The letter “P” stands for professional and the new M-9P stresses outstanding sturdiness by adopting a scratch-proof sapphire glass for the LCD monitor and applying a special anti-reflection coating on the surface of the glass to make it clearly visible. The M9-P comes in two colours of silver chrome-plated and black-painted.
The digital camera features a 18.5 megapixel 23.9 x 35.8mm CCD image sensor and bright-line frame optical viewfinder and accepts all Leica M mount lenses. The M9-P will be available for around 780K yen (US$9,700) in Japan.
The distributor also announced a super wide-angle lens “LEICA SUPER ELMAR 21mm f/3.4 ASPH” lens that can be used for all M cameras. The lens is made in Germany, and will be available for approximately 280K yen (US$3,500).