Forcably penetrated by Canon...

Joined
Aug 4, 2009
Messages
6,234
So three weeks ago I had a 300 dollar Canon A630 randomly give me a "Lens error" upon startup and it would not function. It was the night before a huge trip so I took the camera apart to try to fix it, and in short it didn't work. So I took the opportunity to upgrade to a 500 dollar Canon A650. For a jobless guy that's no small thing. 3 weeks later, I am up in McCall, Idaho enjoying the winter wonderland at 7,000 feet when my brand new, scratchless 500 dollar Canon A650 feeds me a "lens error" message on startup. Apparently this error is only caused by the abuse of the owner and there is no way it could ever be Canon's fault, so they will only fix it at my expense. How's that for customer service? The only other tips I found on the internet involve beating it with a big stick. Thanks so much Canon, here's to you! Putting the word out about your amazing products and how you screwed a loyal customer out of 800 dollars.
 
I just got off line with kodak about my camera less then a year old, turns on then turns itself off, they have a fixed rate of 100.00 bones to repair with warranty. I feel your pain
 
many people in this forum are outdoor sporting enthusiasts and usually that includes, to varying degrees, photography. We can rant about failed survival knives, but not cameras?
 
Well my first camera, an A630, came with me down my first two whitewater rafting trips in a kayak, and got submerged (as I flipped on multiple class 4 rapids with the camera's lanyard around my wrist), dropped, saturated with sand, slept on, dripped on with booze and food, and still took awesome pictures-til it died due to obvious abuse. This new one I have kept in prestine condition, have taken maybe 200 pictures on. It immediately goes back into a 30 dollar case after I use it. It has not a scratch or flaw and looks factory new.
 
many people in this forum are outdoor sporting enthusiasts and usually that includes, to varying degrees, photography. We can rant about failed survival knives, but not cameras?

What's a "survival camera"? :D I know I probably misread that, but the concept is pretty funny.

The best advice I can give is- get a Nikon.

Please note that this is coming from the world's WORST photographer. There is a reason I don't post pictures I've taken here on the forums very often. It's because I suck at taking pictures, really bad. And the worst part is, I know enough about photography to be fully aware of just how bad I really suck.

Big ups for the thread title, by the way. :thumbup:
 
+1 on Nikon ....... Had a D60, D70S, D200 and now a D300 ...had one with a lense sensor error ....... Nikon in South Africa took it in, fixed it for free and serviced it (Africa is dusty) ....total was no charge. And that one I bought in the USA ...the international warrantee is just that ...... international!! Now Garmin ...if not bought in SA, local Garmin shop won't touch it ....... you have to ship it yourself to Garmin UK for warantee repair. -1 for Garmin in SA.

I'll stick with Nikon :D
 
What's a "survival camera"? :D I know I probably misread that, but the concept is pretty funny.

Are you kidding? Take out the mirror and use it for signaling. Take out the wiring and you have cord. Take out the battery and use it to start your fire. Chip the lens in to a "flint knife". Etc.

A compact, all-in-one survival tool! :D
 
dont forget the 30 volt flash capacitor. In case of heart attack, touch here. I should know, I've done it, and it just about stopped mine.
 
I have a Canon 20D that worked like a charm for 5 years until I got an "Err 99" this last 4th of July. It was obviously out of warranty so I contacted a repair outfit in California who agreed to look at it for a minimum of around $60. It would cost me more than $500 to replace, so I figured why not.

Sent it into the camera repair place, and they couldn't replicate the problem. We theorize that the camera got a bit of gunk in it that prevented the shutter from operating correctly, which is what "Err 99" means on a Canon 20D. Shipping the camera to them probably got the gunk dislodged. So I had them give the camera a good cleaning and then send it back to me. I haven't had a problem since. My total expense was $90, including shipping.

Cameras are delicate instruments. If you take them banging around in the great outdoors, they can break. I'm not saying that the problems the OP experienced are excusable, but I am saying that one ought to either be very careful with their camera while in the bush, or use a really cheap (inexpensive) camera you won't care about if it gets damaged or destroyed.

By the way, Canon has been known in the past for quality control problems. Therefore, any Canon camera you want to take into the outdoors might well be worth the cost of an extended warranty.

Before my 20D I had a Canon AE-1. Worked like a charm through many many adventures. I'm happy enough with Canon gear that my next camera, which I want for hiking/backpacking, will probably be a Canon Powershot G11. (It's what I want for Christmas.) If I have any problems with it, I'll let you know.
 
My mom just recieved her G11, she's excited about it. I just can't fathom how it happened to me twice in three weeks... or that I am now 500 dollars short, jobless and it wasn't my fault. I'm still in complete disbelief over it.
 
Not real charmed by the thread title myself. But I'll just shift this to Gadgets & Gear instead of Whine & Cheese.

If the camera had a built-in woodchipper I might have left it in W&SS ...
 
Less than 30 days and it failed? Why don't you skip Canon and take it back to the store you bought it at, it should make into any reasonable return policy.
 
It was a closeout, they don't make the camera anymore and now that I look on froogle I don't see anyone who is even selling it anymore... one more reason why this hurts so bad, the camera took such amazing pictures...
 
Are you kidding? Take out the mirror and use it for signaling. Take out the wiring and you have cord. Take out the battery and use it to start your fire. Chip the lens in to a "flint knife". Etc.

A compact, all-in-one survival tool! :D

If it is a non-SLR digital point and shoot, does it have a mirror?
 
my HD fuji camera broke, and ya think i had any luck with the warranty? NO. Warranties are a waste of time and money.

I feel your pain Payette.....
 
Another vote for Nikon here,this didn't happen with a camera,it was a pair of binoculars that I bought used.There was something floating around in them when you looked through them,I guess the previous owner never checked on warranty.When I got them,I called Nikon to see what it would cost to get them fixed,they told me,all it would be was the cost of shipping.I sent them to Nikon,they reconditioned them for no charge.:D
 
PayetteRucker, try removing the batteries and see if that helps. Next run a software reset on the camera. If that still doesn't fix the problem try removing the little button cell battery that keeps the settings menu going between battery changes. Think of it as a CMOS IE Bios battery for cameras. My Canon A530 acted up once. I pulled the batteries and button cell, it reset everything to factory default and now works flawlessly. Worth a shot IMO.



BTW Olympus makes some cameras that are water proof up to 30 feet, have a 5 foot drop hight, work in sandy enviroments and don't cost more then $500. They don't take a good a picture as any Canon A series I know, but they do take descent pictures and are very hard to kill. Check them out at your local retailer.

Heber
 
Back
Top