Leica, the iconic camera maker, recently released the new Leica M10 — the first new M series camera to be released in four years. And predictably it created a lot of excitement, especially among the Leica fans. Some of my friends who have Fuji X cameras were intrigued by the prospect of this new camera. It doesn’t look very different than other Leicas — except it has a dedicated ISO dial, which actually looks great and is perfectly positioned. 

When compared to M240, the previous generation Lecia, the M10 is little thinner (equal to M7), lacks video recording, has a new sensor and has a brighter viewfinder. It weighs less than M240 as well. The new M10 has WiFi, which allows you to download JPEGs and DNG files to your iOS devices. Lecia has cleaned up the buttons and has become more minimal, economical, and efficient with the menu and the functions.

Given the hype, I couldn’t help myself and ended up at the local Leica store, which received a few demo units. The gorgeous screen, the bright viewfinder and the speed of the camera were impressive. However, I couldn’t really tell the difference in the thickness between M240 and M10, just like I couldn’t tell the difference in the weight of the two models. I use a Leica M-Monochrom (240-P) as my go to camera — and it was hard for my hands to feel different. (Tip: Do not trust those YouTube reviewers as they tend to exaggerate on claims. )

That said it is very very fast. And it is very good in lowlight conditions, which means it has ability to take clean photos even at very high ISO. My god — the photo quality is amazing and a major step up, even from the Leica SL and its amazing sensor and photo processing unit. I’m thinking about getting one…. I just need to be talked out of it!