K-x mode dial fault? Perhaps
Posted 04/12/2010 - 02:44
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Well firstly, welcome to the forum. Were you to complete your profile (at least with a location), it might assist other users with local knowledge to tailor their advice to you.
I'd probably be inclined towards getting it replaced ASAP, if the dial is not behaving the way it should straight out of the box. It might be that the contacts under the dial are misaligned. It is unlikely to get better with age!
If you have been able to replicate the fault over a few occasions, you should have no difficulty in demonstrating the fault to the retailer.
Given it is unused / brand new, a reputable retailer should have no difficulty in swapping it straight over in these circumstances.
All the best with it.
PS - it's a very good camera too!
I'd probably be inclined towards getting it replaced ASAP, if the dial is not behaving the way it should straight out of the box. It might be that the contacts under the dial are misaligned. It is unlikely to get better with age!
If you have been able to replicate the fault over a few occasions, you should have no difficulty in demonstrating the fault to the retailer.
Given it is unused / brand new, a reputable retailer should have no difficulty in swapping it straight over in these circumstances.
All the best with it.
PS - it's a very good camera too!
Posted 04/12/2010 - 07:52
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I would say the same. Get it back a.s.a.p. and then make sure that you test the replacement in the shop. I know sometimes Currys can be a pain with that from experience (when I got my wife a camera from them and it was DOA when I came home) but you are in your rights to do so, so stand your ground. If they say that they have no charged battery available for testing, use the one that came with your first camera (make sure that it is at least some charge in it).
That is what they tried with me because it was at the end all 3 that I tested that had the same fault and I walked out with my money back in my pocket.
Don't let them tell you that it is to late for a swap. Remember your consumer rights.
Personally I do not use any of them (Cuyys, Dixon or the worst of all PC World) after several bad experiences with staff that did now anything but call them self a specialist in the field.
That is what they tried with me because it was at the end all 3 that I tested that had the same fault and I walked out with my money back in my pocket.
Don't let them tell you that it is to late for a swap. Remember your consumer rights.
Personally I do not use any of them (Cuyys, Dixon or the worst of all PC World) after several bad experiences with staff that did now anything but call them self a specialist in the field.
Kind regards
SmutjeUK
It's nice to be nice!
Pentax K-5 with D-GB4 Grip, to many lenses to mention by now (serious LBA by now), TC's, Lowepro Slingshot 300 AW, Manfrotto 028 & Redsnapper RS-283 with various Heads plus various Camera Clamps (I collect them). Pentax AF 360FGZ, Pentax AF 240FT, several Metz 45 CT-1 & 5 with stands and 'Blow Up' Soft Boxes, Flash Triggers, and various Macro gear.
SmutjeUK
It's nice to be nice!
Pentax K-5 with D-GB4 Grip, to many lenses to mention by now (serious LBA by now), TC's, Lowepro Slingshot 300 AW, Manfrotto 028 & Redsnapper RS-283 with various Heads plus various Camera Clamps (I collect them). Pentax AF 360FGZ, Pentax AF 240FT, several Metz 45 CT-1 & 5 with stands and 'Blow Up' Soft Boxes, Flash Triggers, and various Macro gear.
Posted 04/12/2010 - 11:57
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I'd take it back ASAP -
The Dixons group of stores (Currys, Currys.digital, PCW and Dixons online, etc) normally work on a 28 day return or refund policy, like most stores in the UK, but over the Christmas Period will allow any product bought from November to be brought back up unti lsome time in January. Many other retailers will be doing the same, but the advice I'd give is don't wait until after Christmas, for the repair and returns departments of most large retailers, Boxing day, through the New Years sales, until almost March is going to be their busiest time.
Regardless of where you bought it from, always be aware of the vague terminolgy of the Sales of Goods act 1979, it uses words like "reasonable period" and "of satisfactory quality", but never defines what they are.
