Waiting on upgraded 5D??

[chauncey]

Based on your extreme intelligence and knowledge of canon history;

Once a new 5D is released, what is the average period of time for them to have the bugs worked out, ie, how long should I wait after it's released to buy?

thanks for advice!!

[kini mini]

I think it's hard to predict how long Canon would take to fix any problems with a new model, assuming there were any in the first place, when you don't know what kind of problems there could be!

As always, it's the early adopters who tend to get burned most badly. Why don't you wait a few months until people have settled down with the camera, when prices have stabilised (and probably dropped a bit from the RRP at launch)?

[Az2Africa]

I bought one of the first ones out and never had any problems or heard of any bugs. There were a couple of minor firmware updates.

[RichNY]

Why is it that Nikon gets their cameras right the first time and there are these type of issues when Canon releases their cameras. The D50, D70, D80, D200, D300, and D3 have all been released without this quality control make your first customers into beta testers. It is almost like Canon is trying to following in Microsoft's footsteps.

[charger912]

Why is it that Nikon gets their cameras right the first time...

I can't speak from experience, but last week I read a thread in a different forum from a Nikonian who's camera crapped out at the beginning of a shoot. He picked up another brand new "Nikon" camera to use for the shoot, and it did not work at all! He ended having to take it back.

Nikons aren't perfect!:D

[Pete]

Don't wait. If you want one, buy one now.

[Riff Raff]

I'm waiting, because I have a perfectly functional camera already. Upgrading to the 5D would be nice, but I can wait for its replacement.

[narlus]

Why is it that Nikon gets their cameras right the first time and there are these type of issues when Canon releases their cameras. The D50, D70, D80, D200, D300, and D3 have all been released without this quality control make your first customers into beta testers. It is almost like Canon is trying to following in Microsoft's footsteps.

wasn't there some notorious banding issues w/ the D200?

and i think the jury is still out on the D300/D3, seeing as they've only been available for a week or two...

[GyRob]

Based on your extreme intelligence and knowledge of canon history;

Once a new 5D is released, what is the average period of time for them to have the bugs worked out, ie, how long should I wait after it's released to buy?

thanks for advice!!
Well going on the mk3 cycle 6 to 7 month's should be just about safe .
Rob.

[darktiger]

I am waiting for the 5D replacement. It will be a great upgrade to my 30D....

[Pinto]

Why is it that Nikon gets their cameras right the first time and there are these type of issues when Canon releases their cameras. The D50, D70, D80, D200, D300, and D3 have all been released without this quality control make your first customers into beta testers. It is almost like Canon is trying to following in Microsoft's footsteps.

And where do you get your information? Following from just one Nikon forum:

"I was uploading photos to my laptop from the D70 using USB cable, after upload, I noticed that the top LCD screen went blank. I changed a fresh battery and didn't think too much about it. But when I tried to turn the camera on later, nothing happened. Then I realized that the top LCD should always display the number of possible pictures and should never be blank.

Now I can't turn the camera on and it's as good as dead. Has anyone ever had this problem before? Is sending it to the repair shop my only option? It's just over a year old so it's out of warranty period"

"My D70 worked flawlessly for sixteen months and then boom, The Blinking Green Light of Death (BGLD) syndrome hit without warning. I took it to the local camera shop where I bought it and they sent it in to Nikon for an estimate to repair. Nikon said it was $329.00 to fix."

"It's a major manufacturing defect. It happened to me too. Sent it back to Nikon USA and they repaired it for free."

"I have a D70 too, about 11 months old, which is functioning flawlessly up to now. I have read, that the BGLOD affects early models only and has been traced to a faulty design of a circuit board, which works itself loose over time."

"Many, many, D70 owners have had this same problem--it's clearly a manufacturing defect and Nikon has been quietly yet consistantly repairing the BGLOD problems even when 6 mos. or more out of warranty."

"In an apparent effort to stave off a class-action lawsuit (by admitting culpability), Nikon's official response to owners is that they've never heard of the problem and just send it in, but there are hundreds of people who have had this problem fixed by Nikon even when outside of warranty--and rightly so."

"I had the same thing happen to 2 D70 units I purchased, One got the problem in 5 months and the other in 18 months. Nikon fixed the first one Ok and for the second they wanted to bill me $250.00."

"I have not had the "sudden death" issue with my D70. But I did have an issue where the apeture step-down preview locked up while still under warranty."

