Jim Radcliffe
Member
Over in DPReview the Fuji forum has been somewhat of a hornet's nest for the last three weeks due to the way the Fuji X10 handles specular highlights, which in a few words is... not very well.
Before I go further with this let me state that this issue has not ruined a single one of my photos and that I like and enjoy using the X10. I do plan on keeping it. It does so many things well. The problem is that, to some, the speuclar highlight issue is a real problem. Photographing musical instruments, cars, boats, seascapes, architecture, anything which might catch direct sunlight on a highly reflective surface will present orbs or blobs of light rather than a more acceptable star burst effect in the photo.
Here is a simple example of how the X10 renders these highlights. :wtf: Not quite what we are used to getting.. and I have seen worse examples than this one. You can imagine how this would play out for those who do seascapes on bright, sunny days as well as those who do night photography in cities.
Fuji is aware of the issue and is working on a firmware tweak. I hesitate to use the word "fix" because I am not sure it can be fixed as this issue appears to be a characteristic of the sensor used in the X10.
So my question is this:
When a camera manufacturer produces a camera with an unacceptable, unrepairable, unfixable issue.. What do they owe us? What are our rights? There are Lemmon Laws for cars but not sure if there is equal protection for consumers where cameras are concerned. I'm not suggesting the X10 is a lemmon by any means but there are those who will based on the issue with specular highlights.
[1]Should we be able to return the camera for a total refund if no fix is available?
[2]Will there be a limit on the amount of time in which we are free to return a flawed camera: two weeks, three weeks, months?
[3]Should Fuji offer a cash rebate for those who bought the camera but wish to keep it rather than ask for a refund if there is no fix?
I pose the question only because I know many will return the camera. Many, like myself, will keep the camera. So for those who feel the camera is flawed and unfixable, what will be their recourse? If Fuji's work/fix on this issue is still not acceptable where does that leave an unhappy consumer who may have had the camera longer than a stores specified return period?
Before I go further with this let me state that this issue has not ruined a single one of my photos and that I like and enjoy using the X10. I do plan on keeping it. It does so many things well. The problem is that, to some, the speuclar highlight issue is a real problem. Photographing musical instruments, cars, boats, seascapes, architecture, anything which might catch direct sunlight on a highly reflective surface will present orbs or blobs of light rather than a more acceptable star burst effect in the photo.
Here is a simple example of how the X10 renders these highlights. :wtf: Not quite what we are used to getting.. and I have seen worse examples than this one. You can imagine how this would play out for those who do seascapes on bright, sunny days as well as those who do night photography in cities.
Fuji is aware of the issue and is working on a firmware tweak. I hesitate to use the word "fix" because I am not sure it can be fixed as this issue appears to be a characteristic of the sensor used in the X10.
So my question is this:
When a camera manufacturer produces a camera with an unacceptable, unrepairable, unfixable issue.. What do they owe us? What are our rights? There are Lemmon Laws for cars but not sure if there is equal protection for consumers where cameras are concerned. I'm not suggesting the X10 is a lemmon by any means but there are those who will based on the issue with specular highlights.
[1]Should we be able to return the camera for a total refund if no fix is available?
[2]Will there be a limit on the amount of time in which we are free to return a flawed camera: two weeks, three weeks, months?
[3]Should Fuji offer a cash rebate for those who bought the camera but wish to keep it rather than ask for a refund if there is no fix?
I pose the question only because I know many will return the camera. Many, like myself, will keep the camera. So for those who feel the camera is flawed and unfixable, what will be their recourse? If Fuji's work/fix on this issue is still not acceptable where does that leave an unhappy consumer who may have had the camera longer than a stores specified return period?