PanaLeica 25mm f1.4 Japan Pricing & Release Date

The new M4/3's 25mm f1.4 is now up on both Yodobashi Camera's site and on Amazon Japan.

￥58,800....or $732.55 USD (including the factored in 5% Japanese sales tax, tourists can get that deducted) at the current exchange rate.

Keep in mind the US dollar is very week do to the economy, and the Yen is strong thanks to post earthquake speculation.

Also keep in mind Yodobashi camera have a 10% in store cash back program. Many retailers will sell the lens for roughly about 10% or more less than Yodobashi to compete, so about ¥53,000, or $660 USD . The Amazon pre-order price will drop to reflect that.

It's out July 22nd.

http://www.yodobashi.com/ec/promotion/newtopics/detail/10000000000000021298/index.html

http://www.amazon.co.jp/Panasonic-LEICA-SUMMILUX-ASPH-H-X025/dp/B0055N2L22/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1307975748&sr=8-3

--

Canon 5D Mark II, 24-105mm L, 70-200mm f/4L IS, EF 50mm f1.4, Tokina 16-28mm f2.8.
Olympus E-PL1, 9-18mm, 14-42mm II, 17mm, & FL-36R.
Canon PowerShot TX1
Ricoh GR-D
Sony DSC-V3

Sub £500 is awesome in reality, fast af, quiet, leica IQ, where else can you get that and fast f1.4. I can see alot of jealous glances from the Canon Nikon users? yes-no LOL ;-)

Good news! For 600-700 I think I will eventually pick one up, even thought I have the 43 version, if the AF is fast and the IQ on par. With the newer Panny bodies and face-detect, the possibility of fast, accurate AFS at f1.4 when shooting people/candids is a tremendous advantage.

On my E5, the 43 PL25 can be a bit temperamental. When this combo nails focus, it's oh so wonderful!
--
SLOtographer
m43 + 43 = 43.000043
G1, EPL1, E5, and a bag of lenses.

Adventsam said:

Sub £500 is awesome in reality, fast af, quiet, leica IQ, where else can you get that and fast f1.4. I can see alot of jealous glances from the Canon Nikon users? yes-no LOL ;-)

Click to expand...

Mathers of Lancashire is taking preorder now with GF3 plus the 25mm f1.4 lens for £495!

http://www.mathersoflancashire.co.uk/html/gf-3.html

Adventsam said:

Sub £500 is awesome in reality, fast af, quiet, leica IQ, where else can you get that and fast f1.4. I can see alot of jealous glances from the Canon Nikon users? yes-no LOL ;-)

Click to expand...

lmao, i got a real 50/1.4 for less than $500 .. no Leica Tax either

That has to be a mistake!

Bizzarrini said:

That has to be a mistake!

Click to expand...

Oh noooooo. They still have it on their site it £495 with GF3 body.

Then you dont have Leica IQ either, shame only Leica IQ will do, everyone has Canon or Nikon, Leica is for the people who know ;-)

Jogger said:

Adventsam said:

Sub £500 is awesome in reality, fast af, quiet, leica IQ, where else can you get that and fast f1.4. I can see alot of jealous glances from the Canon Nikon users? yes-no LOL ;-)

Click to expand...

lmao, i got a real 50/1.4 for less than $500 .. no Leica Tax either

Click to expand...

nazmi said:

Adventsam said:

Sub £500 is awesome in reality, fast af, quiet, leica IQ, where else can you get that and fast f1.4. I can see alot of jealous glances from the Canon Nikon users? yes-no LOL ;-)

Click to expand...

Mathers of Lancashire is taking preorder now with GF3 plus the 25mm f1.4 lens for £495!

http://www.mathersoflancashire.co.uk/html/gf-3.html

Click to expand...

There's only £130 difference between the body only and the body plus lens,
could keep the body and sell the lens, guessing it's a mistake?

Panasonic Lumix GF-3 With Leica DG Summilux 25mm f1.4......£495
Panasonic Lumix GF-3 Body Only (Black Only)........................£369

Cant be underestimated, FDetect and Leica iq, hello, for that price, OK no way is it cheap but special quality for an exclusive look Panasonic hit new home run as per the 20mm f1.7, and it takes nothing away from the 20, its different enough to justify, perfect.

