[bc_the_path]

I bought a K100D more than six months ago.
I always had some "dust" on the sensor which could not be cleaned.
I have posted about this in this forum. In retrospect, I see that one of the persistent spots had been present on the very first photo taken with this camera. The original pef file is available for "forensic" inspection!

A local camera repair facility diagnosed the dust was underneath the protective layer of the sensor. I have examined it under a stereomicroscope and it was clearly under the surface. Official Pentax camera service (run by someone regarded as "the master" of the camera repair people here in my country) agreed. The Turkish Distributor has sent the camera to Pentax Europe (Germany). I am grateful to them.

Guess what! An official from Pentax Europe just said "the camera is destroyed beyond repair" and offered either to return it or discard it. (I have a copy of the message to the distributor).

I was surprized because I was using the camera normally and I was just cloning the dusty area when it was distracting (narrow aperture, bright background..). How come it could be labelled as "destroyed"?

I have written them and supplied the very first and the very last (about 3000th) photo. I said that I have failed to understand what they were saying. Not surprisingly, they did not answer.

I have 3 Pentax cameras and more than 10 lenses. I have seriously considered jumping ship. However, the people I have consulted said that this "user-ignorant" attitude is just the same for the other brands. So I stay on the ship. But, I am broken.

My final decisions are these:
- Do not regard Pentax (as a company, brand or "entity") as any different from the rest of the bunch.
- Brand loyalty is not deserved by the brands; it is an illusion which can only make someone happier for some time.
- Do not talk about your gadget if it is not absolutely necessary, talk about your photographs only.
- Keep yourself away from sites run by or attached to the brand which ignores you.

In my case, I will remove all references to Pentax from my communications and I will stop mentioning the brand.

A company that fails to just "respond" to a loyal customer does not deserve praise...

[JCSullivan]

I sympathise with you. You said the distributor sent the camera back and that they had agreed with the diagnostics so what's the problem with Pentax? Shouldn't this also be covered by their warranty. Are there no Consumer protection laws in Turkey?

But you said,

Do not talk about your gadget if it is not absolutely necessary, talk about your photographs only.

You should always be doing this. The camera takes the picture. YOU make the photograph. Brand doesn't matter.

[Peter Zack]

I'd go to the source and write Pentax Japan. Provide them with the pictures and see what they say. Maybe if you're lucky you can have the European guy's slapped by head office. This does clearly seem like a case for a warranty claim and they should clean/replace the sensor. You could also try an email to Pentax USA which has been good responding to me over the years.

[stewart_photo]

(snip) Guess what! An official from Pentax Europe just said "the camera is destroyed beyond repair" and offered either to return it or discard it. (I have a copy of the message to the distributor). (snip)

This is simply a standard reply (a form) saying the camera is damaged beyond repair (they cannot fix it) and asking what you want done about it. You'll clearly want the camera returned and should say so in your reply.

Once the camera arrives, you'd normally be expected to send it to a Pentax repair facility located either in your own country or in the country where the camera was originally purchased by you (not an unofficial distributer). If the camera is still under warranty, one of those will be able to replace it. Pentax Germany cannot do so unless the camera was purchased by you in Germany.

If there are no Pentax repair facilities in your country, or you cannot return it to the country where it was originally purchased, you could try obtaining warranty service using the Pentax International Service Network. You can find information about that in the paperwork included with your camera and here.

stewart

[stewart_photo]

(snip) Maybe if you're lucky you can have the European guy's slapped by head office. This does clearly seem like a case for a warranty claim and they should clean/replace the sensor. You could also try an email to Pentax USA which has been good responding to me over the years.

Read the warranty included with your camera. It is valid only in the country where the camera was originally purchased. To obtain warranty service outside the country where the camera was originally purchased, one needs to have a Pentax International Service Network warranty card. The paperwork included with your camera describes the process of obtaining that Pentax ISN card.

Contrary to what this gentleman (the original poster) says, there is no central office in Europe, so Pentax Germany is not Pentax Europe. Instead, each country in Europe (Germany, UK, France, Italy, Spain, etc) has a distributer servicing only the residents of that specific country. Likewise, Pentax USA services only the residents of the USA. This gentleman is from Turkey and, as far as I know, there is no Pentax distributer in Turkey (none listed on the Pentax Japan website).

stewart

[Peter Zack]

My mistake, I assumed the distributor sent it back to the source and that was the authorized repair center for him or his country. You are indeed correct about the warranty and place for repairs. I just thought Japan or USA would advise him as to other options. I've used Pentax USA a few times even though I'm in Canada to get parts faster and get some service advice.

