K10d and Sandisk SD card problem

Hi there,


I just wondered if anyone else has had a problem with using Sandisk 8GB SDHC cards with the Pentax slrs? I got a couple of the standard speed ones for christmas which are listed as compatible on sandisk's website. When I put the SD card into my K10d, I noticed that it was an unsually tight squeeze. When I tried to release the card, I found that it then required much more pressure than normal. The Sandisk cards read fine however the bad news is that now none of my existing SD cards work anymore and produce a memory error. I think the Sandisk 8Gb card has a slight difference to it's pin layout and has altered the pins inside the camera.

The bad news is Pentax want £150 to repair it as it's 18 months old and hence outside of warranty. It's counted as impact damage and so carries a standard repair cost.

Just wanted to give a heads up and wondered if anyone else has had problems with SD cards.

Cheers

Rob.

I have not had that problem with Sandisk cards in my K10D, nor before have I heard of anyone else getting the problem.

One explanation MIGHT be that your cards are fake instead of genuine Sandisk.

Sorry to hear it's caused serious damage to your camera. I once had a tight-fitting card of another brand (A-DATA) - but it still worked OK and didn't harm anything.

Pete,


That's a good point which crossed my mind but they were from 7dayshop rather than ebay so I cannot believe they would be fake.

The 150 quid repair just doesn't make it worthwhile having it done when it's only worth 250 quid second hand anyway. I think I'll probably replace it and keep the K10d as a spare as it still works.


Rob.

Strange
I've used my 8gb SDHC card in my K10D with no problems...actually there should be absolutely no differences between the 8Gb or any other type of SD card...

Like your pics on your flickr account Rob

I have one of those cards and have had no problems. I have swapped between it and a 1 and 2gig card without trouble. Have you thought of contacting sandisk and making enquiries there? If the card is at fault you might have some luck.

Cheers, Kris.

Very odd
I use 3 x 4Gb Sandisk Extreme III SHDC cards in both the K10D and K20D... never had a whiff of a problem!

Does the camera write to the 8Gb? Or are all your SD cards not writing anymore?? (Sure the lock hasn't been engaged on the SD cards :blush

Matt

Pwynnej - Thanks very much.

Matt - It's not the write protect tab but I think that may be the problem inside the camera - I think that's where it got stuck when I put the card in first time. It's such a pain and I guess a really trivial repair but there is no getting past the standard 150 quid repair charge from pentax. I did note that Nikon are offering a 2 year warranty.

The cards which caused the problem are the standard speed 8GB Sandisk ones and they work fine. My existing ones are sandisk 2gb extreme 3's which no longer work.

So do the "Pentax Pro" centres like SRS Microsystems

It's very odd that Sandisk 8Gb cards could cause a problem. There are strict specifications for thickness and pin-outs. If I were you I would head over to the Sandisk website and check out whether you have a genuine Sandisk card!!!
(Sandisk are extremely helpful in my experience!)
Matt

That's very strange Rob,as my Dane Elec 16Gig card came from the 7 dayshop, and has been absolutely fine.
Have you phoned the 7 dayshop to complain?
Have you contacted Sandisk?
I know it's not of much comfort to you now, but an SD card should slide in easily, with only slight pressure needed to retain or release it.
I don't think you should have to pay to get your camera fixed, and I feel that it warrants further investigation, either by Pentax, or by Sandisk!

Best of luck,

Peter.

If you bought the camera from a Pentax Pro centre, at 18 months old, it's still within its 2 years warranty.

Just a quick thought Rob, All SD cards are manufactured to a specific standard.

The SD cards are all the same standard, and the SDHC cards are all manufactured to a higher spec but are all manufactured to the SDHC standard.
Some SDHC cards now have a faster read write spec, but the point I'm trying to get across is that physically they are all the same size mate!

It's like a CD, the physical dimensions are the same, and therefore they fit in any player.

If you purchased the camera from a Pentax Pro dealer, then you just take it to Pentax, as Pro dealers give a 2 YEAR WARRANTY!!!!!!!
Peter is absolutely correct,If I were you, I would take the camera and all the SD cards that you use with it, to Pentax, and get them to investigate and repair under warranty!

That's only against manufacturing defects, not damage.

G

Thanks for the updates guys. I bought it from Cameraworld and it doesn't look like they are a pro centre. Pentax have the camera and all the memory cards already. When I spoke to Pentax this morning, they said this counts as "impact" damage and so there is nothing they could do on the price. I've chased Sandisk about this and whether the cards are genuine however I don't think that they are fake at all.

>It's like a CD, the physical dimensions are the same, and therefore they fit in any player.

I measured the cards for differences using a micrometre and they are identical in size. I believe it is a slight difference in the pins or the read/write tab as the card got stuck when I put it in and now they are the only cards which can be read - None of my existing cards work. This means they MUST be different in configuration in some way.