DV camera: $750 to $0 in 1 hour
In 2000, after the birth of our first kid, I bought a DV video/still camera for about $750 (and that was online, the local store wanted $1200 for the same camera). It worked great, went on hikes, trips and all over the place. A couple weeks ago, the power led didn’t go off when the camera was turned off, running down the battery, then it totally stopped working, no response at all (even with a charged battery or the AC adaptor). So I found an identical one on craigslist for $100. I needed to get the tape out of the old one, so I started taking out screws.
Many, many screws, all different sizes and lengths. And I had to unplug printed ribbons. I’m not sure at what point I realized that this camera was never going to go back together, but I’m sure now.
I haven’t broken anything, but even if I did get it back together (after many hours), it probably still wouldn’t work. And I still haven’t gotten the tape out. I figure it may work as spare parts for the other camera, though for the price, I’d probably just get another used one.
Funny, that’s about how much I paid for my camera, around the same time. It hasn’t broken, yet, but I’m glad to hear the cost of replacement has come down.
Comment by Phill — February 4, 2006 @ 12:19 pm