Faulty Video camera, is it repairable.

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PaulZA

188 posts

Master Geek

Topic # 110796 16-Oct-2012 11:34
Hi there guys. I bought a second hand video camera from one of the second hand shops. It's a Panasonic SDR-H20GN. I took it with my away on a trip, and I recorded like 7 hours worth of stuff on the inbuilt hard drive. I got home, to transfer the stuff to my computer, and only to find that the camera was dead, it wouldn't power up on the battery, or supplied AC adapter no matter how long I charged it for. I think the shop did give me 30 day warrantly, and that's all well and good. However the question is, If I had to take it back, would they just replace it or would they send it to a place for a repair? If it wasn't for the data on the camera, I'd say go for it but I would like to see the data recovered. Is that possible? do second hand shops actually send the devices away for repairs, or do they have a guy in the shop doing so? Also what I think could've caused the problem was someone cut the DC wire that runs from the AC adapter to the camera, and I'm worried that the wires could've touched, or worse somebody jointed the positive and negitive wire the other way round, and we get reverse polarity. If that was the case, could the camera be repaired, or is it a $250 doorstop? Would they repair it? Thanks

86 posts

Master Geek

Reply # 701997 16-Oct-2012 11:53
Hopefully your charger is just dead maybe. Do you live in auckland? I work at parallel imported newmarket I would be more than happy for you to try one of the universal chargers in my shop, but i would take it back once you get your stuff off. And if you need to repair it I would recommend CW service in Timaru http://www.camerarepairs.co.nz/

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Biddle Corp

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Reply # 702006 16-Oct-2012 12:01
If you've cut the cable then this would clearly be the cause, and you can't expect a warranty to cover this. The easy way to tell would be to try another power adapter and see if the unit works. *Need help configuring your Linksys ATA or IP Phones for New Zealand? Check my blog post

Minecraft n00b
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Reply # 702012 16-Oct-2012 12:09
Cut wires (regardless if you did it or done beforehand) are going to potentially kill any warranty claims.... :( Being a second hand store, their warranty is more likely a refund and item being thrown in the bin. XPD / @DemiseNZ / Gavin Website CPU : Intel E5300 GFX: Geforce 9800GTX/+ RAM: 3GB DDR2 A+ - MCDST - MCTS CCNA Arriving soon.

188 posts

Master Geek

Reply # 702098 16-Oct-2012 14:59
Thanks will try another charger. I might add that I have 2 batteries, and neither of them want to work. I'm sure that one of them is probably charged enough to switch it on. It doesn't want to power on even with a battery. In Regards to the cut wires, it's simply the DC cable that was cut, it runs from the charger to the camera, something tells me that I accidently connected positive to negitive, and negitive to positive. Whether that stuffed the charger or charger. Not sure which one.

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Uber Geek

Reply # 702129 16-Oct-2012 15:51
So does the charger still charge the batteries when it is just connected to the mains? I am presuming that everything worked when you got it, and after you charged the batteries you cut and repaired the DC cable, Go and get yourself a cheap and nasty multi meter from Disk Smith ( around $15) and you will be able to tell if the charger is stuffed, and also whether your repair has connected the correct wires in the DC cable. Until you can actually rule out those two points we are all really jsut Pi$$ing in the Dark

979 posts

Ultimate Geek

Reply # 702135 16-Oct-2012 16:11
Just been reading the manual for your camera online. What happens to the indicator light on the charger when you connect a battery to it? Should be able to tell from that if the charger is still OK or not. Unlikely to be a problem with it I would think. If the camera doesn't start with a charged battery or DC only from the charger then most likely the cut wires have been recomnnected in reverse polarity. Best case there is a fuse or protection against this in the camera. Worst case it's fried. Unfortunately not worth the repair cost these days as more economic to buy a new one. Camera service agent may be able to retriev data. Check Panasonic support website for local service agents. One here on the North Shore at Albany is excellent.