So… The Pixii Max. I Want One. But…

So… The Pixii Max. I Want One. But…

Before I get to my “but” it has little to do with some of the issues some have voiced or that I suspect some might have issues with. Things that do not bother me.

Small/New Company.

Some may have concerns about Pixii existing in a few years. This does not bother me. I am a person that has purchased film cameras long out of production, occasionally from brands that are no longer in existence.

No Screen.

Leica charges more for this “feature” with their cameras. For me I kind of like that this would motivate me to use this like a film camera.

No SD Card slot.

I have no issues with this. At 24MP a clip even the smallest memory capacity would do just fine for me.

Price.

Have you looked at the new price of a proper Leica M recently? From what I have read the Pixii Max will cost considerably less.

No Mechanical Shutter.

Of all the potential issues this one comes closest to being a valid problem for me. My worry would not be rolling shutter, but potential banding under artificial light. But taking everything else into consideration I can let this one pass.

Some other stuff I forgot about.

And there are positives.

• By all accounts, Pixii treated its customers well. Every upgrade up to this point was made available to existing customers and I read this is the case with the full frame MAX as well.
  • Existing APS-C cameras can be upgraded to full frame.
• It is a good looking thing.
• The reviews I have read have largely been positive.
• And there is the simple fact that I am glad that they made it.

Would love to try one. And that might change my mind.

My only beef with Pixii has been the APS-C sensor, which has been addressed with the MAX. I had not expected this upgrade but if asked I would have probably been very interested. But now that it is here I am not so sure.

So what is my issue? I am glad I imagined you asked.

It has nothing to do with the Pixii Max itself… That is a weird sounding name now that I say it out loud.. Anyhoo. My issue, if it can even be called an issue, is this.

Old digital M cameras exist on the used market.

Not thinking a new full frame M rangefinder option from someone other than Leica would actually ever happen after many years of watching the market I bought one.

And I really like it. More than I thought I would. So much so that concerns I had about wanting a newer model once I had it were quickly dismissed. It is all I want from a full frame M mount rangefinder camera.

The obvious advantage of the Pixii would be a warranty. Which would be nice. But digital Leica’s are not exactly known for being fragile, other than the Leica M9 corroded sensor episode. If something did go wrong I am fairly confident that it could be addressed. For example on arrival my very own Leica needed its rangefinder aligned which KEH did for free and swiftly under warranty. And it has been flawless in the year and a half since. Which is good because I have not seen another on the market for the price I paid since. Kudos to whoever was doing the pricing that day at KEH.

I do wonder if I would be more interested if I had not already bought the Type 240. And the answer is I likely would have been. But I am so attached to the 240 I do not see myself trading for the Pixii Max. And having both makes no sense. (Granted none of this makes any sense.)

But… I still want one. And would really love to test one.

But neither seems likely. So I will be closely watching for reviews with great interest and will live vicariously through others.

Kudos to Pixii. If I had to guess I would have thought non-Leica companies that made M mount film rangefinders in the past like ZEISS, Voigtlander, and whoever owns the Konica name now would have done it. Not a small French interest. But here we are and good on them. I wish them much success.

Happy capturing.

-ELW