The new Leica Mini M (with behind the existing X2)
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Sometimes we are very harsh in criticizing Panasonic and Olympus new cameras. Now imagine they would do this: Launch a fixed lens APS-C camera with slow 28-70mm f/3.5-6.4 zoom for 2450€! You would say no company would ever do this….but indeed there is one…Leica! I published specs and images here: http://www.mirrorlessrumors.com/first-image-of-the-leica-m-mini/.
I post this because some websites speculated that this camera could have been made in collaboration with Panasonic. And indeed the Leica Digilux series (here at Amazon) is based on Panasonic camera design and tech. But that new Digilux Mini M camera is a Leica own designed camera…and they did a pretty bad job 🙂
77 Responses
How much money it might cost without Leica brand?
I will be one of the few lucky souls to never understand the Leica hype.
+1
+1
Given Olympus’ financial problems perhaps this is the way they’ll be proceeding in future – hybrid MFT-FT for €3000 anybody?
…but that SLOW zoom will be made of Leica glass…how can you not stop and worship????? 🙂
I’m feeling an overwhelming urge to genuflect just looking at the photo!
😉
Nonsense…on your knees before the false idol!!! LOL!
I understand the hype on the glass, and I understand it on the almost indestructible film bodies. What I don’t understand is paying what people pay for digital bodies with sensor technology doing what it does.
It’s called brand maximisation. I guess the CEO of Leica has to do it, to pay the bills. Not done with a gun to anyones head, just takes advantage of people to whom style & image matters more than substance. Still, I’m sure this camera will take decent images, given the high ISO capabilities of modern sensors. And the lens is not much worse than most kit lenses in terms of aperture.
Even the hype on the glass is irrational. This camera features a zoom, nothing that Leica has a strong track record in. Remember that in the film era, the zooms for the Leica R line were contributed by Minolta. In the digital era, the partnership with Panasonic replaced this relationship. While Leitz and Panasonic are clever enough not to disclose their roles in lens development, it seems that Panansonic’s role is dominant.
I meant leica glass in general, not the glass on this specific camera.
+1
Not interested. For that kind of money one could buy an E-P5 with 12-35mm F2.8 lens, which is overall a better combo, and have a bit left for some other zoom or 20mm + 45mm primes.
hallo miroslav
ja das sehe ich genau so, oder eine GX2 mit f 2,8 12-35mm. (preislich unter der X2)
bin mal wirklich gespannt was a) tatsächlich aus dem hut gezaubert wird, b) auf die marktresonanz und c) wie olympus und panasonic mit EP5 bzw. GX2 ankommen. (für olympus sieht es schon mal gut aus und panasonic setzt möglicherweise noch eins drauf.)
kmhb
Oh yeah Leica, X2 is an epic fail, so why don’t make one even bigger?
FYI, Leica X series is one of the first camera maker that made this type of camera: APSC sensor, fix lens and small size. Now, almost every camera company has this type of camera (Nikon, Ricoh?) and another brand who mocks Leica but made money with this kind of product 😀
Nonsense, the Sigma DP1 predated the X1 and the Ricoh GR is just the latest in a long line. It happens to have an APS-C sensor now because it’s possible to do it at a price normal people are willing to pay for.
The very definition of style over substance. You could get an RX1 with a nicer lens and better sensor, or a GH3/OMD with a selection of decent lenses, for around the same price as this. Thing is, it’s not like Fuji and Olympus aren’t doing the retro, ‘luxury look and feel’ thing for cheaper. I guess it’s not as bad as the Hasselblad Lunar thing…
Speaking of the RX1, why not a FF instead of this? And I cannot understand the appeal of the size of the camera with a fixed zoom, quite apart from its speed. Marketing is not an exact science, us mortals don’t always get it. Wait a minutes, we are also customers.
its fake. don’t believe it.
believe me, it’s real 😉
Weird thing is: the writing is 18-46mm (below the leica logo at lens) but the barrel of the lens it writes 70mm. This made me think the photo is fake.
They’re giving the full frame equivalent FOV. A lot of cameras do that.
hasselblad lunar II 😉
The zoom range makes no sense for APS-C or is it FF equiv.?
