Canon EOS 1000D problem
 

Hi all,
I'm new to the Forum, though not to photography, having started in the days of the Zenith-E and Lubitel!
A couple of years ago I bought a Canon EOS 1000D. I know this model is thought of as an entry-level DSLR, but it represented a substantial investment for me, and I hoped to be using it for many years to come.
It was always treated with the greatest care and attention, properly stored and used only with Canon accessories, and to be honest it was very little used as I had a compact for everyday use.
Imagine my horror, then, when the Canon's LCD died in the middle of a session, for no apparent reason. The camera hadn't been dropped, knocked or otherwise abused - it was just working one moment, and the next moment - phut.
Of course, the camera wasn't in warranty, so I was charged £150 for a repair by Canon's service agent.
Wondering whether this sort of failure was common, I spoke to a very pleasant and chatty lady in Canon's marketing department, whose attitude was, to put it bluntly, 'tough luck.'
I'm continuing to use the repaired Canon EOS 1000D, but my faith in Canon has been severely shaken.
So my questions to forum members would be - have you experienced a similar failure on this model or any other DSLR, after such little use and good care? And should I have expected different treatment from Canon, or am I being unrealistic in my expectations for the reliability of DSLRs?

I have been using Canon DSLRs for 7/8 years now and have been through a few of them. It have only changed through desire for new toys rather than problems with the cameras. I have not had a camera fail on me yet and from what I can gather faults aren't that common. I think that unfortunately Canon the response you got from Canon is what I would have expected and what you woud have got from any other manufacturer. You coud try and argue that although out of warranty it is fair to expect the camera to last longer than it has (fit for purpose) and see what they say. You might get lucky and find that they reduce the cost of the repair but I somewhat doubt it.

I too have used canon bodies for many years - film and then digital. I have only had one fail on me. This was a 400D, bought secondhand so I dont know its history, which while working perfectly from a mechanical point of view, stopped recognising any memory cards. I havent found a fix for this, though I have hung on to the body in case I ever do...
All the others have lasted well, despite heavy use in rough conditions.

Cameras are basically electronic devices with a lens on and even that is stuffed with electronics. Electronic components fail whether it is a camera or anything else. According to people like Which and other magazines which do pretty comprehensive reader surveys Canon is one of the most reliable brands.
Met a chap on holiday who told me his professional quality Nikon (D3 I think) which cost several thousand pounds stopped working after only a couple of years of amateur use. Rather than repair it he bought a D800E for the Nikon lenses he has. Not knocking Nikon, it happens with all makes. Annoying, expensive but although brutal the comment tough luck pretty well sums it up.

Perhaps a visit to the Canon website and search for firmware updates might help. My son owned a 1000D and still does. For some reason it stopped working but displayed an error code that was rather vague. I did a Google search of this code but it could have meant any number of problems. It was suggested I search for Firmware updates. Perhaps I was just lucky but it proved to be the answer. He's never had any more problems after I uploaded them. I use the 500D and found and uploaded new firmware a couple of years ago, no problems touch wood.