[stewart_photo]

I suspect all the various distributers try to help others where possible. I've had good service from Pentax UK, Pentax USA, and Pentax Germany. However, in this case, I think you'd agree there is big difference between cleaning a sensor and replacing a camera. Of course, you're probably right about getting advice from Pentax Japan, Pentax USA, or anywhere else possible.

stewart

[Peter Zack]

Yes it's not an easy situation and there's no way to totally prove the dirt was there from the factory but it does happen as a few others have reported dust inside the viewfinder and so on. I believe the counter can be reset to start again at zero as it does after 10K of images. But can't a sensor be replaced? I hope he gets some answers and keeps trying to have Pentax revisit the issue. At the very least the camera is usable and some shots will need cloning.

[bc_the_path]

Surely there is an altogether different entitiy called "Pentax Community"; thanks for all your messages.
Your drive to "respond" makes this forum worthwile.

There might be something fishy about the situation and I may never be able to find out what it was. Still, below are some additional notes, which might contradict the information supplied by some friends here:

1- The local companies are listed at the Japanese site (at the bottom of the page):
PENTAX Support&Service

By the way, the local distributor is a 50-year-old company who also represents Hasselblad, Linhof etc. (Bükey Fotoðrafçýlýk)

2- At the top of the above page (pentax.xo.jp) there is this note:
The International Warranty service will be provided at the service stations marked by “IW/S” located in other than the country/area where the product was originally purchased.
(What do you understand from this?)

3- "Pentax Europe" is from the e-mail message as can be seen below:
(Within the message body "Pentax Hamburg" is used.
I have removed the person's name since I did not ask for permission
to share the content of the message)

>
>Best regards
>
>Name Surname
>Pentax Europe Division
>Imaging Systems Service
>
>PENTAX Europe GmbH
>Julius-Vosseler-Str. 104
>22527 Hamburg - Germany

The attached map also shows the same. Perhaps there has been a recent re-organization.

4- Legally, "proof of purchase" is practically the "warranty document" here.
The local agent (distributor/ representative or whatever) said that
replacing a camera can only be decided upon and made by the division in Germany.
(I gather the above message at the Japanese site means the same thing, I may be wrong).
In the the end, the local company offered me a "cheaper than street price" new camera.
It is still far above American prices, I must say..

I find it too boring and inconvenient to start a legal complaint; I have things to do...
However, I would be very happy to receive a "response" and not necessarily one agreeing with me. Maybe the locals are doing something wrong since I haven't seen their letter to Pentax... Should Pentax Europe leave me alone then?

Incidentally, the subject line of the answer received from Hamburg says "your letter to Mr. Y... W... , a Japanese name. So, I see no point in writing to the Japanese HQ at this point. You see, I do not want my camera replaced at this moment that much; I want to be listened to, I want to be treated as a person. This is what I am complaining about bitterly.

I will go out and shoot when I receive my new camera (no brand is mentioned, see!).

Many thanks again to all of the responders for spending their precious time to read these messages and to help me...

[stewart_photo]

You're mixing apples and oranges. We're talking about the imaging division while you're pointing to a regional corporate adminstrative office. While the regional corporate office handles finances, budgets, payroll, and so on, it is not involved with the operational aspects of the imaging division and the imaging division is not Pentax Europe. As I said, the imaging divisions are regional in nature (one in France, one in Spain, one in Germany, one in the UK, and so on). Regardless, none of this truly matters since you're neither in Germany or Europe.

You linked to the Pentax International Service Network (ISN), which I also pointed to in my first reply. The repair facilities in this network are either regular Pentax facilities or independent companies contracted to provide repair services for travelers visiting countries without a Pentax repair facility. This network is not meant to circumvent the standard Pentax repair process done at facilities located either in your own country or in the country where the camera was originally purchased. However, you may be able to convince Pentax Japan to make an exception, allowing you to have the camera replaced under warranty at one of these repair facilities.

By the way, in spite of the original 'damaged beyond repair' results, you may still be able to get the camera repaired since the standards for repair versus replacement are different for warranty and non-warranty work. If you're prepared to pay for the repair yourself, I'd suggest contacting the repair facility listed on the ISN site for your country. After all, if the repair is too expensice, you're no worse off than you are now. But it is possible the repair may not be too expensive.

stewart

[kay]

Unfortunately, I can't help other than hope your problem gets resolved.

I have also had a little piece of dust since the very first shot on my K100D which will just not go away after many wet wipes. QC does seem to be a bit of a problem at Pentax lately...