"Brian MacD" wrote in message
...

"Jon" wrote in message
...

you have insurance that is willing to pay for the repair to the
camera. You are extremely lucky in that case. Take advantage of it.
Since the repair is to a camera thats' 3-4 years old now, go ahead and
make plans to purchase a new one. If the repairs work out on the
original camera, great. If not, then you'll have a new one to fall
back on. Just curious though, how long did you expect to be able to
use this camera? battery availablility alone would make it due
replacing sooner or later.

Thanks Jon for these comments. I would be very pleased to have
the camcorder repaired if Sony would guarantee the repair for the
usual 90 days. But the present quotation includes a clear warning that
the reliability of the camcorder after it is repaired cannot be
guaranteed.
So this is not a repair at all, it is only a partial repair that may, or
may
not ultimately be successful. This means that the camera could break
down at any time after the repair, and no keen videographer would
ever place reliance on such a camcorder.

So what I need is a quotation from Sony to repair the camcorder
properly so that the usual 90-day guarantee can be given.
It seems that Sony are worried about the condition of the
camcorder circuit board after a solid blow, so I think the board
should be replaced so that both Sony and myself will be confident
that the camera will operate reliably after the repair.

You're not gonna get it. Live with it. As the last poster said, you are
VERY lucky to get what you're getting. It may last--relatively
speaking--forever, or it may break in 91 days, warranty or not. There are
no real guarantees in life. Nobody except me has ever paid for repairs to
anything I've dropped. If you are getting this, be thankful and take it.

jak

Battery availability is not a problem, the batteries I bought with
the camera are still sold with most of their new models. I think
a camcorder that is well looked after would last for up to 10
years.