Also, be aware that it is not a blanket 6 year (or 5 in Scotland) protection, as any faults have to be proved as being an inherent fault that existed from the time of purchase.
The SoG Act is over and above any other Warranties that you might hold, and does mean that you take up your issue with the retailer you bought the product from. Essentially, first year warranties are an easy way for the retailers and manufacturers to comply with the SoG Act in the UK.
For a 'reasonable period' (ie, about a month from purchase) most stores will just exchange or refund the product with few questions asked (You will normally be required to demostrate the fault, se SmutjeUK's comment about batteries). After that 'reasonable period' the retailer isn't required to refund or exchange, but can seek to remedy the fault in other ways, and most inherent faults will become apparent within the first year.
After that, it becomes increasingly unlikely that whatever fault your product experiences is donw to an inherent fault that existed from the time you bought the product, hence the onus to prove it is starts to shift from the retailer to prove it isn't an inherent fault, to the consumer to prove it is. The final caveat is that the 'reasonable period of time' and the 'satisfactory quality' will also depend on the product, a £250 notebook is going to have different expectations for it's lifespan compared to a £750 one. Or a £5 Smart Price Toaster, compared to a £70 DeLonghi (or whatever).
The Xbox 360 and it's 'Red Rings of Death', or the problem with nVidia graphics shipsets beginning with a 6,7,8 or 9 are examples of inherent faults, a hard disk drive failing after a couple of years is more then likely just bad luck.
Sorry for the wall of text, but as a Trainer for a repair workshop, and a consumer who's actually read the Sales of Goods Act, a lot of the misconceptions about it (and hte EU equivilent, BTW, the SoG Act gives greater protection) annoy me. Hope that it all helps!
The Dixons group of stores (Currys, Currys.digital, PCW and Dixons online, etc) normally work on a 28 day return or refund policy, like most stores in the UK, but over the Christmas Period will allow any product bought from November to be brought back up unti lsome time in January. Many other retailers will be doing the same, but the advice I'd give is don't wait until after Christmas, for the repair and returns departments of most large retailers, Boxing day, through the New Years sales, until almost March is going to be their busiest time.
Regardless of where you bought it from, always be aware of the vague terminolgy of the Sales of Goods act 1979, it uses words like "reasonable period" and "of satisfactory quality", but never defines what they are.
Also, be aware that it is not a blanket 6 year (or 5 in Scotland) protection, as any faults have to be proved as being an inherent fault that existed from the time of purchase.
The SoG Act is over and above any other Warranties that you might hold, and does mean that you take up your issue with the retailer you bought the product from. Essentially, first year warranties are an easy way for the retailers and manufacturers to comply with the SoG Act in the UK.
For a 'reasonable period' (ie, about a month from purchase) most stores will just exchange or refund the product with few questions asked (You will normally be required to demostrate the fault, se SmutjeUK's comment about batteries). After that 'reasonable period' the retailer isn't required to refund or exchange, but can seek to remedy the fault in other ways, and most inherent faults will become apparent within the first year.
After that, it becomes increasingly unlikely that whatever fault your product experiences is donw to an inherent fault that existed from the time you bought the product, hence the onus to prove it is starts to shift from the retailer to prove it isn't an inherent fault, to the consumer to prove it is. The final caveat is that the 'reasonable period of time' and the 'satisfactory quality' will also depend on the product, a £250 notebook is going to have different expectations for it's lifespan compared to a £750 one. Or a £5 Smart Price Toaster, compared to a £70 DeLonghi (or whatever).
The Xbox 360 and it's 'Red Rings of Death', or the problem with nVidia graphics shipsets beginning with a 6,7,8 or 9 are examples of inherent faults, a hard disk drive failing after a couple of years is more then likely just bad luck.
Sorry for the wall of text, but as a Trainer for a repair workshop, and a consumer who's actually read the Sales of Goods Act, a lot of the misconceptions about it (and hte EU equivilent, BTW, the SoG Act gives greater protection) annoy me. Hope that it all helps!
