What I liked was that Allan was really helpful in prioritizing my repair so I would have the lens for a project the following week. Alan was also very personable and made himself available as I checked up on the progress of the repair. My issue was that the manual focus on my lens was stuck and would not move. The actual repair was great, the camera is operating as new and was returned to me clean and ready to go. What I was concerned about was that I didn't feel I was given an adequate explanation of what went wrong that they had to fix other than some dirt got into the mechanism. They charged me over $400 for the repair which was just below the cost of buying a used lens. So I feel they are really expensive and I would have appreciated a description of what was involved in the repair. read more

Went to get camera sensor and lenses cleaned and I believed the fee ($700) only to be told by other providers that I was completely ripped off and got more reasonable quotes and quicker turn around time. Should have read the reviews before bringing my camera in. They also don't take credit card which should have been a sign to go else for me. I completely regret using Camtex, would have saved a ton of money going anywhere else. read more

This Company is a complete and utter scam that I was referred to by Kerrisdale camera As my mum has dementia, we pulled out the Kodak carrousel projector from the basement, to go through some slides After a few minutes Use, it stopped advancing and reversing When researching online, it says this is common due to the solenoid arm link failure When I called Camtex, I explained all of this, and was told there would be an assessment fee I asked what the assessment fee would be, and was told I need to bring in the unit When I brought the projector, I was told the assessment fee is $150 and the unit would be cleaned lubed and repaired determined which was not done! He then charged me $150 plus tax but accidentally charged my credit card ....immediately telling me they don't accept credit cards. However, it had already rung through The reason they don't accept credit cards is due to the service rate, so I felt bad and gave him $10 cash....As I thought, He was kind and honest I then expressed my wish for the assessment and repair to be speedy due to my mum's condition A couple of days later, I spoke to them on the phone and was told the auto focus and advancement mechanisms both don't work. Which was blatantly obvious prior to the assessment... Not to mention the reason why I brought the machine in!! Furthermore, I was told the repair would be $450 As this amount was shocking, I explained that I wasn't interested in that He then told me I could purchase a repaired unit, that they have at their shop When returning to the shop, I was presented an older more basic model, which he was expecting me to pay $450 for Not only that, I was to leave my old projector there for them to keep and obviously repair and sell at another ludicrous profit Instead of me, rightfully being given money from them purchasing it off of me, for salvage! Alarm bells were then ringing, so I politely left, making excuses that I would think about this After leaving the shop, I then received a call a few minutes later telling me I didn't need to repair the auto focus which would take $100 off As even Helen Keller could see the red flags with this, I politely declined I then purchased a $40 repair kit on Amazon,for replacement of the solenoid arm link I followed an online video and completed the repair successfully in an hour Camtex camera Should be utterly ashamed of their horrendous greed Honestly, just beyond deplorable. They clearly saw an opportunity, as we wanted the machine badly for our mum and thought we would be forced to accept their lousy deal, as there's no other options Shame! read more

Ripped off and not happy. I don't understand why this company is still open, Terrible place. When I took my Sony A7ii into the shop they told me up front that it would cost $195 to diagnose the issue and after almost a month wait for them to look at it they told me it would be about $600 to fix it.... maybe lol. I paid the $195 + tax =$200 and took my camera with me. I put the camera in the closet for almost 1 year and went out and bought a new camera. Last month, I thought I would try another local camera repair to have a look they charged me $25 to evaluate and then another $400 to fix it. I plan on writing a positive review for the shop that is fixing my camera. These sleaze ball companies should not be supported and hopefully one day they will just close up shop and when Camtex goes away I will be a very happy guy. I wish I had read all the reviews before going their read more

I went to them to get my old film camera that had mouldering in a closet for 25 years refurbished. It took some time to find all the right parts, but in the end they had it good as new. The wait was totally reasonable for the age of the camera as many parts were no longer being manufactured. The man was every friendly, passionate, and knowledgeable. Super patient and wonderful when, like a dunce, I didn't know how to use it and took it back thinking it was broken again. could not recommend enough. Really went the extra mile! He even ran out in the rain to remind me to turn the camera off when storing it. read more

