Disposable World part 3 (Lumix looser)

Disposable world strikes again.

I was loving the Panasonic Lumix we got to replace second dead Casio. And for the first 6 months it was lovely. Then it started to having trouble turning on.

Then it died.

Sure we used it in the water - but only as advised. We took care of it and looked after it. And it was less than a year old. We sent it in for warranty repair.

Panasonic representatives wrote back claiming its out of warranty because we didn't "clean the exterior of the camera and the waterproof seals as described in the user manual". They concluded there was "neglect / misuse of the camera this resulting in it not being covered under warranty".

So much for a tough camera you can supposedly throw across a river. (How ironic it is, that I first saw that particular ad in a paid focus group, two days after we had actually bought the camera!)

To fix it, they want $200.

Of course, why would we pay that when we can get a newer waterproof Pentax camera, delivered, for around $135?

Why pay more to fix something you already have, when you can buy a newer one for less? Especially as the so called 'tough' camera lasted the same as our previous two Casio cameras. As my wife said "As far as I'm concerned, the cheaper the better, because no matter how much we pay, our cameras seem to last for one year"

To add insult to injury even when repaired, Panasonic say that any "repaired waterproof / underwater cameras will not be covered for any form of liquid damage after the repair is completed."

So, let this be a warning to the many family and friend's I've recommended the Lumix camera to... you might be hiking with it in the mountains, but if you don't clean the seals before you skip it across the water, don't expect the warranty to be upheld.

Disposable world

I'm sick of living in a disposable world. A world where it is more expensive to repair equipment that malfunctions than it is to throw it away and buy a newer version.

Most recently it was the Brother DCP-115 multi-function printer. The black ink stopped working - probably due to a blockage in the ink tube or print head. It would cost a minimum of $50 to even have it looked at - and probably over $100 to get it fixed. Instead, its cheaper and easier to have a new one delivered to our house. So we have a new DCP-145 for $107 including delivery. I expect this one will go in a couple of years too!

Before that it was the camera. We had a Casio that got sat on and cracked so we go a new Casio. Around a year later (Just about when the Warranty had expired, of course), it started to have problems taking photos. Some images did not come out. Probably a loose connection with the CCD I thought. But again - it wasn't worth fixing. For $325 we have a new, waterproof and shock proof Panasonic Lumix camera.

The same thing has happened in past with Apple Powerbooks and IBM & Compaq Laptops 

Some people don't have a problem with this. I do.

Consumer growth may demand we buy and chuck - but why can't we build things to last? When are we going to take into account the true cost of these products - things that are externalised like pollution and the destruction of cultures where our crap is sent to be broken down and 'recycled'.

For my part, I think I'll  start writing to companies (Casio, Apple, Lenovo, HP) to see what they say.  Maybe I should donate 10% of the cost to the "The Story of Stuff" (which is a wonderfully clear analysis of this problem)

A good start would be for these organisations to have eWaste recycling programs in Australia, like they have to have in Europe and, increasingly, in the US.. We should have legislation that demands tech companies own their crap and take back products that fail - maybe this will encourage them to build them better in the first place, or at least take into account some of the otherwise externalized costs.