Leica has issued a firmware update for the Leica M9 full-frame digital rangefinder camera. Version 1.176 enables M9 owners to use “any SD card that is in accordance with the respective standards”, with practically no restrictions. While stressing that “it is impossible to test the compatibility of every single card of every single supplier”, Leica now says that all SD cards manufactured by SanDisk should function properly in the M9 once the firmware update is installed (when the previous firmware version was released, the company “mistakenly stated” that San Disk Extreme Pro SDHC I UHS-I and San Disk Extreme HD Video SDHC I memory cards might not be compatible with the camera). You can download Version1.176 from the website below.

Website: Leica

Leica Press Release

A firmware update (1.176) eliminating a rare fault occurring during the initialization of the cards will be available for downloading as of Dec. 6th, 2011.

Continued testing has revealed that the function faults registered in the earlier tests were not due to the SD cards.

As a result, we would like to revoke the constrictions made with respect to the compatible cards. Generally speaking, the Leica M9/M9-P is compatible with any SD card that is in accordance with the respective standards. Unfortunately, it is impossible to test the compatibility of every single card of every single supplier.

All cards available from SanDisk have been compatibility-tested and the firmware version 1.1.76 ensures their proper function.

We would explicitly like to thank SanDisk for their intensive technical support while searching for the cause of the fault and express our regrets for having mistakenly stated that certain SanDisk cards may not be compatible with the firmware version 1.174.

Furthermore, we would like to thank all affected customers for their patience and their positive support in searching for the cause of the fault.

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