After reading through these threads, doing some thinking and even riding my own rollercoaster of optimism on this upgrade options thing, I have to say that while very interesting and maybe useful to many, there are many unknowns remaining, and that is helping fuel some contentious speculation. Please do not get me wrong, I think there is some validity for some to feel this is a bit disingenuous.
Say you bought an M8 today, or maybe in a couple months. For openers, the thing costs more now than when introduced, and it is about the only digital camera that seems to have that distinction. Then you are faced with an "option" to upgrade that brand new camera with a new shutter, sapphire LCD, CLA (on a new camera???) and get an extra couple years warranty....all for another 1200 euros. Hmmm.....what happened to that perfectly good old shutter? No rebate? (Heck, even the crafty auto dealers will give you something back for the tires and wheels you removed from that new car for an upgraded set.)
Without knowing what additional options "may" become available, nor at what cost, nor when, it is really hard to do any realistic economic planning for that TCO (total cost of ownership) calculation. I especially appreciate Carlos's comment about having to essentially pay twice for one sensor. Again, we do not know the details, so that may or may not become the case. (My gut tells me that Leica is not about to "buy back" your old sensor, even if it was from a brand new camera at the time of upgrade.) That just does not seem right, somehow. If the new sensor was available, why not have a model to support that as a first option for a buyer, rather than buying a "base model" M8 that you must now "trick up" to get to more current level? (And if they do create a new model, let's watch that price point to see if it is merely "base +", which is should not be.)
Again, while I am excited about the option to make upgrading modifications to the M8 over time, I feel less excited about how much some of these are really going to cost. Also, I had been asking about "bundling" as a possible option, i.e., doing several options at once at some reduced cost, since there would be less labor and stuff involved. Does not look like that is in the cards from what Guy had mentioned. That kinda sucks....(sorry for the offense to anybody), and it really does not encourage continued Leica loyalty that they are playing (preying?) upon.
Trying not to pass any more judgments here, as enough have passed. At the same time, I do not want to go skipping down the path as though everything was just wonderful, because a lot is not. The costs are too high, there is no roadmap for upgrades, the timing seems terribly slow, the promise of turnaround has yet to be met by Leica in most folks experience, and, the real kicker.....we get to pay in advance. I understand a deposit, but not paying full freight for something now when you are not going to get things done until August or beyond.
As Maggie pointed out, at this point, Leica has not done anything yet, except possibly lay out some teases and one expensive option upgrade so far. (Does anybody besides me question the shutter story? The quieter shutter I do think is very welcomed, and reduced vibration would be nice also, but is there something inherently flawed with the first version shutter as some have suggested? To me, that would be a recall issue, not an upgrade option.) At the same time, my level of confidence and trust in Leica is not what it once was. My M8 will be 2 years old in November. It works pretty decently now, but has taken a lot of time, energy and extra expenditure to get it up to some reliable speed. There are still lots of things that are still not working the way one should expect from such a top end camera, the SDHC is but one shining example. The thought of constantly tossing more and more money into it just to get it to work the way it should have from the start, or with the features it should have had to start is a bit more galling now that Leica is making this perpetual upgrade program. Why not get things right before asking folks to spend more for other pieces. I would have loved to see a simple option of fixing the shutter release to be smoother, handling SDHC cards, and a few other minor, but important things that become annoying over time. (Just for grins, the glass cover that Apple put on its iPhones is larger than the LCD on the M8, and mine gets a huge amount of rubbing, smudging, going in and out of pockets, etc.,.....far worse than the LCD on the M8, and nary a scratch. Also a lot cheaper.) Things can be done well with good engineering, and Leica has always been fairly strong there. This latest program seems to suggest things can be made better....so why did they not do it right to start? or, why should we have to pay so much more for such a small upgrade....most of which is costmetic and warranty extension?
Rant over.
LJ
P.S. This does sort of look more like the auto industry.....sell the car and then really profit on "upgrades", where the margin is 40-60%.