Refurbished 5D MkII vs. New... any thoughts?

henrytd · January 6, 2011

I've decided to step up from 5D to 5D mkII. I save $500 by getting a refurbished one from Canon. I'd do the Loyalty Program and save even more, but the 5D mkII isn't part of that right now.

I know it will have a six month guarantee, but what can I expect: a heavily used 10,000 shutter actuations, or something like a very lightly used demo, with all the trimmings that come with the new camera?

Does anyone have experience getting a high end refurbished camera from Canon?

Skip

JimKarczewski · January 6, 2011

My thoughts are there is nothing wrong with a refurb. It just means it's had to go through QC with a fine tooth comb twice. I'm still considering which camera to add, if it's a 7D I have no problem using the loyalty program.

KipCox · January 7, 2011

Shutter life on a 5DMKII is about 150,000 actuations so I wouldn't call 10,000 shots "heavily used" unless of course there's damage to the body itself.

I wouldn't have a problem with a refurb from Canon if they had the camera I wanted.

rainbow · January 7, 2011

I purchased a refurbished 5D a while back (shortly after the 5DII was released) from Adorama (so not from Canon directly).

It appeared to be brand new upon receipt and saved hundreds over a new one. I have had no problems with it.

JimKarczewski · January 7, 2011

KipCox wrote: »

Shutter life on a 5DMKII is about 150,000 actuations so I wouldn't call 10,000 shots "heavily used" unless of course there's damage to the body itself.

I wouldn't have a problem with a refurb from Canon if they had the camera I wanted.

Luck of the draw there. I know people who had to replace them at 90k and others at 300k. Average is 150k. I shouldn't say much, my 5D (original) is well over 250k and 5DII is about 100k.

HelenOster · January 7, 2011

henrytd wrote: »

I've decided to step up from 5D to 5D mkII. I save $500 by getting a refurbished one from Canon. I'd do the Loyalty Program and save even more, but the 5D mkII isn't part of that right now.

I know it will have a six month guarantee, but what can I expect: a heavily used 10,000 shutter actuations, or something like a very lightly used demo, with all the trimmings that come with the new camera?

Does anyone have experience getting a high end refurbished camera from Canon?

Skip

All refurbished units sold by Adorama Camera are factory refurbished by the manufacturer, for example, Canon cameras are refurbished at their manufacturing plant in Newport News, VA.; the room that houses Canon’s entire refurb process is said to be completely dust-free, and with every employee working in there being required to wear special booties!

They can have simply been pulled from the production line if something appears faulty, or if it hasn't passed the final inspection. Most of the time it is a very minor issue that needs correcting, nevertheless, once it is pulled from the normal flow of production, it gets flagged as a refurbished model, so you may get a unit straight from the factory that has never been used.

A refurb may also be an ex-store demo, possibly used in field tests or sales displays, or it may have been ordered in error and returned to the retailer (who can't then sell it as 'new' so it has to be sent back to the manufacturer for refurbishment).

All refurbished items will have been checked over by the manufacturer by hand, inspected very thoroughly, diagnosed, and calibrated by experienced technicians, and could therefore turn out to be more dependable than a new item - which will only have been checked by a process of systematic quality control protocol (ie by random sampling as it comes off the conveyor belt).

All Canon refurbished products from Adorama come with a 1 year return-to-Adorama warranty; the warranty we give covers anything the manufacturers warranty covers for a new unit, including shutter defects. They come into us with the firmware updates and latest fixes which were carried out at whatever stage it was at when we took delivery.

If you need additional firmware updates you can download them, but for any hardware fixes the unit would have to be sent to Canon.
[By the way, if you send a camera (any camera) to Canon for any hardware work, they will always update the firmware].

As to the individual history of a single item, the honest answer is we have no way of knowing. Refurbished equipment is not like new inventory; the manufacturers contact us when they have a batch to sell, and the availability is unpredictable. However, if you were to ask my personal opinion on whether the equipment that Adorama offers as refurbished is typically less than a year old, based on the regularity with which we receive batches, I'd be inclined to think it is all relatively new.

I hope this helps, but if you need anything else, please let me know.

