Waaaahhhhh!!! My camera died....

[Snowbear]

My little Pentax Optio S50 bit the big one. The LCD "froze up" with the lens open and extended out form the body of the camera. It would not even shut off. When this happened before, I took the batteries out and replaced them (same batteries as they had a full charge) and was able to shut the camera off and back on and it worked. This time, the green light will come on, but the display stays blank, it doesn't make any startup noises and it still won't shut down or close itself. I'm sending it in to Pentax for warranty repair, but they say it will be 3-4 weeks repair time, plus shipping.....

Guess I won't be posting any pics of next weekend's dives....

:17: :17: :17:

 

[Kim]

Hey Snowbear! I don't know this camera but I would suggest one thing. Check the manual and see if there is a master reset button somewhere (often it's a small hole that you have to use a pin to press). If there is one - it might work and is definitely worth a try. Doing it is also perfectly 'legal' under a warranty so if it doesn't work you can still send it to Pentax.

 

[Snowbear]

Thanks for the tip... I checked the manual and found nothing about a master reset button and the only small holes I see are the microphone.

:17: :17: :17:

 

[chugmeister]

Thanks for the tip... I checked the manual and found nothing about a master reset button and the only small holes I see are the microphone.

:17: :17: :17:

Check out page 121 of the manual. It addresses resetting to default settings. One other option might be to download a firmware update from their website and install it to the camera which would force a "reset". Just a though. Good luck.

 

[Snowbear]

Check out page 121 of the manual. It addresses resetting to default settings. One other option might be to download a firmware update from their website and install it to the camera which would force a "reset". Just a though. Good luck.

Yeah - I found the reset the settings. The problem seems to be a hardware thing though.

Just 'cause, I tried putting batteries in it and was able to get it to shut down.
So I took it diving.... it worked perfectly. Maybe it works better under pressure

I'm gonna take it diving again this weekend, but I don't imagine my luck will hold out much longer. It's still under warranty, so I'll send it back to Pentax next week.

 

[Uncle Pug]

Bummer. Sorry to hear that. How does your camera do on battery life, btw?

 

[Snowbear]

Bummer. Sorry to hear that. How does your camera do on battery life, btw?

Fresh or almost fresh batteries will last for a 60-70 minute dive (the most I can usually get out of a buddy) taking 40+ pics with the flash. It hasn't gone dead in that time, but the little battery indicator will have been red for some time.

I found with the NiMH batteries, they need to be charged up if they've been sitting for more than a day or two as they tend to lose charge just sitting. I got a small inverter for the boat so I can keep them hot during the trip this weekend

 

[diverwannabe]

bummer - I'd loan you my HP but I don't think it'll fit in your case.

My little Pentax Optio S50 bit the big one. The LCD "froze up" with the lens open and extended out form the body of the camera. It would not even shut off. When this happened before, I took the batteries out and replaced them (same batteries as they had a full charge) and was able to shut the camera off and back on and it worked. This time, the green light will come on, but the display stays blank, it doesn't make any startup noises and it still won't shut down or close itself. I'm sending it in to Pentax for warranty repair, but they say it will be 3-4 weeks repair time, plus shipping.....

Guess I won't be posting any pics of next weekend's dives....

:17: :17: :17:

 

[Wishful Diver]

Hope you get it working. It's never a good time to have camera trouble, but especially not this weekend.