UPDATE – MARCH 10th 2010 – B&H is no longer taking ant pre-orders! If you ordered and got on the pre-order list you should get your M9 soon! Congrats for making the list!
B&H PHOTO are once again taking orders for the Leica M9. They have filled all of their previous pre-orders and are ready for more it seems. Click HERE to pre-order the Black or click HERE to pre-order the Grey. Get in while you can!
Holy crap, just got an email from B&H informing me my grey M9 has shipped out to me…exactly 4 months from the date i placed the order.
Praying there wont be a M10 announcement in like 2 months time…
Marc, cancel your order and buy one of the used ones in the ads listed above. There are two people selling their M9s!
Ordered mine (grey) from b&h early march after seeing steve post. Now it’s June. Nothing yet. Really considering cancelling my order and not let b&h earn interest!!!
Finalement, I got what I want from Bergen County Camera. Leica USA introduced me to them and they fulfilled my order in 20 days. Cancelled the other order with BnH after almost 3 months.
Called again yesterday and still number 4. So went ahead to call Leica USA for more informations. Voice message. A nice lady ringed me back just now and told me there was one in stock at Pardee’s Camera. Called the store and they confirmed the intelligence but the camera is black. So anybody wants it, hurry up!
Called again. Still I’m number 4. B&H told me that from the last batch of Silver they got 5 while from last batch of Black they got 20. This may explain why they keep accepting pre-orders for blacks but not for silvers.
I preordered a steel gray M9 7 March and received the order confirmation call on the 8th. My credit card took the hit for the camera and a lens, just over $10,000. A couple of weeks went by, no camera. I called B&H to find out my position on the list, 15 out of 24. Another 10 days went by, no camera. I cancelled the order. I am extremely disappointed with B&H and the politics they are applying to the M9. I can understand taking a deposit when the delivery date is unclear but paying the full amount is thievery. These cameras will sooner than later be more readily available and I will buy one then, but it won’t be from B&H. Speak with your dollars!
! is not because of excitement! I wouldn’t have placed my order if I knew this.
So from March 5 to April 7, B&H shipped out 4 Steel Greys. In this pace, I can expect mine in another month!
As of today, I’m no.4 in the grey line.
oh, and one more thing. b&h may in fact be shipping, but on an irregular basis.
yes, the m9 is beginning to filter through the backlog; which b&h has a few thousand-backlogged. to those who pre-oredered this march, will not see a camera for awhile. to those desperate souls dying to get their hands on a 9, hold on and remain patient; it will get to you. rp
Actually they have been shipping them on a regular basis and have shipped quite a few out over the past two weeks. They get more black than grey so they are only taking orders for the black right now.
taking pre-orders once again! don’t expect a camera anytime soon however. b&h collects your money and draws interest. neat trick.
Steve, thank you. I don’t mind to wait as long as BnH processes orders by the order. Anyway, without you I couldn’t even made myself in the list. I was always curious how could you get all the informations so fast. It seems you never slept but search and search again:)
Well, the good thing is that Leica is indeed finally getting more M9’s out there and it seems like they are doing so on a weekly basis. Let us know when you do get one. Thanks for the update Roger.
Steve
By the way, I got some real updated information from BnH custom service. They got a batch of a couple of Leica grey and will ship out in one or two days. Since I’m no.8 I’m very unlikely to receive one from this patch, but at least we’re advancing! Again, a batch of 15? Bullshit.
Roger, I know for a fact that B&H shipped out some M9’s already. Not sure what colors or how many but I do know that they did indeed ship some. Amazon also has been shipping them for the past two weeks. Usually, these B&H pre-orders are filled 1st come, 1st served and usually within 2-4 weeks. Hope you get yours soon.
Steve
Francis, or whatever you call youself, I did call BnH today and they verified that what you posted earlier was not true. Don’t understand why people lie without any good to themselves. At least I can’t see the reason. To make others waiting here anxious or even angry? What you gain?
Hello Roger. I ordered my beautiful Grey Leica M9 from B&H on March 8th.
The photos are really amazing. Wonder why you didn’t receive your camera? Perhaps you should call? So you know, when I first phoned their customer service, they had indicated a batch a fifteen Grey Leica M9’s received and I was in fact number 12 and to expect delivery; which of course has occurred. Maybe I’ll call and see if they have another for my second lens.
Hi Francis, I’m happy for your receiving:) But, I’m number 8 and I haven’t got one yet! When did you order from B&H? It only can be that you were an earlier number 12.
