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Pixii is a smartphone-centric rangefinder camera with a Leica mount
If you were thinking "I really want a rangefinder camera with a Leica M mount and no rear display or memory card," then a new French startup called Pixii has read your mind. It unveiled a digital rangefinder, also called Pixii, that it calls "a radical take on what a modern camera should be." Instead of packing a display on the back, all photos are meant to be viewed on your smartphone. And to compose the photo, there's an old-school optical rangefinder rather than an electronic viewfinder.
Hands-on with Leica's super-rare $19,400 M Edition 60
As of this writing, 15,000 Euro is the equivalent of $19,400 -- a very reasonable exchange rate indeed, and a fair price to pay for a mid-range car or a year of college. Only a select few can justify handing over that sum for a digital camera, however, regardless of the exclusivity that comes in tow. Leica's counting on at least a few die-hard fans to fork over the cash, though, for the M Edition 60, a very special model created to celebrate the M system's 60th anniversary. Only 600 have been made, and each is numbered between 001 and 600. Most peculiar is what this camera doesn't include -- a display, menu system, electronic viewfinder or any indicators at all, besides a tiny red light that flashes when the SD card is in use.
Jony Ive-designed Leica M emerges ahead of November charity auction
Ever wondered what happened to Sir Jonathan Ive's custom-designed Leica M? Wonder no more, because the one-a-kind camera has been spotted in the November edition of Vanity Fair. A render of the Apple-inspired Leica M shows one of two original pieces designed by Ive in collaboration with influential Australian designer Marc Newson set to be auctioned as part of a (RED) auction at Sotheby's New York in November. The German camera maker reportedly spent more than 2,149 hours and used 55 engineers to manufacture 561 models with nearly 1000 prototype parts, which may not be surprising given Ive's fascination with aluminum. For their part, Ive and Newson spent more than a year and a half curating the 40 auction items for the original collection, including an 18 carat rose gold pair of Apple EarPods and a limited edition 2012 Range Rover. Considering the hefty list prices a regular Leica can fetch for, we might just have to postpone purchasing that super yacht.
Leica teases Mini M camera, scheduled to debut on June 11th
Leica seldom updates its camera lineup, so we're especially intrigued to discover that it's teasing a completely new model, the Mini M. On the camera maker's website, this TBA model is represented by only a black box, tucked in between the full-frame M and the APS-C-loaded X2 (Micro M). There's no other official info aside from its June 11th unveiling date, but Leica Rumors is poised to bet that this is the company's first mirrorless ILC entry. The site's sources claim this model will thankfully not be a re-badged Panasonic Lumix -- Hasselblad and Sony's Lunar (a leather-adorned NEX-7) already did enough damage on that front.
Apple's Jony Ive tapped to design one-off Leica M for charity auction
In case the newly announced Leica M simply isn't astronomically expensive enough -- or charity-minded enough, as it were -- Apple's senior VP of design Jony Ive is working with the German photography company on a one-off version set to be auctioned for charity. Given the M's baseline price of €6,200 (about $8,100), we're guessing the one-of-a-kind version designed by one of the world's most influential designers is going to fetch a pretty penny at auction. Like, "sell off one of your extra homes" kind of money. Leica head Dr. Andreas Kaufmann announced the collaboration last night during a Leica event at Photokina -- an event that Ive himself was reportedly set to appear at -- where he said that the auction will be done with U2 frontman (and longtime friend of Ive) Bono Vox. The latest Leica M debuts in early 2013, though we won't see the fruits of Ive and Leica's collaboration for some time as the camera's design has yet to begin.
New Leica M camera has live-view and 1080p video capture, we go hands-on (video)
Yesterday, Canon stole the show, but today's darling of Photokina appears to be the just-announced Leica M camera. Show attendees flocked to the "new M" demo counter this morning, nudging through the crowd for a chance to check out Leica's first live-view equipped M. This new feature is powered by a new 24-megapixel CMOS sensor, and also enables 1080p video capture at 24 and 25 frames-per-second -- another first for Leica. Live-view and HD video shooting may not seem like banner features for a €6,200 (about $8,100) camera, but considering they've never been offered before, these additions seem to be highlights for hopeful M10 owners. The camera itself is quite beastly, in typical M fashion, and appears to have just as much heft as the M9. There's a new Gorilla Glass-equipped 3-inch, 920k-dot display, that's plenty sharp and quite responsive in live-view mode. Adjacent to the display, you'll find a new LV button, which, as you may have guessed, launches the new realtime display mode. There's also a playback button, along with direct access to ISO, image deletion and menu settings. Up top, there's the Leica trademark shutter speed dial (aperture control is on the lens), letting you select from bulb all the way through 1/4000 second. There's a full-size hot shoe up top with an accessory connector for the EVF 2 attachment, and a second proprietary connector on the bottom to interface with the accessory grip, which adds USB connectivity and built-in GPS. We can't comment on image quality just yet, but there's no question that the "new M" marks Leica's commitment to finally bring otherwise commonplace features to its popular (and pricey) rangefinder line. Look for this latest model to hit stores in early 2013, but you can take a closer look today in our hands-on gallery below and video demo after the break. Update: This post originally stated that the new Leica M had yet to be named, however the company has confirmed that the new camera will simply be named, "The Leica M," without numbers. "The Leica M also marks the beginning of a new era in the Leica product naming policy. In [the] future, Leica M and S model names will omit the number suffix to emphasize the enduring and long-term significance of the respective systems."
