Can chime in here with some history with the Rollei. I got my first SLR (6003) in 1993, and was quite happy with it through the 1990s and early 2000s. Bought the 60mm Curtagon to go with the 80 at that time. Upgraded to the 6008AF and used with DP20 back with reasonable success, although struggled a bit with the batteries, and back/camera coordination. Every time someone said the factory was dying, another lens would be heavily discounted and added to the family. At one time had about 10 lenses...down to about 5 now (60, 80AF, 150 telexenar, 150 f4.5, 250). Largely prefer the manual lenses to the AF, as more robust. With focus confirmation on the Hy6 they are quite easy to use.
When the Hy6 came out, both Eric and I were pretty excited about it, and got ours (mod 1) at about the same time. Improvements were better battery relationship (got mine with a Leaf AFI II7 back and shared same battery type - factory would give you a choice of which battery to put in the handle). Liked the communication with the back (very nice), revised mirror (less slap) and generally about 1 stop more for handholding. The camera was a bit more compact, less vertical, more horizontal in shape, kind of like a Hassy but now with all the up-to-date electronics. Took some time to understand how to dial in each lens offset, which is a godsend for accurate focusing. AF and focus confirmation was much better too. All in all, it was a huge improvement, although it is a bit more fragile than the 6008. So the Hy6 is better but not as familiar (?) as the 6003/8. If I was still just shooting film, I might in fact go back. But for digital, the Hy6 is steps ahead.
Largely still use the Mod1, which has been back to the factory for updating, and recently, a new mother board and focus repair (its 9 years old). Us the camera largely with a Leaf Credo 60, picked up from a dealer who had it as a demo and was forced to sell or send back to Kodak (in one of the complex Leaf:Kodak
hase interfaces) for pennies, so the price was way less than one might ever have thought. Have used the back extensively since then - its quite lovely. The integration isn't as good as the AFI II with the Hy6, and has to be externally rotated, but the image quality is lovely - especially at base ISO.
Overall, quite fond of the Hy6 as a system camera, with its remarkable flexibility - from macro to tele, handheld to studio. My complaints are largely with the form factor - the handle makes it hard to pack and travel with (its an awkward shape), but the ergonomics and flexibility of the system are quite extensive and there is a lot to grow into. Its been hand-held to low speeds (1/30) with mirror lock up easily available, been to jungles and mountains. These days its a bit heavy to haul around (and other smaller gear has improved a lot) but the Schneider glass is exceptional. Have recently enjoyed the inexpensive Zeiss 250, much smaller than the Schneider 300, and easily walkable, and at f8/11, just as sharp. So there is a lot of joy still to be found in the system. Have not put much film through it tho....
Have dealt with Eric a lot over the years, and recommend him. His knowledge is extensive, very much so, and his understanding and appraisal of the gear is exceptional. He's a great boon to the community. The factory has been responsive over the years, with the same key staff at the top (the top 4 folks stay with this). I think there is enough base business to keep them operating, although major manufacturing is not likely. Modest small runs are tho, it seems. They have been quite responsive to service for all the years, even as recently as a few months ago. Quite happy with them - its personalized smaller scale. Hope this all helps.