Dreadful. It cost almost $100 for them to even look at the camera and give me an estimate. They had it broken down into two fallacious things, a 'shop' charge and a 'counter' charge, whatever that was. I told them going in that the battery pack, which had a problem, was only $225 to buy a new one, so if it was going to be too expensive, I didn't want to do it. After the hundred dollar assessment charge, they quoted me a further $195 to fix it, which would've brought it up to almost $300, which, of course was out of the question and they knew that. Then they proceeded to try to negotiate a lower fee with me, and they seemed quite desperate. Anyway, I went and got the thing back and took it as a learning procedure. And when I got it back, another pin was actually stuck down and so it was actually in worse condition than when I took it in. When I took it in only the aperture control wasn't working, when I got it back from their assessment, both the aperture and the shutter speed control are now not working. I think it's probably just dirt; it is eight years old and has been travelling a lot with me. I'm gonna try to fix it myself. In the meantime, I would stay clear of this place. Ridiculous. $100 to look at an item? read more

I took my Sony camera to Robert at Everything Electronic. He said the repair guy at Camtex had messed it up. He ordered a new circuit board and fixed my camera for just over $200.00. read more

I live in the Seattle, WA area but the camera repair place I went to here said that Nikon USA won't sell them parts, so there's no real way for them to repair a Nikon lens unless they can find the parts on eBay. They said that in Canada, Nikon sells parts for repair. Since I am going to be in the Vancouver, BC area soon, I thought I'd call Camtex and explain the situation to see if they could help. You can see where this is going. The man who answered the phone was incredibly unhelpful. I explained that the damage to both my lenses was cosmetic, that the stabilization systems were fine, as were the optics, and I'd send him photos of the damage to get a quote. He refused, saying that they needed to see the damage in person to provide a quote. I again explained that I was in the USA and was looking to get a quote purely for the visible damage, and that's all I needed repaired. He refused again saying he would not help me. Maybe there are legitimate reasons why they refuse to quote over email, but he didn't articulate them for me, he was just extremely unhelpful. I wouldn't say he was rude, but his lack of effort to be helpful or even sympathetic was frustrating. Someone who answers the phone should have some semblance of customer service skills and empathy for people calling in. read more

I am reading the reviews here and I would have to agree 100% with what everyone is saying. In this day and age customer service is HUGE. I called to get some info on a lens repair. I could hardly hear the guy speaking and it was so stand off ish and honestly a jerk on the phone. Obviously did not understand that I was inquiring about a lens repair and told me to go to a camera store. His answer next was that he was not a technician and he was only a receptionist. Well as a receptionist he needs a course on customer service and the basics of how to answer the phone. Even if the technicians were top notch the front end is ZERO notch. Will definitely not go here! I just phoned Vancam and I spoke with the nicest guy who was friendly and was able to give me info. That is where I will be going! read more

This is strictly a camera repair shop. I tried to go in to get a small 3.7V battery... a battery. They said they don't have them and they only repair cameras. The battery was for a dashcam... a literal camera... USELESS read more

You learn new stuff all the time. One of my recent discoveries is that even though your camera is securely in its case, fine blowing sand can permeate the case and get into your camera workings, rendering it DOA. One of my husband's work colleagues recommended Camtex so we brought the camera there for repair. To even drop off your camera to get a diagnosis/estimate costs $25+ tax . We were called 24 hours later with an estimate, about 80% of the value of a new camera. We made the choice to just buy a new camera. I went back to Camtex to pick up the old one. I was told to return the next business day because my camera was still in parts and they couldn't return it to me that way? I told them that I would take it in parts since we were planning to buy a new camera but they still refused to release it to me. There was also a fairly strong sales effort to have the repair done rather than purchasing a new camera. Several days later I came in to pick up the camera. Interestingly enough they "forgot" to return the battery too until I reminded them. The Asian gentleman that I interacted with on all 3 occasions was pleasant enough to deal with but I am not convinced that Camtex's integrity is at the level that I have come to expect from a business. read more