Leica launching new Leica M in early 2013, stripped-down M-E available this month
Do you need a stylish, undoubtedly expensive German camera early in 2013? Perhaps right now? Leica's got you covered on both fronts, announcing today that its Leica M line is finally getting an official followup to the venerable M9 rangefinder in "early 2013." The new M is outfitted with the company's first 24-megapixel (full-frame, naturally) Leica Max CMOS image sensor (à la the A99 and D600) -- what Leica calls "a completely new development in sensor technology." That sensor will snag you a sensitivity range of IS0 200 to 6,400 (expandable to 100). Even more exciting, this latest M can mount Leica's legacy R glass (!) with a new adapter (available separately) and it can also shoot video in 1080p HD with 24 / 25p frame rate. While it retains the classic M-series styling, rear now features a 3-inch 920k-dot display, protected behind a layer of Gorilla glass. Leica's also making special note to highlight that the new M features live view functionality on the embedded screen and with an optional EVF. The M-E model (which appears to be a refresh of sorts on the M9) comes paired with a slightly less-potent 18-megapixel full-frame CCD sensor. Beyond that, it doesn't appear to pack any video functionality and features a much smaller 2.5-inch 230k-dot display. Neither model comes with any additional numbers in their titles title, however -- that's a conscious decision on Leica's part to rework its naming policy. "In [the] future, Leica M and S model names will omit the number suffix to emphasize the enduring and long-term significance of the respective systems," the announcement says. We're calling it "The iPad 3 approach." The cameras were revealed along with a slew of new products that Leica's showing during Germany's Photokina convention, including a range of new accessories (the Leica R-Adapter M, the Leica EVF2 electronic viewfinder, the multifunctional handgrip-M with optional finger loops, and the Leica Microphone adapter set). Although there's no word on pricing for the new M, we'd expect it to sell for somewhere between a cool 7 to 10K given the $5,450 price of the M-E and the approximately $7,000 sticker tag on the M9 -- hey, at least both snag you the prestige of the red dot and a pro-bono copy of Adobe Lightroom. The M-E will be be available from Leica dealers before the month's out, while the M will ship out early next year -- both in your choice of black or black / silver. In the meantime, hit up the source link below for the full tech specs on both shooters. Joe Pollicino contributed to this post.
Leica Monochrom test turns up the ISO, doesn't bring the noise
In the case of "why would you pay $8k for a black and white camera," exhibit 'A' would surely be the lack of a color filter array corrupting the image. Without one, the Leica Monochrom -- with a similar CCD to its M9 stablemate -- should have less noise. Tests comparing the two cameras on Red Dot Forum confirm it, with the Monochrom cleaner in glorious black & white at all ISO's up to the M9's maximum of 2500. Past that, a touch of NR gave the Monochrom a pleasing film-grain look to our eyes at ISO 5000, but at ISO 10,000 images started to sparkle and approach the "barely usable" range. Still, combined with the increased sharpness and resolution, very well-heeled purists might be tempted.
Leica M Monochrom captures exclusively in black and white, costs far more than your color-abled shooter
Wildly colorful photos got you down? There's an 18-megapixel full-frame sensor for that. The Leica M Monochom may seem an unlikely proposition, with its monochrome-only sensor and $8,000 price tag (not to mention the added financial burden that comes along with investing in a Leica M-mount), but the camera offers some unique benefits that, for some, may justify the cost. Because the sensor is capable of outputting one pixel of data for each pixel captured -- there's no hint of color mucking about -- the resulting images are incredibly sharp. There are low-light benefits as well, with the Monochrom offering a top ISO setting of 10,000, compared to 2500 with the aging M9. Other features include a 2.5-inch 230k-dot color LCD, a rangefinder-type optical viewfinder and a 14-bit uncompressed RAW mode that yields 36MB DNGs. The camera itself offers an appearance consistent with other Leica snappers, and includes a magnesium alloy construction with hints of brass and chrome. Naturally, there's no video features to speak of, so no 1080p black-and-white shoots for you. We do have pricing and availability, however, though we don't exactly have the funds to match. The body-only M Monochrom is expected to retail for $7,970 when it hits stores (beginning with Leica's Washington DC showroom) in July. A new Leica APO-Summicron-M 50 mm f/2 ASPH prime lens will be available around the same time, for the modest sum of $7,195. There's a full PR just past the break. Update: DPReview has posted a gallery of sample images. Don't be so quick to dismiss this camera -- plenty of deep-pocketed photographers have likely been waiting for something just like it. Hit up the source link after the break for the shots.
Ricoh GXR Leica M-mount module gets a September ship date, lets you swap lenses with one sensor
Sure, you've seen cameras with interchangeable lenses -- you might even own one or two -- but a cam that lets you swap out the sensor with the lens? Now that's pretty unique. Ricoh's GXR has been around since 2009 and does exactly that, with four lens / sensor combos, including two zooms and a pair of fixed lenses. Now, the company has confirmed that its new Leica M-mount module will ship on September 9th, letting you use your existing Leica lenses with the GXR. The module includes a 12.3 megapixel APS-C sensor and has a 27.8mm Leica M bayonet mount, with support for RAW image capture and 720p video. It also has an "open" price, which means it's still anyone's guess as to how much you'll be shelling over. But if you own a collection of Leica glass and are interested in experimenting with such a unique sensor-swapping camera system, you're probably somewhat open to open pricing.
Ricoh GXR will swap out lenses with Leica M mount, make Micro Four Thirds mildly jealous
Ricoh's sensor-swapping GXR camera is getting more interchangeable than ever before -- this fall, the company plans to introduce a APS-C sized 12.9 megapixel CMOS module that lets you pop out lenses too. Rather than building a new set of macros and zooms, though, the new unit will serve as an adapter for the vast hoard of Leica M glass you've been stockpiling for a rainy day, and sport a new focal plane shutter too. No word on price, but considering Leica M adapters for Micro Four Thirds can be had for a reasonable $200 and an APS-C GXR package runs about $700 on the street, you can probably do the math.