Hello everyone…. I am sooooo happy to announce my new Grey Leica M9 from B&H. It arrived today from my very reliable FedX person. I can’t believe I received it so quickly. I was number 12 on the Grey list, and here we are. Should I order another? Thank you Steve for allowing us to share our experience. I have already shot fifty frames and they are all beautiful!
Excuse me for being straightforward, but you really keep asking questions for which the answers I’ve already posted here. Please read back a little bit. As to the return policy, it counts only from you receiving an item. The question is why you think about returning even before getting your hands on the camera?:)
what else did they tell you? eta of delivery? for everyday they hold our money, an additional day should be added to their return policy.
Oh, I just called them by phone.
hey roger, where did you acquire that info regarding the shipped m9’s?
cheers
Gjames, I placed the order in the afternoon of March 5th. They said there was no EST when I called them on March 8th, and that day they shipped out 5 black M9s, no steel grey shippings.
hey roger, when did you place your order? Has B&H indicated when you should expect the m9?
cheers
Plus, I’m still on a list, so, when they ask, I’ll know my answer.
Kevin,
I think I may wait on the M9. I want to use this camera for a while and get to know it. The M9 will be in ample supply one day, and I’ll get it when they come out with the M10. LOL! But I could change my mind tomorrow. LOL!
BnH stopped accepting pre-orders right after March 9th’s midnight. Kevin, we are on the boat at least. Nowinstock.com tells some detailed informations about digital cameras’ availabilities. I think we’re gonna receive cameras with the updated firmware.
hey steve, so since I ordered the leica 9 the 7tj as a pre-order, then I should expect it to arrive?
thhanks
Thanks Elaine. Kind of a bummer but no biggie. I was actually getting a little stressed trying to figure out which lens to get. Now it gives me a little more time to decide. Any plans on your situation? You going to spring for the M9?
Kevin, sorry to hear that. Hopefully it won’t be too much longer for you.
has anyone received their m9 from B&H?
I was told yesterday (Monday) to expect a call in two days.
Cheers
ordered leica m9 black march 7; we shall see.
And they still accept pre-orders till now. No a bad way financing. Once they show a sign, or a false sign, we all throw money to them:)
I just made a call to B&H as well and now they are saying that I am still on the preorder list. Told them that someone called me yesterday to tell me it was shipping out but apparently it was a mistake. Couldn’t tell me where I am on the wait list either. They apologized for the miscommunication though. I knew it was too good to be true. Oh well.
At least it will give me more time to decide which lens to get (and to save up for it haha).
So, I just made a phone call to BnH. They got only 5 blacks to ship out today while more than 50 people wait for blacks. No silver or steel gray for today. I’m the number 8 waiting in the line of silver. No estimation either. I asked about Leica’s shipping frequency. They said No Pattern. I asked if it was true that BnH didn’t accept pre-order unless they knew there would be shippings. They answered Not Necessarily. Kevin, I think you must have ordered early on Friday and got one of the five. Good for you! Anyway, I won’t cancel my order for at least I now where I’m in the line.
Kevin, hope it goes as they told you of course. I might make a phone call to them too. Anyway, isn’t it wonderful having a site to talk about all this? For Nikon stuff, I go to Nikon Rumors since there is a very dedicated admin. Although there is equally a Leica Rumors, I guess its admin is more dedicated to photography:) Here is way better, thanks to Steve. But I have to admit that I didn’t order through here since I always use Bing cashback. I hope there will be a way to buy anything going through Steve and through Bing altogether.
Roger, I never called them to check. Placed the order on the web and got the confirmation email on Friday. Then received the call at 8am PST Sunday. At first I thought the guy was going to tell me there was a problem with the order but he simply said that it would be shipping out tomorrow.
I checked the order status when I logged into B&H but still says it is back ordered and there is no tracking information yet. I’ll check again tomorrow to see if its true.
You ordered a silver body right? Maybe its a difference in the number of black vs silver bodies that came in the shipment.
I can’t believe they called either, especially on Sunday. I mean they got the money than they ship the thing, simple. At most shipping notice by email. Except you called them at the first place? I made an order the same day and didn’t get any call. Only a confirmation by email. I’m not worried but just feel strange. Maybe you ordered through this site and that makes a big difference?
Kevin,
Thanks for the kudos on my blog. I would have chosen black too. It’s stealth. Congratulations. You’re going to love it! It’s an amazing experience. π
Thanks Steve and Elaine! I couldn’t believe the guy called….honestly thought that it would be a month or two until they shipped out.
