Kodak Back

Part of what we expect from big-name-electronics is support, right?  Originally, I had to chose between Kodak, Aiptek, and whoever it is who makes the Flip Mino.  I have very little experience dealing with this aspect of consumer electronics because they are generally so reliable in the first place.  But if you had to chose an HD video camera strictly by how well known the brand is, wouldn't you go with Kodak?

Why did my Kodak Zi6 break down?  I don't know.  They never said.  The first symptom of problems was that it would only record 5 seconds then appear to lock up.  It doesn't run any kind of Microsoft operating system, so there was no explanation as to why it would lock up.  Yes, that was a joke, but isn't that what you think of when something locks up?  Microsoft/Windows?

Indeed, the firmware on the Zi6 is so simple, how could it ever lock up like this?  So I ran the diagnostic, and it seemed to get worse.  To me, this is clearly symptoms of hardware failure, not the firmware.  It could have been caused by anything from humidity to component defect or a combination thereof.

Since I bought it in April and it started acting up in August, I thought for sure the warranty had expired, but Kodak's web site took my information and indicated that it was indeed covered.  I shipped it uninsured by USPS for $2.70 (risky, I know).  They did whatever they did and sent it back UPS for free.  There was no indication on the rider sheet about what went wrong or how they fixed it.  But it works now, so what do I care?  They got my camera back to me in 3 weeks.  That was very nice too.

My theory is that they sent me a new or refurbished device, not my original camera.  I think this because the serial number sticker looks askew.  It clearly looks like someone pealed it off and applied it to a different camera.

I don't care if that's what they did as long as it works.  I just hope the replacement device doesn't need service with a serial number sticker looking this way.

So way to go, Kodak!  No real complaints from me.  I just wish it didn't break right before the trip up north, but the timing is not Kodak's fault.  On the other hand, if you were going to just replace it, why not send the replacement first, dear Kodak?  That's what Seagate does with hard drives.  Oh well.  Like I said, no real complaints.

Ok, I do actually have one small complaint.  They didn't update the firmware to the latest bersion before shipping it back to me.  It came back with 1.10 and the web site lists 1.11.  The steps indicate you must use an external card reader to update the camera's firmware, but that's not true.  You can load the firmware onto the SD card with the camera itself, then follow the steps as if you used an external card reader.

Incidently, there is talk of a group forming to edit (hack) the Zi6 firmware to get more features out of it.  Neat.  They're even discussing the feature I want: default HD60.

Posted via email from Anthony Martin's Weblog