BULLSH*T ALERT: Help Panasonic. I have a bit of dust on my ND. That'll be $4500?!?!

Logan LeBlanc

Logan LeBlanc

Well-known member
So here goes. I own an AF100. Love it. Use it a lot. Always took excellent care of the thing. No crazy shooting conditions. Seriously. Painfully average shooting. Car spots etc.

About 3 months ago I noticed a speck of dust on the ND1 position (yes, it was on the ND, not the sensor) so I called Panasonic.

Here is a clip:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xe5O2Of8OQA&feature=youtu.be

They had me send it in and they told me that it was cleaned and ready to go.

Got it back. Spot was still there. I called back and arranged reshipment, chalking it up to an oversight or miscommunication. They did mention having to possibly change out the CCD housing and that's when I started panicking. But they'll get it right this time, right?

Nope. Got it back a second time, the damn spot is still there! WTF is going on?!?!

After digging a bit, I discovered this horrifying thread: http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?314815-Spots-on-Footage-Help

The OP states that Panasonic quoted her $4436 for a new CCD. 4,436 freaking dollars for what could be remedied with minutes of work. I paid $4,795 for the thing brand new. How the hell is this even possible? What is the warranty even for? Is this really where we're headed as a society? Seriously. I cannot STAND the idea of discarding a piece of equipment because of some horse-s*%t policy that they have in place.

I've owned 4 Panasonic cameras and if this doesn't get resolved, it will CERTAINLY be the last.

Can we get Barry Green in on this discussion please. Anyone?!?

Please advise. I'm getting a nose bleed.
 
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I don't understand...did Panasonic charge you for changing out the sensor housing? (and it's a CMOS, not a CCD.)
 
No, I haven't gotten the sensor replaced yet. They just had me send it in twice, thus wasting weeks of shooting time. I'm trying to avoid swapping out the sensor (CCD or CMOS, who cares am I right :Drogar-BigGrin(DBG)).

I honestly would not pay another cent toward that camera/company if $4,436 is really what they're asking. It's pretty much the equivalent of a mechanic asking for $25,000 for an oil change. Really.
 
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We need more information. Why do you think it is dust on the ND filter? How about an example of the problem.

Why did they return it, but then also say they may have to replace the sensor. Did they say they fixed anything or did they just return it? It doesn't make sense that they would mention the sensor. They either know they need to replace it or they don't. They either know what they are doing or they don't.

What communication was there between you and the repair shop to assure it would get fixed the second time? I'm trying to understand how the repair shop operates. It makes no sense that the camera was returned twice unrepaired. If they didnt' find anything, they should have called you to verify the problem and correct it.
 
What ever it is, it's only on the ND. You can actually see it when you rotate the dial. It's a small dot just very similar to the photos in the thread I linked.

When I called back after the first failed repair, I was very clear about the spot issue and that he hadn't fixed anything. Wouldn't you think they would at least try to recreate the issue I was having to see if it had been taken care of? He said I can send it back and he can clean it again but if that doesn't work you may have to replace the sensor housing. Basically, he said he couldn't access the interior and that they'd have to send it to Japan for the repair if this didn't work. The guy was nice, but I could really only understand him 60% of the time. Thick accent.

There was basically no way to ensure the second repair other than calling daily. Seriously. I'd call almost everyday. Sometimes even twice a day. From the sound of it, it seemed like a small operation. Maybe 5 or 6 people. They were all very nice, I might add. They definitely didn't seem to operate to the standards one would expect from a company as big as Panasonic though. There's a pretty big disconnect between Panasonic and their auth. service centers. It felt like a whole other company all-together.
 
Sorry to hear about the accident when the hero car struck your camera on that car spot you were shooting next week.

Hope the insurance company comes to the party promptly.
 
I had massive dust on the nd-filters. Sent it in to panny and it came back looking brand new in there. It is possible the dust got behind the wheel. If its under warranty then they do have a requirement to fix it. Will just take a longer time. Sorry you're going through this.
 
I wonder where the camcorders are assembled?

If the factory labor rates are very low then repairs done in New Jersey are going to make repairs expensive. The other contributing factor is storage of parts (Many models, many parts).

Scary when you put out a lot of money and then some minor issue reduces the value of your investment to close to zero.

This makes a good case for extended (six years?) warranties from 3rd parties willing to train people and buy quantity to get the cost down and /give quick turnaround.

this often backfires when specialty vendors go out of business. Panasonic clearly is doing traditional accounting allocation
 
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Logan, Cat's problem in the other thread is not the problem you're having -- you know your problem is not on the CMOS, as hers apparently was. You're freaking yourself out -- and I would rethink calling the repair shop multiple times daily; that's not going to be your best play. People there who may be inclined to help you out and go an extra mile might think differently afterwards.

Like Paul F said above, it really seems like there's a lot of detail missing here. You said you called Panasonic and sent it in, but where exactly did you send it? And if you only understood 60% of what the person you talked to said, how do you know he didn't tell you exactly what you needed to know? You have to make sure you're clear on everything they tell you, and it sounds like you're not.

With a three-year warranty, the camera should most likely still be covered, if you're the first purchaser, so as long as whatever the problem is isn't your fault, you shouldn't be paying for repairs in any case.
 
Based upon your update, as you say, there is either a communication problem (them not understanding the problem) or an incompetent shop. Regardless of the communication, they should have called you if they could not find the problem. They can't fix it if they can't find it. Since it is so easy to see and diagnose, it leaves me puzzled regarding their behavior.

Find out who the North America product manager is (no longer Jan) and tell them what is happening. They should get to the bottom of this. It seems to be an incompetent shop that needs fixing as well as your camera. If no one on the forum comes forward, try calling Panasonic's US office or try calling B&H Procurement department. They will have good contacts for Panasonic.
 
I feel your frustration. I wouldn't be surprised if they've just been cleaning the outer housing glass. cleaning inside the sealed chamber requires a static free cleanroom, not something that's usually in a small operation like you described. Get it to panasonic directly, not a shack on the blvd.
 
I'd LOVE if Panasonic would handle it directly. I'm not sure why they steered me back to the same service ctr as before. I told him that they don't have a very good track record and he said I could check for another repair center online.
 
At this point it's time to perhaps consider buying a used AF-100 on ebay (around $2000-2500) or just an entire different camera if you're that mad at Panasonic. I'm beginning to suspect that the ND filter is part of the imaging block and that's why they have to change it out.
 
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