eos 300d camera pin appears broken and it does not recognise my cf card

[rex2__]

this is my first time buying a camera, i bought the canon eos 300d digital rebel.

im not sure if the pin was broken before i put the cf card in but im assuming i broke it by trying to put it in. the pin appears to be bent straight off and my camera comes up with an error message whenever i try to use it.

hoping not to spend any more money since the money i bought the camera with was a gift and i cant spend another £50 on what i hope to be a hobby. is the only way to get this fixed a repair shop? or is there anything else i can do ?

[jrhoffman75]

If it is broken off then repair is only option. 

If pin is just bent care straightening may fix the problem. Happened to me many years ago and I was able to straighten it.

Was 50 pounds a quote or a guess by you? If the 50 gets you a working camera then you need to balance that against having spent the money on what is now a shelf ornament.

[shadowsports]

Given the age of the camera, 22 years old and a capture resolution of 6.3 megapixels, I'd say it's time to retire the device for something more modern