Leica M Typ 240 Comparison Review

The Leica M (Typ 240) is a rangefinder-style mirrorless camera that was revealed to the public in September 2012 and is equipped with a full frame sensor. It offers a resolution of 23.7 megapixel.

Is the Leica M Typ 240 a good camera? The M Typ 240 has a Camera Elo of 1704. This rating puts the M Typ 240 below average of all rangefinder cameras. In terms of its sensor size category (full frame cameras), the M Typ 240 also ranks below average. – Well, the Leica M Typ 240 is more than 8 years old, and there have been many other good digital cameras released since 2012.

Read on to find out more about the camera's size, sensor, features, reception by expert reviewers, and how it compares to other digital cameras.

Body comparison with a credit card

The physical dimensions of the Leica M Typ 240 relative to a credit card are illustrated in the side-by-side display below. Three consecutive views from the front, the top, and the rear side are shown. All width, height and depth dimensions are rounded to the nearest millimeter.

The table below summarizes the key physical specs of the Leica M Typ 240 alongside a set of similar cameras. If you want to review a particular camera pair side-by-side, just move across to the CAM-parator tool and choose from the broad selection of possible comparisons there.

Body Specifications

		Camera Model	Camera Width	Camera Height	Camera Depth	Camera Weight	Battery Life	Weather Sealing	Camera Launch	Launch Price (USD)	Street Price
1.		Leica M Typ 240	139 mm	80 mm	42 mm	680 g	..	Y	Sep 2012	6,950
2.		Canon 6D	145 mm	111 mm	71 mm	770 g	1090	Y	Sep 2012	2,099
3.		Leica M10-R	139 mm	80 mm	39 mm	660 g	210	Y	Jul 2020	8,295
4.		Leica M-E Typ 240	139 mm	80 mm	42 mm	680 g	..	Y	Jun 2019	3,999
5.		Leica M10-P	139 mm	80 mm	39 mm	660 g	210	Y	Aug 2018	7,995
6.		Leica M10	139 mm	80 mm	39 mm	660 g	210	Y	Jan 2017	6,595
7.		Leica M Typ 262	139 mm	80 mm	42 mm	680 g	..	Y	Nov 2015	5,195
8.		Leica SL	147 mm	104 mm	39 mm	847 g	400	Y	Oct 2015	7,450
9.		Leica M9	139 mm	80 mm	37 mm	585 g	..	n	Sep 2009	7,999
10.		Nikon D7100	136 mm	107 mm	76 mm	765 g	950	Y	Feb 2013	1,199
11.		Sony RX10	129 mm	88 mm	102 mm	813 g	420	Y	Oct 2013	1,299
Notes: Measurements and pricing do not include easily detachable parts, such as add-on or interchangeable lenses or optional viewfinders.
Convert to Imperial

The listed prices provide an indication of the market segment that the manufacturer of the cameras have been targeting. The Leica M Typ 240 was launched in the US market at a price of $6,950. Usually, retail prices stay at first close to the launch price, but after several months, discounts become available. Later in the product cycle and, in particular, when the replacement model is about to appear, further discounting and stock clearance sales often push the camera price considerably down. Then, after the new model is out, very good deals can frequently be found on the pre-owned market.

Sensor comparison with a 35mm slide

The size of the sensor inside a digital camera is one of the key determinants of image quality. A large sensor will generally have larger individual pixels that offer better low-light sensitivity, provide wider dynamic range, and have richer color-depth than smaller pixels in a sensor of the same technological generation. Moreover, a large sensor camera will give the photographer more control over depth-of-field in the image and, thus, the ability to better isolate a subject from the background. On the downside, larger sensors tend to be associated with larger, more expensive camera bodies and lenses.

The Leica M Typ 240 features a full frame sensor and has a format factor (sometimes also referred to as "crop factor") of 1.0. Within the spectrum of camera sensors, this places the Leica M Typ 240 among the large-sensor cameras that aim for top notch image quality.

Since 2007, DXO Mark has published sensor performance measurements that have been derived using a consistent methodology. This service assesses and scores the color depth ("DXO Portrait"), dynamic range ("DXO Landscape"), and low-light sensitivity ("DXO Sports") of camera sensors, and also publishes an overall camera score. The table below summarizes the physical sensor characteristics and sensor quality findings and compares them across a set of similar cameras.

Sensor Characteristics

		Camera Model	Sensor Class	Resolution (MP)	Horiz. Pixels	Vert. Pixels	Video Format	DXO Portrait	DXO Landscape	DXO Sports	DXO Overall
1.		Leica M Typ 240	Full Frame	23.7	5952	3976	1080/25p	24.0	13.3	1860	84
2.		Canon 6D	Full Frame	20.0	5472	3648	1080/30p	23.8	12.1	2340	82
3.		Leica M10-R	Full Frame	40.9	7864	5200	none	..	..	..	..
4.		Leica M-E Typ 240	Full Frame	23.7	5952	3976	1080/25p	..	..	..	..
5.		Leica M10-P	Full Frame	23.8	5952	3992	none	..	..	..	..
6.		Leica M10	Full Frame	23.8	5952	3992	none	24.4	13.2	2133	86
7.		Leica M Typ 262	Full Frame	23.7	5952	3976	none	..	..	..	..
8.		Leica SL	Full Frame	24.0	6000	4000	4K/30p	25.0	13.4	1821	88
9.		Leica M9	Full Frame	18.1	5212	3472	none	22.5	11.7	884	69
10.		Nikon D7100	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	1080/60p	24.2	13.7	1256	83
11.		Sony RX10	1-inch	20.0	5472	3648	1080/60p	22.9	12.6	474	69

Many modern cameras are not only capable of taking still images, but also of capturing video footage. The M Typ 240 indeed provides movie recording capabilities. The highest resolution format that the M Typ 240 can use is 1080/25p.