Pentax K10d; Metz mecablitz 48 AF-1; Pentax A 50mm F2; Pentax 18-55mm DAII; Sigma 28-300mm F3.5-5.6; Koboron 24-70mm F3.5-4.8. Pentax MZ-7, Zenit 35mm
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Posted 04/12/2010 - 12:03
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Hiya all, thank you so much for your warm welcomes, feedback and advice, it is very much appreciated
I've updated my personal information a little now, thanks for pointing it out i-Berg, you had a good point there
Must admit it did kind of burst my bubble to find an issue with it so soon! I said to my husband when I discovered the fault that it would drive me nuts, so no I don't think time would make any improvement to the function either, or my sanity! It sounds like the problem you suggest would be the most logical, as macro seems to be sitting precisely half way between moving object (sport) and macro dial symbol. But when either mose is selected both will display as moving object mode.
I called the helpline for Currys online and after going through dozens and dozens of options the department I need is not open until Monday. So I tried the alternative option (for all other enquiries) to be told that the delivery service DHL is not making any collections right now due to back log (weather conditions). So I explained further to be given a number to call (the same one I had rang in the 1st place) and told to select option 4 (the same option I did in the 1st place also). Then when I told her, i'd already tried that but that department is closed until Monday, she said oh I forgot some departments don't open on certain days!
I then called my local store, explained I purchased it online as the store didn't have any in stock at the time to reserve and collect, explained about the fault and was told basically to search for my camera model online and search for the helpline number and phone them. This I have yet to do but shall look for the appropiate number and try that option.
Thank you, price, reputation and the fact that Pentax doesn't seem to skimp on parts where it matters to keep the cost down like many that I have read reviews on played a part in my choice. Plus the smaller body (I have quite small hands). Plus it's compatability with older Pentax lenses (and a few non-Pentax lenses I should imagine). Lens cost much more economical to body size comparred to other smaller body SLR's who use micro four thirds lenses. And last but not least it ticked a lot of boxes and was within my budget with an additional lense, was the obvious choice Hopefully I do the camera justice and capture a shot to be proud of, once I have a fully functioning one and Christmas is upon our door
Hiya Mike, Hopefully come Monday when I can get to speak to someone possibly human and arrange for it to be collected/exchanged and so on, with hopefully a smooth process and positive result with no further issues. The local Currys shop is out of stock, so called rather than go into the store (public transport, this time of year, town = nightmare)while I was given further advice (the direct actual number would have been better) I found her a little less than helpful. Unless I am advised otherwise when I call 1st think Monday to take it back to a shop, I should imagive at this point it will be collected by a courier, i'll keep you all updated any way Hopefully a replacement or appropiate solution is sorted out before Christmas day arrives, I guess it all depends on the weather conditions improving and how well Currys deal with my problem.
Hiya SmutjeUK, Thank you too for your input and experience when dealing with a simular problem as myself. After the long winded options before you even speak to someone who sounds less than knowledgeable, and even less helpful, i'm inclind to agree, and if my budget wasn't so tight I would have considered other places to purchase from. I must admit too Pc World staff are very unhelpful, or keep you hanging around while they go off and forget about you! Dixons on the otherhand, I had a fault develope in my laptop (speaker started crackling) it was collected the following day after contacting them and was back 1 week later, was actually told 2 weeks or up to a further 2 weeks if it needed parts that was out of stock, so on that occasion I was provided with a well rounded service Although I could be in the minority This is my 1st experience of dealing with Currys, hopefully my initial contact with them is not an indication of the service i'm going to recieve!
Sould they do advise I return it to a local store for a straight exchange I will follow all the advice given and try it out to make sure it is working and behaving as it should be
Thank you all for your help, I shall let you know if there is any progress
Kind regards Chele
I've updated my personal information a little now, thanks for pointing it out i-Berg, you had a good point there
Must admit it did kind of burst my bubble to find an issue with it so soon! I said to my husband when I discovered the fault that it would drive me nuts, so no I don't think time would make any improvement to the function either, or my sanity! It sounds like the problem you suggest would be the most logical, as macro seems to be sitting precisely half way between moving object (sport) and macro dial symbol. But when either mose is selected both will display as moving object mode.
