Dave, equating repair cost to secondhand prices is not really very useful. Pentax does need to pay for their repair staff--not minimum-wage earners. I would simply buy another lens, but that mean Pentax can do the repair work for less.
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Hi Shashin,
I can certainly identify and mostly agree with your assessment. I realize economic times have changed and many of these companies are fighting for survival and have to watch every penny that contributes to the bottom line. No issue with that and also that repairs (like with auto's) don't cost what they used to be. Tech's and those employed have to be paid more and so the companies have to charge more. Again no issue with that!
The issue I have though is gouging! Certain auto repair facilities (both the manufacturers as well as independent) engage in this practice and it appears some of the major camera manufacturers have been doing the same lately. When one is on the other side like Tim was, it takes on a whole different interpretation. What's fair is fair..but not when the consumer is taken advantage of in the name of the company using this approach in order to survive. Like the elderly couple that doesn't know any better about the cost of their car repair and are charged hundreds more than someone who knows is far more knowledgeable... so too have some camera manufacturers attempted the same principals. Interesting when a consumer speaks up and makes a legitimate case, they quickly back off...but what about those that don't know any better.
As for Leica, I've seen it go both ways...but like Pentax Japan, Nikon Japan and Leica in Solms...the home company always seems to be the most direct and honest in their approach. It's the independently owned subsidiaries where these fairly recent practices seem to now emanate from and the reports are coming in from various parts of the world. As you can see, I haven't thought highly of these practices and neither have many others.
I have a lot of respect for these company's products, their complexity and the amount of work that goes into making sure that reliability levels are kept high. Regardless of price, sometimes a part fails or a glitch develops, and this too can be expected to occasionally happen. Generally it's not the fault of an under-designed or inadequately tested product prior to market release. It's how these issues both in and out of warranty are handled that speaks volumes about the value these companies place on customer loyalty and repeat business.
I don't think it's the faulting economy alone that has a few of these highly successful companies now developing a less than stellar reputation for some of their recent consumer related practices and a profitable bottom line that's shrinking. I also believe the parent company doesn't quite know (or want to know), how their similarly named subsidiaries have been handling customer related issues recently. Can you imagine if Tim sent his 645D in for repair of the SD card rejection mechanism, while the camera was still under warranty, and it came back with a $1200.00 estimate for repair due to "impact damage"? That's the response many are receiving for their "in-warranty" products that develop issues through no fault of the end user....which when uncontested, often leads to exorbitant repair estimates for minor out of warranty repairs (for all consumers in general).
I would bet it someone walks through the door of Pentax Japan with a out of warranty 645D that had the same issue/problem as Tim's 645D...my guess would be the cost of repair might be in the neighborhood of $300-$400 (give or take), if that.
Dave (D&A)