Camera Labs

Hello Everyone I need a protection plan for my canon 60d and 18-200 mm lens what do you suggest? There is a SquareTrade that protects drops,cracks Ect??

Kind Regards,
Frank

It would help us (and you) if you told us what you plan to do with the camera and lens i.e. what and where you can see yourself shooting.

Without knowing your requirements, we can't be sure to give you useful advice - somebody could recommend weinsureyourcamera.com but you could be paying a lot more for cover you don't need or worse yet somebody can recommend welookafteryourcamera.com and if your camera were to be stolen or damaged, you could find yourself out of pocket if your camera wasn't covered under whatever circumstances it became damaged or was stolen.

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Bodies: Canon EOS 550D w/ Magic Lantern
Lenses: Tokina AT-X 116 Pro DX f/2.8, Canon EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM, Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS, Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II, Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM
Accessories: YongNuo Speedlite YN-468 Flash, Neewer Macro LED Ring Light, Meike Battery Grip, YongNuo RF-602 Wireless Flash Trigger & Receiver YongNuo WR-128 Wireless Remote Control

Quote:

what plan to do with the camera is to use it.
I won't use it as a professional but more like a hobiest.
I was thinking a squaretrade warranty. But I don't know?

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My renters insurance I have covers my camera and gear for enough of what I need even away from home to include while I go to Afghanistan.

_________________
Mike "The Squirrel"
Canon 550D | Canon EF 35mm 1:2 | Canon 50 f/1.8 II | Sigma 18-125mm DC OS | Tamron SP 70-300mm Di VC USD | Canon 430EX II
Military Issued Canon 40D | Canon 55-250mm IS

I dont know that renters insurance will work as I am a home owner and if I drop and crack it that would be my concern!

Just ask what your home owners covers and see, can't hurt

_________________
Mike "The Squirrel"
Canon 550D | Canon EF 35mm 1:2 | Canon 50 f/1.8 II | Sigma 18-125mm DC OS | Tamron SP 70-300mm Di VC USD | Canon 430EX II
Military Issued Canon 40D | Canon 55-250mm IS

Since losing a camera doesn't involve a catastrophic loss (unlike death/serious illness/accident or the destruction of property), getting insurance is an utter waste of money.

This is what you should do:-
1) get a quote
2) pay the premiums to yourself in a ring-fenced portion of an account
3) ???
4) profit.

By following steps 1-4 above, not only will you cover your premiums, but you will be paying to yourself the insurer's cost of advertising, admin, tax, and of course their profit.

I can only think of two exceptions to the above strategy:
1) you are extremely clumsy
2) you're planning insurance fraud.

I challenge anybody to argue otherwise.

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http://www.flickr.com/photos/53061745@N02/

Panasonic G3: 9-18mm, 14mm, 20mm, 45mm

I still am wondering if a protection Plan is the way to go. Square trade or Bestbuy.

@ kimchi
I don't know if you're trolling or not but I'm still going to call you out on it and say I think your comment is amongst the most stupid and irresponsible advice I've ever heard.

Yes, insurance is something the companies profit from but you pay for it hoping you don't have to claim on it. You may as well say that car insurance is pointless. As the insurance premium may be significantly less than the actual cost of repairing/replacing the goods, I fail to see how it is an utter waste of money.

My mobile phone was damaged a couple of years back and because I paid insurance on it, I got a replacement at no extra cost to myself (the total premium I had paid monthly up to the point my old phone was damaged was considerably less than the value a new replacement).

With the only exceptions you can think of with your half-baked strategy, there are also unforeseen events that can result in damage to or loss of camera gear, which are exactly what you pay insurance for.

_________________
Bodies: Canon EOS 550D w/ Magic Lantern
Lenses: Tokina AT-X 116 Pro DX f/2.8, Canon EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM, Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS, Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II, Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM
Accessories: YongNuo Speedlite YN-468 Flash, Neewer Macro LED Ring Light, Meike Battery Grip, YongNuo RF-602 Wireless Flash Trigger & Receiver YongNuo WR-128 Wireless Remote Control

@Rorschach

I'm not trolling and I stand by my comments.

Taking out insurance/protection for low-value items is far from cost effective. You only need to look at how hard electrical retailers push these services to ill-informed consumers to understand how profitable they are.

If you take only average care of your belongings, then over time the average person will waste considerable money taking out insurance. I don't see how you can argue against this in the face of the $multibillion insurance industry. Coupled to this is evidence that people become more reckless when insured. The insurance companies price this into their premiums too.

Insurance is only worthwhile to cover against catastrophic loss - or at least a loss which is both not unlikely and also several orders of magnitude greater than the premiums.

