Originally posted by joakimfors Edit: Damn, searching for USM/SWM failures brings up a lot of threads with the same content as the SDM threads around here, just replace Pentax with Canon or Nikon. Seems like the camera/lens manufacturers have decided to build stuff with parts that will fail after "length of warranty + 1 week" so that they can collect a lot of money on repairs.
Sorry, nice try, but I am calling BS on this. I just typed in "USM failure" as you suggested, on the largest Canon forum on the net. Not one report of USM failure in the top 50 search return posts. I haven't tried Nikon, but I'll bet it will be the same story. Canon has been doing USM for 25 years, and
all Canon lenses made since then are USM (The good ones ring-type, the cheaper models, ultrasonic micromotor).
I have been browsing the Canon forums for a few months every once and a while to see what things were like there, and I still haven't read a report of USM failure that wasn't due to lens damage. There are 239,349 members there, and 9,331,353 posts, so I think it is a pretty good sample size. That is 10 times larger than our forum here, where posts about SDM failures are almost as common as "what lens should I get?" Nope, USM failure is not a common Canon problem. There are other things Canon fans complain about, but USM is not one of them.
Look, I am still a big Pentax fan, but I have become even more anti-fanboy than Gary. I am just callin' 'em like I see 'em.