Walmart SEND OUT SERVICE developing, 2012 update

<p>I'm sorry, are you complaining about the quality of a service that costs 83¢? Do you ask to speak to the chef at Taco Bell, too?</p>

<p><strong>NEW DATA:</strong> Just got back some B&W 120 negs at the Walmart on Silber & 610 in Houston. I had to call Fuji to track the envelope down, but it just turned out that the employee I spoke to the first time wasn't the sharpest crayon—big surprise.The woman I talked to at Fuji was pleasant, knowledgeable, andspoke English as a first language. She even offered to call the Walmart store and see what was what, and then called me back about thirty minutes later to let me know they'd located my envelope at the store!</p>

<p>Cost me $1.88, <strong>negs WERE returned</strong>, along with the 120 spool and backing paper per my request on the envelope—nice surprise! The only thing I can complain about is that the negs were cut into 2-frame (6x6) strips, which doesn't work that well with Print File sleeves.</p>

<p>Since they were nice enough to comply with my request to return the spool and backing paper (really, I can't enthuse enough about how pleasantly surprised I am that they did this!), I'm going to ask that they not cut my negs next time.<br>

Will report back!</p>

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<p>I'm sorry, are you complaining about the quality of a service that costs 83¢? Do you ask to speak to the chef at Taco Bell, too?</p>

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<p>Mark,</p>

<p>I know inflation has eroded the value of a dollar but for $0.84 I think I still deserve a phone call just like the way you got a phone call. That's what irritated me. If I call FUJI they should be able to take my number and make one phone call and find some information for me. Obviously after a numerous attempts I finally found someone who would make that phone call. And within a matter of minutes the whole matter was cleared up.</p>

<p>And I would never put the toxic waste Taco Bell serves into my body. Unlike a 120 roll of Portra 160 I can't just hop on the internet and for a few dollars buy a new body.</p>

 

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<p>The woman I talked to at Fuji was pleasant, knowledgeable, andspoke English as a first language. She even offered to call...</p>

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<p>Yup. That's all I was expecting too. I really don't see the difference in our expectations except maybe once the film reaches the store I don't call Fuji I call the store directly.</p>

<p>Okay one of the Walmarts I've been checking on has finally done the change over to no negatives returned. I still submitted a roll of E-6 120 film and a 220 roll of C-41. Unfortunately I used the old envelopes since I still have a stash from that Walmart. I will try one of the new envelopes in the coming weeks and see if they still return negatives and slides for 120/220. It might be awhile before I can test the 35mm E-6 return policy. I'll keep you posted.</p>

<p><img src="http://i50.tinypic.com/1ixt9t.jpg" alt="" /></p>

<p>This is what the new "no negatives returned" envelope looks like. The special instruction area for 120/200 film is cut off at the bottom. It is still there but I just didn't include all of it in the scan. I would advise against putting 35mm C-41 film in one of these.</p>

<p>I have taken some 120 film to Walmart for processing and been very happy as they were actually processed by Fuji and the quality was excellent even if it took two weeks. But the last time I took in film they had the new envelopes as pictured above. Also the sign on the kiosk was adamant that they would not return your negatives, just the CD. Needless to say, I did not leave my film with them. It was the only reason I ever went into Walmart, but I did also buy stuff while there. I would say "too bad, Walmart, for losing my business" but I am not really so naive as to think that the few dollars I spent there amounted to anything to them.</p>

<p>I<strong> too got scared about using the "negatives not returned" envelopes. I discovered I had a roll of 120 Extar lying around. I wasn't sure what was on it, and it was at least a year old, so I had no conscious sense of risking anything special. I decided to take a chance. I marked the envelope as I had in the past, with a big x in the ordinary instructions, marked "send out only" at the top and printed my requirements in the special instructions: "C-41 120 film, negatives only, uncut." It came back two weeks later, pretty much as it has in the past. The uncut instruction was ignored, and the negatives were cut in sets of two (annoying, but not unexpected), but the negatives were sleeved and in good shape. Price: 85 cents. This was at the Walmart in Waterford, CT. Unless things have changed, the processing is done at the Fuji facility outside of Albany, NY, so I'm guessing this will work at all Walmarts in the Northeast. I wouldn't risk this with 35mm given what people have written, but I will feel confortable using them for my 120 film until this awesome deal finally dies.</strong></p>

<p>Jeff, nice write-up.</p>

<p>Do you know how much the cost of just developing negatives and CD for 12 120 film photo's would cost?</p>

<p>Just a field report --- just got back some E-6 120 slide film from my local Walmart in Bloomington, IN. The development looks good enough, it got return uncut as requested, however the price charged was $11.96. This seems to largely negate any price advantage that Walmart used to have, vs other services on the Internet.</p>

 

<p>First of all, thanks for all the writeup. I've been looking in to getting a scanner that allows me to scan film, negatives, and slides in addition to prints. I have tons of film (mostly 35mm) from when I lived in China, and LOTS of varying Kodachrome film from my parents that I'm looking in to getting developed for a Christmas present.I didn't realize that depending on the service I may (or may not!) get my film back, if it'll even process - and the price varies greatly.<br>

I've been wary of finding a send-out service from a larger retailer as I also work for CVS/Pharmacy. We utilize the FujiFilm sendout service and you're right - if you lose that envelope number that gets tied to your film, you are SoL - the name and info on the bag is for the retailer to contact you, not Fuji. At CVS, we don't even get the film back - everything gets digitized and we are sent the exposures, a reason/problem list if there were missing exposures/problems with the film, and a PICTURE of the outside of the send-out bag (with all kinds of handwriting on it, some people don't just put their name/number/address/comments - they will write a novel sometimes). We have to transcribe what is usually chicken scratch for handwriting to put it into our OWN system so you can receive an automated call that your photos are ready. Half the time we'll omit that info if we can't even read a hint of it. The send-out service we offer has seemed to me shady at best, so I've been apprehensive at trying WalMart. I may send a test roll and see what happens.<br /><br />Now I do feel the pain of dealing with FujiFilm customer service. However, I find the envelope number thing a load of bull. I had an order for a Mrs. Geno (name abbreviated). She dropped off rolls of film in June, and it was the end of July. She had only sent out regular 35mm. She didn't have her envelope number, but she was up our hind ends about the film. I was put on hold for over 35 minutes! They found her order by her name and phone number, and the envelope numbers in queue before and after hers were finished, but hers was not (for some godawful reason...) but they were able to give me a definitive answer to yay/nay that her film was even there to begin with.<br /><br />I just hope that they will give me my 35mm back, I'd rather scan it myself to make prints/enlargements but no longer have access to a darkroom.</p>

<p>I just called my nearest Walmart in West Covina, CA. They told me prices are $10 and up for a roll. The woman didn't sound very knowledgeable about the whole process.<br>

She did say that it takes about a week. You don't get negatives back - only a CD. The Walmart website mentions getting web uploads but she didn't mention that.<br>

http://www.walmart.com/photo/how_it_works.gsp</p>