This place is a rip off. I brought in a new camera (like two weeks old) for repair. Unfortunately I bought this camera while I was overseas and needed it quickly for traveling so I could wait for warranty work. I had earlier brought my camera into a reputable camera store for advice. They told me he problem was minor and common but they were not equipped to repair cameras there. I bright the camera to Camdex since they appeared to repair all brands and have bee around for a while. After paying the $40 estimate fee, they called me back telling me that the problem was that "gooey stuff" was inside and had to be cleaned out. The cost? $200! I said it was quite impossible as the camera was hardly used (30 shots at the most) and was always in a pouch. However they insisted that was the problem. As I was in a bind time wise and really needed the camera I reluctantly bit the bullet. If I wasn't in a rush I would have taken the camera elsewhere as I am sure they were trying to rip me off...which they did and hence this review to warn others to stay clear of this place. read more

It's hard to drop off something that is broken and hope for it to be fixed. I dropped off a cheap lens, and they got back to me saying that it would cost more to repair it then buy a new one. I am taking my Nikon DSLR there tomorrow, but i am a little worried. It would be nice to see some good reviews on here. Camtex is recommended by every photo nerd i know, and also the local camera stores. read more

I brought my camera to these guys a few weeks ago because my pop up flash was not working and I noticed a tiny bit of rust on the lens port on my 7D body. So first off they charge 50$ just to look at the camera and asses the damage. After not hearing from them for a few days I called and they told me it would cost 180$ to repair the flash and 250$ to fix the rust problem on my lens port. So When I started to ask for details on what exactly they would be doing with the lens port, either cleaning it or replacing the part the guy on the phone just said "we will have to open it up and see" and wouldn't give me a straight answer. If I'm going to give you guys 450$ half the price of what I paid for the camera I want to know what exactly your doing to do to it! So in the end I ended up telling them not to touch it, took it to VanCam and they charged me 150$ to fix the flash and told me the rush problem was nothing! and that it was just aesthetically displeasing yes but I could just wipe it off with a bit of rubbing alcohol and it would be fine. 2$ for rubbing alcohol vs 250$ to those bloodsuckers at Camtex, what a joke. Yes I'm pissed off because I had a bad feeling about these guys from the start and I should have listened to my gut. They are shady and I believe try and take advantage of peoples naivety. Horrible customer service. read more

Do not take your camera here. I dropped off my camera this morning (Wednesday) and told them the Command Dial on the back of my Nikon wasn't working and needed to be replaced. I was told I had to pay a $45+tax "evaluation fee" and that they wouldn't be able to look at the camera until Friday, that they would have to take it apart to look at it. Cash or debit only. So I paid, but the kid who took my money and camera gave me a bad feeling, the whole place gave me a bad feeling. So I went to work and looked them up on the internet and saw bad review after bad review of the shop. It would seem my bad feeling was being supported by the many bad experiences of others. I decided that I would feel better taking my camera somewhere else and I went back this afternoon to pick it up. I told them I wanted my camera back, that I needed it this weekend and I could work around the back dial not working properly, and they weren't going to have a chance to fix it before the weekend anyway. Before I could ask for a refund the older guy came out from the back and said, "We've already done the work though. We looked at it already." I said I was told he wouldn't have a chance to look at it until Friday and he said he fit it in when he had a chance and that he did it already. "What was wrong with it?" "It needs a new command dial." "Yeah, that's what I told you when I came in. Do you have the part in stock?" "Yes." So here's the thing, the camera wasn't taken apart, you have to take the rubber grips off to take it apart to get to the command wheel, my rubber grips hadn't been taken off. And if he had taken it apart, and he found the problem, and he had the part in stock, why didn't he call me and say, "hey, this is the problem, we have the part, would you like us to fix it?" instead of putting it all back together again? I'd bet my 8 year old daughter that these guys didn't take the camera apart, didn't do anything other than sit it on a shelf for a few hours, and then claimed to have examined it. Their estimate for repair was $350, plus the $45 "evaluation fee" for a total of $395. Curious, I called Nikon Canada and asked them how much they would charge to replace the same part. They told me $274.99 including parts, labour, and new rubber grips (because you have to take them off to work on the camera and the old ones don't go back on very well, even though Camtex claims to have magically take mine off and put them back on to do their evaluation) Camtex is more expensive than actual Nikon service (who would you rather trust?), and they are shady. There's no way they looked at my camera. They were just feeding back to me the diagnosis I gave them. The receipt they gave me didn't list the diagnosis on it, it just said "service refused" and when I asked for a description on the receipt of what it needed to be fixed he printed out the same thing again with the words "command dial doesn't work" on it. No part numbers, no service and parts costs, no description of the repair at all, just the same thing I told them when I dropped the camera off. Bad place. Bad service. Too expensive. I will never go there again. It pays to read reviews online before going somewhere. I wish I had read the reviews, it would have saved me $50. Hopefully I can save someone else $50 read more

