Canon EOS Rebel T3i wont turn on

[ivanboni]

Hello, I bought this camera about a month ago in an untested eBay lot. I was excited because it looks like it was barely used. I bought batteries and charger put them in along with an SD card.. and it wont turn on. I've tried 3 different batteries different SD cards. Ive tried the manually pushing in the micro switches in the SD and battery compartment. That's all I've found online on how to get it to work. Has anyone have had this happened to them? What worked for you guys?

[Tronhard]

Hi Ivan and welcome to the forum:
Normally, when the camera starts up, there is a flashing red light low down on the right side of the back of the camera - do you get that light?  If not, there is a good chance the camera is non-functional. Since you say it is untested, there is a possibility that it does not actually work - the T3i is 13 years old.  It is no longer supported by Canon service.
Still, one outside question is: what kinds of SD cards are you using.  You cannot use micro SD cards with cameras, they don't like it, although I would expect the camera to at least offer an error message about not being able to read the card.

[ivanboni]

The red light does not turn on. Ive tried using a SONY 8GB SDHC SF-8NX card and a 2GB Kingston SD card. None work.

[Tronhard]

To be honest, it seems to me that the camera may not be functioning.   To my knowledge it falls well outside the service period for that model, and in any case the cost of repair would exceed the value of the camera.  You could look at Canon's Upgrade program, where you can get a discount for handing in an old camera.  If you are interested I suggest reading this thread: Canon Upgrade Program - Canon Community

[normadel]

Don't buy camera equipment on Ebay unless it is a returnable sale. Even if it's billed as non-returnable, you can get refunded if the product is misrepresented as being fully functional but it is broken when you get it. And test your item IMMEDIATELY, not after 30 days.

Your best bets for used equipment are the reputable used dealers, like UsedPhotoPro.com,  MPB.com, KEH.com, Adorama, where stuff is graded and honestly described and comes with a warranty.

[ivanboni]

i buy untested cameras and resell them for a profit if they work, but i wanted to keep this one. still making a profit even thought it doesnt work.