSLR technology quite arrogant too .... one might get the impression everybody on this forum knows technological possibilities better than Leica engeneers! I know you are more or less active in related fields of technology .... but is it realy that simple? Just my 2 cents... No personal offenses .... and good luck anyway! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted November 22, 2006 Share #3 Posted November 22, 2006 Scott, Do you seriously think Leica has time to read this kind of mails .. imagine every current M8 user starts mailing their own specific wish-list for now and the near future (M9??).. they have enough on their mind and hands at the moment i guess;) And to be honest ....i find the remark about IR filtration in relation to Canon/ Nikon DSLR technology quite arrogant too .... one might get the impression everybody on this forum knows technological possibilities better than Leica engeneers! Just my 2 cents... No personal offenses .... and good luck anyway! I find Leica reads all mails I send them - and gives a sensible repy within one working day. I don't know of any other major company that achieves this level of service. The remark about Canon and Nikon does deny the engineering differences between a DSLR and a DRF. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
aj37 Posted November 22, 2006 Share #4 Posted November 22, 2006 Do you seriously think Leica has time to read this kind of mails .. imagine every current M8 user starts mailing their own specific wish-list for now and the near future (M9??) The huge amount of discussion on this and other lists may make it seem as if there must be hundreds of thousands of anxious or disgruntled M8 owners out there. But didn't I read somewhere on one of these threads that the initial delivery batch of M8s was going to be in the neighborhood of 2,000 units? Undoubtedly some of those would have been reserved as review units, for display at trade shows, etc. Meanwhile, some people have posted info from their countries' authorized Leica importers that new shipments have been suspended, and we also have heard of people who have returned theirs and of dealers who have suspended deliveries. We also have heard on this forum from numbers of people who are perfectly happy with their M8s as-is, and would have no wish to mail Leica anything other than perhaps a thank-you note... ... What all that means is that, despite the uproar, there probably are less than 2,000, and possibly only a few hundred, Leica M8s in private hands right now! Leica certainly wouldn't be swamped by an email or two each from those people. It's easy to think from all the furor that this must be a problem of civilization-shaking magnitude, but in the overall context the number of individuals actually affected so far must be rather small. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
j. borger Posted November 22, 2006 Share #5 Posted November 22, 2006 I find Leica reads all mails I send them - and gives a sensible repy within one working day. I don't know of any other major company that achieves this level of service. Are you sure also these days .. and concerning matters where official Leica statements are not out yet .. it would really surprise me! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
scott kirkpatrick Posted November 22, 2006 Author Share #6 Posted November 22, 2006 Scott, Do you seriously think Leica has time to read this kind of mails .. Yes, the marketing people should be reading these. The engineers have more to do. But it appears to be executives above the engineering level who pull the switch to send the cameras out to the stores. And to be honest ....i find the remark about IR filtration in relation to Canon/ Nikon DSLR technology quite arrogant too .... one might get the impression everybody on this forum knows technological possibilities better than Leica engeneers! I know you are more or less active in related fields of technology .... but is it realy that simple? Just my 2 cents... No personal offenses .... and good luck anyway! No, I am sure it is not simple, but the explanations that have filtered through to us are quite unconvincing. I don't know all the factors, but I am left feeling that the IR filter selection was made from a restricted list of possibilities. Better explanations would help with both people like me, who want to understand why a choice was made, and people who don't want to know the explanation, but want to see that a careful choice was actually made. There will always remain a hard core of "Leica knows best" folks, and they perhaps don't need any information :<)). Anyway, this isn't a wish list, it's just a statement of how little I would need to take my M8, in the hope that we will see them soon. I hope others will send their views along as well, in particular on the issue of opening up the firmware so that other than Leica coded lenses will work well. scott Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cbretteville Posted November 22, 2006 Share #7 Posted November 22, 2006 Advertisement (gone after registration) I find Leica reads all mails I send them - and gives a sensible repy within one working day. Never happens to me. I ursually have to remind them four or five times over a two week periode befor they reply to me if at all. Even when the questions are relating to my spending money directly in Solms (CLAs etc.) I have had to ask several times. Sad really, as if they don't want my money. - C Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
marknorton Posted November 22, 2006 Share #8 Posted November 22, 2006 Hey, it's pointless sending emails to Leica which will just add to their workload. They KNOW there are problems. They are working to solve them. Let's leave them to get on with it. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
scott kirkpatrick Posted November 22, 2006 Author Share #9 Posted November 22, 2006 Hey, it's pointless sending emails to Leica which will just add to their workload. They KNOW there are problems. They are working to solve them. Let's leave them to get on with it. I'm a little puzzled by the reactions in this thread. I'm not trying to tell them about any problems -- of course they know them. I'm trying to cast a vote for what could be part of the package offered as they get shipments started again. It seems like the right time to do this. scott Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.