Come on. You know the answer. It’s like putting the zoom on there in microns it wouldn’t make any sense, you want something that you recognize don’t you.
ps. the true focal length is on the front.
but they look nice …I mean of course not specs …but the visualy looks pretty
Agree. I’m not a target audience for Leica, will never buy one, but I like the design very much.
At least it is good to see that Leica has been so successful these last few years as to be able to branch out from being just a camera company and has added entertainment to their repetoire..perhaps they are tryin to be like Sony…..because this is the funniest thing I have seen in quite some time. 70mm (equiv.) @f/6.4 at the long end of a (fixed????) zoom lens…..brilliant! (well not…). 🙂
Just doesn’t make sense. By using the “M” name, you would think Leica would produce a smaller version of a true rangefinder camera by reducing the sensor size, thus justifying the use of the name “Mini”. Instead, they are going to call their new camera, with a fixed non-rangefinder focusing system, an “M” camera? I just don’t get why they want to confuse consumers and diminish their “M” branding with a product completely unlike their flagship. Why not just use a different nomenclature? If the rumor is true, I think the naming of this camera is an even bigger fail than the product itself!
+1
all their new models seem to have M as the name, and they’ve dropped the number sequence, so it’s all kind of confusing.
By producing a camera so far out of step with the times and placing a wildly high price tag on it, Leica has again guaranteed exclusivity to those who purchase one. Interesting marketing philosophy; what’s’ next, a brick with a lens on it for $5000? Or maybe just sell stick-on Leica logos for $1000?
They could always introduce their own sneaker line.
Ouch! Way too overpriced.
Admin. Fess up!!…you did not publish this info because Leica has been assoc. with Panasonic in the past..
The actual reason you published this info on an MFT blog is because you think it is so humorous! 🙂
C’mon, it’s a fake !
So is the moon.
And during this time Panasonic have done … Nothing. All lines just receive minor tech upgrade (when their not doing a step back). Gh, GF/X and LX line are dying, even Leica is more exiting. RX1/100, X100/x pro/xe1, NEX 7 Hello ?
Hopefully Olympus is here, right here to save m43 ! http://m.yahoo.com/w/legobpengine/finance/news/ten-brands-that-will-disappear-in-2014-181419498.html
(by the way i sometimes don’t understand the probleme with digital camera size. Minilux zoom and CM zoom where half the size, with kinda similar slow zoom, but fullframe with (soso) ovf)
Hey, wheres the whiners bout the lack of evf? Is it just oly that is worthless crap without evf?
I complain about lack of EVF in cameras that actually interest me, this one has absolutely no appeal to me, so why complain about something I’m not interested in? I imagine the same holds true for most people.
I think there are bigger problems for this one no ? Yes, it’s possible, that’s exactly what admin is trying to say with this post. 🙂
Admin, are you 100% sure this is real? For me it is unbeliavable that they put such a soft fixed lens, it does not make any sense! I mean, they have the technology and the know-how to include a 28-70 f2,0-f2,4 like with the old Digilux 2.
Anyway I looked at some blogs of Leica enthusiasts like Steve Huff Photo and I spent a great time reading some of the reactions of despair! It will be funny to read in the next weeks the first reviews of people justifying the cost of such a camera!
100% sure.
Digilux 2 had a small compact camera sensor (real focal length = 7-22.5mm), this camera has a large APS-C sensor. A 2-2.4 zoom lens on an APS-C sensor would be huge and weight like 2+ pounds, the lens alone. See: Zuiko 14-35mm/2, and that only covers a 4/3rds sensor.
While I do think this camera would have been much better suited with a constant F4 zoom, and the current super slow F6.4 is laughable, a 2-2.8-ish zoom on a camera this size is totally unrealistic due to basic size/weight concerns(ie: physics). Though at least then the price would make a bit more sense, lol.
I don’t understand why people keep saying it has a fixed lens when the image clearly shows a second camera in the back with a pancake lens attached. Am I missing something here?
NOT the same camera in the back. Look at the flash mount.
That in the background is model X2. A nice camera, but way too expensive for what it offers. (Yup, I tried it)
Whoops, it isn’t the same camera. Sorry!
Two different camera bodies there in the graphic.
Let’s wait to see a review of this camera. It’s unfair to criticize it without any further information. It’s easy to bash a camera based on specifications only.