It's too bad that the young Asian man has absolutely no customer service qualities in him. He is negative, accusatory, and rude. Unfortunately he is at the front desk and the first person you'll likely encounter. If you need your camera repaired talk to Alan the owner (older Asian gentleman) or one of the techs - I spoke with Andrew. Both are good to deal with. The techs know what they are talking about. Andrew explained to me the parts he replaced in my Mamiya RZ67. Detailing the specifics of which springs he replaced in the winder, and how hard it was to find a transistor. Camera repair is a hard business. Especially a shop that deals with every camera brand on the market. I use to be in the camera retail business and repair timing is always a week or two longer at the independent shops. A note to Nikon camera owners. If you need your Nikon camera fixed go directly to Nikon Canada in Richmond (8-13511 Crestwood Place). They have a service centre onsite and certified Nikon techs. Their repair turnaround is roughly 2 weeks for normal repairs. read more

I came to Camtex to fix a DSLR lens and a month later, they still have not fixed it. A month to get a part is a but excessive, especially for a lens that is so common... But it doesn't end there. When I called they told me it was ready and they will bring it from 'the warehouse'. When I came to pick it up a few days later it was still in 'the warehouse' but they were going to bring it in the next day... When I came back five days later,t hey told me it wasn't fixed yet, they had no ETA, and that I was lucky they didn't lose the lens. Pretty lame. Now you might be thinking that I am just one guy with an issue, but the person in line in front of me was also quite pissed off because of his own issues with their repair, and because the 1GB card he left in the camera magically turned into a 128MB card during the repair. There must be a better place than this one, that is more professional and reasonable in their service... read more

Don't go here. Why, oh why didn't I check out the reviews before I dropped off my camera here?? They really are as bad as these reviews say. The young Asian man who answers the phone and deals with the cash transactions has ZERO customer service skills and when you ask him any type of questions (how much does this cost, what is the turn around time, do you have this type of product, ...etc) his reply 9 times out of 10 is "I don't know". Their repairs costs seem extremely high! Just to get an estimate on what your repair will cost you is $50. Is this a standard price in the industry?? I'd love to know! My repair was simple, my filter ring was bent. For them to remove it and dust off the glass from the filter off the lens cost $200. When I picked up my lens the young Asian guy asked if I wanted to test it on one of their Nikon bodies. I said yes and the older European guy kept saying "we did, we did, we did, we don't call customer until we do, we did it, we did. So annoying! Never again, Camtex. Never again. read more

Looks like I'm joining a chorus of warnings about doing business with Camtex. At the suggestion of some folks at Rangefinder Forum, I sent my Contax G2 to Camtex in Vancouver BC for repair because its viewfinder was out of alignment. I also sent a Pentax MF lens that needed only the little pin that provides the 'A' function. It turned out to be a complete waste of time and money. First, the USPS tracking info showed "Attempted Delivery Abroad" on two consecutive business days. I called Camtex and was told Customs Canada demanded duty on the insured value even though the paperwork indicated it was being sent to a repair facility. NO-ONE contacted me to let me know what was going on -- neither Customs nor Camtex -- even though my contact info was on the forms. I contacted Customs to discuss it with them. Turns out it was in the appeal process for the duty charges and I was told that when it was determined that duty had to be paid, it would have to be paid up-front but I could complete a form after I received it back to request a refund. Then, without any further explanation, the package showed up at Camtex without a duty charge. Camtex then charged me $35 to estimate the repairs on the G2 and the Pentax lens. I paid that with the understanding it would be credited to the repairs. A week later, I got a call from Camtex. They wanted almost $300 to repair the G2 and $100 for the lens. Absurd when other service outlets charge a flat rate of $185 for COMPLETE G2 repairs. In addition the lens isn't worth that much and needed only a small repair. In fact, had my local guy had the part, he would have done it for $10 while I waited. Of course I told them to pack it all up and return it to me unfixed. They charged me $50 more in shipping for that. To sum up, I'm out $85 and a month. In short, Camtex is, in my experience, a VERY BAD CHOICE for repair work especially if you're not in Canada. read more

