Godfrey
somewhat colored
tigerphil
Well-known
"The M8 was a dog anyway, I would hazard a guess that most people who could have afforded the camera have or will shortly upgrade to M9/M10 or a different system."
This has to win the "Dumb Post of the Year" award
This has to win the "Dumb Post of the Year" award
Roger Hicks
Mentor
"Good Dog!"
Mine is now my backup to the M9. The M9 is a better camera, but the M8 still delivers publishable photographs. One has to wonder what definition of 'dog' is being used, and whether the person who said that, has used one much.
Cheers,
R.
gdi
Mentor
Keith
The best camera is one that still works!
bigeye
Well-known
Who would care about fixing a Nikon D2Xs, a M8 contemporary? Most would just chuck it.
It is completely obsolete and was $4700 (new), same as the orig. M8.
The M8 is still useful and desirable to many and you can get it fixed if you try.
.
It is completely obsolete and was $4700 (new), same as the orig. M8.
The M8 is still useful and desirable to many and you can get it fixed if you try.
.
sanmich
Mentor
The D2 is obsolete because there are zillions of newer, better, cheaper Nikon DSLRs around for under 1k$.
The only option for an upgrade of the M8 is at 5k$ used 7k$ new.
There is some margin between a Leica III that can still take pictures at 80 years old, and any expensive piece of material not being serviceable only a few years after being sold.
If I were an M8 user, was satisfied with the camera, and didn't want to upgrade just because there is something new around, I sure would be angry if Leica didn't have M8 parts so soon after discontinuing the camera.
I bought a Nikon coolscan 5000 just before it was discontinued, and I would be extremely disappointed if Nikon couldn't service it for at least 10 years or so.
But maybe I'm being naive and unrealistic...
jarski
Mentor
wasnt M8.2 discontinued 2009 when M9 was announced? in digital age, its not very soon IMO. but ofcourse mileage usually varies and people are pretty ok to get something for nothing.
sanmich
Mentor
Digital age doesn't explain everything.
computers are obsolete pretty quickly, again, because a cheaper, better, replacement is available very soon.
Today, in "digital age", a car is stuffed with computers.
How would we feel if parts weren't available five-six years after a model was stopped?
jarski
Mentor
not sure is it fair to compare a car and a camera, even Leica priced camera. but, looking the discussion in LUF and here, Leica has also acknowledged that parts supply and servicing hasn't gone exactly according to their plans. they offered M9 upgrade program, which unfortunately is again Leica priced upgrade program.
maybe if the information about parts supply hasn't leaked to net, and Leica had simply announced M8 servicing to be ended, whole thing would have gone by without all the hoopla on web.
emraphoto
Mentor
that is absurd. a Nikon d2xs is still supported by Nikon Pro Service and runs about $1,000 on the used market.
i own one and find it a perfectly capable camera capable of extremely high resolution and well coloured files.
i know working photojournalists who still prefer the d2hs as dealing with big files in the field can be a pain in the arse. the local paper guys in my neck of the woods are sporting 1DmkII's for way back in 2004. again, fully supported by Canon Pro Service.
there are loads of reasons why Leica's aren't prolific out in the field beyond price. balls service and support being one of them.
Jeff S
Well-known
Well, Leica itself (Stefan Daniel) now consider 10 years appropriate for the M9 and MM. FWIW, the absurd 'lifetime' marketing language was identical for the M8 and M8.2.
The only solution to avoid M8/M8.2 owner dissent would be for Leica to find a fix for the LCD problem. Surely there is one, but the question is whether the cost and effort would be worth it. Unless a lot of M8 owners push for a different outcome, though, Leica will likely move on to other things, which no doubt can't happen too soon for them.
Jeff
Jeff S
Well-known
Sure, and no M8 owners would have thought to voice indignation on the same sites on which it's now being discussed.
Jeff
jarski
Mentor
probably would, but noise level would have been lower. and all the non-owners who have now crowded these forums to express their disbelief and horror would have been doing something else
Phil_F_NM
Camera hacker
The D2h/x are very rugged, very reliable workhorses that can take any condition the photographer (or the enemy) throws at them. I took a D2h to Fallujah in 2004 and it worked perfectly most of the time. The only problem I had was that during acclimation and training for 2 weeks in Kuwait, the camera wouldn't turn on if it was already above 106 or 116 degrees. I talked with the Nikon factory service tech about this. At the time it was a problem but only for about 3 weeks until we moved north. Basically, it meant I kept my camera on all the time which isn't a big deal since the batteries and power management system on the D2s is awesome.
So, the one thing that the D2h/x bodies has that the newer cheaper cameras don't, including the D700, is the rugged professional build that can take the stress of months of urban combat in a very harsh climate.
I wouldn't trust my old Leica M8 or M9 to give me that kind of service if I had to go on assignment there again.
Phil Forrest
So, the one thing that the D2h/x bodies has that the newer cheaper cameras don't, including the D700, is the rugged professional build that can take the stress of months of urban combat in a very harsh climate.
I wouldn't trust my old Leica M8 or M9 to give me that kind of service if I had to go on assignment there again.
Phil Forrest
Jeff S
Well-known
probably would, but noise level would have been lower. and all the non-owners who have now crowded these forums to express their disbelief and horror would have been doing something else
Noise level would have been higher IMO, with more overt sentiment toward 'abandonment'. But this is pointless supposition, so let's just agree to disagree.
Jeff
ChrisLivsey
Mentor
http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica...viceability-m8-m8-2-displays.html#post2163833
"For the M9 as for all our products, we are taking measures that we are able to service the camera for a period of at least ten years after production will stop." Stefan Daniel, Director Product Management
rxmd
May contain traces of nut
If you allow me to polarize a bit, this is probably what separates the photographers from the gearheads.
As a photographer, why would you chuck a professional tool that does the job and is repairable? If you need the ruggedness of the D2Xs, the only replacement could be a D4-class camera, and that costs way more than the repairs. So unless you want to upgrade for some other reason and have the money, the sensible option is to repair it.
On the contrary, if all you want is to have a camera that makes you feel good, you can go and ditch the D2XS and buy whatever mid-level camera Nikon is offering. And if all you want is the latest and greatest, then repair isn't an option anyway and you'll probably be ready to shell out the money for a D800E or D4 or whatever. In other words, gearheads are much more likely to treat cameras as disposable than photographers are.
Consequently, the main problem for Leica is the lack of a mid-level offering. Affluent gearheads will move to the M9 anyway or have already done so; photographers who make money with the M8 will grind their teeth and take the M9 upgrade; so who is most affected by this are consequently the people interested in gear, but not to the point of being ready to buy an M9, because they lack a sub-$4500 offering. Bashers aside, these people are consequently the loudest complainers at the moment.
DougFord
on the good foot
Unlike the rest of us Yahoo's, Stefan Daniel is...you know...working for the company and its his ass on the line...the rest of us are yelling from the cheap seats, out here in the internets.
Richard G
Mentor
Maybe you are right, but I can't see why. You probably are right. I just read M4streetshooter's review of the Sony RX100. Sounds great but I can see its successor and the successor to that calling from not far off. I don't see why my M9 won't work in 20 years. My Coolpix 4500 is running perfectly after 8 years. Photography won't change. My point was that a 50 year old camera is still being chosen by teenagers to shoot their stuff, why not a 20 year old camera? My Yamaha R5 Hi Fi amplifier died last year after 25 years. It could have been repaired but it would have been tedious and expensive. I bought its latest equivalent, and like with Leicas, it looks almost exactly the same.