I guess it is getting out there that there will soon be a line of Leica (Leitz) Branded Smart Phones. When you go to a Leica Flagship Store soon they will be offering the following products. Each with dedicated spaces and displays.
Traditional Store Lines:
New Cameras.
New Lenses.
Used cameras.
Used Lenses.
Photo Accessories.
Sport Optics (binoculars and scopes)
Books.
Gallery Prints.
Leica Akademie
New Lines recently added or coming soon:
Small Leather Goods
Leica Cinema (screens and projectors)
Leica Cinema (Lenses)
Watches
Phones (expected to be heavily featured I am told)
Phone Accessories
Eye Wear.
Rumored:
Leica Medium Format and all that goes with supporting that.
Do you think that this will make for an interesting product mix, that may make a visit to a Leica Store an even better experience. Or, do you have reservations that all of this product expansion will take Leica's eye off the core camera side of the company?
1bwana1 wrote:
I guess it is getting out there that there will soon be a line of Leica (Leitz) Branded Smart Phones. When you go to a Leica Flagship Store soon they will be offering the following products. Each with dedicated spaces and displays.
Traditional Store Lines:
New Cameras.
New Lenses.
Used cameras.
Used Lenses.
Photo Accessories.
Books.
Gallery Prints.
Leica Akademie
New Lines recently added or coming soon:
Small Leather Goods
Leica Cinema (screens and projectors)
Leica Cinema (Lenses)
Watches
Phones (expected to be heavily featured I am told)
Phone Accessories
Rumored:
Leica Medium Format and all that goes with supporting that.
Do you think that this will make for an interesting product mix, that may make a visit to a Leica Store an even better experience. Or, do you have reservations that all of this product expansion will take Leica's eye off the core camera side of the company?
Personally, I am currently optimistic on it....Show more →
You missed out binoculars and spotting scopes.
People always comment how clear my 30 year old 8x20 Trinovids look. I keep telling myself to try the 10x32 Ultravid HDs - they should be amazing.
I personally have a hard time trusting companies that go beyond their core expertise by using their brand name to expand their offerings. It’s clear these are outsourced products with a Leica brand stuck on it. So, Leica cameras? Sure. Leica leather goods or phones? Very doubtful.
johnvanr wrote:
I personally have a hard time trusting companies that go beyond their core expertise ...
... especially when their quality control in that area is lacking.
I would prefer if they upped their quality control and focused on photography. A refresh of their medium format offering could be cool if it were significantly different from Hasselblad/Fuji/Phase One.
FrozenInTime wrote:
You missed out binoculars and spotting scopes.
People always comment how clear my 30 year old 8x20 Trinovids look. I keep telling myself to try the 10x32 Ultravid HDs - they should be amazing.
LBJ2 wrote:
What do you mean by mid price point? E.g., priced between SL3 and SL3-S or something else?
Lower than either of the current SL cameras. I am thinking mis 4K area. It will have a 44mpx sensor. Hopefully, a bit more than a rebadge of the Lumix. Maybe a custom housing, Leica color science, and menus.
SlowDriver wrote:
If it is a rebadged S1R II with a 44MP sensor probably somewhere between the SL3 and SL3-S I am guessing.
So far seems to remain a vague rumor at this point, but IMO still an interesting rumor. My hopes are this could be the high performance camera the SL system currently lacks IMO. But if turns out not more than the S1R II specs in an SL3 body, then perhaps it's just that--a lower price approach to draw more new customers into the SL system...nothing more than speculation on my part of course.
I think all the logo items are simply normal brand promotion stuff that all companies do. No real staff training required for this kind of stuff. They require no focus or distraction from core business lines.
This is not the case with things like phones, watches, eyewear. Intensive training with these lines.
LBJ2 wrote:
So far seems to remain a vague rumor at this point, but IMO still an interesting rumor. My hopes are this could be the high performance camera the SL system currently lacks IMO. But if turns out not more than the S1R II specs in an SL3 body, then perhaps it's just that--a lower price approach to draw more new customers into the SL system...nothing more than speculation on my part of course.
I have two S1R2’s. One converted to full spectrum and one stock. They are much more functional than my M11 or SL. Image quality is great, and the IBIS is the best I’ve ever seen in any system. The video capabilities, including the anamorphic support are much more advanced than any Leica offerings. I hope they port the camera to Leica unchanged, save a styling refresh. It will be a winner.
No further comment from my side on all the Leica Camera luxury goodies in addition to their core camera/lens business (hey, I still didn't even get one roll of the Leica Monopan 50 film - backordered since August 2025!).
Regarding phones, I will stick to iPhone. No need to have the Leica name on my phone.
Biggest step up Leica did already in my eyes with the introduction of the M EV-1 camera. Much too pricey for my taste and my willingness to spend money for, but I applaud they moved into this new direction.
New Leica medium format rumor? Reminds me on the S-series. Didn't work out too well regarding business success. IMO Leica should stick to small, compact cameras and lenses for which they became so known for with the M- and Q-series. Make it bigger and interest drops due a variety of reasons (also with the SL series). IMO Leica should bring the M-E series back as they made it for the M9 and M 240 series. It was a more affordable entry way into the M system without sacrificing camera performance. This is what I see missing in Leica - only looking currently at the top end of the market and neglecting the entry level (M-E series, Summarit lenses etc).
The Xiaomi/Leica phones interest me as I am an Android user and becoming disillusioned by Samsung's reluctance to innovate (or even add a larger battery than the same one used the past 5 or so Ultras). If these will be available in Leica stores in the US that will be a welcome addition as typically buyers have to purchase the global models from overseas. There have been collaborations with Xiaomi and Sharp for "Leica" phones for a while now but it feels like they are starting to take more of a real interest as other Chinese phone OEMs build their collaborations with Zeiss and Hasselblad. Most would assume but it should be said that Leica is not making the actual phones, they are providing/informing the optics and color science/modes for said phones.
