Olympus SP-550 UZ Digital Camera - Answered Questions & Fixed issues

http://www.olympusamerica.com/cpg_section/cpg_consumercontact.asp click on this link togo to olympus support contact us page

If practically new have the auto focus circuitry repaired under warranty. If not under warranty it will cost a pretty penny since working on those units is labor intensive and the parts are proprietary and expensive..

You need to send the camera back to Olympus for proper diagnostics and service sounds like there is a electronic fault in the lens zoom assembly which will most likely need to be replaced

Try resetting your camera to factory default options as a first step.

The cover on the camera is cracked or the battery case is cracked. If it is the battery that is cracked replace it immediately. If its the camera attachment that is cracked Gorilla Tape works wonders :) DO NOT USE THE PHONE IF THE BATTERY CASE IS CRACKED!

If the problem is dust, you can try to blow it away. Else, take the camera to a repair shop, the sensor is very sensitive and can easily be destroyed... Good luck! :)

Recovering xD data is always tricky as the specifications have never been publicly available, it's only during the last couple of years that reverse-engineering has produced software able to do so.

I've found that there are plenty of recovery tools which can recover the raw data but very few which can actually make sense of it. I'd suggest that you first see if there's a money back option on CardRecovery and then try a free trial of Acute Tools PhotoNose ( http://www.acutetools.com/photonose/xd-card-recovery.aspx ). I haven't had the chance to try it for myself yet but I've heard from a couple of friends that it does work. F Recovery xD has also been recommended to me but again I have yet to try it for myself. ( http://www.filerecoverytools.com/products/fr_xd-picture/ )

What is certain at the present time is that there are no reliable free xD recovery tools, so whatever else you buy ensure that it either has a free trial or a money back option.

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Hi, what kind of situation you've met? Physical problem or data loss problem? If you meet physical problem, go to the repair shop is the best choice for you. If you meet the data loss problem, actually you can take out your memory and try some third-party data recovery tools to help you a lot. You can check this post to see if it can help you or not: http://www.uflysoft.net/data-recovery/data-recovery-for-win/

You still can use easy share. (I still have it) The share button, you use on the camera, to mark a picture you want to share. With the button, you tag the picture, you then later can share in the Kodak community. Not sure that still exists Check out on http://kodak.photonet.com

You need the usb cable and have to get the software from Olympus's site

The easiest way is to format the memory, either the internal memory or the memory card, depending on where those pictures are. Or both, of course. See page 39 of this manual: http://www.olympusamerica.com/files/oima_cckb/SP-550UZ_Instruction_Manual_EN.pdf

Deleting or formatting won't make the data in xd card erased permanently.Those deleted data is still stored on the xd card, it's just invisible or inaccessible. Only the FAT or NFTS table is erased (the information about where those data were saved), but the real data are still intact there in sectors of xd card .So as long as those data are not overwritten by new data, it's highly possible to recover them. And the MOST Effective way is to rely on some format recovery programs.Try asoftech data recovery program, which can recover data after deeply scanning your xd card drive to look for lost data you accidentally deleted or formatted.http://www.asoftech.com/apr/

Please remove the memory card and see if there is any object that blocks the card. If possible try the card on another camera slot or laptop slot. If this seems good then blows out any dirt from within the slot, tap with the slot on your palm.

You can get the user manual for this unit from this link, just click HERE.

This is a bit of a problem. On the one hand you can get rid of the water but that might damage the camera if not done carefully and might damage it regardless. That will depend on the type of water and how careful you are.

The one thing you do not want to do is run the camera or even have the battery in it. The water can corrode things if it is hard or acidic but if there is power it can short out the board and kill the camera.

There are a couple of things you can consider doing. One is take it to a camera shop where they will do the same thing but you get someone to yell at if things go wrong. The two easy ways of fixing this short of taking the camera apart is to open up any and all covers, remove any lens and so on. The idea being that you expose the inside to air to help evaporate the water. Here is wher e you have to make a choice. You can open it up and place it in a warm spot. You want it to be warm but not in direct sunlight to avoid sensor damage. And you let it sit until the water is gone. You can put a small fan to blow air over it which will speed things up greatly. Your other option which you have to be careful is to place it in a oven at very low temps ie less than 100°. You cannot get it hot or you risk melting plastics and other parts or distorting them which ruins the camera. I've used a convection oven set on very low temps with an external alarm type thermometer to watch the temps. This provides warmth and air movement which speeds things up. The thermometer just makes sure the temp doesn't get too high. This is risky if you are not careful and if you are unsure do not attempt it.

You may have to be patient and let it do it over a week or two. With either of these methods there is no guarantee the water will not dry and form visible spots. You have to be careful as even strong sun can heat plastics enough to cause damage. Unfortunately unless you get a camera shop tech to do this for you there isn't much else you can do or try. It may be worth have a chat with a tech at a camera store before you do anything. If they can do this on the cheap for you you might want to consider getting them to do it.

the camera has many capacitors that power certain features of this camera. When a capacitor goes bad those linked to that particular circuit will not operate no longer. It is feasable to replace the camera rather repairing it these days. The capacitors are serviced only with the entire circuit board which are very expensive if found

Hi,

Here is a tip that I wrote about How toget a Digital Camera Lens to work again

Steps toRepair a Digital Camera Lens
heatman101

One source is http://uscamera.com/vg4293.htm

Hello

The problem is that the lens has become stuck in the barrel. There are some DIY solutions you could try, but the probability is that you will have to get it fixed by a professional.

Use these at own risk as it may further damage the camera.

Firstly , try connecting your ac adapter or usb cable.

Try holding the shutter button while switching on the camera.

Look at the lens , and if some of the lens 'circles' is misaligned or not concentric then try wiggling it (while holding camera lens down).

Try gently pushing or pulling the lens when it extends but this is risky as it may cause the lens barrel to slip out of its guidance system.

Another way to do this is to place the camera lens down on a hard surface and then power it up. Be sure to use a soft cloth or something similar as to not scratch your lens or casing. Let the lens push the camera up and down a few times and sometimes the little resistance provided by the camera is enough to get things going again.

Try hitting your camera near the lens on the body with the soft tissue on the palm of your hand.

Other than that , I would take the camera to a repair centre for a evaluation to see if it would cost more to repair than to replace the camera.

If it is still under warranty I would suggest you take it in before trying any of these steps and remove any off-brand batteries or accessories as some stores are really fussy about warranty repairs on camera's with non-brand accessories.

You can also have a look at THIS link.

Hope the advise is useful. please do not hesitate to let me know if you need any further assistance. Also, please be so kind to let me know if you found this helpful.

Regards
Andrea

Hi there please don't open the camera as first step. Try to reset the camera or you can follow the basic step given below.
Hi there please follow the steps and let me know the result.
1. Ensure batteries are fully charged & clean the battery connector point in side the battery compartment.
2. Look carefully between the lens and the camera body for any sand, dirt or any damaged etc.
3. Try turning the camera with the lens facing down and shake to dislodge anything stuck
4. Try removing batteries and memory card, wait 5 minutes and refit the battery only.
5. Now turn on camera( with out card ) and see ,if working then fix the memory card & again turn on the camera. If working then fine . Otherwise format the memory card and fix back in camera again & try. Make sure before format the memory card take a back up all photos in your computer then format. If no luck then reset or restore the camera setting by pressing Menu key for 2 sec .. in not done the press both Menu & self time key for 2 - 4 sec.
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