Is a Canon Power Shot A570 worth repairing?

[slowhands]

..if Canon can't repair the camera they will give you another one, but it may not be the model you sent in. You may end up with an equivalent model that doesn't fit your housing.

Usually they as your consent before they may substitute, and sometimes offer another option, an upgrade to a much better current model at reduced price. In their mind, they are trying to satisfy the customer. However, if you have to buy a new housing, it's a nuisance.​

I called to have a camera repaired, and was told they would replace my camera with a newer, equivalent model--one that didn't have Canon U/W housing available. I ended up just buying a new camera and housing.
Ron

I'm surprised. Usually the first point of contact is a telesupport person in the Philippines who does not know much about the repair or stocking in the USA. The actual repair facility is in Elk Grove Village, Il. Usually someone there contacts you or sends email regarding your options, either replace or upgrade. Typically they offer you a choice. That's been my experience, but perhaps they have changed procedure.
I send them repairs every month, and this seldom comes up.

Getting something repaired is seldom a pleasant experience, but I think Canon (and Nikon) have outstanding support. Like any manufacturer, they only support products for a few years after end of sale, typically 4 years. Occasionally, they run out of parts before that and have to offer a substitute as described.

Why? When a product is discontinued, the maker places an end of life buy for replacement/repair parts to support it. They base it on the number sold, failure rates expected for each part, and other factors. They are careful what they buy. It's expensive, and they have to hold that inventory at the repair facility for years, so they minimize what they buy. Sometimes they run out. But you see the dilemma? Buy too much, scrap it later. Buy too little, annoy customers. They try hard to estimate properly, but unusual circumstances can interfere. Cuz it's not a perfect world.....

​

 

[Soakedlontra]

Thank you very much folks! There is a lot of food for thoughts in your replies.

I bought the camera in 2008 and after few month I had to send it to the repair man because the images had a dark spot on the top right corner. Canon fixed it free of charge...But recently after looking at the pictures that I took in Alaska, I noticed that the images have that spot again! (I can get rid of it using photoshop). It is visible when the background is light and uniform.

The thing that I don't like about this camera is that the images are not big enough. Ideally I would like a camera that could shoot in RAW or at with a definition of at least 300 dpi.

The other owner of the camera, my husband-buddy, took the housing apart and cleaned it including the buttons. The button still got stuck. If we don't using silicon all the time and keep pushing the buttons it seems that they are more likely to get stuck. So far the housing has not leaked at all.

I still think it is worth trying to repair the camera ourselves and then take it from there. When I shake it there is something inside that rattles...

 

[Bubbletrubble]

The thing that I don't like about this camera is that the images are not big enough. Ideally I would like a camera that could shoot in RAW or at with a definition of at least 300 dpi.

Did you ever try out the CHDK hack? That's what I use. I shoot in RAW most of the time with my A570. The additional delay in writing to the SD card doesn't bother me too much.
Technically speaking, there's a distinction between the resolution of a digital camera (represented in megapixels - MP) and the resolution of an image when it comes out of a printer (represented in dots per inch - dpi). This webpage explains the difference.
I suspect that you're talking about getting a camera with a higher MP rating. That's OK. The A570 is a 7.1 MP camera. It's been perfectly fine for my needs, but then again I don't feel the need to blow up images to poster size.
Don't fall into the trap of thinking that a camera with a higher MP rating will yield better quality images. Optics, attention to lighting, and the skill of the photographer contribute significantly to image quality.

The other owner of the camera, my husband-buddy, took the housing apart and cleaned it including the buttons. The button still got stuck. If we don't using silicon all the time and keep pushing the buttons it seems that they are more likely to get stuck. So far the housing has not leaked at all.

Do you soak the camera housing in fresh water following your saltwater dives? When I get home, I'll immediately do this while agitating the housing and pressing all of the buttons (to work out any sand or salt crystals that may have formed). A 30 min soak in warm water is sufficient after a day of diving.
Have you taken apart the sticky buttons and re-lubed the o-rings as indicated on Matt Geiselman's webpage? That's what it takes to keep the o-rings lubed long-term. It's really just a maintenance issue.

