If you’re looking for a fixed lens camera that will surely turn more heads than the X100VI, Leica Philippines has officially made the Q3 43 fixed-lens camera available in the country in time for its 10th anniversary. Like any Leica camera, the Q3 43 is going to cost you an arm and a leg—but let’s talk about pricing later.
The new model is meant to complement the existing Q3, which has a 28mm fixed lens. As the name implies, what makes the Q3 43 different is its 43mm f/2.0 APO-Summicron lens, making it the first Q series camera to not use a 28mm lens as you’d find on most fixed lens cameras. The focal length may be uncommon, but Leica Philippines explained to us that the decision to use a 43mm focal length is that it is said to be the closest to the human eyes’ field of view.
Like the regular Q3, the Q3 43 uses a 60-megapixel BSI sensor that can crop in 36-megapixel and 18-megapixel resolution for digital zooming. The sensor has a native ISO range of 50 to 100000, while its Hybrid AF system combines PDAF with Contrast Detection and Object detection. While the Q3 43 is a stills-first camera, you can shoot videos with it at up to 8K resolution. Aside from USB-C charging, you can also charge the Q3 43 wirelessly.
To distinguish itself from the regular Q3, the Q3 43 has a grey leatherette body, but we saw an orange leatherette model at the Leica Store. Despite the different focal length, the Q3 43 has approximately the same size and weight as the regular Q3 with a 28mm lens.
The Leica Q3 43 is priced at Php 434,565 in the Philippines.