D40 lemon continued

[photobiscuits]

...continuing the <a href="http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?

msg_id=00M2MN">sad tale</a> of my experiences with Nikon, Black's camera and my

wonderful D40.<br>

 

I thought I'd follow up for anyone interested and inform you guys that

the "repair" of my (only) six month old D40 went quickly. I dropped it off at

the shop on July 28, and it returned on August 28.<br>

 

After taking about 100 pictures with it I today got to experience the immense

joy of bringing it BACK to the store for REPAIR. Again, the very same problem

of the viewfinder display displaying garbled nonsense rather than the useful

information it should be showing me.<br>

 

If I was frustrated with Nikon before, I am thoroughly disgusted now. Obviously

my camera has not been repaired and came out of the shop in the same

intermittently "operational" state it was in when it arrived.<br>

 

pathetic. This is a call to all Nikon users to rise up with me! Rise up in

protest of shoddy Nikon products and lackadaisical warranty repairs! Smash your

D40's, D200's, D2's, Coolpixes and all manner of Nikon accessories and wipe

Nikon off the photographic map!<br>

 

haha. Anyway Black's says if it comes back broke again they'll give me a new

camera. I hope it does.

[bill_keane2]

You know Mike there's a ton of posts attesting to Nikon pretty steady customer service... Did you personally speak to a Nikon tech and then send it to Nikon directly? A month in service seems a tad long.

[rjacksonphoto]

Are you dealing with Nikon directly or through a dealer? My experience with Nikon Service is mixed but mostly good. Might make more sense to deal with them directly. Are you sure your dealer is using Nikon or are they using an authorized but independent repair site?

[elliot1]

Your problem is likely with Blacks, not Nikon. My D40 works perfectly. Nikon service (direct) have always given me fast turnaround when I have had to send anything in to them.

[ShunCheung]

In the previous thread, several of us had suggested to send any warranty work directly to Nikon USA. I have dealt with both the offices in New York (Melville, Long Island) and Los Angeles (El Segundo). Typically it takes about 2 weeks and they do a find job.

 

Is your D40 gray market? I don't understand why you keep bringing it back to the store you purchased it. At a minimum that seems to slow down the turn around time.

[photobiscuits]

Thanks for the advice guys.<br>

I do what I would think most normal consumers would do - bring a defective product back to the store from which it was purchased and ask for a new one. Apparently they aren't going to give me a new one (yet) but at the very least I'll be expecting them to extend my warranty to cover these weeks of repair. Maybe going through the retailer adds to the wait time, but doesn't it save me $$$ on shipping the camera directly to the repair shop?<br>

I've tried contacting Nikon service directly through the phone number that Black's provided me with but it is a long distance number and honestly after spending what I've spent I'm not interested in paying another cent for the charges. Really I think Nikon should be calling me if they need any confirmation or clarification - that's what I would call good service.<br>

When I bring the camera to Black's, they inspect it, see the problem, pass it around the store to all the employees, and they all say "Heh, never seen that before". Then they write their little invoice slip, of which they give me a copy, stating exactly what the problem is, that it is intermittent in nature, that it definitely needs repair and that this is now the second time it has gone to their shop for this particular breakdown. I think Black's is doing their part, although I'd like to see some customer satisfaction played out by them offering me a replacement (not gonna happen).<br>

Here's what I figure: a)The problem is intermittent but often enough to be a major annoyance and obviously not working as it should. the problem and it's intermittent nature is plainly stated on the first invoice and now in capital letters on the second repair invoice. b)The repair tech read the invoice, picked up the camera, turned it on and off a couple of times, maybe clicked the shutter a few times, didn't see the problem, and said, "Looks A-OK to me". Can't really blame the guy for not fixing a problem he can't see but he didn't do much investigating and end result is a very unsatisfied customer who spent big dollars for the joy and honour of seeing his purchase sent to the shop twice now after only six months of use.<br>

heh. Nikon products = thumbs down. Nikon service = two thumbs down. I'm sure there's plenty of people that are very happy with their Nikons and their service experiences. Unfortunately I'm the unlucky black sheep. After spending $800 on a "quality" camera I'm back to using my crappy little pentax optio 230 and cursing every missed shot and blurred smile.<br>

Thanks for listening =)

[Jim_Tardio]

If the camera is still under warranty, you need to send it directly to Nikon.

<p>

Giving the thumbs down to Nikon's products & services doesn't get your camera fixed...especially when you haven't even exercised this most obvious option.

[ShunCheung]

Mike, I am sorry that you have these problems with your D40. But I wonder where your camera store is sending your D40 for repair. In your two threads, many of us have repeatedly suggested sending your camera directly to Nikon. Since you refuse to do so, I am afraid that you are in a weak position to make further complaints here.

[tonybeach]

"Maybe going through the retailer adds to the wait time, but doesn't it save me $$$ on shipping the camera directly to the repair shop?"

 

Factor in the cost of actually going to the retailer, both time and gas and I'm not so sure you are gaining anything -- especially if the retailer's efforts have so obviously failed.

 

"I've tried contacting Nikon service directly through the phone number that Black's provided me with but it is a long distance number and honestly after spending what I've spent I'm not interested in paying another cent for the charges. Really I think Nikon should be calling me if they need any confirmation or clarification - that's what I would call good service."

 

With the costs of long distance as low as they are (I make the calls on my cell phone, and they're included in my minutes), this is taking cheap to a new level. You should be taking a proactive role in fixing your camera; not doing so suggests to me that you would rather be here complaining about it than complaining to someone in a position to actually fix the problem.

 

"I think Black's is doing their part, although I'd like to see some customer satisfaction played out by them offering me a replacement (not gonna happen)."

