The Latest Leica Rumours

credits: Leica

It looks like Leica’s fall lineup is starting to come into focus. According to both Leicarumors and Photorumors, the company is lining up two big announcements in October. First up is the Q3 Monochrom, expected on October 16, which will finally bring a black-and-white-only version of the compact Q3. Then, on October 23, Leica is said to be unveiling its first M camera with an electronic viewfinder. The price is rumoured to land around €7,950, and the name floating around now is “M EV1.”

If the leaks are right, the M EV1 marks a pretty big break from tradition. It reportedly ditches the classic rangefinder window in favor of a 0.5-inch, 5.76M-dot EVF, paired with a new diamond-pattern leather wrap. On the inside, though, it is sticking with the tried-and-true M11 setup: a full-frame sensor that can shoot at 60, 36, or 18 megapixels, the Maestro III processor, and 64GB of built-in storage.

And it doesn’t stop there, other rumours suggest Leica has more up its sleeve beyond October. A Leitz-branded smartphone made with Sharp could drop in Japan earlier in the month, while an SL3 Reporter edition is supposedly on track for late 2025.

The long-awaited M12 with a traditional rangefinder isn’t expected until 2026, when we might also see a new mirrorless medium format system. New lenses are also said to be on the way for both M and L mounts, including a Noctilux M 35mm f/1.2, an APO-Summicron M 50mm f/2 with closer focusing, and several L-mount primes and zooms rolling out between late 2025 and 2026.