EOS Digital REBEL XTi Broken pins in card slot

[sophiepham18]

 

I'm in a difficult situation and would deeply appreciate some advice. My father gifted me a camera (EOS DIGITAL Rebel XTi EF-S18-55mm lens) which holds sentimental value to him; and I made a promise to take care of it. Unfortunately, I damaged the SD card slot by inserting the card incorrectly, breaking the pins. He's unaware of the damage and I am hesitant to tell him, so I am exploring alternative ways to make up for it.

I've researched repair costs, and I'm wondering if there's any possibility of contacting Canon to see if they might offer a discount on a future purchase, given the circumstances. However, I'm also realistic that it's an older model, so I'm not sure if that's even a viable option. Any insights or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. #EOS

[wq9nsc]

It never hurts to reach out to Canon because sometimes they will have special programs.

Alternatively, that is a very common body and with careful shopping you could likely find one in good condition on ebay at a very low price.  When considering purchase on ebay, look carefully at seller feedback and carefully examine photos and description.

In your post, you stated SD card but that camera uses a CF style card instead.  Trying to force an actual SD card into a CF socket would definitely cause issues but the other big issue with CF cards is there are a lot of counterfeit cards and one of the problems with counterfeit cards is the interface isn't properly formed and it will bend pins.  With whatever solution you choose, don't buy your memory card from places like Amazon which don't adequately control counterfeit products.  Go with a camera store like B&H or Adorama or use a large brick and mortar retailer like Best Buy or WalMart.  

When I had camera bodies that used SD cards (which have a very robust card/socket design), I would pull the cards out of the camera and put in a reader to transfer images.  With my current camera bodies the cards stay in the camera and transfer is done via their ethernet port however the USB ports on lower level Canon cameras work equally well for fast file transfer without the potential of damage from frequently inserting/removing memory cards.

Rodger

[BurnUnit]

On a few of my older cameras that use CF cards I always carefully "walk" the card into position in the card slot, especially the last quarter of an inch or so. By comparison an SD card will tend to be almost "slammed" into the card slot to overcome the ejection spring, which is required to lock the card into position. The two processes definitely have a different feel to them.

It shouldn't be too hard to find a used Xti in good condition at a reasonable price. And it will still likely do 90%+ of what most photographers require.

[LeeP]

It's nice that you were given a camera. Go to eBay and find an XTi body and switch it out. It's nice that it has sentimental value but the camera has very little actual value at this point. The sentimentality it with the giver giving the camera not the camera itself. Switch it out. Don't mention it. Let the giver have his sentimentality. Problem solved. I also tend to be unrepentantly pragmatic.