REAL Serial Number problems....check your EXIF info!!!

[John M. Polston]

What if Oly ships the non-working E-10's in bulk back to the original/secret manufactuer of the E-10 or Oly Japan for that matter to have them repaired and then they are returned to the Service Centers as whole units to be easily slipped into butt plates to speed up the repairs. This would cut down on technician costs considerably if you ask me. Is it wrong, well if if happens to me, someone a$$ is gonna get stomped. I will loudly let everyone know what I find when my E-10 gets back from service. It's due back on the 13th.

JP

 

[Gourdfather]

I agree entirely Tom. The "downgrading" of the software and the screwed up S/N may be my only "legal" gripe. On Oly's "Limited Warranty" it states:

"Olympus reserves the right to (i) use reconditioned, refurbished, and/or serviceable parts (tested to Olympus's quality assurance standards) for warranty repairs ........"

Obviously the "tested to Olympus's quality assurance standards" was NOT performed!!!

But by NOT telling me what was swapped (just the "innards" or the whole camera) as you say, leaves me wondering just what / who's camera I have.

But I WILL pursue this issue, thanks for the suggestions. I'll try Oly first and then see what I have to do.

John

My only concern is that the firmware wasn't updated to that you
bought... not that the camera was different. The reason why I view
the degraded firmware version as a serious breach of trust is that
people wait to buy later models in hopes that the initial kinks
have been ironed out... AND the fact that there WERE version
upgrades means that there were, in fact, kinks that had to be
ironed out.

My other concern is that a camera is NOT like other electronic
devices like video games. You KNOW how your original camera was
treated. There is no way to know how the replacement camera was
treated. It might have been DOA and brand new... or, it might have
been used by someone that lived in a highly salty atmosphere that
might end up prematurely reducing the life of the camera.

If it were me, I'd be talking to my state consumer affairs
office... or that of the repair facility... to see how they view
this situation. Not being a lawyer, I don't know if swapping
serial numbers is an act of fraud; but, from a layman's point of
view it sure smells.

I'd have felt a WHOLE lot better had they simply told you they had
to send you another camera becuase the original could not be fixed,
etc. This way was pretty shabby.

My point was that certain people seem to be paranoid over serial
numbers and firmware updates, and as I said in my post, it is
getting rather boring.

Rgds Nick

Gerald kidded in another post about Oly being handy with an Exacto
blade in switching serial numbers, but what if they DID??? What if
you sent in your camera for warranty repair and they substituted an
OLDER model, with OLDER firmware??? AND put the newer S/N back on
the older camera???

Oly rec'd my camera on June 15th for repair to the manual focus.
It was S/N 1053xxx, firmware 42-0120. They repaired it ("general
check, clean and adjust") on the 19th and shipped it back.

The manual focus works fine now and after hearing about the 130
upgrade, I again checked my firmware; it was now 42-0116!!! (I
may have said 42-0119 in an earlier post) So not only did I not
get the upgrade, they put OLD firmware back in my camera, or so I
thought.

Someone posted that you could find your camera serial number in the
EXIF info (5ive lines down from "White Balance"). I checked the
first pic I took after buying the camera in April:

Software 42-0120

S/N 1053xxx

Then I checked the EXIF on pictures I took AFTER the camera was
"repaired":

Software 42-0116

S/N 1011xxx

It was a diffrent camera!!! (that explains why it had the caps on
it that I had left off!!) Now I'm not paranoid about having the
latest and greatest, but I DO want at least what I bought. I now
have an OLD 101 when I BOUGHT a 105!!!

If the EXIF info is correct, then Oly apparently swapped cameras,
and put the newer S/N plate on the OLD one. THIS disturbs me!!!
It would have been bad enough for them to swap and TELL me, but to
swap bodies and SWITCH serial numbers.......

I'm not sure who to call/write just yet, but I will follow up.

Just check your S/N on the EXIF info.

