Yeah.
And, besides, it's not as if the Japanese are unfamiliar with high quality optics now, is it?
Did anyone here say "Nikkor"?
My wife has nieces and nephews all born and raised in Bavaria. All of them speak German and English fluently. Some of them speak French as well, whilst another two speak Spanish all fluently.
Another niece was very interested in all things Japanese, she speaks German, English, French (not so well) and Japanese fluently. Recently, after studying international business at University, she ended up working in Japan for a year for one of the largest companies in the world (German).
I know that one of the requirements was the ability to "on the fly" verbally translate into either German or English, Japanese television or radio news broadcasts for at least 5 minutes to satisfy the company of her ability to understand real Japanese.
Most people working for companies in overseas positions are high achievers and suitably qualified in many facets of diplomacy, business standards as well as whatever position they are placed in. I know that the acceptance rate for these people in most companies is very strict, I would be quite comfortable of German engineering standards being upheld in a foreign country of manufacture.
Lets face it, Mercedes can manufacture a car in the USA and maintain their rigid standards for a world car, even though they are running a plant in another language to their mother tongue!
Mick.
. . . Leica equivalents which are also subject to serious delays in availability.
Afer a large digression...... back to the original topic....
I am really surprised that they are dropping the prices when Leica M mount lenses are at a premium following the introduction of the M8.
Having just bought the 28mm and 50mm ZM lenses, they are fantastic and so much cheaper than the Leica equivalents which are also subject to serious delays in availability.
Which is also the undesirable result of Leica's doing so well. Camera sales are back to late '60s levels, so that they had to increase M8 production by 50 per cent, and the M8 has dragged MP and M7 sales up with it. (I was at the factory last month).
Cheers,
Roger
Where do the grey products come from? I don't understand how it could be true that Cosina and/or Zeiss cannot control where things go when they leave the factory... Is it that rogue resellers are selling below MSRP? If so then why not just cut out the offending resellers. What am I missing!
Anyway, I don't have any issues whatsoever with Cosina and their relationship with Z. The ZI is one amazing piece.
Here's my question: Is Sigma closer to being "German" by producing Leica and Yashica-Contax optics, than Coisna is, which is of course all about Zeiss brand now?
Whatever they are, I'm contemplating selling a kidney for their 300-800...
Antje
LOL
... In the Japanese market, the releases of ZI products seem always delayed with slightly higher price-settings compared to the U.S market.
The same goes to the sales of Leica M8 and MP, which have created a lot of grey market areas because it is much cheaper (about 1000-2000 USD cheaper but without the warranty) to buy one of those from the current U.S. market than the Japanese. Some well-known Leica dealers are offering those grey M8 and MP bodies over here.
This kind of reminds me of the marketing (and the availability) of the multi-tool brand Gerber. The Gerber multi-tools, as far as I know, are made in the rural town in Gifu prefecture, which is known for making sharp knives, and that is not far from where I live actually. But the closest place I can buy one is Tokyo's Ueno market, and it's one of the very few places in the country selling it. And it's expensive there. But if you're in the U.S., every knife shop has it at a relatively low price, and that makes me want to order it from there instead.
Hi Firecracker:
For years to keep itself competitive Japan has charged more for its products on the home market. Autos, cameras, consumer electronics and many more products are/were less expensive here in the U.S.A.
When I travel to Japan I always visit "Yodobashi Camera" in Shinjuku to "window shop" but probably only buy on the U.S.A. market.
Howard Tanger
Exactly my point! You have the luxury and the best price over there in the U.S. no matter what origin(s) of the brand(s) you choose.
For example, for big companies like Nikon and Toyota, the U.S. market is where their top priortities are, not the Japanese market, which many people don't really seem to understand.
They compensate for that though by producing products ONLY for the Japanese market, though. Things like the Nissan Skyline GTR, the "kei" cars (for those who don't know, Kei cars are a sub-mini class of automobiles designed for urban driving conditions, with very small engines, high fuel efficiency, and extremely efficient space utilization), and tons of consumer electronics products - lots of TVs, stereo components, and portable electronic devices are never sold outside of Japan (or perhaps Japan and Taiwan).
One of my students told me that, alas, goth versions of Hello Kitty with piercings and tattoos are not sold outside Japan.
And the people in the photography department are real enthusiasts: I visited the factory last month. As they said, "We're used to working with partners. We've been doing it a long time. But we have to be sure that if it says 'Zeiss' on it, it has received Zeiss quality control."...Carl Zeiss AG is a highly profitable company. Much of its revenue is not derived from still photography...
Though I also visited Leica, and they are doing very nicely thank you -- better than they have for years, with M-series sales at the levels of 40 years ago.
Dear Jim,Great news, but by M cameras, are you talking M8 as well as M7 and MP?
Dear Jim,
Yes. The M8 is outselling both the M7 and MP by quite a margin, but M7 and MP sales have been dragged up by an increased awareness of M-rangefinders, so (slightly unexpectedly) they're selling more of those too.
Cheers,
Roger
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