[pingflood]

You CAN adjust, and don't knock on Pentax for their Quality Control. Canon have plenty of problems on their own.

Just because Canon has had some serious QC issues lately doesn't mean Pentax shouldn't be held accountable for theirs.

[ve2vfd]

Hmmm thats odd, my 55-300 seems to work ok...

Then again at f4 the DOF is a lot more forgiving than my 17-50 at f2.8

(sorry for ranting and mumbling here folks, but I am LIVID... I can accept getting a lemon, but two in a row isn't sitting well at ALL with me)

Pat

[ve2vfd]

Hmmm never mind, that was close up with the 55-300, at a distance it's as useless as the other lenses...

And trying my manual primes, they are also hopelessly front focussing (even though they appear sharply in focus in the viewfinder).

So whats the verdict folks?

1 - Send it back to Henrys, get a refund and forget about the K20d?
2 - Send it back to Henrys, ask for yet another exchange?
3 - Send it to Pentax Canada and hope they can fix it?

I'm a little scared with option 3 as I've already had 2 bad experiences with Pentax Canada (lack of) service.

I'm going to sleep on it tonight and take a decision in the morning as right now the only thing on my mind is to get rid of all my Pentax junk and go the Nikon way...

Pat

Hmmm never mind, that was close up with the 55-300, at a distance it's as useless as the other lenses...

And trying my manual primes, they are also hopelessly front focussing (even though they appear sharply in focus in the viewfinder).

So whats the verdict folks?

1 - Send it back to Henrys, get a refund and forget about the K20d?
2 - Send it back to Henrys, ask for yet another exchange?
3 - Send it to Pentax Canada and hope they can fix it?

I'm a little scared with option 3 as I've already had 2 bad experiences with Pentax Canada (lack of) service.

I'm going to sleep on it tonight and take a decision in the morning as right now the only thing on my mind is to get rid of all my Pentax junk and go the Nikon way...

Pat

If I were in your shoes I might jump ship too. I jumped ship from Canon to Pentax and I am happy.
I gave Canon only one chance. I just wanted a new camera and to go out and take pictures. This sending back and waiting around are a waste of time, particularly for a brand new product.

[Mr Hyde]

Tell me about it! Good service is definetly worth paying a few dollars more. I could have gotten the camera for $50 cheaper at prodigital, but I've read too many times they are hard to get in touch with so I didn't mind paying the extra few bucks for good service from Henrys... and it looks like it paid off.

Well, I just mailed out the camera... now I just have to be patient!

Pat

First sorry to hear about your camera. I know first hand what its like to get your camera and have to return it straight away. My K10D had to be returned because of an air bubble under the low pass filter. I really hope you get your replacement soon.

I also wanted to mention something about the customer service at ProDigital/Carmen's Camera (Prodigital2000 on Ebay). My personal experience is that their customer service is outstanding. I had a minor issue with an item I purchased and they bent over backward to help me out. My CS rep (Heather) was fantastic.

[BPT]

Hmmm never mind, that was close up with the 55-300, at a distance it's as useless as the other lenses...

And trying my manual primes, they are also hopelessly front focussing (even though they appear sharply in focus in the viewfinder).

So whats the verdict folks?

1 - Send it back to Henrys, get a refund and forget about the K20d?
2 - Send it back to Henrys, ask for yet another exchange?
3 - Send it to Pentax Canada and hope they can fix it?

I'm a little scared with option 3 as I've already had 2 bad experiences with Pentax Canada (lack of) service.

I'm going to sleep on it tonight and take a decision in the morning as right now the only thing on my mind is to get rid of all my Pentax junk and go the Nikon way...

Pat

You could try a 4th option, call Henrys and ask if they will extend their return time for a little bit so you can try and get it repaired under warranty. You can also call and talk to pentax and just see what they say.

[Mallee Boy]

Hi Pat,

Here is my story with my K20D. Bought it a couple of weeks before leaving on an overseas trip. Barely enough time to familiarise,

Anyway, a few days into the trip I turn the camera off and the battery symbol stays alive in the top screen.....and it wont turn back on.

After much consternation and fiddling I dropped the battery out & in and away it went. This became the norm.

On returning to Australia I took the camera in to the Pentax people, some 90 minutes drive away.

The camera was returned and powered on/off as it should. Yeay.

....then I took a couple of test shots....
only to discover a verticle stripe down the left side of the image....more shots....more stripes.....sob! sob!

So, back in the car the next morning and off we go again. Fortuneatly the nights sleep & the drive calmed me down a bit. According to the service report, the main circuit board was initially replaced but the sensor was not properly aligned (thus the second return) which is a human error fault on the part of the techy.
Hands up the perfect one(s) amongst us..???

Anyway, to finish it, the camera has worked like a charm ever since. I wonder if you are better off getting the original problem fixed rather than replacing the camera...because you may only be replacing one problem with another.

