Leica APO-Summicron-M 50mm f/2.0 ASPH lens shipping this month?

By LR admin | Published: January 8, 2013

Leica-APO-Summicron-M-50mm-f2.0-ASPH-lens

After the new APO-Summicron-M 50mm f/2.0 ASPH lens was delayed, Leica did not specify a new release date, but Amazon currently lists the lens as "usually ships within 2 to 4 weeks".

Related posts:

  1. Leica APO-Summicron-M 50mm f/2 ASPH lens now shipping in the USA
  2. Leica APO-Summicron-M 50mm f/2.0 ASPH lens delayed
  3. Corrected Leica APO Summicron 50mm f/2.0 ASPH lens starting to ship again
  4. Check out this one of a kind red Leica APO Summicron 50mm f/2.0 ASPH lens
  5. Leica APO-Summicron-M 50mm f/2 ASPH lens now in stcok

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  • KC

    This lens is totally overpriced. It should cost 5000 $ maximum.

  • Bryan Campbell

    It will yeild some pretty amazing results, but it’s over priced even for Leica.

  • CHD

    $7k for an f2 lens???? I just don’t get it. Besides, my v4 50mm Summicron is basically almost perfect…..not sure how this could be $5000 better.

    • “$7k for an f2 lens???? I just don’t get it. ”

      Similar could be said about the f/4 normal lens that sells for $4650 but the difference is it delivers what it promises. $7K is expensive but the Leica still would have been worth it if was just as good as a 200/2, 300 2.8 or a 400 2.8… and it’s not.

  • L-Freak

    Leica is pushing the limits with this lens – both in terms of performance and in terms of price. There won’t be many who really need the additional optical improvements over the alreardy excellent “old” Summicron or Summilux. This lens will be the ultimate 50mm reference lens for a long time to come. Some enthusiasts will want to own it for sure. I hesitate to call it overpriced. An item is overpriced if it’s rejected by the market like e.g. the infamous Sigma SD-1 and doesn’t sell in the expected volume at the given price. For the APO Summicron I wouldn’t be surprised to see it on backorder for quite a while but let’s wait and see.

    • It’s not “overpriced” for the stupid but it is for the people who know a thing or two. I think Leica will produce this in small enough quantities just to keep the prices up.

      I thought this lens would be really something but it doesn’t seem to be all that. Sure, it has good glass and we all know about diminishing returns, etc. but this must be the best example of this effect in the history of cameras. Just see how compares to the Zeiss ZM 50/2 and try to figure out where the extra $6336 went:

      http://blog.mingthein.com/2012/05/25/leica-50-2-apo-asph/

      • David

        Ming also indicated that “It is clear that this lens is capable of resolving beyond the definition of the M9 and MM sensors.” So I’d be curious as to a comparison on the new M. I wouldn’t expect the results to be drastically different and agree the price is too high, but I think there is still a data point out there we don’t have before we can make a conclusion. I have also heard that Leica continues to have cost problems producing this lens, for some reason, so it be a very limited production lens like the 35mm AA (which now sells for $15,000 on average). Another very overpriced lens is the 50mm f1.2 ASPH, which I don’t feel is optically superior to the 50mm f/0.95 but can sell for $20,000 . . .

        • David

          Sorry, typo: “it may be a very limited production lens”

          • david

            On the CA issue, I don’t know whether I agree it is only a lens issue; I do not believe CA is lens independent when it comes to digital cameras, I think it is a combination of the lens and the camera. In a similar but not identical comparison, the 85mm AF-S f/1.4G Nikon behaves differently on a D3x and a D800/E. On the D3x, there is no CA of any kind. But on the D800/E, there is definitely lateral CA under certain circumstances. Ming found this to be true as well. At first I thought it was a critical focus issue, but at the end I have concluded it is a lens + sensor issue. Shooting at lower resolution on the D800/E doesn’t solve it either so odds are it’s not a pixel density issue either. For similar reasons, certain Leica lens work great on the film M bodies, but not so good on the digital bodies.

          • http://www.flickr.com/photos/genotypewriter/6147351879/

            The sort of digital-induced fringing is different from the sort of thing Ming is talking about. If you see CA in the out of focus areas, it has nothing to do with digital vs. film.

        • “So I’d be curious as to a comparison on the new M”

          Ming also reports the lens shows CA “in the bokeh” (spherochromatism). That’s a problem with the optics and it’s not going to go away with a different sensor. For me the number one concern is CA… there are many lenses that are sharp, but maybe less than a handful that has great control over CA. As a lens that claims to be APO, I was expecting things to be better with the 50 AA.

          “Another very overpriced lens is the 50mm f1.2 ASPH”

          That’s just because of the rarity… not because it’s any good. Same goes for those aquarium ornament-grade Leicas that people pay millions for 🙂

      • Andy

        That’s an extremely arrogant comment for someone who’s never even laid a hand on one before.
        Ming’s comparison looks pretty positive to me.

        • And you’re overly optimisitic… just like someone who doesn’t have a clue about this stuff 😉

  • IH

    I was told by my dealer today to expect the APO-Summicron-M 50mm f/2.0 ASPH lens in July, 2013, and no sooner.

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