obfuscate error

May 10, 2008 11:00 AM

Canon PowerShot got wet in a rainstorm. I can view pics, but I can't take pics. When switching to record mode, the viewfinder goes black and I get a small error message reading 'E24'. Does anyone know what this means or if it's fixable? Camera is out of warranty.
posted by gnutron to technology (7 comments total)

Googling Powershot and E24 I get this:


"Hi, The E24 error means: The main board or the lens problem. I am doing camera repairs. hope this will helps you."

and this.

Other posts suggested leaving the batteries out for an age removed the error code.
posted by dance at 11:15 AM on May 10

E24 possibly means the camera believes the LCD has become detached from the camera's logic board. Given that it partially works, it sounds more likely that your camera's logic board is damaged.

Given the camera was exposed to water -- its nearly impossible to say what components were damaged. You could try your luck and buy a camera off ebay with a broken LCD for cheap, and Frankenstein them together.

Realistically - its time to look for new cameras unfortunately.
posted by SirStan at 11:18 AM on May 10

I think you meant elucidate, rather than obfuscate. Unless you didn't mean it as a verb, in which case you probably meant obfuscated.

Anyhow, http://www.camerarepair-sf.com/ can give you an estimate for repair, and I have a friend who says they do reliable work.
posted by chudmonkey at 11:38 AM on May 10

I had a powershot (S200, I think) get wet and it wouldn't turn on at all. I took the battery out and let it dry for three days, and after that it worked fine for another year before I replaced it.
posted by moonmilk at 11:53 AM on May 10

Take the case off, dry it out, if you're adventurous, reseat the delicate ribbon connectors, and see what happens.
posted by zippy at 12:17 PM on May 10

A good method to dry out electronics is to pack them in rice overnight, or for a day or two if needed, and the rice will help pull out moisture. I would remove the battery and pack separately.
posted by qwip at 2:45 PM on May 10

Yeah how long ago did it happen? Leave it somewhere dry, for a couple days. Don't touch it. If it was 24 hours ago or something like that, you may be fine. This happened with my $3k 5d and I freaked, but it's been good for 1.5 years afterwards.
posted by sully75 at 8:00 AM on May 12