SX260HS sometimes has very dark screen, picture dark if taken, why unreliable? what do I do?

[lyn]

My PowerShot SX260HS recently started having a very dark screen and if a picture is taken when this happens, the picture is very dark.  It has been sporadic for the past two days of use and doesn't seem to be tied to turning it on and off or changing settings.  I'm leaving for a trip of a lifetime in 11 days and must have a reliable camera!  Please help asap!  Thank you!

[emilycharlie]

Tim, I also tried what Trocket said, still does not work.

[mikaux]

I had the same problem. I tried tapping the side of the camera (I know - Old School) and the screen came to life. It was sporadic, so then I discovered that holding my finger on the power button (lightly) would also make the screen come to life. Then I tried lightly tapping the power button and that has fixed (who knows for how long) what is obviously a dodgy connection. Camera is out of warranty (of course) and it's probably more expensive to repair in terms of money and hassle than to buy a new one. Will keep 'Tapping' this one until it's dead.

[Frank0]

Add one more. I was on vacation last week and was taking some nice shots when the LCD screen went dark. I rebooted (that's what tech support always says 🙂 ) and it came back for a short time. I found if I wiggled the mode dial or held it just off the mark, it would come back momentarily. But now it's just done. Im really, really disappointed. I have owned only Canon cameras since I bought my first AT-1 (the manual only version of the AE) but they seem to have a quality issue here. I love this little camera and if it had a view finder, it would be perfect. The repair cost seems a bit extreme so a shopping I will go.

[Rozemarie]

I am in the same boat!! It seems that from the start this camera had a loose connection somewhere, My canon 260 does the exact same thing , when I can tap it to work , it takes great shots and video, Just have to hold your breath an hope a light jiggle or movement dont toggle it to dark again;/ 

[pkdoorn]

Dear Mikaux,
Thanks for your "old school" tip, which cured my SX260HS at least temporarily. Tapping the bottom of the camera did the trick in my case. I also suspect there is a dodgy contact somewhere,
Greetings from Holland,
Peter

[bocashore]

Having same problem with my SX260HS.  Glad I found this Forum.

1. YouTube has a video on DIY repair of SX260.  It has to do with the connectors. Apparently this is a frequent problem with this camera.  However, I did tons of research before buying it and did not find any reference to "black screen."

2. Old School technique#2: Press the front of the camera near the lens. My screen lit up (for as long as I pressed.  It beats paying over $100 for repair.

3. This is making me rethink Canon's quality assurance.  Interestingly I have a much older Canon that works like a charm

[pjdemmitt]

Could you supply the YouTube link? I have searched on a couple of terms that didn't bring up anything. Thanks. Paul

[bocashore]

The YouTube link is

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ELzJ9I1RIrQ

called Powershot SX260 Screen Repair

[pjdemmitt]

Thank you!

[bubbebaby2]

Hi pjdemmit.

I hope this is not a duplicate post. I don't visit the forum much, like 1x/year.

Here is the link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ELzJ9I1RIrQ

I don’t use my camera all that often, but it has not happened again.

If link doesn’t work — it is a fix presented by “Rob’s Fixit Shop”.  Make sure you have something to put all the tiny screws in.