Frankly, when it comes to a new S camera, I'm torn between what would look good on paper and what would be of actual use in practice.
Going to CMOS would allow additional capabilities on one hand, but it would mean starting over on the whole process of making the most of the files … again, (a process I've grown weary of doing every few years). It took quite a while for the CCD S to get it all sorted out … same for the M8, then the initial M9, then the switch to the CMOSIS M240 (which I personally feel is still not optimally sorted out).
Having lived with the S2P now for years as my prime camera system, I've found that it deftly walks the line between high resolution imagery and versatility of applications. Like many others have said in past, 40 meg may have been the watershed for MFD versatility, beyond which you start getting very specific in application. The form factor of the current S makes it a hand-holdable camera which is one of its strengths, but tough enough to do at 37 meg, let alone 60.
Granted, a higher ISO capability would mitigate that to some degree, but only if Leica's CMOS sensor is spectacular at ISOs above 800 in order to gain the shutter speed needed. Personally, I'm skeptical of that at least for the first year or two that a new CMOS version is available and they get it better sorted out.
I'd expect Leica to initially offer the CMOS S at a comparable price to the Type 006 when it was first offered ($22,000) … but would pleasantly surprised if it was $20,000 or less … no, make that pleasantly shocked!
However, I do not think comparing the S pricing structure with the M240's at launch is apples-to-apples. Leica could count on a certain volume of Ms to spread out the R&D for the new CMOSIS sensor and resulting expanded feature set. The S doesn't have that base of users ready to upgrade to every new iteration of the S camera like they do with the M.
That a new S could bring in new users based on price is not in their DNA. Besides, one has to factor in the cost of the lenses which is breath-taking, and are increasing in price.
New higher resolution CMOS/CMOSIS sensor, live view, 4K video, dual slot RAW capture, etc. for a lower price seems unlikely. Possible, but not probable.
- Marc