 

I disagree. A good retailer (Costco, for instance) would have replaced the camera as soon as you brought it back the first time and then dealt with it and sent you home with a working copy. What's more, as previously stated, you were given a phone number by Black's to contact Nikon so you could confer with them directly about the problem you were experiencing, and you chose not to use it.

 

"Nikon products = thumbs down. Nikon service = two thumbs down."

 

Now you come here with the agenda of tarring Nikon as a lousy company, for most of us your arguments don't fly.

[photobiscuits]

OK, OK, I'll look into where they are sending this camera and find out how much it will cost me to send it directly to Nikon. Since the camera was dropped off at the store only yesterday evening it is likely sitting on the shelf waiting for Monday's mail...OK I just got off the phone with Black's. The camera is still there, waiting to be shipped out this coming Monday. He assured that this is an authorized Nikon service center, not just some Joe Schmoe who fixes cameras in his basement. Since he (strangely) did not have the mailing address available for the Nikon service center he gave me the number to Black's head office where he said they'd be able to give me all the information I need. I find it strange that he does not know the address of where it is being sent. How will he mail out my camera without an address? Odd.<br>

I'll post back when I reach Black's head office, they'll be open on Monday.<br>

Once I get the number and address for the service center here in Ontario (if I remember correctly it is in Mississauga) and speak with them long-distance (you'd think "good service" would include an 800-number???) I will let you know.<br>

To answer some comments, I would certainly rather <i>not</i> be here complaining, I would rather be out taking photos on this lovely day.

As for agendas, my sole intention is to record on this reputable photography website my experiences, bad and good, with this product and the service I have received from these two companies. Sarcastic comments like "destroy all of your nikon products" are obviously made in jest and I certainly don't expect any die-hard Nikon users to be swayed by my comments. Hopefully though, new purchasers might take pause for thought on both companies after reading.<br>

I am sure there are lots of great stories about Nikon products and service. The bad ones need to be recorded too.

[Jim_Tardio]

Just to be clear, an authorized Nikon service center is not the same as sending it directly to Nikon. Many private repair shops are authorized centers. Make sure it goes to Nikon.

<p>

Being a "die-hard" Nikon user" has nothing to do with exercising some common sense.

<p>

Good luck.

[ShunCheung]

If you are in Ontario, please make sure you send your D40 to Nikon Canada in Mississauga:

http://help.nikon.ca/cgi-bin/nikoncanada.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=5504&p_created=1056623600&p_sid=4KfIydLi&p_accessibility=0&p_lva=&p_sp=cF9zcmNoPSZwX3NvcnRfYnk9JnBfZ3JpZHNvcnQ9JnBfcm93X2NudD0xMTkyJnBfcHJvZHM9JnBfY2F0cz0mcF9wdj0mcF9jdj0mcF9zZWFyY2hfdHlwZT1hbnN3ZXJzLnNlYXJjaF9ubCZwX3BhZ2U9MQ**&p_li=&p_topview=1

[photobiscuits]

OK thanks guys, I hadn't considered that "an authorized Nikon service center is not the same as sending it directly to Nikon". I'll check up on Black's and get back to you on where they plan to send it. If they're not sending it to Nikon I'll take my camera back and see how much it'll cost to mail it directly.<br>

And Shun thanks for the link to the nikon website which shows their address and (toll free!) phone number:<br>

Main/Mississauga Office<br>

Nikon Canada Inc.<br>

1366 Aerowood Drive<br>

Mississauga, ON L4W 1C1<br>

Toll Free: 1-877-534-9910 (Repair Service and Product Support)<br>

Thanks again I'll write back.

[calarrick]

Does your response to Shun indicate that you've been going back and forth to the store (which has evidently not treated you that well) and hadn't even looked at Nikon Canada's web site? Given you are obviously online (asking questions of this forum) that just seems weird.

 

By the way, I have actually (to my surprise) gotten good, helpful, service and troubleshooting through the similar "ask a question" function on the Nikon USA web site. I did end up sending the product (a scanner) in (and it has worked fine since), but I appreciated the attempt to troubleshoot via a round of several emails (initiated by the question posted to their site).

[photobiscuits]

I phoned the Nikon service center toll free in Mississauga (thanks again, Shun). I was on hold for about 3 minutes (excellent response time). I gave him a quick rundown of the situation and he couldn't find my camera's serial number in the system. I gave him the work order number and he found it, with the problem noted but with the serial number missing a zero. He corrected that and told me the history of the camera. Apparently it was tested on a "very scientific machine" and that no problems were found so it was sent back. Again, can't blame the guy for not fixing a problem he can't see. I explained that this camera does indeed have a problem and that it would be coming back to him, and suggested a loose connection as the culprit. He made a note in the system to take a better look at it. Overall a good customer service experience.<br>

So now we can be sure that Black's is sending this camera to Nikon Canada Service Center in Mississauga.<br>

On to the recommendation of sending it directly and at my own expense: I telephoned UPS to find out what it will cost. $24.00 for overnight shipping. $10.00 for <i>them</i> to package it so that I am eligible to insure it for both loss <i>and damage</i> ($3 for every $100 = $24.00). Grand total $58.00 one way. If their army of trained monkeys toss the camera around and don't find the problem again I think it's safe to assume it'll be another $58 to bring it back. This is potentially going to cost over $110.00 and even for $58 I'll have to let Black's take care of it.<br>

I'll let you know how it turns out, see you in a month.

[calarrick]

Best of luck! It does indeed sound like an aggravating situation.

[tonybeach]

Mike, the shipping can be handled less expensively; and Nikon has a fairly low fixed rate of $15 for return shipping here in the United States (if it is under warranty, I believe it is free).