Today, Leica has released a firmware update for the new M11 digital rangefinder. The minor update includes some bug fixes and general performance improvements. We definitely recommend updating your camera to the latest firmware.
With the introduction of the M11 and the latest Leica FOTOS 3.0 app, in addition to standard download and install process from an SD card, you can also update via the app. Bear in mind that at press time, M11 support is still in Beta, and some users may not be able to properly connect. I'm sure this will be ironed out in the next FOTOS versions.
Download M11 Firmware v1.2.1.0
To download the firmware file, simply click the button below. You'll need to drag and drop the downloaded firmware file onto an SD card which was freshly formatted in the M11, then insert the card into your Leica M11 with a fully charged battery. Navigate to the Camera Information menu to access the firmware update option. Don't try to open the firmware file on your computer – just copy it onto the SD card into the root directory.
How to Update
EXECUTING A FIRMWARE UPGRADE
Any interruption of a running firmware update may cause serious and irreparable damage to your equipment!
You will therefore have to take particular note of the following, when carrying out a firmware update:
- Do not switch off the camera!
- Do not remove the memory card!
- Do not remove the rechargeable battery!
- Do not remove the lens!
Notes
- A warning message will appear if the battery is insufficiently charged. Recharge the battery and then repeat the process described above.
- You will find additional device and country-specific registration marks and numbers in the Camera Information submenu.
PREPARATION
- Fully charge and insert the rechargeable battery
- Any stored firmware files on the memory card must be removed
- We recommend saving any images on the memory card and reformatting it before the update.
(Caution: Loss of data! All data stored on the memory card will be lost during formatting.) - Make sure to back up any files saved to the internal memory as a precaution.
- We recommend saving any images on the memory card and reformatting it before the update.
- Download the latest firmware version
- Save the download to the memory card
- The firmware file must be stored in the main directory of the memory card (not in a sub-directory).
- Insert the memory card into the camera
- Switch the camera on
UPDATING THE CAMERA FIRMWARE
- Preparation (see steps above)
- Select Camera Information in the main menu
- Select Camera Firmware Version
- Select Firmware Update
- A prompt with information about the camera is displayed.
- Check the version information
- Select Yes
- The prompt: “Do you want to save profiles on SD card?” appears.
- Select Yes/No
- The update will start automatically.
- The lower status LED will flash during this process.
- Once the process has completed successfully, a relevant message will appear and the camera will restart.
Notes
- Date & time, as well as the preferred language will have to be set up again after the restart. Relevant prompts will appear on screen.
- After the update procedure and before restarting the camera, the SD card has to be removed from the camera. The camera can be switched on again without the SD card for the first start after the update. The SD card needs to be formatted before reinserting it into the camera.
I waited for the official firmware to drop on their site today, as while you are connected to Leica, it’s not good security practice to download and install software from a third-party site (and who is Ludwig, may I ask?)
I did encounter an issue after the firmware was installed and the camera power-cycled: it would get stuck and unresponsive. I fixed this by removing the SD card and reformatting it outside the camera. Presumably the firmware update on the card, or possibly the user profiles it asked me to save on it before the upgrade, were giving it heartburn.
Understand your concerns. Ludwig is the internal codename of the camera. We host the firmware files since Leica has a bad habit of moving or removing the files. This allows our users to find and download older versions of firmware that Leica no longer provides access to.