John

 

[Gourdfather]

IF my camera had had the same S/N and firmware returned as was sent, I wouldn't be the wiser if they DID swap out the whole unit (unless like David, the camera has a different "feel' or look). Seeing the date of the new firmware, July, I can even see that my camera was not "upgraded" to 130 since I sent it in June.

BUT, if they cannot sync the S/N, and put at least the SAME firmware back in the camera, what ELSE didn't they do???

John

What if Oly ships the non-working E-10's in bulk back to the
original/secret manufactuer of the E-10 or Oly Japan for that
matter to have them repaired and then they are returned to the
Service Centers as whole units to be easily slipped into butt
plates to speed up the repairs. This would cut down on technician
costs considerably if you ask me. Is it wrong, well if if happens
to me, someone a$$ is gonna get stomped. I will loudly let
everyone know what I find when my E-10 gets back from service.
It's due back on the 13th.

JP

 

[Jason Busch]

Gourdfather,

I was thinking that someone else has your faceplate and they probably don't even know it. I wonder if Oly is aware of this problem. I am the first to be critical of Olympus USA, but I can imagine a large table with dozens of E-10's and their parts set next to each other. A absent-minded Tech picks up the wrong plate and voila, we have two owners with different serial numbers. You must have received the other E-10 owner's camera and he received yours. I just can't imagine Oly doing something that actually required premeditation. One could infer from this that they actually have forethought, and we all know, this is not so.

I do think you need a new E-10. Period. No excuses. This was a F-up, and Oly needs to admit it. The longer they wait after they've been notified, the greater their image is bashed.

Jason Busch

 

[Bruce Spell]

I too had suspected that after getting my camera back from repair (early July) that it wasn't the same camera. When I first got it back I quickly checked the serial number on the bottom (same as before) and the firmware version (120 also same as before). At that point I quit looking.

However, my camera now didn't operate properly and was virtually unusable! I wasn't sure how the earlier repair (to fix the E10 recognizing the FL40 flash) could have made the camera not work anymore (the shutter doesn't fully close now). After several weeks of agony I finally got the camera shipped off to Oly (again) for repairs.

Now seeing this post I've gone back and checked further in the EXIF data and sure enough my serial number has changed as well!!!!

So now not only did I get a different camera upon return but a defective one at that! I'm so friggin' mad I can't see straight.

I'd appreciate any insight as to contact points within the "high command" at Oly. This will not be accepted.

Bruce

My point was that certain people seem to be paranoid over serial
numbers and firmware updates, and as I said in my post, it is
getting rather boring.

Rgds Nick

Gerald kidded in another post about Oly being handy with an Exacto
blade in switching serial numbers, but what if they DID??? What if
you sent in your camera for warranty repair and they substituted an
OLDER model, with OLDER firmware??? AND put the newer S/N back on
the older camera???

Oly rec'd my camera on June 15th for repair to the manual focus.
It was S/N 1053xxx, firmware 42-0120. They repaired it ("general
check, clean and adjust") on the 19th and shipped it back.

The manual focus works fine now and after hearing about the 130
upgrade, I again checked my firmware; it was now 42-0116!!! (I
may have said 42-0119 in an earlier post) So not only did I not
get the upgrade, they put OLD firmware back in my camera, or so I
thought.

Someone posted that you could find your camera serial number in the
EXIF info (5ive lines down from "White Balance"). I checked the
first pic I took after buying the camera in April:

Software 42-0120

S/N 1053xxx

Then I checked the EXIF on pictures I took AFTER the camera was
"repaired":

Software 42-0116

S/N 1011xxx

It was a diffrent camera!!! (that explains why it had the caps on
it that I had left off!!) Now I'm not paranoid about having the
latest and greatest, but I DO want at least what I bought. I now
have an OLD 101 when I BOUGHT a 105!!!