The only less tangible benefit to be gained from insurance is peace of mind and depending on how much you perceive is worthwhile paying in order to help control emotional/psychological weaknesses may influence you decision to take out insurance.

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http://www.flickr.com/photos/53061745@N02/

Panasonic G3: 9-18mm, 14mm, 20mm, 45mm

Id like to point out that I took out insurance on all my camera gear VIA my Home and Contents Insurance as "Portables"

what this offers me thats better than just saving is:

1) Accidental
2) WEAR AND TEAR
3) Theft
4) Misplacement
5) And If I have a 7D and It breaks etc - I dont have to get a 7D

and the best bit

6) my 7D plus lenses = $4000, but I insured it for $6000

My Contents insurance is (just as an example) is 100 bucks a month, my 6k extra portables is only 15 bucks a month on top.

If you do the math, it lasts longer than my camera wear and tear if Im good with it, AND it allows me to upgrade once my camera stops working.

This is one of the reasons why people get insurance for cameras - If you take out jus plain old insurance as its own policy then thats when you get into "I use it for rock climbing" or "I use it for sports and rain as a pro" then @kimichi, your comments MAY be usefull.

At the moment, I dont agree with anything you have said - it is counterproductive to this forum/thread.

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1) Olympus OM1 [Zuiko Auto-S 50mm f/1.8]
2) Pentax MZ-60 [Sigma 28-90 & 100-300]
3) Canon 7D [EF-S 15-85 & 70-200mm f/4 IS]

Leo's Flickr Page

@ kimchi

I like to think I'm as cautious as can be expected and I am perfectly aware of the margin retailers make from extended warranties and what not so you would be wise not to be so presumptuous. The issue is that there are things beyond my control or things that I cannot realistically expect to prepare for and I don't think your "strategy" has taken that into account.

On the subject of my mobile phone being damaged, that wasn't out of me being careless; a drunken man bumped into me it was damaged when it hit the ground. A similar situation could have happened with a camera or lens. There is no emotional or psychological weakness on my part that I need to satiate by taking out insurance, I just don't have a hubristic belief that my gear will not be damaged if I look after it to the best of my ability because I am not the only person or entity in this world.

Is this "evidence" you harp on about the sort of evidence people manipulate to serve their own interests or the evidence used to determine the truth? Somehow I think your counter-productive advice points to the former.

In any case, I'm done flogging this dead horse in front of me.

_________________
Bodies: Canon EOS 550D w/ Magic Lantern
Lenses: Tokina AT-X 116 Pro DX f/2.8, Canon EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM, Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS, Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II, Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM
Accessories: YongNuo Speedlite YN-468 Flash, Neewer Macro LED Ring Light, Meike Battery Grip, YongNuo RF-602 Wireless Flash Trigger & Receiver YongNuo WR-128 Wireless Remote Control

You can't put a price on "peace of mind"

I bought my first 7D at Best Buy, and did purchase a 2-year protection plan, mostly because it clearly offered a replacement if the camera were to be accidentally dropped. Now that I have several cameras and an assortment of lenses, I would probably not buy a plan for a camera of the value of a 7D. My peace of mind is derived from having redundant equipment.

If I buy a new 1D-series or 5D-series camera in the future, then a protection plan will certainly be worth the peace of mind.

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Canon 7D/5D/40D/1D2N; Nikon F6, FM3A, & Coolpix A; Canon 40mm Pancake, 135L, 50L, 35L, pre-II 50mm 1.8, 100mm 2.8L Macro, 10-22mm EF-S, 28-135 EF, 400mm 5.6L; Nikkor 50mm 1.2 AI-S, 50mm 1.4G, 50mm 1.8D, 16mm 2.8D Fisheye, 180mm 2.8D, 100-300mm 5.6 AI-S; Tokina 17mm & 100mm 2.8 Macro

I typically turn down any extended warranty, most certainly those offered on the spot. You'll find that quite often that same $250 warranty can be had for much less. That was the case for my new T3i. I found a great price on the 18-55 kit and as many photo stores online do, they called me to make sure I had everything I needed. Part of that is nice, do you have a memory card, tripod, etc. Part of that is commission and they know you already turned down the protection plan once so they have to work hard. In the end I got a 5yr full plan that covers all but theft for $99 w/ no deductible or need to ship it off to a service center. Take it in to the store I got it from or any other local service center for repair or replacement.

For me the $99 was well worth the extra piece of mind as I chase my two toddlers around knowing that despite how good my balance is or how careful I am, I'll drop that camera in a second if it means either of my daughters won't fall and break an arm or leg.

In hindsight I probably should have checked my home owners insurance and will still plan to do so simply to help with the theft protection. Probably do that before my next vacation.

Hope this helps give some additional/alternative info for your decision.