R3 Freezes - Canon Repaired - Problem Persists!

[sbunting]

Preordered the R3 and patiently awaited its arrival. It arrived on time and, wow, what a camera. However, within the first week, I experienced two instances where it froze. No button or dial would respond, however the touch screen still worked. Of course it takes a 'button' to turn it off, so a battery pull is needed to shut it down and then it works again until it freezes. Before anyone asks, it was all Canon gear, R lens included. Different lens were tried, different memory cards, different batteries, etc. What makes it happen is simply having it on for a period of time. You don't even have to be doing anything. So it was still within the period where I could return it to Canon and get another if I chose, but instead, since I had CPS Platinum, giving me an ultrafast turn-around, I opted for Canon repair. They replicated the issue in the shop, fortunately. They reinstalled the firmware and claimed the problem would not replicate. OK, we'll see. I've used it everyday this week with no problem, but all my uses were turn it on, use it for 10 minutes or so, and turn it off. Today I went out for an extended photowalk. I took a break for coffee and a review of the images. So the camera was on from earlier and on for an extended period while reviewing images. I took a break for a minute and when I picked the camera up, boom, frozen again. I was doing absolutely nothing aside from having the camera on. The attached screen shot tells the story. Note the position of the power button, i.e. "OFF" and yet still a picture on the screen. Twice more during the walk, the camera was left on and went to sleep. Twice when I went to wake it up and use it, total black. It would not respond to anything other than a battery pull. So it seems in their haste to do a fast turnaround, they didn't fix the problem. Freezing up seems to affect all recent Canon cameras in the R series, as I read the various forums. Has anyone else experienced this issue and, better yet, had a satisfactory resolution?

Note power "OFF" Image Still On Screen!

[dgfalcon]

Hello,

This happened to me last night too. My Canon EOS R3 froze up while using it with the Canon RF 70-200mm f2.8 lens - it would not take photos, the menu didn't work, and it would not turn off. I have been using it for about a month and no issues till now. I pulled the battery and then it worked ok afterwards (I was shooting a soccer game at night). Called Canon Support and they said there are no known issues, so I should take it to the Canon Service Center (not too far away) and they will likely need it for 5-7 business days... sigh. Will see. I'm new to Canon.

[MarkG]

Good luck. Please keep us posted. I was lucky the other day. No freezes during two basketball games. I have two more this afternoon/evening. I will see if my luck holds. 

[dgfalcon]

Also, recently while using my new EOS R3 with the RF 70-200mm F2.8 lens, I've been getting an error message on the display that says "Err 60 - Lens error, will shut down automatically, Restart camera". Doesn't seem to happen with my other RF lenses (RF 24-70mm f2.8, and RF 100-500mm). I called Canon Support and they said it's a lens error and I can send it in for repair. I can still return it to Amazon for a replacement (bought it new there), so am taking that route instead. I searched a bit and it seems to be an issue with some other Canon lenses too (Err 60 is mentioned on dpreview community). Not sure if it's related to the R3 freezing up as I noted / per this thread. Kinda disappointed though, since I'm new to Canon. Coming over from Nikon, which had their own share of problems. Canon has deeper pockets and market share, so hope they can fix!

[MarkG]

Latest Update. I shot two basketball games tonight. Switched to SanDisk Extreme Pro 256 gb CFExpress cards. Two lockups. So better than the other day, but still a problem. The first time I removed the battery and that reset the camera. The second time, I just turned the locking switch on the battery without taking the battery out and that reset the camera. 

I have another two games on Saturday and we will see how it goes then. Someone on another forum suggested resetting the camera to factory settings, which I may try after Saturday's games. Anxious to hear what Canon tells others. 

[sbunting]

For what it is worth, when I sent it to Canon a week after it was purchased, they reflashed the firmware and reset it to factory settings.  They claimed to have fixed it.  The exact same problem still exists.  Thus I would not expect a reset to factory settings to resolve the issue.

[ebiggs1]

"Such a disconnect makes zero business sense."

I doubt there are any companies where the sales floor is directly connected to the repair facility. Since Canon is run by humans, there can be good ones and there can be not so good ones, I tell folks if you don't get  a good one hang up and call back. You will likely get a different person. Hopefully a better one!

In my own experience, I always received good service form CPS and even Canon support. But I have known a few folks that didn't get so good. If this happens to be a model wide defect, I don't know how much good a replacement is. Perhaps better to have a repair?

[MarkG]

I'm not even sure a replacement would be available given how backlogged Canon is with the R3. And, I agree, that it's a gamble that you might get one with the same or worse issues. The challenge with a repair is that I'm also not sure Canon knows what to fix. Lockups occur with the R5 and I haven't read of anyone who experiences them (which I have as well) having any success sending them to Canon for repair. I am hoping that the problem doesn't get worse and just remains an annoyance and that maybe in six months or so Canon will have had enough experience with the issue to have found a firmware fix. I hoping SBunting has some success that I can learn from.

[Jonesy22]

Anyone experiencing focus issues on theirs?

[MarkG]

I think you probably need to be a bit more specific. I have found that the mirrorless focusing system has some significant differences from DSLRs, that can be frustrating. They can have a hard time finding the subject under certain circumstances and when they miss focus it is usually be a mile not an inch. On the plus side, if they find the focus, they can be incredibly accurate. You might want to check other threads or start a new topic so this one stays on point.

[ebiggs1]

"You might want to ... start a new topic so this one stays on point."

Good point and suggestion.