Olympus

Alan of Stockton, CA October 28, 2009

I purchased an Olympus "waterproof and shockproof" camera for photograph documentation of emergency room injuries and traumas (I am a surgeon). The camera stopped working spontaneously after a couple of years of very light use.

I returned the camera to the Cypress facility and received an email stating that my order number was xx and that I may check the status through their website. A few weeks later the as I was checking on the status (no other email or notification was ever sent) I found that a charge of US113+ would be required to make unspecified "repairs".

I called the customer service department and was informed that theyu didn't know what was wrong with it, but that was just the standard fee. I explained that the camera had not been mistreated and on the contrary was a "shock-proof and water-proof" camera that had only been used by a surgeon for medical documentation. The customer service man then said I was supposed to send it in annually to have it serviced and "checked" to see that all the seals were working correctly. I have many camera, none of which ever required such tender care and none of them are marked "shock-proof and water-proof".

The man said pay the fee or we'll just send your broken camera back. I told him I thought that was poor customer service and I would be happy to share my experience with Olympus with my patients and friends. He said "we will send your camera back to you, have a nice day" and HUNG UP ON ME.

In a time of economic challenge it is surprising to find a company so robust that they can afford to drive customers away. This doctor has been paid twice for the same work, both times by me, once by check and once through our family health savings account by Aetna insurance.

Richard of Llangybi, United Kingdom August 7, 2009

I sent in an Olympuus E510 DSLR camera to Olympus for repair. I was in the understanding that the camera was still under warranty as it was bought in Europe so should have a 2 year warranty. After nearly 2 weeks passing I recieved a repair invoice in the post asking for £163 for the repair. I got in touch with Olympus repair centre Customer Supportand told them that the camera was still under warranty and duly forwarded to them a copy of the purchase invoice and a copy of my bank statement.

After several phone calls and emails I was informed that the camera would now be repaired under warranty. So, I was now happy. I was told that repair time would take between 2-3 weeks. I have copies of all of these communications with Olympus. I told Olympus that I need the camera for my work and was told that my camera would be given priority for repair because of this. So, again I was very happy.

After two weeks had passed I thought I would send Olympus Customer Support an email asking how the repairs are getting on and when I am likely to recieve the repaired camera. After an hour or so I recieved a reply from them saying that my camera had not been repaired yet as they were awaiting my payment so as to proceed with the work!

So, rather annoyed by this, I got in touch again via email and informed them that I had already been told by Customer Support 2 weeks earlier that the repairs would be done under warranty. They replied and said that the camera is not under warranty now as the camera was bought in america which only has a 1 year warranty (the camera was actually bought on ebay through a distributor in the UK, so they want payment of £163-00 to proceed with the repairs (you can buy a brand new E510 body on the internet now for £220 which will have also still have a new warranty).

I am in urgent need for the camera for my work and have had to turn bits of work away as a result of not having had the camera returned in a repaired condition. Now, its going to be another 2-3 weeks again isn't it? For such a simple repair this is taking a great deal of time and costing me far more than the camera is even worth. It is ridiculous isn't it?

Over the last few years I have had several digital SLR's from various companies and each has had to be repaired, Nikons, Canons and Olympus. Probably one of the best user friendly digital SLR's I have used over the years have been Olympus, but if Olympus customer service is this poor then I feel I may have to reconsider this decision again. If the camera is not under warranty, which I was assured by customer service that it was, then I will have to pay for the repair, but I sincerely hope that [they] will give me a considerable discount in order to compensate for the poor service and my loss of work.

I havent had any reply back from Olympus Customer Support at South-end-on-sea, UK. What am I to do?

Mia of Paranaque City, Phillipines May 18, 2009

One of my great passions in life is to take pictures. I am a student and I love to capture fleeting everyday moments and immortalize it through a snapshot of a camera. For the past two years, I saved long and hard to be able to purchase the camera to best fit my personality. Upon my encounter with the advertisement of Olympus of a shockproof and waterproof camera, I intended to save up for it as I really wanted to be a proud owner of an Olympus camera. I took on several jobs to save up for this Olympus camera. When I have finally generated the amount to purchase an Olympus Stylus 1030 sw camera, I decided to purchase a digital camera from this brand last December 2008 from Hongkong. With the faith and such high regard that this is a durable brand, I did not hesitate to bring the shockproof and waterproof camera back home in the Philippines considering that the warranty only applies to Hongkong, where I bought it. Because I trusted that Olympus will not fail me. I trusted that it will live up to my expectations as from what I have seen from its advertisements.

