Olympus OM-D E-M10 Failure

[Mike Farley]

The report of my camera failure has got caught up in the "Soothsayer" thread, so I thought I would start a new one to keep things separate.

This is what I wrote originally:

"When I turned the camera on, a grinding noise briefly came from the lens during which time live view displayed on the rear screen, but the camera was otherwise unresponsive before shutting down. I changed lenses to eliminate the possibility of that being the cause. It wasn't.

"Since then, I have been trying to find out if there is an underlying issue with the camera, but apart from one person on Amazon.com experiencing what sounds like a similar problem, there are remarkably few complaints about reliability. The same goes for its big E-M1 brother. It seems that I have been unlucky, but it does give me a opportunity to find out how good the customer service from the dealer (CameraWorld) and Olympus is. There will be reports."

I have phoned CameraWorld and arranged to take the camera back to their London store as it is still under guarantee. CameraWorld does not keep records of its transactions*, so requires me to provide proof that I purchased the camera from them, either the receipt or the relevant credit card statement showing the debit. Legally, I am not obliged to do this, but can foresee an impasse if I do not provide the necessary evidence. The camera goes in next Monday and CameraWorld says that the normal Olympus turnaround time is in the region of two weeks. Now, what did I do with the receipt?

* Park Cameras does keep records of its customers, which presumably includes purchases, which would make warranty claims easier.

[Mike Farley]

It looks as though the camera will not have to go back to Olympus after all. I turned the camera on this morning and it was still doing the same thing, so on a hunch I turned it off, took the memory card out and the camera burst back into life. I was able to take a shot without the card in place*, so wondering if the card was faulty, I put it back in and everything was OK. Presumably it was something to do with the contacts between the card and the camera. I had tried taking the battery out and leaving the camera for a while, but until now did not think about the card. Hopefully this was a one-off and everything will be alright now.

* The Olympus OM-D models have extensive options to configure the camera in just about every conceivable way, but there does not seem to a method for preventing the shutter firing when there is no memory card present.

[Mike Farley]

Unfortunately, the problem has re-occurred with the camera, so it will definitely have to go back. Ironically, I discovered the issue when I was not far from the store, but did not have any proof of purchase with me, so it means a special trip.

[Mike Farley]

You only really find out how good a shop and manufacturer are if you have to use their after-sales services.

Having asked me to describe the fault, the person I spoke to at CameraWorld interrupted me, did not listen to what I said and then got annoyed because he thought I had not given him all the information, giving the impression that he thought I was imagining it all. Coupled with the shop's refusal to take the camera in unless I produced proof of purchase, in a few seconds I started wondering whether I wish to buy from CameraWorld again.

Things did eventually settle down and the sales assistant even mumbled an apology as I was about to leave. The camera is now on its way to Olympus and I await its return, fully functioning hopefully.

[Mike Farley]

The camera is now back in my posession and everything appears to be OK. CameraWorld reckoned that it would take a couple of weeks and sure enough two weeks to the day after dropping the camera off I received a phone call to say that it was ready for collection.

I was served by someone different this time and the customer service experience was much more agreeable. To demonstrate the fault previously, I had been expected to use my own lens but this time the sales assistant lent me a lens and after I had checked out the camera, packaged it in bubblewrap and a plastic bag for me to transport it home. Perhaps he can give his colleague some lessons in listening, politeness and courtesy.

Two faults were listed on the docket. The shutter was repaired and one additional item of which I can make no sense at all. "Fault: Coverings/Body. Reason: Back Cover." The guy in the shop was stumped as well.

One good thing is that the repair slip states that the rectified items are guaranteed for six months and this does not affect the manufactuer's warranty. Some manufacturers only warrant their products for a fixed period and if a repaired component fails after the guarantee has expired, that's just tough on you as a consumer. This way, even if the camera had gone back just as the warranty was running out, I would still have the reassurance of knowing that I was protected against the replacement component(s) also being faulty. Full marks to Olympus.

[Mike Farley]

Not so good news, the camera has failed with exactly the same problem as previously little more than a week after being "repaired". It appears that I have a lemon and I shall be demanding either a refund or replacement.

[Mike Farley]

And now a real annoyance. I have just taken the camera back to Camera World - where it functioned normally. Grrr! In fact it did something similar previously, when after the initial failure it seemed to have fixed itself before failing again. It had not worked since Saturday and even failed to start properly when I tried it en route to the shop, where I have left it. If I had to make a guess, I suspect that there is a mechanical problem with the shutter and Olympus simply serviced it last time rather than replacing the unit. I have a contact number and will be phoning Olympus in the morning.

[Mike Farley]

I spoke to Olympus this morning to find out what had happened to the camera when they had it for repair previously. Not getting much satisfaction from the first person I spoke to, I ended up speaking to his boss. Given that the fault is intermittent*, it is possible that it did not manifest itself at the repair centre and the camera was simply serviced before being returned. Olympus now has more information about the fault; this time around the camera will be assigned to a senior technician and the repair expedited. If it fails again, even for a different fault, I have a written assurance that the camera will be replaced. At this stage, this is as good an outcome as I could have realistically hoped for. To everyone's credit, there has been acceptance that the fault exists, although Olympus has shown better levels of customer service than the dealer.

* The camera is unreliably unreliable.

[Mike Farley]

I have just received a further e-mail from the Olympus European Customer Support Centre informing me that they are awaiting receipt of my camera from CameraWorld which has dispatched it and that they will endeavour to keep me updated me updated with progress. Kudos to Olympus for its customer service.

[Mike Farley]

I have just had an e-mail from Olympus, who diagnosed an intermittent fault with the image stabilisation unit which has been replaced. The repaired camera is now on its way back to me. It is better travelled than I have been recently - it has been to Olympus' repair facility in Portugal and is currently in Brussels.