What if the lens is superbly sharp, beating all standard zooms? What if the high iso is great? What if the camera is a joy to use? Let’s be sensible please.
We know the high iso, will just be the X2 sensor, and it better be sharp wide open because why wouldn’t it be, but that doesn’t justify its usefulness, or lack thereof.
This will be shown to be a fake, very soon. Leica will reveal what they are actually offering on 11th June.
I am almost convinced that it is an interchangeable lens camera and Leica’ entry to true mirrorless (no RF) arena.
Only because the internets made you believe that M Mini is actually the name.
As I wrote on LeicaRumors, in my opinion this is just smoke to add hype & rumors.
And it seems it’s working.
The real thing will be unveiled on 11th June. If this silly newbe camera has to be confermed, the good news to me is that I can keep saving money without drooling.
trust me. it’s the real thing!
LOL! Then I can only face-palm thinking about the brainstorming and development of such a “jewel”.
the leica cl for the new century
That’s unfair to the Leica CL, which in fact was a very capable camera. So capable that it sold considerably better than all its contemporary cousins from the Leica M line together. Probably the reason for later excluding it from the Leica family…
Well, it’s relatively cheaper, and its big brother, the M5, has design change that’s accepted by fans of the time with the joy of the internet when Facebook/Flickr revealed their new layout.
i guess the real replacement for Digital CL was EP3 – EP5 with 17mm f/1.8 or 2.8
The CL came with a 40mm lens. The Panasonic 20mm would make a bit more of a match.
This camera is Leica’s warning to their clientele. The message goes: “if you think you can have a small APS-C camera with a small, fast zoom lens then think again. Those tiny little zooms come with the price of manufacturers messing with your photographs in the camera processor. We are the only ones you can trust to leave your photos alone. We don’t expect you to actually buy this new camera, but beware of Sony and Fuji. By the way, we have this new M type 240 for you. Would you be interested in having a look?”
Sneye, that’s why Leica gives you Lightroom “for free” along with its cameras!
This is nonsense. One would need usable ISO 6400 to be able to actualy use this camera in relative absence of light. For that money, one could buy a real camera, not a posh toy.
Well you slap on the red logo and bang! automatically a piece of junk can sell for thousands. My Toyota getting old. Need to sell it/ Maybe I stick a Lexus logo and sell for thousands more! Money for nothing and your clicks for free!
So, at the long end, the zoom is already near diffraction limit and a soft background for portraits is out of the question. Leica’s AF speed is about six year old tech and trying to focus in dim light with old tech, on a slow lens is, well, shitty to say the least. I find it hard to believe that even Leica people are stupid enough to buy this.
I thought this was supposed to be a m4/3 rumors site? If only Leica had moved the flash over around the hotshoe and placed an EVF where the flash presently is? Strange this new model is not with lens mount so other Leica lenses could be used?
+1
Oh, Leica make choices so hard! I mean, it’s either buy 4 Sony RX100s with it’s 20 Mp, f1.8-4.9 28-100mm Zeiss lens or buy a single mini m with 16.1 Mp and less capable zoom.
Such a hard decision…4 or 1, 4 or 1…..what should I do?
It will be such a laugh to see this get compared to it’s competitors and be found to be inferior, like that smile inducing comparison of the OM-D with the “slightly” more expensive Leica Monochrome. Monochrome was so pwned. 🙂
This must be a fake. Leica usually deliver great products at expensive prices. This is a poor product at an expensive price.
I won’t believe this rumour until Leica itself confirms it through the product announcement.
This thing is the best camera in the whole wide world, except maybe only second to the new Leica M. I will make space in my shrine to HBC, and decorate it with unopened, mint condition Leica camera boxes (with genuine Leica foam).
I’ve heard that Leica is making special edition SD cards–supposedly made by little German elves in the Black Forest, who hand solder all the connections with pixie dust. There’s a reason why all my Leica photos are special!
Would people actually buy this?
I can see the appeal of a full frame rangefinder, especially since they have no competition in that field. If you really want one, you have no other brand to turn to.
But this… this just seems like an expensive slap in the face. Leica’s gotta be smarter than that, they made photography what it is today with their film cameras. What are they doing?
The lens is about the same as cheap kit in any APS-C camera, DSLR or mirrorless – and most people use those almost exclusively.