Re: Sony DSC W5 lens problem

Hi,
My Sony w5 recently developed a problem with the lens. Namely, when I tried to turn the camera off after using it, the lens retracting mechanism got stucked, and I got message "Please turn the camera off and then on again. But this didn't solve the problem. The lens is still stucked and the camera isn't working. Can it be repaired and what would be the cost? Thank you,
Jordan.

Reply

• Re[2]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem Alex - 27th Aug 2006 4:44
  Yes, that's fixable, please get back to me by email.
  
  
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem Kevin Shannon - 10th Sep 2006 19:11
    I have the exact same problem w/ my Sony DSC-W5. Can you please tell me how to fix it? Thank you and best regards, Kevin Shannon
    
    
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
    erwin
    - 17th Sep 2006 14:38
    Hi Alex, I have the same problem with my W1. Can you help me out also. thanks erwin
    
    
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
    Joe Davis
    - 10th Oct 2006 10:33
    I have same problem. Camera tells me to turn off and on again, but doesn't solve problem. Also lens get stuck in extended position. Please advise Joe Davis
    
    
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem Leisha Kragel - 20th Feb 2007 20:14
    My Sony DSC W-5 just recently developed this same problem!! Of course when I contacted Sony Company they say send it in, but will give no estimate to repair cost and etc. Any help you could give me would be greatly appreciated!! Leisha Kragel
    
    
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem Peter Donaldson - 27th Feb 2007 15:48
    My Sony DSC W-5 just recently developed this same problem!! Any help you could give me would be greatly appreciated!! Many Thanks Peter
    
    
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem Cathi - 22nd Jul 2007 3:03
    I have that exact problem would you be able to tell me if it can be fixed by me or if I have to get it repaired and if so what would be the cost?
    
    
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
    Vince
    - 6th Aug 2007 14:35
    My Sony CyberShot dsc-p200 has lens stuck open. Do you have a suggestion for fixing the problem? Vince
    
    
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
    Mark
    - 2nd Dec 2007 2:49
    Hi, my W5 has the same problem. Can you tell me what needs to be done to repair the stuck lens mechanism?
    
    
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem j - 9th Jun 2008 16:19
    I have the same problem...the lens will not retract. Can you help?!
    
    
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem Edurado - 26th Jul 2008 19:29
    hey my sony dsc w5 lens wont open, can u help me out?
    
    
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem emma - 18th Oct 2008 5:00
    hey im another one whos recently experienceing this problem please help !! thank you so much
    
    
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
    danny
    - 28th Dec 2008 4:52
    How can I fix the same problem as everyones. My camera is Sony DSC W1 The lens gets stuck and with instructions to turn off and turn on the power. How to solve this problem.
    
    
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem Rod I. Gould - 25th Feb 2009 15:54
    My camera has developted the same problem. I would be grateful if you could let me know how to solve the problem. The lens is stuck and will not retract. Regards Rod I. Gould
    
    
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
    Ronald Cox
    - 3rd Apr 2009 9:38
    SHAKING the camera can also loosen a stuck (jammed) lens. We had the stuck lens problem on a Sony Cyber-Shot DSC W5, the lens was stuck in the fully extended position. After reading all these posts, we tried hitting it hard on our hand, also gently pushing the lens inward, with the camera turned on and turned off. No success. Then we gave the camera a GOOD SHAKE. It was the shake that finally solved the problem- the lens immediately retracted (the camera was turned on at the time).
    
    
    • Re[4]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
      omar
      - 25th Aug 2009 21:51
      wil it damage any of its inner components?
      
      
    • Re[4]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
      Sangeeta
      - 24th Dec 2009 23:56
      Thank you so much for your kind advice. My son forcefully pushed the lens and it got stuck...Luckily after me and my friend struggle for more than 45min, we read your instruction and follows that. Thank GOD it back to normal now. Great advice.
      
      
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
    Mark
    - 18th Apr 2009 6:33
    well it would see to be a common problem with this camera as i have W5 and friend has a W1 and we both have this same problem. Any info would be greatly appreciated.
    
    
• Re[2]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
  Vanessa
  - 6th Nov 2006 20:17
  I'm also having the same problem. The lens will not retract and is just stuck in the extended position. I've tried all reformatting and initialization but nothing works. Please let me know the details on how I might be able to fix this. Thanks!
  
  
• Re[2]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem Alex - 10th Nov 2006 4:40
  Hi Jordan, did you solved the problem? I have a W-50 with the exactly problem.
  
  
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem Jordan - 10th Nov 2006 10:36
    No, I haven't solved it yet, and I'm unable to send it for repair at this moment. Jordan
    
    
• Re[2]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
  Jennifer
  - 22nd Dec 2006 4:38
  Yes, my camera was doing this exact same thing (Sony DSC W5). After searching and searching online I found a posting that said to give the camera a good jolt, like dropping it on the floor. I hit mine on the floor a couple of times and it actually worked. My camera is working as good as new. It's deffinately worth a try.
  
  
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
    Jordan
    - 22nd Dec 2006 8:27
    Will give it a shot. Thanks! Merry X-Mas and HNY all!
    
    
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
    Elena
    - 26th Dec 2006 22:24
    Thanks a lot! I gave my Sony DSC-W5 camera a jolt on the bottom and that fixed the problem with the lens not retracting back. Thanks!
    
    
    • Re[4]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
      JenMoore
      - 11th Nov 2009 21:58
      Holy crap - it worked! I gave it a good tap on the BOTTOM of the camera and it now works like a charm! You've saved our family: we can take the Christmas card photo of the triplets now!
      
