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Cross-posted LForum: If Leica's MF System kills "R", do you keep DMR-R8/R9

dhsimmonds

New member
Re: Cross-posted LForum: If Leica's MF System kills "R", do you keep DMR-R8/R9

The DMR produces wonderful files with good R glass and should continue to do so for some time. However as is the way of things sooner or later it will fail and need replacement parts and repair. Leica have a very good track record of supporting their obsolete models.........at a more than hefty cost though!

In the case of the DMR, Leica would need Imacon for spares etc and there is the rub. European law requires manufacturer's to supply spares for a period of seven years from date of original manufacture, and there is no law to control prices of those spares. After that date they are off the hook.

Where will we go then for spares and service?

Almost certainly Leica will announce the end of the R line in favour of a new MF reflex camera using non R glass, possibly Leica modified Bronica lenses. MF cameras do not come cheap and you can imagine what the price of a Leica medium format might be.
 

LJL

New member
Re: Cross-posted LForum: If Leica's MF System kills "R", do you keep DMR-R8/R9

Dave,
That is most likely the case with respect to the DMR. However, the R8/9 could remain as a film camera, allowing folks to continue using the R glass. It is the DMR portion of the kit that will become the obsolete part soon enough. The logical path forward for Leica would be to introduce a new body of some sort, be that R10 to stay with existing R lens line, or as is thought, go to a completely new format, new sensor for digital, new lens mount, etc......essentially a completely new camera.

So folks with the DMR are the ones that will face lack of support and repair of the Imacon part of the DMR soon. The R8/9 part of their kit will still be serviced by Leica.

LJ
 

Stuart Richardson

Active member
Re: Cross-posted LForum: If Leica's MF System kills "R", do you keep DMR-R8/R9

I wouldn't be too cavalier about writing off the ability to service the DMR -- I am not convinced that the majority of the parts are from Imacon at all. Imacon wrote the firmware and they helped with the design, but the sensor is from Kodak and the majority of the parts themselves are from Leica. Imacon did not assemble the DMR -- Leica did. At least in the conversations I have had with them, they seem pretty dedicated to servicing it for a very long time to come. If you are truly concerned, talk to Maike Harberts, who is the head of the R system at Leica. You can write to her directly and she will most likely respond. She has been very helpful to me in the past.
 

Guy Mancuso

Administrator, Instructor
Re: Cross-posted LForum: If Leica's MF System kills "R", do you keep DMR-R8/R9

Support and repair are a given at Leica. They said they will maintain that system for a long time to come with parts and repair.
 

Nitnaros

Member
Re: Cross-posted LForum: If Leica's MF System kills "R", do you keep DMR-R8/R9

Hm, so Dave says EU law requires manufacturer to provide spare parts for up to 7 years from "date of original manufacture"?

How is the late date exactly defined?

The date when my DMR was manufactured?
The date when the first DMR was manufactured or sold?

Dave - do you know?

If Leica is bound by this regulation, then it would allow to do a "worst case" assessment for how long one will get parts (independently of what marketing says; that can change...).

Although even that might not be a real protection, since they can make repair so prohibitive expensive, that you really don't want to afford it.

Peter
 

dhsimmonds

New member
Re: Cross-posted LForum: If Leica's MF System kills "R", do you keep DMR-R8/R9

Mute point Peter, but I suspect the count down would start from the date of the last unit manuactured......not necessarily sold, as many may have been on dealers' shelves for months or even years, so totally out of the manufacturer's responsibility. Probably another 6 or so years to run?

I am sure that Leica will continue to honour their excellent record for supporting obsolete bodies and accessories including the DMR for as long as possible, even after the 7 years are lapsed. However for something as complex as the DMR, how much will they charge for this service?

Even servicing and repair costs to out of warranty R film cameras if done at Solms are stratosheric! I don't remember having a "passport" with my DMR but I did with the R9...........but they did replace my DMR back under warranty when I hit a problem and replaced a faulty charger on a seperate occasion, both free of charge.......so no compalints but this service won't continue much longer, that's for sure.

It raises a very good point of general interest to digital users.

How long should we expect to keep our pro digital DSLR's? Shutter life apart, what is a reasonable life out of our cameras?

Sould we for instance, treat them like new car purchases and perhaps change them as the warranty runs out........getting the latest technology available, say every two to three years or so?

If so, and Leica terminate the long run of the R system in all it's forms, in favour of a new MF system, the latest technology from Leica would be unreachable in price for many and simply not portable enough for most other digital R users.

It is a difficult call to make just when or if to cut and run to Nikon et al, as some on this forum have already made and acted on this decision. I just love my R glass and 16 bit DMR files but neither do I want to be caught holding a valueless asset, so it is a tough one!
 
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