Much to my disappointment, Olympus Stylus 1030 sw failed me. I was taken aback when I brought my Olympus Stylus 1030 sw to the beach a month ago. Considering it was a waterproof camera, I did not have any hesitations of bringing it with me in the water. But during the second day of my trip, the camera failed me. I was very surprised and shocked that the LCD screen turned white and then shut down with no power. Upon closer look, water seemed to have leaked inside the battery compartment which led to the failure of the camera. I was stunned by this event because I did not do anything that must have opened the battery compartment. Water just leaked in! Upon opening the battery compartment on dry land, I saw that there were water droplets inside the battery compartment, a sign that water must have leaked in the compartment.

Upon getting back to the city, I immediately brought the camera to an authorized service center for Olympus here in the Philippines, Servimax Technologies Incorporated. They confirmed that water indeed leaked inside the battery compartment which led to the failure of the camera. But because the warranty does not apply here in the Philippines as it was purchased in Hongkong, I need to pay a very big amount to shoulder the repair, almost the same amount of a brand new Olympus Stylus 1030 sw.

The camera is just 5 months old with me and I believe that it is too soon for it to be damaged. I have handled the camera with utmost care and delicateness but the camera simply malfunctioned to my dismay. I believe that the camera was never mishandled even if it was shockproof. Is this a factory defect or is the camera simply not waterproof as what your advertisements claim?

As a consumer, I was led to believe by the advertisements of Olympus about the product that it was waterproof. But clearly, from my experience, it is not and it failed the waterproof claim of the camera. I also found out over the internet, that many consumers are complaining about the same model of the camera that water leaked inside their camera despite being ‘waterproof’. The claims of Olympus about the said model were very misleading and I am very disappointed that I put such high regard to the brand, which I even deemed as my “dream camera”. I am very disappointed by the product considering that I did save for 2 years to purchase this kind of camera. I even asked my friends to buy this camera and trust in the Olympus brand, but due to this event, I was very disappointed and am having blurred notions about the brand image. I was failed by this camera as I did not get the service that I was promised through its promotions and advertisements.

What can be done about this? I hope Olympus can address this concern as they are misleading their customers who have trusted to purchase their brand but have failed them in providing quality service in their products.

Kirupakar of Bangalore, OTHER September 27, 2008

Kirupakar of Bangalore OTHER (09/27/08)
Defective olympus camera....A best example for substandard quality china product.

After purchasing digital camera, I experienced a terrible problem.Initially camera was functioning well for a period of 3 months, which I rarely used for at the most 4 to 5 times. Suddenly I faced problem with camera and found not functioning inspite of my utmost careful handling of the camera. Since it had warranty it was rectified by service provider and assured that I would not face any more problem in future. And now again I am facing same kind of problem inspite of my careful handling of the camera, this confirms the doubt, that it is sure a product defect and not related to mishandling of the camera.

Moreover I purchased the camera for 15,000 Indian rupees, which is a huge spend for me on this defective product. Being such a reputed company I never expected this kind of service. Because product has the problem I expect [them] to work to obtain a satisfactory resolution.

Sylvia of Fairmont, WV September 20, 2008

Sylvia of Fairmont WV (09/20/08)
I recently purchased an Olympus Camera for 499.00. I've used it very little, the cover to the battery and XD card will not close, I have been very careful with this camera, and like others on this site, I cannot understand why the company will not stand behind their mistakes because the camera takes awesome pictures.

After reading all the complaints about the customer service dept of Olypus, I did not call them, however, after filling out this complaint I feel it is only fair to give them a chance to respond, although I don't have any expectations of getting results.

Shell of Rocky, OTHER September 10, 2008

Shell of Rocky OTHER (09/10/08)
I bought an Olympus camera on the 9/8/08, I purchased this camera specifically to use for travel overseas, and had rarely used it, as there really is nothing worth photographing in my home town. On the 9/9/08 I took it out to view pictures, the camera made a strange noise as the lens came out, then lens then closed, opened, closed, opened. To view through the view finder, the screen, there was constant flicking on the screen, no focus. When I shut the camera, the same happened, the lens went in, then out, then in.

The next day, 10/09/08, I took the camera to where I brought it, hoping for an exchange, even though I was now wary of the type of camera, but I did not have time to have it repaired, I am leaving for overseas in one week, I told this to staff, they called people, but no, it had to be sent back. Ridiculous. The whole reason I bought it was for travel, and now, going by other people's stories of waiting weeks for camera's to be returned, I really don't like my chances of getting it before I go.

I will have to buy a new camera, another 200, and then be returned a camera that is possibly still faulty, to a town I no longer live in. By such time the new camera will no doubt also be past the date of refund or exchange, so essentially, I have been forced to buy two cameras, in the space of just over one month, knowing that one is somehow faulty. I will not buy or recommend Olympus to anyone.

Taffi of Tulsa, OK December 29, 2007

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