Leica used to say that the former version didn’t need to be aspheric, but finally they made it aspherical with the release of the M8. While the former version was soft and wet, this new version came out completely different. I gather they updated it for digital use. It’s extremely sharp wide open, and it’s dry and serious. Except for the depth of field, picture quality isn’t affected by the aperture, which is a very modern character. It’s much more compact than the former version, and this may be due to the aspherical design. This lens fits best with the R-D1 or the M8 as an everyday-shooting lens.