SLOtographer said:

Good news! For 600-700 I think I will eventually pick one up, even thought I have the 43 version, if the AF is fast and the IQ on par. With the newer Panny bodies and face-detect, the possibility of fast, accurate AFS at f1.4 when shooting people/candids is a tremendous advantage.

On my E5, the 43 PL25 can be a bit temperamental. When this combo nails focus, it's oh so wonderful!
--
SLOtographer
m43 + 43 = 43.000043
G1, EPL1, E5, and a bag of lenses.

Click to expand...

Unfortunately they wouldnt sell them to me?

BillHinge said:

nazmi said:

Adventsam said:

Sub £500 is awesome in reality, fast af, quiet, leica IQ, where else can you get that and fast f1.4. I can see alot of jealous glances from the Canon Nikon users? yes-no LOL ;-)

Click to expand...

Mathers of Lancashire is taking preorder now with GF3 plus the 25mm f1.4 lens for £495!

http://www.mathersoflancashire.co.uk/html/gf-3.html

Click to expand...

There's only £130 difference between the body only and the body plus lens,
could keep the body and sell the lens, guessing it's a mistake?

Panasonic Lumix GF-3 With Leica DG Summilux 25mm f1.4......£495
Panasonic Lumix GF-3 Body Only (Black Only)........................£369

Click to expand...

What is this Leica IQ that you talk about; its a Panasonic lens with Lecia stenciled on the front... for that priviledge, you get to pay a super special Leica Tax.

.. and, why is it that the nearly 10 year old Oly 50/2 outperforms the "Leica" 45/2.8 at less than half the cost?.. hmmmm, those who know, know that Panasonic "Leica" lenses are not Leicas at all..

Adventsam said:

Then you dont have Leica IQ either, shame only Leica IQ will do, everyone has Canon or Nikon, Leica is for the people who know ;-)

Jogger said:

Adventsam said:

Sub £500 is awesome in reality, fast af, quiet, leica IQ, where else can you get that and fast f1.4. I can see alot of jealous glances from the Canon Nikon users? yes-no LOL ;-)

Click to expand...

lmao, i got a real 50/1.4 for less than $500 .. no Leica Tax either

Click to expand...

Click to expand...

Jogger, if you dont like it dont worry you dont have to, the iq is too special for some tastes.

Jogger said:

What is this Leica IQ that you talk about; its a Panasonic lens with Lecia stenciled on the front... for that priviledge, you get to pay a super special Leica Tax.

.. and, why is it that the nearly 10 year old Oly 50/2 outperforms the "Leica" 45/2.8 at less than half the cost?.. hmmmm, those who know, know that Panasonic "Leica" lenses are not Leicas at all..

Adventsam said:

Then you dont have Leica IQ either, shame only Leica IQ will do, everyone has Canon or Nikon, Leica is for the people who know ;-)

Jogger said:

Adventsam said:

Sub £500 is awesome in reality, fast af, quiet, leica IQ, where else can you get that and fast f1.4. I can see alot of jealous glances from the Canon Nikon users? yes-no LOL ;-)

Click to expand...

lmao, i got a real 50/1.4 for less than $500 .. no Leica Tax either

Click to expand...

Click to expand...

Click to expand...

SLOtographer said:

Good news! For 600-700 I think I will eventually pick one up, even thought I have the 43 version, if the AF is fast and the IQ on par. With the newer Panny bodies and face-detect, the possibility of fast, accurate AFS at f1.4 when shooting people/candids is a tremendous advantage.

On my E5, the 43 PL25 can be a bit temperamental. When this combo nails focus, it's oh so wonderful!

Click to expand...

I also used to own the 4/3's version (used it with my E-3,E-420,E-1, L1...all gone now).

One of the things that impressed me was the build quality. I believe it was plastic, but it felt metal.Real solid. I'm curious how this new version will match up. Considering the price and weight difference, I'm not expecting it to be equal in that department.

--

Canon 5D Mark II, 24-105mm L, 70-200mm f/4L IS, EF 50mm f1.4, Tokina 16-28mm f2.8.
Olympus E-PL1, 9-18mm, 14-42mm II, 17mm, & FL-36R.
Canon PowerShot TX1
Ricoh GR-D
Sony DSC-V3

It is just a plastic 25(50) 1.4 panasonic lens with a nano-buzz word and a licensed "Leica" - badge. It is not even a hybrid video lens, it lacks silent aperture, IS. There is nothing special stand-out about the specs at all. The bare minimum, really.

