Ronald M
Mentor
Not to mention my M3 and your M2 do not need batteries.
Wonder how long digital batteries will be available.... or memory cards...or cables...
In regard to MB, as a decades MB owner, I can tell you that even they are not honoring roadside service (gas,batteries, spare tire installation) for older MBs, just newer ones continually seviced at the dealer.To their credit, though, the MB Classic center maintains a huge inventory on classic parts for all MB vehicles up to and including the 124 model which ended in 1995 with the newer 1996 models.
Maybe Leica could do something similar with classic cameras. I doubt it though as the current digital age is hell-bent to produce more future landfill material without the lifelong commitment of manufacturers, or buyers for that matter.
Try getting an iPad, iphone, ipod or other tablet fixed in 5-10 years.
But Leica will discount a new current product as a replacement and that has been the policy forever and and recently reiterated for m8.
. Nikon\canon will not do this.
Digital is not cheap no matter how you look at it. There may be no processing costs, but you need computers, software, and there is planned obsolescence to the whole kit. Not even the old film lenses work well on new digital.
burancap
Mentor
Roger Hicks
Mentor
dcsang
Canadian & Not A Dentist
jtullar
Established
Actually I am not sure about Nikon but Canon does do this. There were examples of upgrades to the next camera when repair parts were no longer available.
Ben Z
Mentor
That's true. A friend of mine sent in a lens which Canon said they didn't have parts for the AF motor anymore. They upgraded him to the newest model of that same lens.
BUT HERE'S THE BIG DIFFERENCE TO LEICA: Canon sold him that new lens FOR THE COST OF THE REPAIR, which was LESS THAN A THIRD the cost of the new lens.
Leica offered to uprgade to an M9 for $3900. The cost of replacing the screen would've been around $1000.
Well, they replaced my "coffee stained" M8 screen for free... out of warranty.
MartinP
Mentor
As a non-M8 owner, can I just wonder if anyone knows how big a job it is to replace the screen? The same part is, after all, still available from electronics brokers.
A workaround for the hypothetical future problem may be tethering to change the ISO. Isn't there a usb tether software with the M8? Therefore there is scope for an imaginative Android/iOS writer to make the simplest possible mobile-phone app and display the screen that way. It isn't needed to change a hidden setting every shot , and rarely even every few hours.
A workaround for the hypothetical future problem may be tethering to change the ISO. Isn't there a usb tether software with the M8? Therefore there is scope for an imaginative Android/iOS writer to make the simplest possible mobile-phone app and display the screen that way. It isn't needed to change a hidden setting every shot , and rarely even every few hours.
Ben Z
Mentor
But now they say there aren't any more screens to be had (although people have located sources online) which is the subject of this entire thread.
jaapv
RFF Sponsoring Member.
But it is unknown whether the supply problem is in the screens themselves or in the associated electronics. I think it is safe to assume that Leica would have avoided the situation if at all possible.
EdwardKaraa
Well-known
Totally agree!
willie_901
Mentor
Right now it looks like a lie.
Sparrow
Mentor
I agree, but the question that begs is; is this a one off unavoidable problem with a single part or a change to Leica's traditional service practice?
Gabriel M.A.
My Red Dot Glows For You
Cheers,
Dave
lol - and in 3D, no less.
The bunnies are busy. Or is that in another thread?
Leica All Day
Mentor
Jamie123
Mentor
Well, technically it says ''constructed with a lifetime of endurance in mind'' but that doesn't mean that they guarantee a lifetime of endurance.
gdi
Mentor
It has been reported that you can change the settings without the screen via a computer connection...
http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/2131125-post9.html
Actually the M8 LCD failure potential cannot be estimated by the failure rate of all the other devices in your house. The M8 lcd has proven to have a particular problem that effected an unusual number of users (maybe that is why they "ran out" of LCD spares); that is the "coffee stain" issue.
I have never seen or heard of common LCD flaw like this on any other camera. I have had a number of digital cameras and film cameras with LCDs and never had a failure with any but the M8
(other than my accidentally smashing a Kodak DC120 about 15 years ago).
bobbyrab
Well-known
I would really like to know what situation arose that got them into this situation. It would seem to me that given the effort they excerpt to give longevity to their in house engineering, that long term availability of components from outside suppliers would be near the top of their list when procuring parts.
I'd love an M9 I dearly would, but this has given be pause for thought, for that sort of money you really need confidence in the ongoing support.
Funnily enough earlier in the year i contemplated downgrading my Naim HIFi, to facilitate an M9, with Naim I could more or less get back what I paid for it second hand three years ago because it holds it's value really well, precisely because it's well supported by the manufacturer, they still have stock should my 1999 Cd player need to be repaired or serviced.
willie_901
Mentor
That is very cool.
So all you need a is a small battery powered dongle whose output is wired to the crippled M8 via USB. The dongle would get it's input via a built-in Bluetooth receiver.
Logitech sells a Bluetooth audio-out dongle for about $30.00, so the Bluetooth part is inexpensive.
Now a smartphone app could let you change menu settings wirelessly via Bluetooth. Of course the dongle would only be attached when the menu requires access.
So I take back all my prior criticism.
Leica has a potential solution that does not require spending thousands of dollars for an M9 upgrade. Most of the coding is already done since Leica's in-house wired program, Digital Capture 1.0, already exists. Building a smartphone app to mimic the M8 menu structure and send the proper instructions to the camera wirelessly would be straightforward. People who hate smart phones could pick up an old one on eBay for about $100 and not activate it for phone service. But they would have to keep the phone charged though. The dongle could be a bit bigger than thumbnail drive and the smart phone would be light and small.
daveleo
what?
I think you are dripping sarcasm all over my shoes . . . ?