When was the L-758 discontinued

[PerTulip]

Hi!

Can someone help me settle an argument: when was the Sekonic L-758 light meter produced/discontinued?

 

[BrianShaw]

Great question… I’ve wondered that about the L-558, also, but couldn’t find that information. For L-778, the Quick-start video was posted to YouTube in May of 2012. That might give an estimate of initial production date.

 

[BrianShaw]

… or this (might answer both of our questions):

Camera-wiki.org/wiki/Sekonic

Indicates that L-758 released in 2001 with several versions but no discontinued date mentioned.

Not sure how authoritative or accurate or complete this is, though.

 

[wiltw]

OTOH, I found a thread started June 28, 2000, which asks,

"Could anyone experienced post opinions about the Sekonic L778 Dual Spot Meter? Is it an accurate and easy to use? Thank you."
https://www.photo.net/discuss/threads/sekonic-l778-dual-spot.6809/
​

But the date attribution is apparently a LIE...I could find no listing of the L-758 in 2003 or 2005 catalog of products.

 

[BrianShaw]

2012 date on their video is clearly quite some time after the meters release!

 

[abruzzi]

2012 date on their video is clearly quite some time after the meters release!

It’s probable more of an indicator of when YouTube because a popular place for manufacturers to post training videos and sales videos.

before that it was mostly for cat videos.

 

[wiltw]

2012 date on their video is clearly quite some time after the meters release!

Found an April 2011 video quick start guide for the L-758

And I found a Shutterbug announcement:

"Sekonic L-758 Light Meter Upgrades for Mac
Press Release | Oct 11, 2011
Sekonic announced a free downloadable upgrade to its L-758 Light Meter application software ("Sekonic Data Transfer Software" for Macintosh) and the USB driver for the latest versions of the Macintosh operating system: OS 10.7 (Lion) and OS 10.6 (Snow Leopard).:"
​

And I found February 2017 discussion about discontinuance

"p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Sekonic L-758DR-U Discontinued?
Hi everyone. I’m new here …signed up about 2 - 3 weeks ago.
It appears that the Sekonic L-758DR-U light meter has been discontinued; B&H and Adorama show it that way. Perhaps a refresh is coming? I may need to contact Sekonic to find out. Thanks.
Feb 25, 2017 at 11:41 PM"​

 

[PerTulip]

It seems it was discontinued at the end of 2016.....

Why am I asking this?

I had a discussion about "planned obsolescence" and product support. If you buy a TV or smartphone today, don't expect support for more than 2-3 years. Getting it repaired after 2-3 years, forget about it with many products.

I just got back my L-758 from Sekonic. I managed to damage the memory button, it was repaired (spare parts available!). Also it was cleaned, they threw in a cover for the sync connector, and it was fully (re-)calibrated. 5 years after discontinuing the product, Sekonic still repairs and supports that model. Also, the DTS software was upgraded and works on new M1 Macs.

And my F5 was serviced (front control dial also replaced) two years ago, 15 (!!!!!) years after the camera was discontinued.

 

[wiltw]

It seems it was discontinued at the end of 2016.....

Why am I asking this?

I had a discussion about "planned obsolescence" and product support. If you buy a TV or smartphone today, don't expect support for more than 2-3 years. Getting it repaired after 2-3 years, forget about it with many products.

And then you have the products from companies in the Far East which have zero parts, zero service, and only the initial warranty period...if it breaks in warranty they send you another one. Folks buy them anyway, becasue they are so cheap compared to the traditional full support brands...behavior which does not reinforce the traditional model of full parts and service support, with its cost overhead.

 

[PerTulip]

And then you have the products from companies in the Far East which have zero parts, zero service, and only the initial warranty period...if it breaks in warranty they send you another one. Folks buy them anyway, becasue they are so cheap compared to the traditional full support brands...behavior which does not reinforce the traditional model of full parts and service support, with its cost overhead.

It seems you overheard my discussion... :-D That was my argument.