Repairing a Digital Camera

I have been fascinated by digital cameras ever since I picked up a very inexpensive, no flash or memory card digital camera.  I could only take 10 images then had to upload them to the computer but that didn't discourage me!  It quickly became apparent that as much as I loved using a digital camera I was actually quite abusive to them.  My first digital camera ended up with all kinds of paint spots on it, the second digital camera ended up with a multitude of scratches and the third (Canon PowerShot A530) was dropped while the lens was out rendering an experiment in taking a digital camera apart and selling it for parts.

Pictured is my fourth digital camera, a Canon PowerShot A540.  It too suffered a fall that broke the holding clasp for the battery and memory card chamber.  So I used a bit of tape to hold the chamber shut (1).  When it seemed that this was causing the batteries to die quicker I bought a Panasonic DMC-TZ5 as a replacement.  Then it occurred to me that perhaps the camera could be fix which would give a back-up camera.  I found the necessary front case online for $20 and ordered it. 

Care is needed when taking apart a digital camera as there is an internal battery that can give a nice shock!  There are also a lot of very tiny screws that have to be taken out using a small jeweler's screwdriver (2).  Once I got the front and back cases separated, I put the new front on (4) then re-assembled the camera.

With the camera re-assembled as pictured it was ready to test it out.  The camera worked like a charm!  It still seems to be a bit of a heavier drawer on batteries but perhaps it always was and I just happen to notice it more.  This camera uses 2 - AA batteries so the is not as efficient as the battery packs that came with my new camera. 

I discovered that there are replacement parts available for many digital cameras.  Since the price has come down so low on these cameras they are viewed almost as a toss-away item that doesn't fit well with my eco-friendly views.  It's nice knowing that I can repair either if necessary in the future.

Garden Gnome
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