If the EXIF info is correct, then Oly apparently swapped cameras,
and put the newer S/N plate on the OLD one. THIS disturbs me!!!
It would have been bad enough for them to swap and TELL me, but to
swap bodies and SWITCH serial numbers.......

I'm not sure who to call/write just yet, but I will follow up.

Just check your S/N on the EXIF info.

John

 

[Leon Wittwer]

Is everyone sending their camera to the same center? If there is more than one repair center, then you guys might compare notes to see if the problem is only in one place. I can also see that a center might be swamped because of the interest in 0130 firmware and is trying some improper shortcuts.

 

[John M. Polston]

Well, in my above reply I have a thought as to why this may be happening. I should be getting mine back on the 13th so I will let everyone know what happens with my Serial # but I can tell you right now that if they change around some parts it's gonna be helll to pay. That's all I am gonna say about it. They had just better not have done this, period. I really feel sorry for everyone this has happened too and I think Oly should replace these cameras with brand new models with updated everything including being double quality control checked before it leaves their facility. They should do an exchange shipment where they send you the new camera and you give them a credit card # and when you get the new you just put the old back in the box and return it with the PRE-PAID shipping label included in the box. They don't know if these replacement cameras have been dropped or like another person said if they lived near the ocean or if it was used where caustic chemicals are.

JP

Is everyone sending their camera to the same center? If there is
more than one repair center, then you guys might compare notes to
see if the problem is only in one place. I can also see that a
center might be swamped because of the interest in 0130 firmware
and is trying some improper shortcuts.

 

[Gourdfather]

What is your "new" s/n?? mine is 1011140 and I believe it was David that said he now had 10111?? s/n. It's very strange that Oly would be putting old 10111xx s/n's back in 3 different cameras. Perhaps this is a "default" s/n that gets inserted when they screw with the ROM?? That could explain "some" of the things we've seen, but not all.

John

I too had suspected that after getting my camera back from repair
(early July) that it wasn't the same camera. When I first got it
back I quickly checked the serial number on the bottom (same as
before) and the firmware version (120 also same as before). At
that point I quit looking.

However, my camera now didn't operate properly and was virtually
unusable! I wasn't sure how the earlier repair (to fix the E10
recognizing the FL40 flash) could have made the camera not work
anymore (the shutter doesn't fully close now). After several weeks
of agony I finally got the camera shipped off to Oly (again) for
repairs.

Now seeing this post I've gone back and checked further in the EXIF
data and sure enough my serial number has changed as well!!!!

So now not only did I get a different camera upon return but a
defective one at that! I'm so friggin' mad I can't see straight.

I'd appreciate any insight as to contact points within the "high
command" at Oly. This will not be accepted.

Bruce

 

[John M. Polston]

That is weird. I am sure we haven't seen the last of this Serial # issue.

JP

John

I too had suspected that after getting my camera back from repair
(early July) that it wasn't the same camera. When I first got it
back I quickly checked the serial number on the bottom (same as
before) and the firmware version (120 also same as before). At
that point I quit looking.

However, my camera now didn't operate properly and was virtually
unusable! I wasn't sure how the earlier repair (to fix the E10
recognizing the FL40 flash) could have made the camera not work
anymore (the shutter doesn't fully close now). After several weeks
of agony I finally got the camera shipped off to Oly (again) for
repairs.

Now seeing this post I've gone back and checked further in the EXIF
data and sure enough my serial number has changed as well!!!!

So now not only did I get a different camera upon return but a
defective one at that! I'm so friggin' mad I can't see straight.

I'd appreciate any insight as to contact points within the "high
command" at Oly. This will not be accepted.

Bruce

 

[Bruce Spell]

Sorry John but my "new" s/n is 1036881. Technically speaking this serial number is higher than my original (1032031) but from the way the camera worked after being returned I don't like the fact that it wasn't "mine" anymore. I also don't like the fact that I wasn't informed that internals of the camera were replaced with obviously used parts from unknown origins.

