Olympus E-P5 dial malfunction and warranty questions

Next time I have to purchase an automobile I think I'll bring you along! Tough negotiator - and I think you came out well. Enjoy your new camera.

Acadie4Me wrote:

Hi, Jim --

I'm pleased to report that Olympus did send me an EM5M2 as a replacement for my six-month-old-twice-repaired-and-still-defective-dialed EP5.

During my negotiations with Olympus, I realized I really just wanted an EP5 that worked. Olympus offered the EM10M2. The EM10M2 was announced but not really available yet, and I was in a hurry. The EM10M2 was also a cheaper camera than the EP5 and I wasn't willing to trade a $1000 camera for a $750 dollar camera (Canadian Prices). I asked for an EM1 and Olympus said "No".

I thought about it overnight. I had a VF4 that was unusable on the EM10M2 or the EM5M2. I had a LensBaby Tilt Nikon Lens adapter that fits the EP5, but does not fit any OMD camera due to the "prism" projection just above the lens mounts. I could see I would actually need two cameras to replace the EP5. So I called Olympus and explained what I wanted: I wanted them to send me an EPL7, because it would fit my accessories, and because I needed to have a second camera as a backup (I had lost faith in Olympus camera reliability). I said I would return my EP5 to my camera store under the "lemon protection" of my extended warranty plan. The store would give me the original purchase price of my camera as a credit towards the purchase of any camera -- any brand.

Olympus did give this proposal some serious consideration. In the end, it would have been cheaper for them to send me an EPL7 instead of an EM5M2. Yet, they couldn't do it. They said they were "audited" and they had to have a camera in exchange for the one they were sending out. They agreed to send me a EM5M2 and that was it.

At that time, the EM5M2 was selling for $1100 Canadian dollars, the EM1 for $1300, and the EP5 for $1000. So, for the record, Olympus thinks that all my time and trouble was worth $100, but not $300. And were talking about list prices here, not what the actual cost would be to Olympus. I told Olympus that I didn't think that was enough to buy back my loyalty. My extra expenses for owning the EP5 were well over $200. Then there was my time, the frustration, and the missed photo opportunities. Not Olympus's problems, I guess.

It was apparent that the exchange was going to take some time (more than a month, as it turns out). I quickly found an EPL5 in good shape in Kijiji for $250 and bought it. It is small and takes my accessories and is not a bad camera. It will serve me well, I think, as a backup. But it has no built-in flash. If you use the VF4 with it (like I do), you can't trigger external flashes. The EPL7 suffers from the same limitation.

The newly-arrived EM5M2 stayed in its box for 10 days, while I considered whether I really wanted it. I could only see more repairs and frustration in my future. Yes, the EM5M2 has some impressive new functionality, but that just makes me wonder if I am going to have to deal with "bleeding-edge" technology.

In the end, I decided I wouldn't get enough money for the EM5M2 if I traded it in. What really sealed the deal was that my camera store was willing to apply my existing extended warranty to the EM5M2. So, I still have "lemon protection"!

So far, the EM5M2 is working well. I am getting used to its unpleasant sharp corners and utilitarian appearance. It is quite thick front-to-back compared to the EP5. It can't be mistaken for a point-and-shoot. However, it can be silent with the electronic shutter. I know I will be using some of the advanced features, especially the hi-res mode. (I need to take photos of large, old documents that can't be scanned.)