Canon PowerShot SD1100IS camera HELP !!

[emelvee]

Hello,

I purchased this (http://www.digitaltechnews.com/news/images/2008/01/24/powershot_sd1100is_in_golden_tone.jpg) camera in early November, and it was working perfectly ... until I spilt orange juice on it a couple days ago :o:rolleyes::cry: . As soon as I realized what had happened, I took the battery and memory card out, and left it on a vent at home to dry out. Thankfully, although the buttons are quite sticky (I'm having a few issues with zooming) and the screen is a little splotchy, it still works fine.

I was just wondering how to get the buttons un-sticky. I tried wiping the button (the silver one to take the picture) and the zoom toggle around it with a damp cloth, and it worked very well at first, but when it dried off it was as sticky as ever.

I'm thinking that it would probably be best to get my camera taken in somewhere to get a thorough cleaning (because there's nothing I can do about the splotchy screen) , but where ? What would the costs be like ?

Thanks in advance !!

[Jon]

Cost would be somewhat, but not a lot, less than buying a new camera. The problem with sugar water is that, as you discovered, it gums things up as it dries. There's not a lot you can do to thoroughly clean it out. And since orange juice also contains a low-strength acid, it'll eventually do corrosive damage to the parts of the camera circuitry it's come into contact with. So the best thing yo ucould do for the camera would be to take it into a repair facility, probably Canon's, or an authorized Canon service center. Failing that, a good camera store will probably have a working relationship with a local, and competent, repair facility. Or, Adorama has it for $150 in blue with free shipping if you're in the US and you'll have a spare battery and charger as a side benefit.

[emelvee]

Hi ! Thank you so much ! I will try to get it to a Canon Centre as soon as possible ... the hours are hard to work around, though, as they are only open Mon-Fri from 8:30 'till 5:00 !

[Jon]

You don't have to bring it in in person. You can call for shipping directions; when they get it they'll estimate repair costs and ask your approval before proceeding, or tell you if they don't think it's a good bet. They may even offer a refurbished equivalent model for around the same price as the repair would be. That way you get the best of both worlds.

[emelvee]

Wow, that is very helpful, I had no idea such a system existed ! Thank you again !

[emelvee]

Alright, so an update ...

I sent it in to Canon last week and they sent me a message today telling me that it would be 135$ to repair !! Plus 10$ for shipping .... that camera costed about 180$/190$ , so according to what Canon's telling me, it would be just about 40$ more to buy a new one !!!!!! :mad::mad::mad::mad:

It was just orange juice and the buttons were only a little sticky, and all that money is just ridiculous.

Any other ideas, anyone ? Thanks in advance, hopefully there's another option out there ......

[Jon]

Think about it - orange juice is an acid (citric acid, right?) so there's at least the potential of corrosion to the electronics. In order for them to warranty the repair for the standard 90 days, they'd want to replace all affected cards, etc. so the cost isn't surprising (in fact, I suggested it'd be not a lot less than a new camera when you first asked). You might ask about a "trade-up", or just find a new camera locally.

[emelvee]

Yeah, that makes sense, siiiiiiigh ..... thanks for your advice, I'll think about it !