E 18 error

loads up and displays E18 Error, can this be fixed?

We get this often. Try this website www.e18error.com. It is pretty helpful. Essentially, it may have gone out of alignment off the rails slightly.

There's an entire website devoted to this. In a nutshell, Canon E18 error happens when the lens gets stuck while trying to extend. The camera will beep a few times and the LCD will display a little E18 in the lower-left corner. The lens gets stuck in the extended position, and refuses to move either to focus the lens or to retract when powered off.

If your camera is still under warranty, the best thing you can do have Canon should fix it.

If your camera is out of warranty, or if Canon refuses to repair it for free, the one thing you can try is to If you gently, and I do mean GENTLY push against the lens with the PALM of your hand as you turn it on, it may cause it to depress back into the camera. If that doesn't work, and you can't reset it or turn it on/off several times, then you may have to send it in for a repair estimate anyway.

But understand that the average cost of a camera repair is around $180. As such, it may cost more to repair than it is really worth. The rule of thumb is that if the estimate for repair is north of 50% what you paid for it, you're better off taking that money and buying a newer and upgraded model.

But wait, you may have serendipity on your side. Your camera was one of a host of cameras that suffered from a faulty CCD chip. Check out this from Canon regarding it.

Affected products:

- Camcorders: ZR60, ZR65 MC, ZR70 MC, ZR80, ZR85, ZR90, ELURA 40 MC, ELURA 50
- Digital Cameras A60, A70, A75, A300, A310, S230, SD100, SD110, A40(*), A80(*), A85(*), A95(*), S1 IS(*), S60(*), S200(*), S330(*), S400(*), S410(*), S500(*)

Malfunction:
It has been confirmed that the connecting parts of the internal wiring of the CCD used in affected products may become disconnected, especially if the affected products are stored or used in high-temperature and high-humidity environments. If this occurs, the signal is not output from the CCD normally in Shooting Mode, which may cause a distorted image or the absence of an image. This malfunction can be confirmed on the LCD monitor screen during shooting. The same malfunction also appears on the recorded image.

Canon's Response:
Effective immediately, and regardless of warranty status, Canon will repair, free of charge, the products listed above exhibiting the above-mentioned malfunction if Canon determines that the malfunction is caused by the CCD image sensor. Canon will also cover the cost of shipping and handling in connection with this repair.

So the good news is that Canon will fix it for FREE:

U.S. residents are kindly directed to contact the Canon Customer Support Center for further assistance at 1-800-828-4040. Support hours are Monday thru Friday - 8:00 AM to 12:00 midnight; and Saturday 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM (all times EST). Alternatively, if electronic support is preferred, please send your email to carecenter@cits.canon.com

Canon will fix your camera for free only if it's experiencing symptoms of a CCD failure. An E18 error is NOT a CCD failure.

The E18 error is fairly common. Usually it's sand or grit interfering with the lens extension mechanism. Or the camera's been dropped with the lens extended. Or the camera has been powered on, but the lens had been blocked preventing its extension.

Here's some other things that you can do to try to correct it. They only seem to work for about 50% of lens errors, but they're worth a try:

http://camerarepair.blogspot.com/2007/12/fixing-lens-error-on-digital-camera.html

That wasn't my point, t00nz. My point was that Jay's A80 may be a ticking timebomb waiting to fail. So, if he can kill two birds with one stone ....