The other day I went to take a picture of Howard and Linda and my faithful Canon G9 Powershot turned on and the lens came out but nothing happened when I pushed the shutter button. Nothing. I turned the camera off and still nothing. The lens would not close and I would get "lens error reset the camera". Since Linda and Howard were ready to leave I snapped a quick shot of the group with my IPhone. I continued to fiddle with the camera, changing batteries, changing settings etc, nothing. The camera is about 3 years old and I had recently considered getting a newer one but after looking a bit I didn't find anything that was as good as what I have. It was still working fine so I decided I really didn't need a new one..then.
My next step was to get on the internet and look at some forums to see if I could trouble shoot the problem. The Power Shot G9 was a brand new model when I purchased it in 2008, and there wasn't much data on it back then. Not so now. Much to my amazement, I was not alone with my particular issue. It seems the lens error is a very common one and Canon will not own up to the problem. They claim the problem is due to abuse. The real problem is tiny little screws work their way lose inside the camera rattle around and short out the fuse or damage the mother board. I've taken this camera hiking, cycling, kayaking, backpacking, on airplanes, and its been bumped around and so it was amazing to me that my old friend hadn't acted up prior this.
Joel and I took the camera apart per the web site "who killed my G9" and sure enough there was a lose screw. We put the camera back together and.....nothing. I checked on what a new G9 would cost through Amazon. Cameras usually go down in price, but this one has more than doubled in price! Heh? I read several reviews of a company in Texas that will fix the camera for less than $100.00 so I called them. In short, I agreed to send the camera off to them for repairs which they guarantee for a year. Their fee includes replacing fuses, mother boards, and any necessary adjustments. While I was on the phone with them they asked me to look at the bottom of the camera to check for two screws that usually go missing. Sure enough those two screws were gone along with one other.
So why am I writing this long blog on a potentially dead camera? I find it incredulous that Canon will not own up to the fact that all they needed to do was put some lock tight on their screws. The newer Powershot G10s and up do not have this problem, but do have a myriad of other issues. Also, if you own a G9 I hope you have a back up camera because your G9 could quit anytime. Like I said I am amazed my didn't quit sooner.
Fortunately, I have an old, old, Pentax Optica (2003) that I kept for a back up that still works. It takes special batteries, which I only have one of so I'll have to be careful to keep it charged. It's so old that the largest cards I could buy at the time were 512 MB. The IPhone is fine for snap shots but I find it really hard to see the screen to know what I am shooting.
I'll do another post when my G9 is returned to me. Keep you fingers crossed!!
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