NeilL · January 7, 2011

HelenOster wrote: »

 All refurbished units sold by Adorama Camera are factory refurbished by the manufacturer, for example, Canon cameras are refurbished at their manufacturing plant in Newport News, VA.; the room that houses Canon’s entire refurb process is said to be completely dust-free, and with every employee working in there being required to wear special booties!

They can have simply been pulled from the production line if something appears faulty, or if it hasn't passed the final inspection. Most of the time it is a very minor issue that needs correcting, nevertheless, once it is pulled from the normal flow of production, it gets flagged as a refurbished model, so you may get a unit straight from the factory that has never been used.

A refurb may also be an ex-store demo, possibly used in field tests or sales displays, or it may have been ordered in error and returned to the retailer (who can't then sell it as 'new' so it has to be sent back to the manufacturer for refurbishment).

All refurbished items will have been checked over by the manufacturer by hand, inspected very thoroughly, diagnosed, and calibrated by experienced technicians, and could therefore turn out to be more dependable than a new item - which will only have been checked by a process of systematic quality control protocol (ie by random sampling as it comes off the conveyor belt).

All Canon refurbished products from Adorama come with a 1 year return-to-Adorama warranty; the warranty we give covers anything the manufacturers warranty covers for a new unit, including shutter defects. They come into us with the firmware updates and latest fixes which were carried out at whatever stage it was at when we took delivery.

If you need additional firmware updates you can download them, but for any hardware fixes the unit would have to be sent to Canon.
[By the way, if you send a camera (any camera) to Canon for any hardware work, they will always update the firmware].

As to the individual history of a single item, the honest answer is we have no way of knowing. Refurbished equipment is not like new inventory; the manufacturers contact us when they have a batch to sell, and the availability is unpredictable. However, if you were to ask my personal opinion on whether the equipment that Adorama offers as refurbished is typically less than a year old, based on the regularity with which we receive batches, I'd be inclined to think it is all relatively new.

I hope this helps, but if you need anything else, please let me know.

Excellent comment, Helen!

I think with Canon refurbished, you are getting a hand-made camera - every part is checked, defective parts are replaced with new, and the whole is put through testing which is rare. I trust Canon for that.

Neil

henrytd · January 7, 2011

Thank you to Jim, Kip, Rainbow, Helen & Neil

NeilL wrote: »

Excellent comment, Helen!

I think with Canon refurbished, you are getting a hand-made camera - every part is checked, defective parts are replaced with new, and the whole is put through testing which is rare. I trust Canon for that.

Neil

I agree, Neil. Good summary.

Thank you everyone, and especially Helen, whose description of the process Canon goes through was thorough and very encouraging. I'm going through with the purchase of the refurbished 5D mark II.

Now I just have to decide what to do with my original 5D, purchased November 2006 and has less than 18,000 shutter actuations. Firmware 1.1.0 needs to be updated, and the sensor needs cleaning, but it’s in great shape. I know, this is the wrong place, and I will be putting this in the flea market. I’ll post some other equipment questions momentarily.

Skip

HelenOster · January 9, 2011

henrytd wrote: »

I agree, Neil. Good summary.

Thank you everyone, and especially Helen, whose description of the process Canon goes through was thorough and very encouraging. I'm going through with the purchase of the refurbished 5D mark II.

Pleased to be able to help! [FONT=&quot][/FONT][FONT=&quot]☺[/FONT]

JSPhotography · January 12, 2011

A little late but - I picked up a refurb 7D on the Loyalty program a couple weeks ago. It appears brand new, no issues and saved a bundle. Without the refurb and loyalty I would have not been able to afford it - Thank you Canon!

zoomer · January 12, 2011

I have had very good luck with Nikon refurbished cameras, every one I have bought (3) has been lightly used.
Imagine you can expect the same from Canon.

Now if I could just find a Nikon D3S refurb......

LeVeL · January 15, 2011

Just got a refurb 50D from Adorama and, as others have experienced, it looks, feels, and performs like a brand new camera would. No issues at all. Saved quite a bit by getting it over a new one.

HelenOster · January 16, 2011

LeVeL wrote: »

Just got a refurb 50D from Adorama and, as others have experienced, it looks, feels, and performs like a brand new camera would. No issues at all. Saved quite a bit by getting it over a new one.

