The inside story of Point & Shoot digital cameras
and why repair can be uneconomical!

Here are some pictures showing the inside of a typical digital compact camera, the type that fits into a pocket or small bag. To make these cameras work an awful lot of miniaturized electronics has been crammed into a very little space.

There are usually three main circuit boards (a processing control board, a power supply board, and an image sensor board) plus sundry tiny sub-boards, switches, buttons, hardware and of course the LCD display screen.

You are viewing the boards at slightly larger than actual size! This means that the circuit chips and components are smaller than here.

Take a look at the many fine pins radiating from each IC and you will understand that it is nearly impossible to locate and repair fractures that may be caused by a drop or hard knock, or even caused by overheating if the camera is left in a hot car.

Often the lens unit is incorporated onto the main sensor/processing board.

Such circuit/lens boards are not repairable. If it gets damaged you need to replace the complete unit.

That is rarely economical with the part alone costing half that of the camera and then you still have to pay labour.

Most Compact Digital cameras feature a Zoom Lens. The zoom is operated with many gears and a complicated helicoid arrangement. The image sensor usually comes pre-adjusted from the factory and is fixed to the back of the lens unit as shown.

Except for top-of-the-line models parts cannot be purchased individually.

This means that the complete lens unit must be replaced if the zoom barrel or drive gears become damaged by sand or obstruction.

Should you drop or knock the lens while it is extended and it jams, it is a similar situation - the complete unit as shown here may need replacing.

We will certainly attempt to make repairs to jammed, displaced or sand contaminated zoom barrel units, but the chance of restoring it economically is not great. Special conditions apply to attempts of repair.

So what does this all mean?

Ask yourself if you are prepared to spend $300 or more for out-of-warranty repairs (other than minor problems such as broken lids or covers). If not then you should probably buy a new camera if the old one has suffered impact, sand or water damage.

You can of course have it inspected and assessed, but remember there will be a fee of up to $65 if you decide NOT to go ahead with repairs after receiving the estimate.

If you are buying a new camera, consider an Extended Warranty. That way at least spontaneous camera faults or breakdowns will not cost anything to have corrected within the warranty period.
And by the time the warranty expires, new camera prices will have dropped and more features added, so you’ll probably update anyway.

But remember, no warranty will cover accidental damage! This means anything other than ‘spontaneous’ faults - in short anything you caused or contributed to or that happened accidentally is not covered (unless of course you have taken out a separate ‘Accidental Damage’ policy)