Surprised Leica is establishing such a close partnership with Xiaomi, or any phone manufacturer to the extent of putting the revered APO monicker on a lens in a phone, running Android where previously the Lux Grip doesn’t work with and now with embedding Leica looks native in the phone called Leitzphone. Definitely a more elevated partnership compared to previous LG phones.
From numerous YouTube reviews, seems the global edition which can run google apps is only sold in UK/EU and presumably Asia as China has its own non-global version.
With the incoming ceo, will cameras and phones be as watches like jewelry?
RAG_landscapes wrote:
Surprised Leica is establishing such a close partnership with Xiaomi, or any phone manufacturer to the extent of putting the revered APO monicker on a lens in a phone, running Android where the Fotos app doesn’t even work with which necessitated embedding Leica looks native in the phone called Leitzphone. Definitely a more elevated partnership compared to previous LG phones.
From numerous YouTube reviews, seems the global edition which can run google apps is only sold in UK/EU and presumably Asia as China has its own non-global version.
With the incoming ceo, will cameras and phones be like jewelry?
I'm not sure what you mean. The Leica Fotos App works perfectly on my Samsung Galaxy 22S Android phone. Very fast, stable, and feature rich, connected to any of my Leica digital cameras, M11, SL3, D-Lux8, Sofort2. I know this is also true with the Q cameras.
I don't shoot jpeg so don't know/care about Leica Looks but I beleive they also work in compatible cameras.
The very different LUX App for simulating Leica lenses is not actually a Leica built product, but was recently aquired by Leica. Is that is the App you are talking about? It will probably get ported eventually if it proves to be popular.
I’m just surprised they have a mobile strategy, but that may be my own bias.
An app promising Leica colors? I think it’s an expensive gimmick that’s not going to do much for the bottom line, but goes against some of the reasoning why Leica gear is so special and expensive.
A branded mobile phone with a company that was banned in the US and now avoids that market? Maybe there’s a market there in countries I don’t know, but again it seems like a side show and undercuts the overall premise of the brand. If you can deliver APO lenses in a mobile phone, if that phone is so good that it carries the Leica brand, what’s the value proposition of the real gear?
They seem to be heavily focusing on the consumer market, tapping into new audiences, but not actually producing more of their own products. Probably because they’re too small to roll out a new line of interchangeable-lens Q cameras and lenses, which would really add something to the core product offerings.
While I regret Zeiss isn’t that active in our market, I think they’re smart to focus on their core lens skill set and on products in business markets with less name recognition but much higher margins.
I think they probably see the insane growth of ILCs in China as well as the partnerships that Zeiss and Hasselblad have with Chinese phone OEMs and view it as a "buy-in" of sorts for potential customers to get familiar with their branding/name and influence future purchases as well as build prestige and recognition when it comes to camera quality.
The problem is it feels half-hearted when it comes to their big push for a "global" launch that leaves many customers outside of Europe having to import the global version of the phone. The increased price of the global 'Leitzphone' vs the Chinese 'Xiaomi 17 Ultra Leica Edition' combined with tariffs/duties makes the phone dead in the water for all but the most loyal of Leica Fanatics.
I really wanted the phone; I was looking to replace my Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra and wanted to break away from Samsung while staying with Android. The Xiaomi/Leitzphone ticked a lot of the boxes for me and I was ready to buy on launch day of the global release until I saw pricing + availability. The value proposition just wasn't worth it when Verizon offered $1300 for my old phone as a trade in making the S26 Ultra 1TB a $500 upgrade vs spending ~$2300 on a Leitzphone. That coupled with uncertainty over whether or not the bands are 100% compatible without getting stuck with 4G speeds in a lot of areas.
I understand these are new markets for Xiaomi but if there is a strategic partnership with Leica, both Leica and Xiaomi should be focused on making the phones available in all their boutiques and not such limited regions.
johnvanr wrote:
I’m just surprised they have a mobile strategy, but that may be my own bias.
An app promising Leica colors? I think it’s an expensive gimmick that’s not going to do much for the bottom line, but goes against some of the reasoning why Leica gear is so special and expensive.
A branded mobile phone with a company that was banned in the US and now avoids that market? Maybe there’s a market there in countries I don’t know, but again it seems like a side show and undercuts the overall premise of the brand. If you can deliver APO lenses in a mobile phone, if that phone is so good that it carries the Leica brand, what’s the value proposition of the real gear?
They seem to be heavily focusing on the consumer market, tapping into new audiences, but not actually producing more of their own products. Probably because they’re too small to roll out a new line of interchangeable-lens Q cameras and lenses, which would really add something to the core product offerings.
While I regret Zeiss isn’t that active in our market, I think they’re smart to focus on their core lens skill set and on products in business markets with less name recognition but much higher margins....Show more →
I think Leica would answer those comments only by pointing to record sales and record profits. Clearly they understand their business, their market position, their product line, their future plan, and are executing well.
In a recent conversation I had with Dr Kaufmann he told me that Leica will aggressively be adding company owned flagship stores in many markets. Leica is very focused on direct customer engagement and experiences. We should try and take advantage of that.
1bwana1 wrote:
I think Leica would answer those comments only by pointing to record sales and record profits. Clearly they understand their business, their market position, their product line, their future plan, and are executing well.
In a recent conversation I had with Dr Kaufmann he told me that Leica will aggressively be adding company owned flagship stores in many markets. Leica is very focused on direct customer engagement and experiences. We should try and take advantage of that.
Well, current performance is not a measure of future success. We’ll see how it goes.
I’m amazed, btw, how you apparently got in the executive door at Leica and - if I’m correct - Ferrari. Impressive.
johnvanr wrote:
Well, current performance is not a measure of future success. We’ll see how it goes.
I’m amazed, btw, how you apparently got in the executive door at Leica and - if I’m correct - Ferrari. Impressive.
Well Ferrari is only because of my previous involvement in GT racing. My time with the Leica people was because we attended the same event. No special access.