I called the helpline for Currys online and after going through dozens and dozens of options the department I need is not open until Monday. So I tried the alternative option (for all other enquiries) to be told that the delivery service DHL is not making any collections right now due to back log (weather conditions). So I explained further to be given a number to call (the same one I had rang in the 1st place) and told to select option 4 (the same option I did in the 1st place also). Then when I told her, i'd already tried that but that department is closed until Monday, she said oh I forgot some departments don't open on certain days!
I then called my local store, explained I purchased it online as the store didn't have any in stock at the time to reserve and collect, explained about the fault and was told basically to search for my camera model online and search for the helpline number and phone them. This I have yet to do but shall look for the appropiate number and try that option.
Thank you, price, reputation and the fact that Pentax doesn't seem to skimp on parts where it matters to keep the cost down like many that I have read reviews on played a part in my choice. Plus the smaller body (I have quite small hands). Plus it's compatability with older Pentax lenses (and a few non-Pentax lenses I should imagine). Lens cost much more economical to body size comparred to other smaller body SLR's who use micro four thirds lenses. And last but not least it ticked a lot of boxes and was within my budget with an additional lense, was the obvious choice Hopefully I do the camera justice and capture a shot to be proud of, once I have a fully functioning one and Christmas is upon our door
Hiya Mike, Hopefully come Monday when I can get to speak to someone possibly human and arrange for it to be collected/exchanged and so on, with hopefully a smooth process and positive result with no further issues. The local Currys shop is out of stock, so called rather than go into the store (public transport, this time of year, town = nightmare)while I was given further advice (the direct actual number would have been better) I found her a little less than helpful. Unless I am advised otherwise when I call 1st think Monday to take it back to a shop, I should imagive at this point it will be collected by a courier, i'll keep you all updated any way Hopefully a replacement or appropiate solution is sorted out before Christmas day arrives, I guess it all depends on the weather conditions improving and how well Currys deal with my problem.
Hiya SmutjeUK, Thank you too for your input and experience when dealing with a simular problem as myself. After the long winded options before you even speak to someone who sounds less than knowledgeable, and even less helpful, i'm inclind to agree, and if my budget wasn't so tight I would have considered other places to purchase from. I must admit too Pc World staff are very unhelpful, or keep you hanging around while they go off and forget about you! Dixons on the otherhand, I had a fault develope in my laptop (speaker started crackling) it was collected the following day after contacting them and was back 1 week later, was actually told 2 weeks or up to a further 2 weeks if it needed parts that was out of stock, so on that occasion I was provided with a well rounded service Although I could be in the minority This is my 1st experience of dealing with Currys, hopefully my initial contact with them is not an indication of the service i'm going to recieve!
Sould they do advise I return it to a local store for a straight exchange I will follow all the advice given and try it out to make sure it is working and behaving as it should be
Thank you all for your help, I shall let you know if there is any progress
Kind regards Chele
Posted 04/12/2010 - 20:03
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@chele2k2, can I assume that this being your first DSLR, you were just using the lens that came as part of the kit, as opposed to any other lens?
the reason I ask is - as someone who also has just bought a K-X, but in my case trying it with some old lenses, I initially had a similar problem of the mode dial initially indicating correctly, but then defaulting to a different setting. in my case it was something I'd just overlooked (and felt quite silly about when I realised), and that was because it was with a lens that had solely manual control over aperture, and since the camera couldn't control the aperture itself, it couldn't allow me to chose any settings that demanded it.