I can't subscribe to the assumption that Oly doesn't "know" that there is an internal serial number. It's got to be there for some reason and it used to match the external number.

I'm not too sure just where this will end but I'm starting to research the upper management at Oly America.

Bruce

John

I too had suspected that after getting my camera back from repair
(early July) that it wasn't the same camera. When I first got it
back I quickly checked the serial number on the bottom (same as
before) and the firmware version (120 also same as before). At
that point I quit looking.

However, my camera now didn't operate properly and was virtually
unusable! I wasn't sure how the earlier repair (to fix the E10
recognizing the FL40 flash) could have made the camera not work
anymore (the shutter doesn't fully close now). After several weeks
of agony I finally got the camera shipped off to Oly (again) for
repairs.

Now seeing this post I've gone back and checked further in the EXIF
data and sure enough my serial number has changed as well!!!!

So now not only did I get a different camera upon return but a
defective one at that! I'm so friggin' mad I can't see straight.

I'd appreciate any insight as to contact points within the "high
command" at Oly. This will not be accepted.

Bruce

 

[John M. Polston]

Good, let us know what you find out concerning the upper mgmt. at Oly..

JP

I can't subscribe to the assumption that Oly doesn't "know" that
there is an internal serial number. It's got to be there for some
reason and it used to match the external number.

I'm not too sure just where this will end but I'm starting to
research the upper management at Oly America.

Bruce

John

I too had suspected that after getting my camera back from repair
(early July) that it wasn't the same camera. When I first got it
back I quickly checked the serial number on the bottom (same as
before) and the firmware version (120 also same as before). At
that point I quit looking.

However, my camera now didn't operate properly and was virtually
unusable! I wasn't sure how the earlier repair (to fix the E10
recognizing the FL40 flash) could have made the camera not work
anymore (the shutter doesn't fully close now). After several weeks
of agony I finally got the camera shipped off to Oly (again) for
repairs.

Now seeing this post I've gone back and checked further in the EXIF
data and sure enough my serial number has changed as well!!!!

So now not only did I get a different camera upon return but a
defective one at that! I'm so friggin' mad I can't see straight.

I'd appreciate any insight as to contact points within the "high
command" at Oly. This will not be accepted.

Bruce

 

[Paul]

I don't like the idea of myself being a trouble-maker but after reading some of the posts in this thread I imagined myself in your situations.

All I can think of as a solution is one with longer range implications that may also result in short term conciliatory and concessionary acts of goodwill on Oly's part towards those harmed by what they've done.

The possible solution? Get it out into the popular press! Get someone with clout, with exposure to write an article about this aspect of the industry ... art article that names names (names Oly and a few other examples) and that gets exposure both on line and in printed media.

Paul

However, my camera now didn't operate properly and was virtually
unusable! I wasn't sure how the earlier repair (to fix the E10
recognizing the FL40 flash) could have made the camera not work
anymore (the shutter doesn't fully close now). After several weeks
of agony I finally got the camera shipped off to Oly (again) for
repairs.

Now seeing this post I've gone back and checked further in the EXIF
data and sure enough my serial number has changed as well!!!!

So now not only did I get a different camera upon return but a
defective one at that! I'm so friggin' mad I can't see straight.

I'd appreciate any insight as to contact points within the "high
command" at Oly. This will not be accepted.

Bruce

My point was that certain people seem to be paranoid over serial
numbers and firmware updates, and as I said in my post, it is
getting rather boring.

Rgds Nick

Gerald kidded in another post about Oly being handy with an Exacto
blade in switching serial numbers, but what if they DID??? What if
you sent in your camera for warranty repair and they substituted an
OLDER model, with OLDER firmware??? AND put the newer S/N back on
the older camera???

Oly rec'd my camera on June 15th for repair to the manual focus.
It was S/N 1053xxx, firmware 42-0120. They repaired it ("general
check, clean and adjust") on the 19th and shipped it back.

