I was a happy owner of the Sekonic L-358 Flash meter right up until the day that I dropped it. As I am not a photographer who wishes to rely on my camera for light readings, I knew that I was going to buy a replacement meter. For my needs, I looked between a straight-up replacement of the L-358 and the L-478D. I decided to go for the newer L478D as the newer features struck me as something that I could grow into.
My problem with this device is not how well it works but it's design. Quite frankly, I find the touch screen design to be awkward to easily control/use. Versus pressing the buttons and spinning the scroll wheel of the older L-358, the touch screen buttons are small and very easy to mis-touch. It can be frustrating because my thumb all too often covers the reading display while I am trying to get a reading because the display is placed in the center of the scroll arrows.
It's not that I am opposed to touch screen control, but this is a device that small enough that it 100% touch screen control is impractical. In my opinion, it is an item/device that could have been better served with a combination of touch screen features while keeping some mechanical features like a manual scroll wheel on the side of the device.
My other problem with this device is that I really feel as though I was getting less product for more money. My first reason for this is that a Reflected Light Attachment was not included as part of this product's overall package. While I never used the Reflected Light Attachment frequently when I had it with the L-358, I did use it and it seemed to be an appropriate part of the overall meter package. Now it seems that the company is just trying to up-sell a 5 degree spot viewfinder for an additional $100 (approx).
My second reason is because the device uses AAA batteries versus the CR123A Lithium Battery for the the L-358 and the battery drain on this device is substantial.
It's tough to write this because I like Sekonic products and I don't want to give the impression that I think that it's a bad product as I am using it and have been happy with the results I am getting in my photographs. That said, it's just a bit too much tech in its interface design and, given a chance to do it all over again, I would have stayed with the L-358.
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