I just wonder if perhaps your lens hadn't quite locked into place, and that the camera wasn't making proper connection with the bit that controls aperture.
chances are that it's -not- that, but I'd think it at least worth detaching and then re-attaching the lens on the offchance that it -is- something to do with that.
the reason I ask is - as someone who also has just bought a K-X, but in my case trying it with some old lenses, I initially had a similar problem of the mode dial initially indicating correctly, but then defaulting to a different setting. in my case it was something I'd just overlooked (and felt quite silly about when I realised), and that was because it was with a lens that had solely manual control over aperture, and since the camera couldn't control the aperture itself, it couldn't allow me to chose any settings that demanded it.
I just wonder if perhaps your lens hadn't quite locked into place, and that the camera wasn't making proper connection with the bit that controls aperture.
chances are that it's -not- that, but I'd think it at least worth detaching and then re-attaching the lens on the offchance that it -is- something to do with that.
Posted 09/12/2010 - 14:59
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Hi all, sorry for the long delay in reply.
Road dancer, thank you for an insightful reply, came in handy Thank you too for your input SF tried it out again to make sure I fitted them correct firstly and was still doing the same, but thanks for the suggestion Was worth trying
Well Monday came and not to my surprise, the Currys (commet, dixons) helpline was less than helpful, I dread to think how much the calls cost being tossed from one department to the next! Having had quite enough of being messed about and fobbed off I decided to make one last call to them again. This time I phoned up, didn't mention any details of product or problem, just simply asked how I go about exchanging a product that is less than 28 days that I believe is faulty, so she said just take it back to the shop. The only reason I didn't take that route 1st is they were not in stock locally at the time of ordering or when I was trying to sort the issue out over the phone, luckily though the Plymouth stores had delivery that day. I went into town on Tuesday, the guy tested it out, said thats odd, never seen that before, tried the display model, that one was fine, so gave me a straight swap but I made sure that he tested that one too before I went home again. So all is well now, just looking forward to opening it up again on Christmas day and capturing the smile on the little ones (and not so little ones) faces when they open up their presents
Thank you all for all the help and advice you have provided Kind regards Chele
Road dancer, thank you for an insightful reply, came in handy Thank you too for your input SF tried it out again to make sure I fitted them correct firstly and was still doing the same, but thanks for the suggestion Was worth trying
Well Monday came and not to my surprise, the Currys (commet, dixons) helpline was less than helpful, I dread to think how much the calls cost being tossed from one department to the next! Having had quite enough of being messed about and fobbed off I decided to make one last call to them again. This time I phoned up, didn't mention any details of product or problem, just simply asked how I go about exchanging a product that is less than 28 days that I believe is faulty, so she said just take it back to the shop. The only reason I didn't take that route 1st is they were not in stock locally at the time of ordering or when I was trying to sort the issue out over the phone, luckily though the Plymouth stores had delivery that day. I went into town on Tuesday, the guy tested it out, said thats odd, never seen that before, tried the display model, that one was fine, so gave me a straight swap but I made sure that he tested that one too before I went home again. So all is well now, just looking forward to opening it up again on Christmas day and capturing the smile on the little ones (and not so little ones) faces when they open up their presents
Thank you all for all the help and advice you have provided Kind regards Chele
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4 posts
15 years
Devon UK
This is the one we purchased: http://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/pentax-k-x-digital-slr-camera-18-55mm-zoom-lens-50-...
Any way while testing it out (just on auto modes) I seem to have spotted an issue with the dial not correctly selecting. Although when I turn the mode dial they click in place and aligned correctly to the symbols on the dial when I to macro mode, marco mode flashes up briefly then it goes back to sport mode, doesn't matter what direction I turn the dial from it does it always. Yet if the dial is half way between macro mode and sport mode it will say macro mode is selected.
Does it sound like i've been unfortunate and have been supplied with a faulty camera? And if so in which case would you suggest I contact Currys or Pentax? (Was brought online but we have a Currys digital shop in town, I could perhaps try, would hate for it to have to be sent back so soon after it arriving)
Thanks for listening