I still think it is worth trying to repair the camera ourselves and then take it from there. When I shake it there is something inside that rattles...

A properly functioning A570 will have a distinct sound when shaken back and forth. I would not characterize it as an overt rattling, though. That's most likely your problem.
It sounds like you'll have to take a look inside the camera. Be careful when you do this. There's a little screw "hiding" in the A/V Out slot -- in addition to all of the other ones that are exposed on the outer case. Disassembly is not for the faint of heart. Keep track of where each screw comes from. With a reasonable amount of care, I was able to replace the flex wiring (containing button actuators for the ON/OFF switch, zoom toggle, and mode selector) inside one of my A570s. At the time I didn't have any experience with digital camera repair...but I am a careful person.

Before attempting to repair my old A570, I purchased a fully working used one on Ebay. It's nice to have a backup camera in case the UW housing floods...and it helps to have a "working model" to refer to when re-assembling the old camera after the repair is completed.

Good luck!

 

[sambolino44]

OK! So I'm the aforementioned husband/buddy. Thanks to all for the helpful tips. I had not seen Matt Gieselman's website, but had already done all that myself. The problem with the housing buttons is that, despite faithfully soaking the camera after every dive, the chrome plating is coming off the brass button shafts, so they are not smooth. That's why they stick, no matter how we lubricate the O-rings. See photo 4 on Matt's page; our buttons don't look nice and shiny/silver like that; there are areas of gold/brass where the plating has come off. Even after completely re-building the housing as described, the buttons started sticking again after only two dives (again, soaking and working the buttons in fresh water for hours).

What I really need you folks to do is help me convince Soakedlontra that what we really need is a G11! That's what I'm talking 'bout!

But seriously, folks, we only spent around $300 for the A570IS/WP-DC12 rig, and as we are still learning U/W photography, I think it was more than adequate. I think we'd get more benefit from a good strobe than a camera upgrade. So, having said all that, I think a reasonable course of action would be to get a new camera similar to our old one, but with an Ikelite housing and an external strobe.

None of the "underwater" white balance settings I've seen on any camera work up here in our cold, dark, green water, so the only way to get good color is to adjust the white balance during the dive. That has worked out great, but it's more of a hassle, and you can't get those quick shots. The point is, I don't think there'd be any advantage to buying a Sealife, or a Sea&Sea "made for underwater" camera over the Canon, because their custom white balance settings are for wimpy warm-water divers. That's right. I said wimpy.

Thanks again for all the tips.

 

[Bubbletrubble]

Hmmm. I've put about 150 dives on my current Canon UW housing. My button shafts look as clean, shiny as the ones shown on Matt's webpage.
I have a buddy whose Canon UW housing for the A620 that has been working well for several hundred dives now. His button shafts look shiny as well.
Have you ever flooded your housing?
Have you ever exposed the housing to a vinegar/acidic solution?
Is there something special about the water up in the PNW that makes it particularly corrosive?

In my experience, the Canon UW housings hold up pretty darn well over time...especially when the user does the proper maintenance on the button o-rings and replaces the housing o-ring periodically.

I own an Ikelite housing for the A570. It's much heavier than the Canon housing. It works well and Ikelite is very good about supporting its products. If anything were to fail on the Ikelite housing (cracked housing, button issues, damaged lens port), I could send it in for repair. I think that Canon's attitude toward any problems with their UW housings is: Buy a new one. Besides being heavier, the only other disadvantage of the Ikelite housing is that the large lens port blocks a significant amount of the internal flash from reaching the subject (yes, even with the flash diffuser in place). That's why, if you need any kind of flash at all with the Ikelite housing (at least for the camera model that I have) one would need an external strobe.

None of the fancy, shmancy "underwater" or "aquarium" white balance settings on digital cameras are ideal for underwater use. For macro shots, this isn't an issue because the internal flash or an external strobe will yield accurate color representation with the "auto" exposure setting. For "wide angle" shots, one can set the white balance manually OR shoot in RAW (the A570 has a CHDK hack available). Color correcting in post-processing is best done with RAW photos (no compression so all captured data is available), although I have had moderate success with white-balancing JPGs (compressed images so some light information is already lost).