Yeah, it will be sharp like every other 50mm lens from every other manufacturer that would cost half as much. Yeah, it will out-resolve every MFT sensor easily - just like any other brand's 50mm lens.

Why would anybody with a sound mind want this lens if there is a 20mm/1.7: wider, smaller, lighter, tack-sharp, half-priced? Same plastic build, metal mount, loud non-video aperture.
It is just plain non-sense.
--
Best wishes,
Zoli

Chris_in_Osaka said:

I also used to own the 4/3's version (used it with my E-3,E-420,E-1, L1...all gone now).

One of the things that impressed me was the build quality. I believe it was plastic, but it felt metal.Real solid. I'm curious how this new version will match up. Considering the price and weight difference, I'm not expecting it to be equal in that department.

Click to expand...

I agree that the build quality is at a high level on the big PL25. The micro PL45 is at a similar, if not quite as high level. Perhaps there will be some metal bits that elevate it beyond just another plastic lens. That's what I hope for anyways so that it is more durable and reassuring to use.

--
SLOtographer
m43 + 43 = 43.000043
G1, EPL1, E5, and a bag of lenses.

I agree, it will look like a toy compared to the Voigtländer Nokton 25mm f/0.95.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YjjH2gCdKwU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FoxmO5OETM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wUmXGXxD1Dc

not usually vocal on these matters but i must say i agree with the last post. there's already a wonderful 20mm 1.7 in the line-up - what users need is a fast, preferably fixed portrait lens as well as a (2.8 or better) wide. these are sadly lacking and no, i don't believe the other 'leica' (45mm) is an option in the portrait category. i currently make up for this gap by using legacy lenses but the lack of AF defeats their usefulness much of the time. the 7-14mm - no complaints there and generally i think there's an option for beginners in all ranges however i do wish panasonic would also wake up and appreciate the potential of their wonderful little cameras. i've just shot a BTS campaign for a multinational on my GF1. it was the perfect cam for the journalistic style they were seeking.

Here we go again. It is only a panasonic lens with Leica stenciled on it and it is made in Japan and not in duetschland. It hasn't got Made in Germany printed on it.... It must be bad or not worth the money.
Leica bosses the quality before they ALLOW Leica to be printed on a lens.
The lens is designed in Japan but the design is then sent to Leica for approval.
The lens is then built to Leica quality standards in Japan.

Leica has had lenses built for them by minolta in the past and branded as Made in Germany.

The 43 Leica branded lenses (25 f1.4, 14-50 f2.8-3.5, 14-50 f3.8-4-5 and 14-150 ) have built up a cult following amongst knowledgeable users.

These users must know something or they are ALL idiots with more money than sense.

I know of people who bought the Panasonic L1 just to get their hands on one and then turned around sold the body. I bought my 14-50 f2.8-3.5 from an upgrader who acquired the 14-150 and sold the 14-50 to help pay for his 14-150.
There are 2 things you can do.
1 Go buy books on Leica and its policy to find out why people like its lenses.

2 Go buy an old 40 year old leica lens and use it. I guarantee it will make a believer out of you.

3 Until you have done item 2 above please leave alone those who happily throw money away, afterall it is OUR money

I have been using Leica from the 70s through the M3 and the R5. The M9 is too rich for my blood now that I am retired otherwise I will happily throw away some more money.

It is also well known that Nikon and Canon lenses regularly out perform Leica lenses under test conditions. And yet there are many people who happily buy Leica's lenses.

The bodies are another matter. My R5 was a minolta under the skin but it had the R bayonet.

Ask yourself this question. why are there so many idiots who happily pay Leica's asking prices. Are they all idiots? I think not! I know of people who happily save up their dollars and spend it on secondhand Leica lenses. These are not rich people but they believe their eyes.

I also know a birdwatcher who was using a Carl Ziess binocular until a friend let him use his Leica binocular. Next day he traded in his CZ for a Leica.

Another story came from a geologist who said that where he was studying there was a Leitz(old name for Leica, just in case) microscope, and all the students wanted to use it.
The thing that ties all these together is one word... Lenses/Glass.