SAY WHAAAAT, ARGOS?

I've had several run ins with Argos.

I bought a camera that was faulty out of the box, a Nikon Coolpix L310 I think it was. Half the pictures were blurry?! Nikon?! Really?!

I returned it and changed it fit a more expensive Olympus SP 80Z or similar with 40x magnification.

There months later I'm taking photos of Dragonflies while talking to another wildlife enthusiast. 

Suddenly the camera turns off? I turn it back on while in asked what happened and I say I don't know.

A few minutes later I see a message on the screen that says "Camera too hot. Shutting down" and of it goes again!

Back to Argos and this time I decide to get a higher end bridge camera and switch back to Nikon's to model, the P610.

Out taking wildlife photos the first day and it switches off. Dues something else too cannot remember what and it's still on here.

I notice something, the edge of the box had not one but two seals on it and neither had the Nikon name. I take it back and complain I've had not one but three faulty cameras.

I ask who placed the seals on the box and an told "not us".

They have not got another Nikon P610! Annoying. I walk out with a credit note as I know they have one at the Waltham Cross store.

I had been in contact with Nikon and during these correspondences I am them about the seals on the box. " We didn't put them on. None of our cameras have seals on them or shrink wrapping. The box is just as it is and you can pop it open ".

I point out that Argos claim they didn't put the seals on and that if Nikon UK didn't do it then the cameras are sourced elsewhere. I'm losing days upon days of acquiring content for my blogs and YouTube channel!

I had also complained to Argos customer service and I accuse them. I get a phone call from Argos HQ from a cocky twat that launched into a lecture about how all their goods are brand new from Nikon. I then launch into my lecture about how he is talking utter bollocks and explain the simple way of proving it with the two seals. He admits they didn't do it, I point out that Nikon couldn't possible have done it so they have come from elsewhere by their own admission!

His tone changes. Suddenly he is helpful and a local store owner I know that heard the while phonecall is laughing in the corner. It is good this guy's tone completely changed to " Yes sir, yes sir .." and so on and so forth!

He tells me they don't have another Nikon P610. I point out there is one 4 miles away, if that, and he agrees.

I go to pick it up. It appears on the counter in front of me complete with the two seals, sealing the lid of the box down.

"Oh it's another refurb!" I say and then a woman breaks into a lecture about how they don't sell refurbished goods as new when what looked like the manager trapped her on the shoulder. She looked at him and he shook his head. I walked out with the camera.

I cycled yo to Fishers Green and took the camera out of its box, eager to get to grips with this top bridge camera.

I get it out, turn it on and had the same two faults as the first one! I recall now that it also refused to turn in when it turned itself off. Only opening the battery compartment, removing the battery and plugging it back in would it then turn on.

I use two things screwed on top of each other in the tripod address thread, something that clips onto a harness with another tripod fitment on that and a small tripod to hold the camera steady with.

So taking the battery out was bad enough as it was, except I had to unscrew two things to do this!

My brother turned up, as I had spotted Brown Argus and Chalk Hill Blue Butterflies along with Holly Blues and Common Blues.

When he arrived, going the Brown Argus was actually a Black Hairstreak, i.e. something rare, I told him about the latest faulty cameras and handed it to him.

I think most people simply didn't believe me and with my Fibromyalgia and the NHS it was hard to believe anything I was saying. But sure enough the camera played up and he knew of the fault with the previous one. He shook his head, handed me the camera back and said How terrible it was that I had now had four faulty cameras in a row and all from Argos.

"Think about it ..." I said before continuing "Argos was the first name being banned about in the recession. But other retailers have disappeared while they are still here? Because they can't afford to buy new gear so are sourcing these refurbs from somewhere? What I'm more surprised and concerned about is the fact that Nikon UK and Nikon JAPAN are NOT concerned about this! Meaning they already know! Whoever owns the company providing these refurbs is very clearly an incompetent idiot. Quite how they did what they did, did it extremely badly, whacked their own seals on camera boxes that don't use them and thought no one would notice? Fucking morons!" I said with ire after having weeks of acquiring photos and films completely wasted. Had I been making any money I would have sued Argos for lid of earnings!

Of course they offered fuck all for weeks of wasted time and running around!

Oh and I forgot, Argos HQ patronised me and told me the manager in the store stated I took the camera out and checked it before I left?!

"Actually ..." I said sarcastically "...I took the Nikon P610 and the Nikon D3100 out of their boxes to compare and decide which one to go for! Also ... " again sarcastically "...I would have a difficult time testing cameras with batteries that contain no electrical charge when you but them and have to recharge them first!"

I got my money paid back, another two day wait and wasted time and money, went next door and bought a Sony Cybershot HX300 and it worked flawlessly for the next two years. During its third year it was dropped on its head and still works better than the four pieces of crap I was sold by Argos!

So as I said, you think your not taking pay cuts in a recession? