I have a Sony camcorder that is about 3 years old. The camcorder
hit some concrete quite heavily after I fell while still holding the
camcorder. A Sony Service Center gave me an estimate of
several hundred dollars to repair the camcorder, but said the
reliability of the repair work cannot be guaranteed. In normal
circumstances, Sony give a 3 months guarantee on their repair
work.

It seems that, although Sony can repair the parts that have been
visibly damaged as a result of the accident, there may be
continuing problems from other components of the camcorder.
Can anyone please explain to me whether it would be sensible
to have the repairs carried out in these circumstances? Does
anyone know the types of ongoing problems that you might
have from a camcorder that has been dropped, even after
repairs have been made to the parts that were visibly damaged?
Are there many very small components of a camcorder that
could have been damaged even though this is not evident
from an initial examination of the damaged camcorder?

Thanks for your help.

Brian

Brian MacD wrote:
I have a Sony camcorder that is about 3 years old.

Batteries are shot...

Time for a new one!

The camcorder
hit some concrete quite heavily after I fell while still holding the
camcorder.

Poor thing!

A Sony Service Center gave me an estimate of
several hundred dollars to repair the camcorder, but said the
reliability of the repair work cannot be guaranteed. In normal
circumstances, Sony give a 3 months guarantee on their repair
work.

"Several" you say. Well "A couple" means two; so "several" means 3 or
more...

Spend $300 for repair work on Electronics in this day and age?

Replace it...

$400 will buy you a DV cabcorder with a Firewire interface, and probably
USB 2 too.

For another $100 the ability to use some sort of a memory card or stick
is added.

Almost any brand you want. Watch the sales, and close-outs and you're
likely to even find Sony in that price range.

It seems that, although Sony can repair the parts that have been
visibly damaged as a result of the accident, there may be
continuing problems from other components of the camcorder.

Like head alignment!

Can anyone please explain to me whether it would be sensible
to have the repairs carried out in these circumstances?

Not in my humble opinion.

Does
anyone know the types of ongoing problems that you might
have from a camcorder that has been dropped, even after
repairs have been made to the parts that were visibly damaged?

After all the cracked plastic is replaced, internally who knows?
Anything from cracked printed circuit boards, to bent metal brackets,
misalignment in the video heads and possibly in some switches, etc.

Who knows!?!!

The thing could decide to eject the tape for no reason, because it
thought you opened the door - due to a misaligned switch or sensor...

How to you demagnetize a thing? Smack it. Drop it. Whack it!

Are there many very small components of a camcorder that
could have been damaged even though this is not evident
from an initial examination of the damaged camcorder?

Plenty!

Thanks for your help.

Brian

Good luck.

Sincerely,

Jack

"Jack Edin" wrote in message
...
snip

Are there many very small components of a camcorder that
could have been damaged even though this is not evident
from an initial examination of the damaged camcorder?

Plenty!

Thanks very much Jack for your reply. Can anyone give me
some more examples of the types of small components that
could have been damaged that would not have been noticed
in an inspection of the camcorder? Although I agree that
it seems more logical to replace the camcorder than to
repair it, prices are somewhat more expensive in Australasia
than in the UK or USA. The main problem is that my insurance
company, despite the no guarantee warning from Sony, wants
the repairs undertaken and has said that, if the repairs fail, they
will pay for further repairs to be done. The insurance company
is most reluctant to pay for a replacement camera until the repair
option has been tried out. My concern is that, if the camera
fails after being repaired, the insurance company could say that
this is from normal wear and tear. I just can't understand why
an insurance company won't heed the advice of Sony that, even
after the repairs have been done, the reliability of the camcorder
cannot be guaranteed!

Brian

"Brian MacD" wrote in message
...

"Jack Edin" wrote in message
...
snip

Are there many very small components of a camcorder that
could have been damaged even though this is not evident
from an initial examination of the damaged camcorder?

Plenty!