Terrible customer service. Rude, short with customers. Never bother calling us back, we had to call them and basically remind them to fix the camera. Total bs. read more

Camtex charged me $2,000 for repair of my Nikon750 after a small drop - 19" - and I was handed what proved to be an inoperable camera!!! Nikon charged $1,000 to fix Camtex "repairs" - DO NOT USE THIS OUTFIT!!!! read more

I took a Nikon DSLR in for diagnostic and repair. They requested $65 less than 30 seconds after I came in. The 'diagnostic' they came up with the next say 'we will try to fix the main boad $350. If we cannot fix it, an additional $100 for a replacement board.' The fingerprint of the tech on the mirror of my camera when it was returned sums up my recommendation to avoid this place at all costs -But it was not the only issue. The rubber handle part of the casing of the camera was sticking out they did not reassemble it properly. -They initially claimed its because the rubber dried up (yep, like overnight while in the repair shop.) One other irritant that leads me to think dishonesty- I requested a receipt for the $65 dollars three times. They refused to provide. When I brought it in, it had a lense on. I forgot to bring a cap. Not a problem it is really not necessary those are not needed the tech said. I replaced my broken camera with a brand new Nikon body -same model with full 2 year warranty - for the price they were asking.... read more

265$ to clean the sensor and prism on my Canon 1ds. $300 with tax - Highway robbery. I used to pay 60 / 70 dollars a few years ago.. He said - "I don't care how much money you spent with us in the past, that what it costs. If you spent $5000 in the past it does not matter. If it takes me 10 hours I will charge you 10 hours labour.. " Join Canon CPS and get it done by Canon. read more

THIS PLACE IS HORRIBLE. There's just no better way to say it. I just steeped out of there with tears in my eyes. They takes the camera saying it can be fixed in 2 weeks. They on and off took 5 months. That's is not all, they DIDNT fix it. The moment I use one of the functions it turns off and stays dead. They insisted on keeping all the money they previously charged and tells me: "IT TURNS ON NOW? so it's counts as working isn't it?" I cannot believe this business still survives and is ripping off more people as we speak. 不可以想象的可怕服務。收了錢就是大爺。一個相機修理五個月，然後修不好也不退錢，嘴硬說能開機就算修好了（哪怕一用其中一個function就死機）！上門理論就強詞奪理推卸責任。在此必須和大家提個醒。 read more

Camtex - Electronics Repair Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

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Unfortunately this place had mixed reviews so I gave it a try. HUGE REGRET!!! My card reader wasn't working and my camera was able to tell me that, so I knew what the problem was. But I still had to spend $65 for a diagnostic assessment for a slow turnaround time with me calling to find out what had happened to my camera. I was then informed it would cost me $400 plus taxes in repairs ($300 labour, $100 parts) to address a malfunctioning card reader. When I said that was expensive the guy noted at least I didn't have to pay for film as it was a digital camera so I was saving lots of money on that. Whatever. When I said I wasn't willing to pay $400 and would pick up the camera (with the full intent of bringing it elsewhere), I was told they would spend more time trying to fix it without changing the $100 part. Interesting. I find it hard to believe a company would have a technician spend "days" trying to fix my camera to save me $100. Wouldn't it make more sense to bill me less for labour and put in a new part? Since I already spent $65 on the diagnostic I decided to keep the camera there for repair vs spending more time and energy taking it elsewhere. Check the competitor before going here. After hearing how much Camtex was going to charge I called Vancam and told them my problem. They said it would be $300-350 MAX including diagnostic ($35 which goes towards replacement costs), labour and parts. If I wanted an exact quote they suggested calling back when the technician was there. Big difference from the $465 plus taxes I was nearly billed, and still less than the $365 plus taxes I ended up spending for a repair vs replacement. Overall this place is shady and I will never return. *UPDATE - my card reader stopped working 15 days later but I got it working again so I thought it was a fluke. A few weeks later it stopped working completely and showed the same error. I contacted them and was told 'sorry, we only guarantee our work for 30 days.' I then changed the memory card and it started working again. Makes me wonder if it was even broken in the first place or if it was the memory card! read more

