John wrote: I think you've completely overlooked the enormous benefit of using a digital back with a film SLR. That is, when the digital technology improves, you can buy a better back without having to change your SLR.
REPLY: What enormous benefit? It seems to be at an enourmous cost and getting old and outdated camera bodies in the "bargain". The benefit is that you can use film and digital with the same body. I'm not sure this is a real benefit as it leaves you without a back-up body at a higher cost. Of course you can buy better back without changing the body but why not buy a better body as well? It is cheaper! So far all digital back solution is more expensive than DSLR alone so basically by upgrading a DSLR you get the new improved body for free. No..you actually get paid for it! And this Leica really proves it. Nobody is going to convince me that a 10mp DSLR cost even close to $4500 in 2 years time. And who's then going to choose this Leica body being not very desireable in the first place something its abyssmal sales record proves? Digital backs for medium format have reportedly been a failure; they sell extremely slowly and most rather buy an EOS 1DS which is much cheaper. JOHN: The R8/R9 were clearly developed with this in mind. In my view, this demonstrates excellent foresight from a company that is so often criticised for lacking innovation and living in the past. In this example, Leica just might be the future. No doubt this news will provide great encouragement to users and prospective buyers of Leica film(/digital!) SLRs. REPLY: I believe the future is digital. Not film. This Leicas only function is to convince potential customers to buy into the dying R system because theres a digital future for it. If this was something advanced users really wanted, Nikon and Canon would have offered it long time ago. Perhaps they will in the future? I wouldn't bet on it simply because the vast majority buying into digital do it to avoid using film, so getting an old manual focus film slr in the bargain and paying more than twice as much for it than a DSLR doesn't seem like such a good idea anymore as most already own perfectly well working film slr's, perhaps more desirable than this Leica, and those who don't, and want a DSLR, are probably not going to have any interest in film. But to each his own I guess. It is just my opinion and I'm not at all convinced that the digital back solution will hit on. It will always have a price disadvantage and in the fast moving digital world being stucked with the same camera technology isn't going to be seen as an advantage either. P�l
