Dealers report that demand for the new Leica Q2 is running high and order lists are lengthening. So far supplies have trickled through in three and fours and one dealer told me that it is likely to be some time before Leica is able to meet demand, as was the case with the
Big surp rise
The Q, when it was launched in 2015, turned out to be a big surprise, even for Leica. So high was the demand that even a year after the launch it was impossible to just walk in and buy one. It now looks like the Q2 will repeat this success story.
Wide, wide, wide at 28mm, but the Q2 is superb at 35mm and good at both 50mm and 75mm (below)
35mm 
50mm 
75mm
Healthy expansion
One dealer told me that orders are split roughly 50:50 between upgrades and new buyers. This indicates a healthy expansion in interest in this fixed-lens camera. The number of upgrades, too, means that prices for used first-generation Qs are likely to soften. It could soon be a good time to pick up the Q1 at an attractive price.
What is attracting buyers? Among those coming to the Q for the first time, the ability to capture 30MP images at 35mm is a powerful draw. Previously the Q has been slightly hampered by the 28mm wide-angle lens which many felt uneasy with. Those who bought the camera soon came to terms with the wider view, but for others 35mm remained the ideal focal length — particularly for street photography. Now, a 30MP 35mm crop is no hardship.
For upgraders, weather protection is a big draw, as is the larger sensor which bolsters the Qs ability to provide high-quality cropped images.
Competition
With only one direct competitor, the Sony RX1R with its 24MP sensor, the Q2 is now the clear leader in the field. [As several readers have pointed out, the RX1rII has a 42MP sensor and there are rumours of a 60MP RX1rIII. No doubt Sony will soon overtakeh the Q2 in sensor size, but overall the Leica will remain the most ensible choice.
The Q2 offers better build quality, greater versatility and, crucially, lower whole-life cost because of the much higher residuals enjoyed by the red dot.
The original Q was never meant to be a mainstream contender. I imagine someone at Wetzlar reprised the words of Ernst Leitz II: “We’ll risk it”. But, as things turned out, the Q is almost certainly the company’s most successful digital camera. The Q2 can only add to this success. It does almost everything, but it is also a perfect complement to an SL or M camera.
Hi Mike, I am not surprised that there will be possibly long waits for this amazing camera. Sony will come out with new model at some point but there is no practical difference between 50 and 60 MP as it may sound. Unless Sony surprises with a major haptics improvement their only advantage will be price for those that do not want to pay for a Q2. I am still happy that I purchased the Q-P as I do not need more than 24 MP and it might need less shot ddiscipline for sharp street photography images taken from hip level. My Q-P “does almost everthing” – it is even a great paperweight however surprisingly I still need other cameras (sorry could not miss out on my juvenile humour to poke fun at your enthusiasm).
Hyperbole is my middle name
I thought the Sony was 42MP Mike?
Either way the Sony is way too fiddly, even if the Sonnar is an amazing lens.
I reckon that there is place for fixies though, although I am not sure that the field is only for “full frame”, I reckon that the X, X100, GR, Q, RX and even some of the little ones like the RX100 are great for an all day carry around. All of them are capable of some good sharp results.
The biggest selling sector in second user film cameras is just this area, and some of the examples reach ridiculous prices considering their age.
Incidentally, a focal length which seems to have all but disappeared in digital imaging is 40-45mm, there are a lot of film examples at that FL.
You are right, Stephen. I was looking at the previous version. Need to check the price, too. I will update.
I agree about the fixies, and no need for them to be full frame. I would love a new Leica X – but with the CL’s viewfinder. I might even trade my X in and buy one – more so if it comes in at around the same price as the CL. I don’t want the CL with the X sized lens.
“With only one direct competitor, the Sony RX1R with its 24MP sensor, the Q2 is now the clear leader in the field.”
RX1R II, and it has a 42.4MP sensor, been out a while too.
Thanks. You are right. See my reply to StepehenJ
“..It does almost everything..” ..? My heavens, I never realised that its 28mm lens can also give you the view seen by a 21mm lens! (..Perhaps it can if the 69mm diameter wide-angle attachment of the old Digilux 2 can be stuck on the front ..or the 21mm attachment for the Sony 28mm wide-angle, ditto.)
I never realised that you could use the Q2 as if it had a – pretty much standard, nowadays – 24-200mm zoom on the front, like using, say, an Olympus PEN-F.
A little hyperbole is understandable, Michael, but “..it does almost everything..”? No, I think that’s a claim a bit too far!
And if it does almost everything, why would anyone need a “..complement to an SL or M camera”? ..They’d apparently need nothing but their Q2.
(Sorry to be such a spoilsport, but my background is testing and assessing cameras, and I really can’t think of any one camera which “..does almost everything”. Except, maybe, an Olympus OM-2 – but that doesn’t usually have autofocus.)
Of course, I meant almost everything between 28 and 75mm! But thanks for the addition!