How long did your digital camera last before breaking?

Hi,
I've got a 3 year old Canon A70, and am having lens problems with it
after taking 8000 photos. I'm just wondering, how long have other
peoples cameras lasted under normal, gentle use? Thanks,
Colin
colinnewsgroup at hotmail.com

 

My 4 1/2 year old Olympus C700 is still working fine. The silver
finish is just starting to wear off the corners of the case, and
the red paint around the edges of the power button has worn off.
It's got one hot pixel that shows up in low-light shots. My
database has a bit over 8500 images, and almost all were taken
by the C700. I treat it carefully, keep it in a padded bag,
have never dropped it, etc.

My brother has had two cameras in the past three years. The
first was a Canon 2.1MP point-n-shoot. It's lens recently
popped a cork. Its automatic cover popped off, exposing the
lens and sundry springs and things that really shouldn't be
hanging out. The lens won't retract when it's powered
off and the camera won't take pictures. The second was a
Konica/Minolta Z5 that lasted about a month before locking
up and going back to be fixed under warrantee.

On the other hand, I have an Olympus OM-2n that I bought in
1976 at Cameras West in Seattle. I still remember the guy
who sold it to me expecting that I would go with the cheaper
Canon AE1. Other than the battery running out three times
over the course of its life and a whole role of film not
advancing to record sunset at Monterey in 1979, the OM-2n
has never failed me. I paid $500 for it. I paid $600 in
2001 dollars for the C700, and I think I got about that much
inflation-adjusted quality.

From my very tiny knot-hole, consumer digital cameras are
designed and manufactured for a lifespan similar to personal
computers. If you get five years out of one, you're pushing
it. I suppose things are a little different with pro-level
dSLR's, but their price is closer to what I paid in 1976
dollars for that OM-2n.

Paul Allen

 

I have an old original Canon Elph (S-100) sitting on my desk
beside me.. It's about 4 years old. I just got a new
battery for it. It works fine.

I also have a Canon 10D which has given me 2 years of very
heavy service.

I had a Canon Pro90IS that I owned for a year and sold. It
never gave me problems either....

 

Late last year after the approximately 5 year old NiMH battery for
my Canon Powershot S10 was no longer able to hold a reasonable
charge it was replaced. The camera works as well today as when it
was new. It also was treated gently.

I suspect that some of Canon's cameras, such as the Powershot S
and G series (now up to S80 and G6) are built a little better than
others in Canon's lineup. Where the A70s fall I can't say. No
line of cameras ever made has been 100% failure free. The Canon
A-series might not be built as ruggedly, or you may simply have
gotten one of a very small percentage of well built cameras that was
unfortunate enough to have failed. Some others more familiar with
the A-series might know more about their life expectancy. I'd guess
that very few A70s fail as soon as yours did, but it's only a guess.

 

My Nikon 990 from 2000 is still going strong, although that of my wife
(which is used more and in damp outdoor conditions) needs a touch of
switch-cleaner on the mode switch from time to time.

Davdi

 

My old Nikon 995 have take about 30.000 photos and still working. I have use
it for more than 3 years before buy the D70 at Okt 2004.

As for the D70, I have take till now about 30.000 photos also.

Both cameras work fine, except that 2 of the 4 spare batteries of 995 have
now reduced capacity.

 

I am a complete jinx when it comes to electrical and electronic equipment.
I went through several SLR cameras in a couple of decades. My last SLR
still works with the exception of the on-board flash which gave up one day
for no apparent reason.

My digital (Olympus C2100) seems to be faring slightly better. It must be
approaching its fifth birthday. It's had one repair from Olympus, in June
last year, for what was probably a case of the famous Oly "sudden death
syndrome". Since then, and apart from that, it has worked fine.

So my limited experience is that digital cameras are at least as long lived
as SLRs. On the other hand, some people seem to be able to continue to use
the SLR donated to them by their great grandad without any problems.

For what it's worth, I am not as fastidiously careful with my camera as
other respondents. The Oly has been dropped at least once (albeit in a
padded bag) and doesn't seem to have suffered unduly from the experience.

Darn it. Why did I say all that? It's _bound_ to go wrong now.

Keith

 

Thanks for your comments everyone. I am glad that people are having
better luck than me!
Colin

 

Olympus C-3040, 4.5 years, worked perfectly, then I got a C8080
and sold the C-3040, still working perfectly.
-Rich

 

The 990 / 995 models were (are) pretty robust. My 995 would probably have as
many shots on the clock as yours! The main switch is probably the only weak
spot, sometimes needing a squirt of switch cleaner after some years. The
swivel joint - the thing you'd expect to give problems - actually seems very
tough.

Paul

 

Kodak DC4800 - works fine for a 3 to 4 year old camera.

Except the lens does not retract any more... one of the gears is
gone???

Unsure.

T.

 

All are fully functional and cosemetically excellent for their respective ages.

Nikon F Bought in 1969 still going.
Nikon N90s 5 years old
Voightlander Perkeo I 45 (?) years old
Nikon D70s 1 month.

 

Olympus C3000 bought June 2000... still in use, no problems
Olympus c2100 bought Feb 2001... still in use, hand grip came off,
developed a couple of bad pixels, both were fixed under my extended warranty
that included free cleaning & checkup.

Rina