Camtex repaired an old (but good quality) dissecting microscope to like new. The lower mainland microscope distributor wouldn't touch repairs to the microscope. I was very pleased with the service provided. Bruce, Vancouver read more

Really disappointed in the lack of customer service and rude staffers at Camtex. After fuses were blowing in my Olympus microscope, I searched online for someone local who could help. I originally bought my scope in Ontario, so the microscope contact I had there couldn't do much until I could have someone look at it. Unfortunately, I brought it to Camtex, after chatting with the front desk and hearing that microscopes are something they work with. To make a long story short - I paid $200 for an estimate that took an entire week to be completed (I actually had to call them, a week after I brought it in, to ask what was going on). When they said it was a circuit issue, I asked them to hold the work while I consulted with my previous microscope contact. Camtex estimated $695 for the repair, while also saying to me on the phone "if the technician can't fix it, then we'll have to look into ordering parts" (not very reassuring or confident, and an awfully expensive attempt). Running it by my previous contact - he immediately told me replacing the base is the best option given the damage. I can have that work done by a local microscope technician, one day service, on site at my office, for $180 labour plus the cost of the base. Deciding to go this route, I called Camtex to tell them. When I asked for my microscope back, the Camtex front desk guy said the technician wasn't in (again) and I'd have to wait another 5 days for him to put it back together. He pestered me about why I wanted the work done elsewhere before finally committing to a pickup date. Two separate employees then proceeded to contact me, asking me why I didn't want them to do the work. I continued to explain - my microscope contact thinks this is the better way to go, and in the end it'll end up costing me less than letting them attempt the repair. I spent 2 weeks of my time and $200 to have a different front desk staffer antagonistically tell me today - "that's fine, replace the base, if you want to spend more money." Thankful my scope is back in my possession and I will never be returning, nor recommending their services. Terrible customer service, slow turn around, and rude employees. It's too bad that companies like this exist. read more

Ok. I was in vacation last week in Vancouver and parts of Canada for 10 days. On the first day of our trip my Canon L series lens locked up (wouldn't zoom). After a few calls around and everyone wanting to send it off to Canon (which I didn't want to do since that'd take a week or more and I needed it for the trip) someone suggested Camtex. I called there and they said they could fix it in house and have it done the next day. I was very happy since this was Friday afternoon and I was leaving Vancouver soon. The next day I called and they said it was almost done. The technician worked on it Friday night so I could have it back before I left town. I've used the lens a few times since then and it seems to be working good (I just got home so I need to check them on the computer still). I would definitely recommend them. They went out of their way to help me. I don't agree with the other negative reviews. There may be a little of a language barrier but I wouldn't mark down a review for that normally. read more

Camtex - Great people and business. Worked with me. - Electronics Repair Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

It's been over a month since my initial review of Camtex and unfortunately it doesn't get any better. I FINALLY have my camera back, but it has not been repaired and just prior to picking it up, I sent the following message (mid-Jan) through the Camtex website which is still without a reply from management. Thank you for submitting the following information: MessageType: Complaint Username: Lindsay Elliott UserEmail: ??@gmail.com UserTel: 778-???-???? ContactRequested: ContactRequested Hi there, I just spoke with Allan on the phone about my Yashica T4 that has been at your store since late December. I paid the $30 to have it looked at and didn't hear back for three weeks+. Since then I have called numerous times and been told someone will call me, but I have never been contacted. FINALLY tonight I managed to get someone who knew the situation. Apparently he can not find the part, has no idea of the price and basically said he'd hold my camera indefinitely until he found it. I asked if I could pick up the camera and see if I could get it repaired elsewhere and I was told yes, but that he'd close the file and if the part was ever found - I'd have to pay another $30 to get it back in to get it fixed. That is not acceptable to me. I reviewed the experience I had with your store on YELP.com and I'm astounded at the number of negative reviews your business had. I would love it if you could come up with a solution for this problem so that I could refer my friends and coworkers to your business and not direct them away. I would also love to get my Yashica working and I appreciate and understand that the part is difficult to find, but you should be able to understand the hopeless feeling of being told your camera has no repair date, price or idea of what is going on with it. I will post a follow up review to how you handle this situation on yelp as well. SO here is the follow up review. DO NOT GO HERE. read more