I hear good things about the G11. Get it if you like.

 

[reo]

Usually they as your consent before they may substitute, and sometimes offer another option, an upgrade to a much better current model at reduced price. In their mind, they are trying to satisfy the customer. However, if you have to buy a new housing, it's a nuisance.​

To their credit, Canon offered me a model that had better specs, but there wasn't a housing available for that model. The Model I was trying have repaired was an A85. It was a few years old, and I understand that Canon can't keep parts for obsolete models. It is a little troubling how quickly digital cameras become obsolete.

I'm not dissatisfied with Canon's customer service. I was just pointing out that one may be offered a different model camera if they need their camera repaired. I declined Canon's offer in my case, and bought two Canon A720 IS cameras and a housing so I would have a spare camera.

Ron

 

[Soakedlontra]

This may sound like a funny question, but does the power button (ON/OFF) feel "normal"? The button inside the case (underneath the outer button) may have failed. The flex wiring can be replaced if you can order the part online.

I think the power button looks funny as if it has 'sunk' inside the camera case.

I have opened up the camera and everything looks normal, all the wires are attached etc., but I don't know how to get to that button underneath the power button without forcing and risking to break the case. I am going to stop here for now and let my buddy to have a look at it after he comes back from work.

 

[Bubbletrubble]

I think the power button looks funny as if it has 'sunk' inside the camera case.

I have opened up the camera and everything looks normal, all the wires are attached etc., but I don't know how to get to that button underneath the power button without forcing and risking to break the case. I am going to stop here for now and let my buddy to have a look at it after he comes back from work.

You may have diagnosed the problem. If you have the courage, you could try to repair it. I would highly recommend that first you buy a used A570 on Ebay. With a working model, you can then switch out parts to see what needs to be fixed.

Based on your description, I'd say that you need to replace the flex wiring inside the camera that includes the on/off button. I replaced this part on one of my cameras in the past year. It was a fairly straightforward process...but I went slow and paid attention to details. Let me know if I can help in any way...

 

[Soakedlontra]

You may have diagnosed the problem. If you have the courage, you could try to repair it. I would highly recommend that first you buy a used A570 on Ebay. With a working model, you can then switch out parts to see what needs to be fixed.

Based on your description, I'd say that you need to replace the flex wiring inside the camera that includes the on/off button. I replaced this part on one of my cameras in the past year. It was a fairly straightforward process...but I went slow and paid attention to details. Let me know if I can help in any way...

How do I get to the flex wiring? The chips (the major components of the camera) are in the way. I tried to push the power button further down from the outside to slide it underneath the case but it would not do it.

...Do I make sense?

 

[Bubbletrubble]

How do I get to the flex wiring? The chips (the major components of the camera) are in the way. I tried to push the power button further down from the outside to slide it underneath the case but it would not do it.

...Do I make sense?

Yeah, you're making some sense...I think. Have you already removed the outer case? Be very careful doing this and don't force anything. The outer case is comprised of a front and back plastic shell. Consequently, it's very easy to chip or crack it. The flex wiring is inside the camera. You need to remove numerous screws on the outer case (prior to removing the outer case) and take off at least one metal bracket (removing the screws that hold it in place) in order to expose the flex wiring/ribbon cable of interest. This cable includes the button actuator underneath the on/off button. As I mentioned previously, it really helps to have a functional model (backup purchased on Ebay) in case you forget how things are put together.

Taking it apart, cleaning, and reassembling the camera will do absolutely nothing to solve your problem. It's not a mechanical button issue -- the actuator beneath the on/off button has failed. Therefore, the entire flex wiring/ribbon cable needs to be replaced.

A significant challenge will be finding the replacement part online. The store that I bought mine from doesn't have the part listed in its Ebay inventory anymore. I'm really not sure where to purchase it now. You might consider buying an AS-IS A570 on Ebay that has a lens error. Typically, those non-working units are less expensive. I'd be willing to bet that the flex wiring/ribbon cable that you need is still working in a "lens error" camera. If you have a properly functioning replacement part and you know what you are doing, it probably wouldn't take longer than 20 minutes to fix the issue.