Canon 500D - Repair or Move On?

[Goftrey]

I was out with the camera last week while walking the dog when I found that the main scroll dial just completely stopped functioning, out of the blue. I ripped out the battery, memory card etc. and swapped in replacements, and updated the firmware (on the off chance), all though we to no avail.

So I put it down simply as a defective dial.

I decided to then buy myself a battery grip, seeing as they've got their own dials, I thought it'd be a cheap workaround. The grip came, every single last thing worked.... Expect the main dial. I plugged the grip into my 450D and guess what? It worked flawlessly.

Does anybody have any idea what the issue is? I'm not 100% sure how the buttons on those battery grips work (ie. whether they're independent or if they go through the circuit of the existing buttons, however the pins on the grip's connector makes me think that they've got nothing to do with the camera's buttons).

As the camera's only worth £150 fully working (maybe £60/£70 as it is) would it be worth sending it in, or would I be better of selling it as-is and buying a replacement?

Thanks guys.

PS: All of these repair shops are the other side of the bloody country, and they only give an estimate after you've sent it in to them, which makes it an extremely expensive process comparing the quotes of different shops.

 

[aerok]

Did you check if it does not work in the playback menu as well?

 

[Goftrey]

Did you check if it does not work in the playback menu as well?

Yep. Neither the dial on the camera or the grip works anywhere.

 

[aerok]

Yep. Neither the dial on the camera or the grip works anywhere.

How odd... Well now it depends on much/why you use your camera. The 500D was my first camera and it served me well. If you feel like you could go for an upgrade, go for it. If not, just have it repaired.

 

[cebseb]

I would definitely just update. Since the 500d, leaps and bounds in sensor tech has occurred. Even a used body of last gen would be a significant upgrade.

 

[Goftrey]

Thanks for the answers guys. Looks like I'll flog it and move on. Possibly a 600D, seeing as I'm spending more and more of my time in videography these days.

Thanks again.

 

[Laird Knox]

Might be something as simple as a loose cable. If the grip controls route through the same board as the on board controls then it is a possibility.

 

[cebseb]

Thanks for the answers guys. Looks like I'll flog it and move on. Possibly a 600D, seeing as I'm spending more and more of my time in videography these days.

Thanks again.

My vote is for the 7D!

Good luck!

 

[Meister]

My vote is for the 7D!

Good luck!

I've heard very good things about the 7d, but the video quality is not very good.

 

[cebseb]

I've heard very good things about the 7d, but the video quality is not very good.

Really? I found it quite superb when loaded up with the Magic Lantern firmware.

 

[Goftrey]

Eos m?

So I've managed to sell my 500D (with the 18-55mm IS kit lens) for just under £150, which I'm pleasantly surprised with, given the fact that it only cost me £190 originally.

I've looked at the 600D's and although it looks like the perfect camera for me, it just makes my stomach hurt every time I think about how much of a dent it's going to put in my wallet.

Now don't get me wrong I love my photography, but I don't think I can justify paying £350+ for a (warranty-less) 600D at this point in time.

So I gave up on the 600D given the fact I'm a bit of a tight-ass and began to look elsewhere, and the only semi-modern cameras that shoot video that are going for prices under the £300 mark are the 550D, 500D, and then there's the odd one out, the EOS M.

The M intrigued me. I couldn't understand why this miniaturised 650D was going for under £200. So I began to look at the reviews, and they ALL slated the same things - the painfully slow autofocus and ridiculously high price (£600). However, since the majority of these reviews were put out Canon have released a massive firmware update that improves the autofocus significantly, and along with that have slashed the price by over £400.

A few people have now started taking notice of it again at this new, low price and have praised it for it's now pretty decent autofocus, awesome sensor and superb video capabilities.

Does anyone in this forum own and use an EOS M? Could you share your opinions of it? For the unbelievable price it seems like the now minor issues can be easily overcome.

Thanks again.

 

[Meister]

Really? I found it quite superb when loaded up with the Magic Lantern firmware.

The video quality without ML is subpar.
But it is true, that with ML you get a lot of post editing options.
The problem is, that you cannot edit out all the moire and aliasing. The 7d is the worst camera i've seen for those.
A solution is the VAF filter from mosaic engineering, though. That takes care of the problem, but also costs $400.