Look, even under warranty, three times and SONY has to replace the camera.

I bought a 4-year warranty on my A700 ... and had to send it in three times, last December, because the repair facility could not get the thumbwheel control problem parsed out. I even got the repair/part manual download and TOLD them exactly what part was bad. I loaded a special 64MB CF Memory Card card filled with 30 frames of consecutive numbers, so they could see the problem as it occurred (it liked to skip image frames and run to all sorts of different settings on the aperture). It finally came back "repaired" but the hoops I had to jump through ... scary. Yeah, about six weeks of going back and forth with them.

Now, I have had issues with exposure meandering around with my SONY 50mm f/1.4 lens. It is really strange and I had always felt it was an ADI problem of some kind, because I cannot duplicate it with other lenses. Unfortunately, my 50mm is out of warranty ... so the repair costs are on me, I guess. Well, guess what? Guess who doesn't get to sell me another 50mm lens? Cheap China lenses don't cut it with me. I'll go to another manufacturer before I get burned twice like that. I probably will wind up with a SIGMA 50mm f/1.4 EX DG HSM for $499 from B&H. Yeah, it may cost a bit more ... but, at least it works. There's a lot to be said for that ... but, we're in mixed company ... so I shall refrain.

It's always possible you got a lemon. It's not a reassuring thought I know, but some examples of nearly every product out there are nothing but trouble from the day they roll of the assembly line.

I have also had my A700 a little over a year. The only serious problem it has had was back focus issues with WA lenses. Hopefully things stay this way.

I sent my screwed-up 50mm f/1.4 in for repair, today, and dropped in a check for $116 to cover the out-of-warranty repair cost. No, not too happy about that.

It should be back in a week or two and we shall see what we shall see.

As far as the thumbwheels on the A700 ... this is becoming a very common problem after a year of use on these cameras. I know I was among the first to encounter it and had a hell of a time trying to get the repair facility to find it. It took some creative troubleshooting techniques to properly demonstrate it to them, but in the end, it was repaired. It is not a lemon ... it is a manufacturing flaw that is now being demonstrated everywhere. How about that?

Okay, the new A700 PLUS (whatever they call it) is going to be available in the Fall. I got this straight from the SONY rep, in our area. So, there is something new to play with. He did not go into much detail, but he said to "save your pennies ... and prepare."

"Okay, the new A700 PLUS (whatever they call it) is going to be available in the Fall. I got this straight from the SONY rep, in our area. So, there is something new to play with. He did not go into much detail, but he said to "save your pennies ... and prepare."

Maybe there will be a replacement in the Fall, but to assume a rep knows this is kinda funny. These sort of decisions are made high up and it is highly unlikely that a rep would know. Indeed with some companies the reps are not employed directly by the manufacturer, rather an agency.

As far as the A700 having a problem, well there have been a few reported cases on the internet. Nothing like as many as there were with the 5D and 7D FBF issue. As Brian said, all products be they cars, cameras, MP3 players etc have certain good and some bad copies produced. Whilst frustrating, in most cases the manufacturers will put things right. Talk of switching is funny, because problems are not specific..... go to Canon or Nikon and you'll find they have their own issues/quirks too.

I hope your products get fixed in a timely manner.

I went to Radio Shack and bought contact spray cleaner as suggested by Ovlov. I sprayed both front and rear control wheels and it is working for the time being. Sony wanted over $300 to repair my a700. It is two months out of warranty.
Dan

And they fixed it under warranty, so i'm very happy my a700 is back. The a200 is doing pretty good but i missed the a700 big time.
They fixed the issue with the aperature, build in a new unit, so i should be good for some time now. I hope.

Start shooting again, the A700 is such a joy to use.

Hubert

http://www.dyxum.com/dforum/a700-front-control-wheel-acting-odd_topic44702.html
Dan

Wouldn't a number of shutter actuations or images created serve as a better predictor than time? It’s like saying my car only lasted three years (oh ya, I drive 55,000 miles/year)....

I'd like to hear how the people care for their equipment that are having these problems. I have ~8000 images through my 700 and it functions and feels like it did when I purchased it. I do take pretty good care of my gear thought....

Z

I have an A700 myself and I am not known for my care of inanimate objects. I've kept it expsoed to the elements many times and the number of shutter actuations on mine may be at at least around 50,000. It still runs like a dream nonethelss though. I have found that the rear dial isn't as dependable as it used to be though. Every once in a while when I adjust my aperture to let's say f/16, it'll jump back to f/5.6 as I move the dial to the right; I haven't found it to be too much of a nuiscence though. I did however just send my A700 to get repaired. I tend to tinker with things a lot and I managed to wreck the pentaprism area due to my own incompetence. Like I said, I have found the A700 to be quite tuff and I expected to use it a lot more once I get it back; me thinks that there really are bad models hanging around here and there.

Rabi

Number of shutter actions (or whatever) You have around 8000 clicks on your A700.
Maybe thats my problem, i guess i 've a little more. I think it's been around 4 times, so i should be somewhere around 40.000 clicks. (to be on the save side, i'm afraid its even more.)

Hubert