In 2008 I replaced my broken Canon Powershot S70 with a G10, which entered these pages in a blaze of publicity, here, here, and here.
The G10’s lens sadly failed whilst on Leagag on 25 September 2011.
That was replaced with the G12, which expired recently after just a shade over two years’ hard use.
I’m a sucker for punishment, so I chose the devil I knew, and ordered a G16, the latest in this series, to replace the G12, in which the lens had disintegrated internally.
Meanwhile, Sue has gone through a G9 (still functional but she scratched the lens) and is now on the G15, which was an option for me, but it would be too confusing for us to have identical cameras.
The G16 has a new sensor, and Wi-fi, so the box contents have shrunk greatly from S70/G10 days – there are no CDs, all instructions being on-line, and no leads other than the battery charger’s, which unfortunately is rather bulky.
I ordered the camera from a company called Simply Electronics, for a remarkably good price. They took my money but nothing happened. Queries were acknowledged and received standard, unhelpful, replies. Internet research revealed that I wasn’t the only person having problems, and I regretted not doing this research before I placed the order.
‘You need nerves of steel to deal with this company’ seemed to be the consensus.
I’d paid by credit card, so referred the problem – failure to deliver in the time scale indicated – to my bank’s Retailer Disputes Team, who were helpful.
Then, unexpectedly, the camera arrived, three weeks later than the advertised delivery time. A pleasant surprise! Not quite the end of the story, though, as the box didn’t contain a warranty card. However, I’m assured by Canon that this won’t be needed if the camera does fail within twelve months. I hope I don’t have to test that assurance.
I haven’t used the camera yet, as I’m finding my waterproof Panasonic Lumix DMC-FT4 to be a good performer in the showery weather.
We are still waiting for our ‘Good Customers’ award from Canon!