Despite the incredibly negative reviews here and elsewhere, I decided to take my mid-grade digital camera in for repair of a lens error - primarily because there seems to be virtually nowhere else to take a camera for repair in this town, other than VanCam, which appears to be just as unpopular. And frankly, and I suppose, unsurprisingly, I have no idea how these guys stay in business. The customer service is atrocious and their business practice appears quite shady. I dropped the camera off for repair of a common lens error (after mentally noting what the type of battery and memory card I had in there as per the reviews indicating that different, lesser accessories were mysteriously in their cameras after repair), explaining that it was a few years old, and that if the repairs were too expensive, that it made more sense to replace the camera. As per their policy, I paid the $25 estimate charge, advised that it would come off my bill. The first gentleman I dealt with was friendly and advised me they'd call me in a day or two with an estimate. After not hearing from them for a couple days, I called them, and the gentleman on the phone (I believe the original fellow I spoke to), advised me that the camera could be fixed for $95. Being somewhat budget-conscious right now, I confirmed then re-confirmed that the total was $95 MINUS the $25 I'd already spent. The gentleman assured and reassured me this was so, and that my total with tax would be approximately $75. Great, I said, and drove in to pick up my camera. When I got there, the original fellow was behind the counter, recognised me, and went to get my camera. After he gave me my camera and discussed the repair, another fellow came to put together my bill and advised me my total was $106. I advised him of the conversation that I had had previously that it would be only $75. He said the original $95 was just for labour, and there was $25 in parts "that they couldn't know about until they went in to fix it." I advised him that was not what I was told, and that I had been very clear with the original gentleman (who, by the way, was completely within hearing distance the whole time behind a partition in the small office, but did not come out to assist in the discussion). The second guy kept pointing at the bill and saying "see?" as though the bill he created somehow validated the price switch. Ultimately, I decided not to fight the bill, to pay it and get out of there. On the good side, all of the original accessories came back and the camera appears to work now. On the bad side, terrible customer service and shifty bait-and-switch practices. read more

WORST PLACE EVER I HAVE BEEN IN MY LIFE they charge me twice for estimate one for lens one for camera they didn't fox anything my camera and my lens is garbage they just use glue for my lens and give it to me back read more

This place is awful, they are just trying to squeeze as much money out of you as they can DO NOT GO HERE it costs $45 for an estimate, they wanted to take apart my whole hasselblad lens and replace parts for almost $500 , i was able to fix simply the problem simply and at no cost in the end overall there is no reason to even consider going to this place as an option. read more

Where can I start. Do NOT take your camera here. They RUINED my Canon 70-200mm 2.8f USM II - a $2400 Lens. I took it in for a minor focus issue for a $35 fee to take a look. They said they'd call me within one day - After four days of waiting, I called back and they said that it would cost $600 to repair and 3 weeks. I asked for a diagnosis, they refused to give me one. After taking the lens back, I put it on my camera and the focus is completely useless now. It will not focus on anything, my stabilizer jumps all over the place. I am a full-time wedding photographer/videographer - I rely on this lens for work. When I took my lens back after I realized what was wrong with it they insisted that it was my fault. Unprofessional staff, terrible customer service and of course, they break products. I would not recommend this place to ANYONE!!! DO NOT GO HERE! read more

Very bad experience and service, expensive at the same time. I brought my Tokina 16-28 lens to Camtex simply to remove some sands that got into the lens, but when I took my lens back for the 1st time, I lost the MF function on this lens (no matter where I position the focus ring, it always automatically focuses). Also, when I was trying to focus in a wedding reception a week later, the AF failed multiple times and I missed many shots because of that! So I brought the lens back to repair again, second time when I got this lens back, the lens motor sounded much louder than before but at least the AF and MF function acted normal again...I thought that would be the end of this madness but no...one week later, the AF stopped working again from time to time and that problem still exist...I am afraid to bring this lens back to those people and I am still looking for someone else to fix this lens for me. On top of these craziness, they charged a fortune for the "repair" What a rip-off!!! NEVER let these people touch your lens...NEVER take your camera or lens there...you are seriously gambling on your thousand-dollar gears... read more

