Best Buy Protection Plan

[Tuffcookie]

It's been almost a year since I purchased my Canon T5i and I purchased the 3 yr protection plan. I called them to see how long I would be without my camera when I bring it in for a cleaning. I also asked where they send it. Someone in the Geek Squad dept. said they are sent to a company in Texas and I should be without it for about 10 working days.

Has anyone ever used this service thru Best Buy?

TC

 

[photo_chick]

I will not shop at Best Buy for gear purchases because they have a horrible reputation for putting returns out on the shelf as new products and their service plan is awful. I've read horror stories about people sending cameras to them for repairs and ending up with more problems than they started with. Personally I've tried to use their repair service one time (not for a camera) and they refused to honor the service policy they sold me.

Is there a specific issue or reason you're sending a year old camera in for cleaning? While it's good to clean the outside of your camera and lenses regularly (which you can very easily and safely do yourself with a rocket blower, new toothbrush and lens wipes) with camera insides I have an "if it ain't broke don't fix it" kind of mentality because it's far too easy for a camera that doesn't have any issues with dust on the sensor to end up with dust on the sensor when people start poking around in it.

 

[Tuffcookie]

Thanks for your input. I have to admit I'm not feeling good about handing it over to them! I know it automatically does a sensor cleaning when I turn it off. Maybe I will hold off on the cleaning.

TC

 

[SkaGoat]

Thanks for your input. I have to admit I'm not feeling good about handing it over to them! I know it automatically does a sensor cleaning when I turn it off. Maybe I will hold off on the cleaning.

TC

I would also make sure that whoever they are sending it to is an authorized Canon repair outlet. I have a 4 year old Canon 7D that has never been sent for cleaning, and it's images and viewfinder are still dust free. I wouldn't send it away unless there is an obvious problem.

 

[hakepb]

I will not shop at Best Buy for gear purchases because they have a horrible reputation for putting returns out on the shelf as new products and their service plan is awful. I've read horror stories about people sending cameras to them for repairs and ending up with more problems than they started with. Personally I've tried to use their repair service one time (not for a camera) and they refused to honor the service policy they sold me.

Is there a specific issue or reason you're sending a year old camera in for cleaning? While it's good to clean the outside of your camera and lenses regularly (which you can very easily and safely do yourself with a rocket blower, new toothbrush and lens wipes) with camera insides I have an "if it ain't broke don't fix it" kind of mentality because it's far too easy for a camera that doesn't have any issues with dust on the sensor to end up with dust on the sensor when people start poking around in it.

I guess it all depends on what device and who the warranty company farms out for the service work. For in home TV repair they happened to farm out the service to a nice local "mom and pop" shop. But service plans are rarely worth it (they are usually 50-70% profit) my cheap TV only made sense because TV + warranty was still less than a name brand TV.

 

[Luvscrappin]

I am going to chime in here and say I have had nothing but great experiences with Best Buy's extended warranty on my cameras. Back in the film days I had a minolta 35mm and the film door stopped latching. I took it in on the day my 4 yr warranty expired. They sent it out and it could not be repaired. I was able to pick out a brand new camera for the purchase price of the minolta. Two years ago my 1 yr old T3i got wet and stopped working at Disney during a rain storm even though it was under a poncho. We took the camera back to Best Buy after returning home...once again it could not be fixed and I opted to take the money I had spent on that and upgrade to the T4i. I can't complain about BB and the Geek Squad warranty because it has saved my butt big time not once but twice. I have never used the free annual cleaning so I can't speak to that.

 

[photo_chick]

I would also make sure that whoever they are sending it to is an authorized Canon repair outlet. I have a 4 year old Canon 7D that has never been sent for cleaning, and it's images and viewfinder are still dust free. I wouldn't send it away unless there is an obvious problem.

Yep... I have an 8 year old Rebel XT and it is surprisingly dust free still. My 50D had one tiny little spec that wasn't even worth cleaning and I had it for 4 years. My 6D is barely a year old and while its dust free that hasn't really been long enough yet one way or the other. I'm not one of those paranoid people when I change my lenses either. The one thing I do though is keep the outside of my camera and my lenses clean. I really wonder if a lot of dust ends up on sensors because it's transferred from lenses.

 

[SkaGoat]

Yep... I have an 8 year old Rebel XT and it is surprisingly dust free still. My 50D had one tiny little spec that wasn't even worth cleaning and I had it for 4 years. My 6D is barely a year old and while its dust free that hasn't really been long enough yet one way or the other. I'm not one of those paranoid people when I change my lenses either. The one thing I do though is keep the outside of my camera and my lenses clean. I really wonder if a lot of dust ends up on sensors because it's transferred from lenses.

I wouldn't be surprise of that, I'm not super careful either, I just make sure the opening isn't pointed upward very long, and I try not to change a lens in a dusty place if it can be avoided.