For the record, our family has bought a DS, two DL's, a K200 & K20. One DL died in questionable circumstances on a snow field, so I am not blaming the camera for that and all the others are going strong.

Mate its never nice to have something go wrong, but I do think you are better off to get it repaired, not replaced.

Chin up, there's worse things in life.
Grant

[flyer]

I sent my camera to Mississauga, and the service was great. Less than 2 weeks turnaround and first class workmanship. Whatever you decide to do, good luck.

Man I am so pissed off... I'm going to put that POS camera thru a wall!

Even at max ajustment I can't get it to focus properly.... GRRRRRRRRR! Even at a deep DOF I can't get a sharp picture....

Hmmm never mind, that was close up with the 55-300, at a distance it's as useless as the other lenses...

By any chance did you applied a global AF adjustment for the Tamron that messes up with the other lenses? I would also check the diopter on the OVF.

Radu

[wlachan]

Could it be the crappy packaging? I shopped from Henry's in the past and the way they packed the parcels always made me chill. Instead of placing the item right in the middle with cushions on all 6 sides, they just put it at the bottom with cushion on top. Since the parcels will receive some very harsh handling during transit, delicated items like cameras could be killed. I have noticed the same trend from B&H & CameraCanada too.

[ve2vfd]

Well, I just sent an email to Henrys explaining the situation and suggesting my solutions... we'll see what they have to say before I make a final decision...

Julian ... You have no idea how tempted I am to dump pentax completely... this experience is leaving a really sour taste in my mouth.

Scott ... Well, I can't complain about service at Henrys, they've extremely helpful.

Brad ... I just thought of option #4... I'll check with Henrys to see if they'll let me drive to the Ottawa store (2 hours away) to exchange it in person and test the new one thoroughly before returning. Not sure thats an option though as their online sales are in Toronto and the ottawa store may be a franchise.

Grant ... So they sent you a camera back without testing it??? (If there was a stripe, then obviously the tech didn't bother testing it after re-assembling it?)

Yves ... Did you send lenses with the camera? That can make for some seriously expesive shipping... the first camera alone (with insurance) cost me $25 to mail back to Henrys...

Radu ... Nope, I ajusted the lens individually, and reset all lenses to 0 correction when changing lenses as even with -10 correction the camera still front focusses a LOT. Diopter is the first thing I ajusted when the camera came out of the box

Alan ... No, the packaging from Henrys was actually quite adequate. They had 2 layers of big bubble wrap all around, over and under the camera box. The camera box has no signs of damage at all on it, not does the shipping box.

Well, I slept on it and I'm still pissed off... I've lost all confidence in Pentax. I can understand getting a lemon, but two in a row just burns me.

Pat

[ManuH]

Well, I slept on it and I'm still pissed off... I've lost all confidence in Pentax. I can understand getting a lemon, but two in a row just burns me.

It's very understandable even if you were just very unlucky. Myself I would try a second exchange or go to their service center in Laval. I think returning the item is the best solution. Good luck!

[ve2vfd]

Manu ... If I get it fixed, I'll send it to Pentax in Missisauga, the repair center in Laval is Hecotron, and I've had awefull experiences with them. They are repair center for dozend of brands, not Pentax specialists. I had a Yamaha amp fixed there and had to go back 2 times until they got it right... and it was something REALLY simple I could have fixed myself (a cold solder joint).

Pat

[nanok]

i just want to point out one obvious factor here: whoever is involved in this (pentax, henry's, etc) has obviously not seen our pentaxian friends photo here, if the issue is still not fixed. i would not mess with this guy if i were you, people.. just my friendly advice



seriously, as others have said: shit happens, sadly, and not only for pentax, all the others have (or have had) issues like this. this is not to excuse pentax in any way, they should get their qa back together. but i think you should not get angry, life is too short for that.

seeing as you have a bit of an investment in pentax gear, i don't think jumping ship on impulse will be less painful. unless you have other reasons, i'd say try to get the current one fixed (calibrated) by pentax (though, judging by the simptoms, it sounds like focusing screen/mirror missalignment -- mirror being more likely, as it seems to affect both manual focus and af), using a pentax service recommended by people here if possible (it seems pentax has a good reputation of doing a good jub, and getting rid of all known bugs while they'r at it, at least from what i have heard about the k10d).

good luck, and smile

ps: i should add i am typing this in the erratic sound of a fan which is about to die (and is not planning to go down quietly) on my old t40 (which is being used still, though not by me), which, painful as it is (a new fan is required, and meanwhile i am one laptop short), only puts an amused smile on my face -- i am a bit sadistic, yeah. also there is a samsung gx10 which went to service (my "old" gx10, used by my significant other ), which is tragic (need to use film meanwhile), also the former nikon d50, many months ago, also went to service. and there's more, but i will stop here . life is good!

[flyer]

I sent camera and lenses. To ship the parcel, I went through my dealer. That's one of the reason I li9ke brick and mortar stores. When I have a problem, my seller stands behind me.