Thanks very much Jack for your reply. Can anyone give me
some more examples of the types of small components that
could have been damaged that would not have been noticed
in an inspection of the camcorder? Although I agree that
it seems more logical to replace the camcorder than to
repair it, prices are somewhat more expensive in Australasia
than in the UK or USA. The main problem is that my insurance
company, despite the no guarantee warning from Sony, wants
the repairs undertaken and has said that, if the repairs fail, they
will pay for further repairs to be done. The insurance company
is most reluctant to pay for a replacement camera until the repair
option has been tried out. My concern is that, if the camera
fails after being repaired, the insurance company could say that
this is from normal wear and tear. I just can't understand why
an insurance company won't heed the advice of Sony that, even
after the repairs have been done, the reliability of the camcorder
cannot be guaranteed!

Brian



Any of the parts could have been damaged, as someone else said, the chassis
may have been warped. That said, if insurance is paying for it, have the
thing repaired, what have you got to lose? If the repair fails, buy a new
one.

"James Sweet" wrote in message
news:RLxXc.11498$%11.5452@trnddc02...

Any of the parts could have been damaged, as someone else said, the
chassis
may have been warped. That said, if insurance is paying for it, have the
thing repaired, what have you got to lose? If the repair fails, buy a new
one.

The main thing you are losing is the overall reliability of the camcorder.
This is very important, because who wants to have a camcorder fail
while you are on holiday or miss getting video that cannot be repeated,
such as a special family occasion. I have been warned by Sony that
they will not guarantee the overall reliability of the camcorder, even
though they would no doubt stand by the reliability of the particular
parts that they replace. So if through a hairline crack in the board
that eventually gets worse my camcorder fails when I am taking
video that cannot be refilmed, I would only have myself to blame.

If the repair fails, you would need a written guarantee from the
insurance company that they will either repair it again or provide
a replacement camcorder. Further repairs could be very expensive
if you need to replace the board. So it seems far more logical
with an expensive repair job to abandon the camcorder at the
earliest opportunity and replace it with one that you can rely on.
Believe me, there is nothing worse than filming with an unreliable
camcorder if you are an avid movie enthusiast filming events that
cannot be repeated! Having confidence in your equipment is
an important part of satisfying movie making.

"Brian MacD" wrote in message
...

"James Sweet" wrote in message
news:RLxXc.11498$%11.5452@trnddc02...

Any of the parts could have been damaged, as someone else said, the
chassis
may have been warped. That said, if insurance is paying for it, have the
thing repaired, what have you got to lose? If the repair fails, buy a
new
one.

The main thing you are losing is the overall reliability of the camcorder.
This is very important, because who wants to have a camcorder fail
while you are on holiday or miss getting video that cannot be repeated,
such as a special family occasion. I have been warned by Sony that
they will not guarantee the overall reliability of the camcorder, even
though they would no doubt stand by the reliability of the particular
parts that they replace. So if through a hairline crack in the board
that eventually gets worse my camcorder fails when I am taking
video that cannot be refilmed, I would only have myself to blame.


The bottom line is if it works for a few days after it was repaired, then it
will probably keep working until something else fails that would have failed
regardless of the drop.

The tape path in a rotary head machine like a camcorder is a very
finicky thing to adjust. I would worry that the camcorder chassis
got warped during the fall which would misalign the various rollers
and guides. I have a Hi8 Sony VCR which always mistracks slightly,
producing white dots on the screen, until I prop one corner up
momentarily, and then it tracks well after that. Why not just buy
a new camcorder?

Albert

Brian MacD ) wrote:
: I have a Sony camcorder that is about 3 years old. The camcorder
: hit some concrete quite heavily after I fell while still holding the
: camcorder. A Sony Service Center gave me an estimate of
: several hundred dollars to repair the camcorder, but said the
: reliability of the repair work cannot be guaranteed. In normal
: circumstances, Sony give a 3 months guarantee on their repair
: work.

: It seems that, although Sony can repair the parts that have been
: visibly damaged as a result of the accident, there may be
: continuing problems from other components of the camcorder.
: Can anyone please explain to me whether it would be sensible
: to have the repairs carried out in these circumstances? Does
: anyone know the types of ongoing problems that you might
: have from a camcorder that has been dropped, even after
: repairs have been made to the parts that were visibly damaged?
: Are there many very small components of a camcorder that
: could have been damaged even though this is not evident
: from an initial examination of the damaged camcorder?

: Thanks for your help.

: Brian