Delighted to hear it - but don't forget that I'm only an email away if you ever need advice or after-sales support with any order from Adorama!

henrytd · January 19, 2011

EOS 5D Mark II "refurbished" from Canon has arrived
It's great. As far as I can tell, it's identical to a brand new one. Packaged completely as if new, only exception being no original box. $1999 plus shipping. Numbering starts from zero, but i suppose the "odometer" could have been reset.

How does one tell how many shutter actuations there have been on, for example, a 5D (other than the number suggested by the filenaming process)?

HelenOster · January 20, 2011

henrytd wrote: »

It's great. As far as I can tell, it's identical to a brand new one. Packaged completely as if new, only exception being no original box. $1999 plus shipping. Numbering starts from zero, but i suppose the "odometer" could have been reset.

How does one tell how many shutter actuations there have been on, for example, a 5D (other than the number suggested by the filenaming process)?

The only way to really know is to take it to a Canon service department. [FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]If you take it into either Irvine or Jamesburg for cleaning, they will check[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif] for you. Also, look out for "Canon Days" clinics[/FONT]

meta444 · January 22, 2011

recently bought a refurb 7D direct from Canon (included Loyalty discount.) spent some time researching the refurb marketplace prior. by many reports -- including 3 Canon service techs i spoke with at length -- the great majority (by several reports, +/- 90%) of the refurbs sold direct by Canon -- are actually retail overstocks that have gone back to Canon without any customer usage. as mentioned earlier, ALL refurbs undergo tech scrutiny and a tune up regardless of reason returned to Canon. so, in effect, that second exam and certification puts a buyer one step better than buying a camera new, straight off the production line.

my 7d looks new, and functions flawlessly. yeah, I only got 2 weeks return priviledge no questions asked. and only 60 days of warrantee coverage. s'pose that's the risk you take to get what amounts to a $500+ discount off the best retail pricing.

there is, btw, free downloadable software available that reads the activations off most Canon models. not sure if the activations odometer gets reset by the refurb techs, but my refurb read as brand spankin' new. sorry...i lost the link where you can download the software, but sure that Google will find it for you.

[Deleted User] · January 23, 2011

The program that reads most EOS camers activations (forgot the name)does NOT read the 7D but will read the 5D2 for those interested in that camera.

Also, Adorama refurbs, done by Canon, usually come with a one year Adorama warrantee.

HelenOster · January 23, 2011

Jim K wrote: »

The program that reads most EOS camers activations (forgot the name)does NOT read the 7D but will read the 5D2 for those interested in that camera.

Also, Adorama refurbs, done by Canon, usually come with a one year Adorama warrantee.

Adorama ALWAYS gives a 12-month warranty on Canon refurbs!

BTW in our experience the software for consumers at home to read actuations is only available for:

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</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 20.25pt;"> <td style="width: 494pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt; height: 20.25pt;" nowrap="nowrap" valign="bottom" width="659"> CANON EOS-1D MARK-II
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Matthew Saville · January 24, 2011

I haven't bought any (major) items new since, um, hmm. 2006?

Especially from a reputable dealer, you've got very little to lose and a lot to gain...

=Matt=

ThatCanonGuy · January 24, 2011

I bought my 1DII used and my 70-200 refurb... both from Adorama. Saves you a lot, actually.

christinamae · January 25, 2011

Helen, Is the process the same for the refurbished Nikon camera bodies? I'm looking to purchase one that is on Adorama right now. Thanks!

NeilL · January 25, 2011

Also @ Helen, I had a look at Adorama but didn't see anywhere with refurbs?

Neil

HelenOster · January 25, 2011

christinamae wrote: »

Helen, Is the process the same for the refurbished Nikon camera bodies? I'm looking to purchase one that is on Adorama right now. Thanks!

Yes, it's just as thorough. The only difference is that the warranty is 90 days, as opposed to 12 months with Canon.

NeilL wrote: »

Also @ Helen, I had a look at Adorama but didn't see anywhere with refurbs?

Neil

http://www.adorama.com/searchsite/default.aspx?searchinfo=refurbished

Looks like 254 units of various kinds.

NeilL · January 25, 2011

Thanks Helen!

Neil

Refurbished 5D MkII vs. New... any thoughts?

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