The manual focus works fine now and after hearing about the 130
upgrade, I again checked my firmware; it was now 42-0116!!! (I
may have said 42-0119 in an earlier post) So not only did I not
get the upgrade, they put OLD firmware back in my camera, or so I
thought.

Someone posted that you could find your camera serial number in the
EXIF info (5ive lines down from "White Balance"). I checked the
first pic I took after buying the camera in April:

Software 42-0120

S/N 1053xxx

Then I checked the EXIF on pictures I took AFTER the camera was
"repaired":

Software 42-0116

S/N 1011xxx

It was a diffrent camera!!! (that explains why it had the caps on
it that I had left off!!) Now I'm not paranoid about having the
latest and greatest, but I DO want at least what I bought. I now
have an OLD 101 when I BOUGHT a 105!!!

If the EXIF info is correct, then Oly apparently swapped cameras,
and put the newer S/N plate on the OLD one. THIS disturbs me!!!
It would have been bad enough for them to swap and TELL me, but to
swap bodies and SWITCH serial numbers.......

I'm not sure who to call/write just yet, but I will follow up.

Just check your S/N on the EXIF info.

John

 

[Blokey Bloggs]

Surely the main reasons for the one s/n being both on the base and in the firmware are that if the camera were stolen, then, though the base s/n may be removed, the firmware one cannot; that they know who owns what for repair purposes and claims; that the police can trace the s/n to the owner and return the camera. If Oly is mixing them up what was the point of designing it this way? And all those benefits of doing so are lost. Even their own knowledge of who owns what will be confused.

Also an insurance company might say no to a claim since the s/ns do not match. Of course, you could scratch it off the base but even that would look dodgy. The resale value too will be diminished. It looks messy and unprpofessional.

Oly needs to clarify this issue now else many are going to go elsewhere for their next purchase... and I will be one of them.

Blokey

 

[- -]

I've been reading the postings in this thread with some concern, and very mixed feelings!

My experience with my E-10 (series:1056xxx/fw:42-120) has been wonderful! I do have two stuck pixels that appear under certain lighting/exposure conditions, but I have decided it's not worth the trouble sending the unit back. Further, the stuck pixel mapping firmware upgrade, for my needs, is not enough to warrant a repair/upgrade. You see, my decisions are based mainly on my experiences as a product designer in the consumer electronics industry.

It is well established statistical fact (6-sigma quality design practices) that a properly designed, engineered and manufactured product will perform its function(s) reliably throughout its service lifetime. However, AFTER manufacture/ calibration/ packaging/ quality acceptance, the first time the product case is cracked open, and pc boards/ flex circuits handled, wires moved about, connectors unplugged and re-inserted, that product's future reliability is actually lessened. Quality of repair work (physical handling, soldering skills, etc.) varies significantly from technician to technician. The result is increased likelihood of future problems with the product rather than enhancement of quality and reliability.

Different companies, even different divisions within a company, make a 'judgement call' as to how they will respond to consumer problems. Most cellular phone manufacturers seem to opt for replacing a defective cell phone- the complex circuits, tiny components and lengthy tuning procedures do not justify paying a tech to take the time to troubleshoot defects. Better to emphasize rigorous quality design standards and practices to minimize defects up front than pay to fix them later. I can not determine from these postings what Olympus policy might be, but it would seem to me that a serious defect, such as inability to manually focus, would warrant a complete camera exchange. More worrisome to me is the mismatched E-10 case serial number/ firmware serial number, and resulting firmware downgrade! Someone else might be the recipient of the opposite combo! Ultimately, the processor embedded serial number is the one read-out to EDIF, application software, and Olympus own camera software. If there was a need to change-out the camera's processor,

then the correct (camera body) serial number should have been re-programmed into that 'new' processor.

I've had no qualms with qulaity and perfomance of my E-10. Quite pleased with it. As long as I provide reasonable care, I will expect reliable a service life.

Thanks to all!

-David