"Just had the blinking green LED of death happen to my D70... I could get the menu screen to come on for about a half second. Green LED by CF door flashes, LCD by shutter release never comes on."

[glawhon]

Same here as for AZ2Africa above. I bought a 5D the day they became available, and I've never had a moment's trouble with it. It has worked flawlessly. Same story with the 20D and 10D I had before that. I won't hesitate to buy my next Canon as soon as available too....

Why is it that Nikon gets their cameras right the first time and there are these type of issues when Canon releases their cameras. The D50, D70, D80, D200, D300, and D3 have all been released without this quality control make your first customers into beta testers. It is almost like Canon is trying to following in Microsoft's footsteps.

[Tom W]

I got my 5D pretty early in the product cycle as well. Very reliable camera, and I've enjoyed it's use. I'll watch to see what the Mk II brings about, but I can say that if it's a significant upgrade, I'll make the move. Maybe not when it first comes out, but a couple of months down the road.

[chauncey]

Still undecided on what to do.

[Dragos Jianu]

Same dilemma here. I'll wait till February when they'll launch the 5D2. Either :
1) It will be a big enough upgrade to justify the extra price
2) The current 5D will drop down even further before being discontinued (say 1800)
Either way i win :p

[BrantG]

I'll wait to see what the features and price are before doing anything. Besides, I would expect the current model to drop even further once the new version is out.

[shannyD]

Still undecided on what to do.

im conflicted as well. for a long time i thought that wanting a 5d would cure my desires for upgrading. but the more and more i started thinking about it. the 40d looked ok. and im just an xti user. i like the idea of being able to function in low light ability because of my new found love of concert photography. but once in a while i like to try my hand at some birding. and just day to day photos of the kids, and once in a while some portraits of my brother ( his vanity is amusing).

so to this day i dont know what i want. or what would suit my needs. more than not i would be using my camera in the dark. and from what i hear the 5d is a low light work horse.

ugghh decisions.

just wait and see i suppose. because youll still be able to buy brand new 5d's even when the replacement comes out.

hugs.

shannon

[efroten]

The more I think about it I feel like not waiting. If this thing is actually announced at the end of Jan. it probably won't be on sale for at least 1-3 months. And then I would want to see what the reviews say, maybe Canon screws up the IQ or some other BS, who knows.

On the other hand, I'd love to see some improvements in autofocus and weather sealing.

[glowie]

If canon screws up the new 5D i'm selling my entire gear and convert to the darker side.

a Leica M8

[pieq314]

If canon screws up the new 5D i'm selling my entire gear and convert to the darker side.

a Leica M8
Leica M8's design has a fatal flaw: its autofocus does not work at all! Comparing with this similarly priced camera, Canon's 1D Mk III's AF system is infinitely better.

[glowie]

ummmm M8's are manual focusing cameras.

[John Hudson]

Once a new 5D is released, what is the average period of time for them to have the bugs worked out, ie, how long should I wait after it's released to buy?

For myself I would wait for a reputable review of a production camera. By the time this has made it to print, any bugs should be known and it's likely that the first firmware update will have been released to deal with anything that is a priority problem. In answer to your question at least a month after the camera hits the street, once the stock levels are stable the sellers start to offer discounts too so you might save a bit of money.

I don't like the idea of being an early adopter, preferring always to let a product mature for a little while. I know that if I'd spent the best part of £3k on an early 1D MkIII I would be livid.

[ben_r_]

More than likely I will be signed up on the amazon preorder list as soon as its available and pick up one of those as quick as I can. If anything ends up being wrong with it I know Canon will eventually come through and fix it. If they dont hopefully I will be able to return it in time.

[blighty]

I've waited long enough. When its out, I'm getting it. If there's anything wrong with it, Canon will replace it. Oh yes, they WILL.

I find people treat you well in life if you make it clear that treating you badly is an option they don't have.

[danielyamseng]

Yeah is a long waiting game. Once we get it withing few years is become obsolete.

[Bob_McBob]

I'm already on a pre-order list at my camera store. I am actually the second person in line! The owner said he's happy to maintain a pre-order list just in case, but his Canon rep has been strongly indicating there will be no 5D replacement until the end of the year.

Hopefully the announcement will be forthcoming, because the 5D is looking awfully tempting with the current double rebates in Canada. If you buy it with a 17-40, the rebate is $850, and it brings the price of the 5D down to about $1700 after tax (it normally sells for about $2400 + tax in Canada). Of course, waiting for rebates is no fun...