I've been reading DPReview and Sony Alpha Rumours, and I'm totally down with all the people that say that the SL looks just like a Sony A7. Leica TOTALLY copied Sony. Yep, the SL is a direct copy of the A7 and A7ii. Copy, copy, copy! Copy! (Say it enough and you start to believe it!) It's mirrorless. It's 24 megapixels. It has an interchangeable lens mount. It has a shutter button. It has some dials. Check. Check. Check.
But don't take everyone's else's opinions about it. Take mine. I've compiled an exhaustive list of photos that prove that the SL is an A7ii clone.
Note: sizes are not to scale.
Exhibit A: the front
Nothing says copy like a larger body, a larger, less contour-y grip, the removal of that plastic bird-finger strip, the complete relocation of the front dial, the removal of the on/off switch, the removal of the AF lamp from the right to the left side, the compacting of the viewfinder hump, the hiding of the lugs, and of course... of course... of course: the changing of the model name. Oh, and much, much more. Pish posh, Leica. Such flagrant copying.
Exhibit B: the back
Shit has hit the fan. Look at that. Nothing says copy like a rounded, not squircled eye cup, a back-mounted on/off button, a joystick, the removal of like 7 buttons and like fifteen jarring labels (including a Sony label on the screen), the removal of the rear dial to where it is on the M, S, and Q cameras, the depressing of the accessory/flash port inside the body like the M, Q, and S cameras, the lack of flip-out screen, no labels on anything but the on/off switch, the thumb hook, concealed lugs... the list goes on. Pish posh, Leica. Such flagrant copying.
Exhibit C: the top
OMG. OMG. OMG. Look at that flagrant copying bitch. Leica: hiding your copying by adding an LCD (as seen on the S since 2009), removing the mode dial, the exposure comp dial, the on/off switch, withdrawing the lugs into the body, re-pinning the flash port, integrating the diopter into the eye cup housing, moving the movie button and whatever that silver thing is BEHIND the exposure dial. The list could go on forever. Pish posh.
Exhibit D: lug-side
Son of a bitch! Nothing says copy like the removal of a gaudy orange CMOS sensor label, the squarifying of the lugs, the boxifying of the profile, the removal of screws, the smoothing out of the shutter button, and more. Pish posh, Leica, your incessant copying disgusts me.
...
You know how when you get to the end of an essay and you realise you have totally changed your mind? Someone once said it's a sign of intelligence. But, strangely, I don't see it around the camera forums and rumour sites much.
And, while I may not speak, write, or read well, I reckon that there's more to the SL than just what the internet says. I mean, if I was strapped into a chair and a rat was coming to bite my nose off and bury into my skull if I didn't say so, I'd say something like: "the Leica SL is totally a Sony A7ii copy! It is! I don't care about the truth anymore!"
But I see no rats (not at this site anyway) and the only cage around these parts is the lovely Oppo PM-2 setting on my ears.