      
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
    tara
    - 23rd Jan 2007 1:04
    I had the same problem with my camera and I tried everything I could think of... I looked at several different web sites and finally found this suggested "wacking" technique.... now it is good as new :) thanks! sometimes the old school fix is the good one.....
    
    
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
    John
    - 17th Feb 2007 21:35
    Hi Folks, I had the same problem. I turned off the camera, held it in my left hand, and gave it one gentle rap with my right open palm, turned on the camera to test for lens retration. It didn't work. So I turned off the camera and repeated the procedure, each time, increasing the force of the rap. After the third rap, I had success. I did it this way to be as gentle as possible. Sony wants $180, as a flat rate for any factory repair. A non-Sony reputable camera repair service estimated $70-120, and a local camera sales and repair shop recommended I throw out the camera and buy a new one. When I reminded them that the camera cost $300 in December 2005, they said 5 M pixel cameras are going for $150 today. I'm glad I just gave the camera a little pat on the bottom to solve this one. Thank you for sharing your experience. You saved me a lot of money and time. -John
    
    
    • Re[4]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
      Leisha Kragel
      - 20th Feb 2007 20:25
      Hey, I have had this same problem, but I tried the wacking thing with my palm of hand, table top and nothing has worked. Any other ideas, besides throwing it away and buying a new camera?? I just wander if ALL Sony cameras have had this problem?? Does anyone have a suggestion on another brand? Thanks for any help!! Leisha in Iowa
      
      
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
    jeremy sherrill
    - 23rd Aug 2007 21:33
    Damn that's amazing it really works!
    
    
• Re[2]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
  ~~ mUNISh ~~
  - 7th Feb 2007 7:05
  Tried the same thing on my Sony W5. Worked like a charm.I also cleaned out some dust particles that may have got into the retracting area. All good now. Like new ;)
  
  
• Re[2]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
  Jordan
  - 7th Feb 2007 10:12
  Unbelievable!!!
  7 months after my camera developed this problem, and after sending it to several repair shops, both authorized and unauthorized, where I was given quotes of 200-300 euros, today I decided to give another try of the famous "wacking" technique, and guess what, after few tries, the lens retracted itself!
  I turned my camera on, and it worked perfectly fine. I have no idea how long this will last, but I'm glad that I finally have my camera back. God works in mysterious ways!
  
  Jordan
  
  
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
    Jordan
    - 8th Feb 2007 22:00
    Hi all, I want to ask all of you who have solved the problem with the famous "whacking technique" to write here how long will your camera last... For example, Jennifer wrote on Dec. 22nd, so if her camera still works, that'll be 2 and a half months, and hopefully still counting... :) All the best, Jordan
    
    
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
    Ben
    - 9th Apr 2007 1:42
    What a relief! i had to give mine a pretty good wacking on my hand (hurts now!) but it fixed the lens! Hooray! I'll forgive Sony since they did a great job on the rest of the camera! (p.s. mine 'locked up' after my nephew played with the camera - he had his hand over the lens when he turned it on and thats when it didn't retract). Glad i found this forum.
    
    
    • Re[4]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
      Jordan
      - 9th Apr 2007 11:14
      Great to hear more and more people find this information useful, and get to repair their cameras for FREE! Spread the word folks...
      
      
• Re[2]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem Paulino - 26th Jun 2007 21:35
  Hi every body, I had the same problem and i applied the " gentle rap technique". It really works. Thanks and great idea. It saves me 150 dlls for factory repair in México.
  
  
• Re[2]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
  KimF
  - 23rd Jul 2007 22:48
  Thank you all so very, very much!! I have a Sony DSC-P200. About a month ago, the lens got stuck extended and would not retract. Sony still wants a flat fee to fix it ($177 plus shipping from where I live). I tried your "whack on the bottom" technique and - voila!!!! Success!!! I was already on C|Net looking for reviews of new cameras to buy. You've saved me at least $250.00!
  
  P.S. I held it in my right hand and gave it a medium-hard whack on its bottom at the base of my left hand. I had previously tried whacking the lens (I was horrified even as I did it) to no avail. The whack was hard enough to make my hand hurt for a moment, but I got immediate compliance from the camera. Hooray!!! Thank you all again!!!
  
  
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
    Jordan
    - 25th Jul 2007 21:26
    Great news guys... Spread the word... Cheers, Jordan
    
    
• Re[2]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
  Babu
  - 29th Jul 2007 20:05
  Hi Guys, This is wonderful....I read your suggestions and gave it a try... I was suprised to see the result. If every problem could be solved in this way........we could save a lot money for trip to International space station
  
  
  • Re[3]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem mladen cvrljak - 7th Aug 2007 21:29
    have W5 and developed same lens problem. I got little deeper and dismantled camera and lens motor cover. Put some MoS2 (lubricant)onto the plastic gears. After assembly it worked very smooth, better than new one.Conclusion is that Sony forgot to lubricate or plastic gears and its components are are not compatible materials.For doing this you must be little technical enhusiast like lot of my people in Croatia, we believe in do-it-yourself (for free).
    
    
• Re[2]: Sony DSC W5 lens problem
  John
  - 26th Aug 2007 17:34
  Just tried the same trick with my P200 which got lens stuck a couple of days ago - hitting the base in my hand didn't work, so I hit the back (screen side) of the camera and it worked straight away. Definitely worth a couple of taps...