AVOID! Worst experience ever. The repair of my camera took forever, they kept going around in circles and wouldn't have a straight answer. All staff gave me different conflicting information, they lost my personal info and couldn't find my camera, and the list goes on. They are notorious for inflating the prices of repairs and after you decline to have your gear fixed because it's stupid expensive, they offer a lower price. Totally shady. Go somewhere else and avoid the hassle. read more

Another customer ripped off from this place. BEWARE! I brought in 2 identical cameras with an identical problem, but still charged $200 evaluation fee. I told them I didn't want to pay more than $300 to repair each camera because I could buy another for that price. What do they do? Tell me after I pay the $200 that each camera would cost $425 to fix. The good news is that they probably got a nice dinner with the 200 I gave them. But no more than that.... read more

I have been into Camtex a few times and have had nothing but good service. The first time I went in because my little Elf had broken. I was told it would be ready in a week. I was leaving in 4 days for Mexico and wanted my camera for my trip. The man gave me a similar camera - just one year newer - for the cost to repair my broken camera, $75. While I was in Mexico, I dunked my camera in a puddle. I took it to Camtex for repair. My old camera was repaired by then. Instead of having to wait for it to be repaired, I was given the opportunity to pay the repair cost and have my own camera back. I was happy. I didn't have to make another trip to pick up a repaired camera. read more

I bought a 200-400 canon lens recently. I thought something was loosen inside as there was some noise when I lightly shake the lens. It carries no warranty so I went to Camtex to check and repair. The man at the front desk talked with me and checked my lens and he said there is nothing wrong the the lens, it is just the design of the IS mechanism inside. I think they are okay, otherwise my case will be a sitting duck for them to shoot for a lot of money. I chat with that guy, he was kind of funny. I find this place okay, at least I walked away happily without spending a dollar, other than the gas I used to drive there. read more

Extremely unprofessional staff. Don't bother bringing your camera in or calling in with any enquiries. The "receptionist" was rude and had ZERO phone manners. The camera "technicians" were no better. As with the other comments, their quoted repair times were WAYYYYY off. It's been over 3 months, still no camera. I did manage to pick up one of my cameras after a month of waiting, but it still doesn't work. Someone call the BBB on them! read more

DO NOT COME HERE. BLACKLIST CAMTEX IMMEDIATELY. I brought in a 5D Mark II for an assessment, which had the mysterious "error 20." The guy said it would cost $90 for an assessment. A few days later, I got a call from the same guy saying that it was an "electrical" issue that caused a "release signal cut off" and that it would cost $600. I told him I'd think about it since it seemed very expensive. I decided against the repair and went to Camtex to pick the camera up. I told the same guy that I wasn't interested in the repair, and he said, "Are you sure? It's only $500?" I immediately thought it was fishy, since he had told me it would cost $600 earlier, but didn't say anything. "So what are you going to do with it?" he asked me. I told him that I'd likely try to sell it. However, I wanted to take the camera to another repair shop for a second opinion first. I did not tell him this, but I did ask if I'd be able to get a printed report of the repairman's assessment on my camera so that I'd be able to have a copy of what was wrong. He seemed annoyed by this request. "There is no report," said the guy. "So what's wrong with it?" I asked. "We already told you on the phone." Pause. "So it's an electrical issue?" I asked. He grunted. "Yes. As we told you already, there's a problem with the release signal cut off." I wrote this down right away just in case I forgot. ---- I took my camera to Vancam, another repair store, where it only costed $35 for an assessment. Within days, they told me that it was water damage, and that it would cost about $280 to fix. They said that they'd be able to subtract the $35 assessment fee from that repair cost too. I accepted. And when they charged me at the end, they provided a break down of the total cost, from the assessment fee, to the hours, to the kind of work that they did. At the end of the day, the repair cost was cheaper at Vancam ($280) than Camtex ($700) by $420. But the price is not the only reason you wouldn't go to Camtex: - Does not subtract your assessment fee to the repair. - Does not given you a written report - Is either unable to tell you what's wrong with your camera, or plain lying (Camtex: "Release signal cut off." Vancam: "Water damage." I'm pretty sure a camera repair shop would be able to tell you if you had water damage on your camera.) - Fluctuates on the repair fee depending on your desperation So please, for the love of your gear, do not come here. read more