Feature comparison

Apart from body and sensor, cameras can and do differ across a range of features. For example, the M Typ 240 has an optical viewfinder that provides a field of view of 100% and a magnification of 0.68x. The adjacent tables list some of the other core features of the Leica M Typ 240 along with similar information for a selection of comparators.

Core Features

		Camera Model	Viewfinder (Type or 000 dots)	Control Panel (yes/no)	LCD Specifications (inch/000 dots)	LCD Attach- ment	Touch Screen (yes/no)	Mech Shutter Speed	Shutter Flaps (1/sec)	Built-in Flash (yes/no)	Built-in Image Stab
1.		Leica M Typ 240	optical	n	3.0 / 920	fixed	n	1/4000s	3.0	n	n
2.		Canon 6D	optical	Y	3.0 / 1040	fixed	n	1/4000s	4.5	n	n
3.		Leica M10-R	optical	n	3.0 / 1037	fixed	Y	1/4000s	4.5	n	n
4.		Leica M-E Typ 240	optical	n	3.0 / 920	fixed	n	1/4000s	3.0	n	n
5.		Leica M10-P	optical	n	3.0 / 1037	fixed	Y	1/4000s	5.0	n	n
6.		Leica M10	optical	n	3.0 / 1037	fixed	n	1/4000s	5.0	n	n
7.		Leica M Typ 262	optical	n	3.0 / 921	fixed	n	1/4000s	3.0	n	n
8.		Leica SL	4400	Y	3.0 / 1040	fixed	Y	1/8000s	11.0	n	n
9.		Leica M9	optical	n	2.5 / 230	fixed	n	1/4000s	2.0	n	n
10.		Nikon D7100	optical	Y	3.2 / 1229	fixed	n	1/8000s	6.0	Y	n
11.		Sony RX10	1440	Y	3.0 / 1229	tilting	n	1/3200s	10.0	Y	Y

Connection comparison

For some imaging applications, the extent to which a camera can communicate with its environment can be an important aspect in the camera decision process. The table below provides an overview of the connectivity of the Leica M (Typ 240) and, in particular, the interfaces the cameras (and selected comparators) provide for accessory control and data transfer.

Input-Output Connections

		Camera Model	Hotshoe Port	Internal Mic / Speaker	Microphone Port	Headphone Port	HDMI Port	USB Port	WiFi Support	NFC Support	Bluetooth Support
1.		Leica M Typ 240	Y	stereo / mono	-	-	-	2.0	-	-	-
2.		Canon 6D	Y	mono / mono	Y	-	mini	2.0	Y	-	-
3.		Leica M10-R	Y	- / -	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-
4.		Leica M-E Typ 240	Y	mono / -	-	-	-	2.0	-	-	-
5.		Leica M10-P	Y	- / -	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-
6.		Leica M10	Y	- / -	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-
7.		Leica M Typ 262	Y	- / -	-	-	-	2.0	-	-	-
8.		Leica SL	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	full	3.0	Y	-	-
9.		Leica M9	Y	- / -	-	-	-	2.0	-	-	-
10.		Nikon D7100	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	mini	2.0	-	-	-
11.		Sony RX10	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-

Expert reviews

While the comparison of technical specifications can provide a useful overview of the capabilities of different cameras, it says nothing about, for example, the handling, responsiveness, and overall imaging quality of the M Typ 240 in practical situations. User reviews that are available, for instance, at amazon can sometimes shed light on these issues, but such feedback is all too often partial, inconsistent, and inaccurate. This is why expert reviews are important. The following table reports the overall rankings of the cameras as published by some of the major camera review sites (amateurphotographer [AP], cameralabs [CL], digitalcameraworld [DCW], dpreview [DPR], ephotozine [EPZ], photographyblog [PB]).

Review Scores

		Camera   Model	AP   score	CL   score	DCW   score	DPR   score	EPZ   score	PB   score	Camera Launch	Launch Price (USD)	Street Price
1.		Leica M Typ 240	4/5	..	..	..	4/5	..	Sep 2012	6,950
2.		Canon 6D	5/5	+ +	..	83/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Sep 2012	2,099
3.		Leica M10-R	4.5/5	..	4/5	..	..	4/5	Jul 2020	8,295
4.		Leica M-E Typ 240	..	..	..	..	..	..	Jun 2019	3,999
5.		Leica M10-P	..	..	3/5	..	..	4/5	Aug 2018	7,995
6.		Leica M10	4.5/5	..	..	..	4/5	4.5/5	Jan 2017	6,595
7.		Leica M Typ 262	..	..	..	..	..	..	Nov 2015	5,195
8.		Leica SL	4/5	..	4/5	84/100	4.5/5	4/5	Oct 2015	7,450
9.		Leica M9	..	..	..	..	4.5/5	..	Sep 2009	7,999
10.		Nikon D7100	5/5	+ +	..	85/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Feb 2013	1,199
11.		Sony RX10	5/5	+	..	80/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Oct 2013	1,299
Notes: (+ +) highly recommended; (+) recommended; (o) reviewed; (..) not available.

The review scores listed above should be treated with care, though. The ratings were established in reference to similarly priced cameras that were available in the market at the time of the review. Hence, a score should always be seen in the context of the camera's market launch date and its price, and rating-comparisons among cameras that span long time periods or concern very differently equipped models make little sense. It should also be noted that some of the review sites have over time altered the way they render their verdicts.

Camera to camera comparisons

In case you would like to check on the differences and similarities with other camera models, just use the search menu below. Alternatively, you can follow any of the listed hyperlinks for comparisons that others found interesting.

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