Seeing as this is my first rangefinder, I have no idea whether I will get used to shooting it but I decided to take the plunge. Elaine, I have been following your blog with great interest as you experience shooting an RF. You are taking some fantastic shots!
As far as color, I had been going back and forth because I wasn’t able to see it in person. After much deliberation, decided on black. Too late to change my mind now! =)
Hmmm. Black or steel gray? Which did you guys choose?
Kevin, that’s great! I am still on the fence. I would have to sell my M8.2 to get the M9. Nice to see that someone got their order quickly have the pre-order from BH Photo.
Kevin, great news! Seems like the flow of M9’s has finally started!
I just got a call from B&H and they said my M9 is shipping out tomorrow. I placed the order this past Friday and thought I would have to wait awhile. Guess not. Very pleased!
What do you think about international order ?
I am wondering about the tax to pay if any (as it is not a simple DVD) and about the delivery. I already booked a M9 it Tokyo but availability is end of may π
Thx
I’m on the list with Dale Photo, so don’t know what to do here. Dale Photo also was going to buy the M8.2 I have at a good price to apply towards the M9. If I pre-order from BH Photo, then I won’t have that deal. Oh well. Anyway, still on fence as I am still trying out the M8.2 and wonder if it’s enough for me. I like the 35mm Summicron on the camera a lot. How much better is the M9 from the M8.2 file size? I wonder if it is worth another 3-4K? If BH Photo is getting orders in, then Dale must be a close second. Then again, BH Photo is a major player.
Anyone here trading up from a M8 or m8.2 to the M9? I’m curious.
I got my M9 (steel) and 50mm Summilux this week.
The 50 Lux should not be too much longer. I know some people have been getting them from some dealers and last week I spoke to two who received their M9 and 50 Lux that was pre-ordered. I think Leica may have finally shipped out some large quantities. Let’s hope so!!
What about the 50 Lux? when will it be available finally??
Ordered one silver in the afternoon. Money already gone. Have been waiting chez Adorama for a month but they don’t charge money in advance, which means I’m probably behind millions of orders there. I begged B&H time and time again to take my money and finally got a chance! Will come back updating when I get one, to give a hint of Leica’s shipping timeline. I think everybody already got one or getting one should do so to help the following fellows from desperation. No exaggeration, eBay’s 10000-dollar deals prove.
B&H has ALWAYS done this. They rarely do pre-orders. They only do so when they have a shipment on the way. When they find out what they have coming in they will release it for pre-order. They charge the order and know the buyer is serious. Then it ships as soon as it comes into them. They did this a couple of months ago and everyone who ordered and stuck with it received their M9’s already.
If they get too many orders, meaning more than they can fill in a timely manner, they take down the pre-order option and it is replaced with “currently unavailable”.
Thanks!
Steve
The B7H Photo site states: “Important Notice!
This item is currently not in stock. We are accepting orders and it will be shipped when in stock. Orders will be filled in the order they are received. Your card will be charged upon placing the order.”
So, upon placing the order, does that mean your credit card is charged the minute you order it from the site, or when it actually ships? Just curious.
No worries, at least 2 or 3 years before an M10 π Leica is slow like that.
Finally the M9 , by past experience the M10 will probably come out for sale by next month.
I just want to chyme in and say thank you for this fabulous blog.
I am an amateur shooter and shoot Canon for fun. I can not afford anything Leica at this stage of my life. But because of you, I am selling all my Canon gear and looking into similar experiences in little creations like E-P2 with a fast manual lens on it and its VF2. I am buying a lottery ticket tonight, and if I win, Leica it will be.
I have seen quite a few people take delivery this week so I think more have been coming out of Solms..finally!
I hope this means some are coming down under soon. Been waiting 2 months for my order and my dealer just told me there’s now no ETA for delivery! Funny how they are so keen to give you an attractive delivery date before you hand over your money!
Hi Steve,
I’ve been following your site for quite some time now. Great reviews and appreciate all your hard work that you put in. Thanks for sharing the news this morning and I put in my pre-order for a black body M9 (ordered it through your link). Can’t wait for it to arrive! Now the question is which lens to get: a 35 lux or 50 lux. Too bad I can’t get both =)
Kevin
Yes! I know huh? It seems that this is the month of the M9…I am seeing more dealers starting to fill their pre-orders and B&H usually starts taking orders when they have a shipment on the way. Good luck to those who get in and pre-order! May your M9 arrive soon!
finally !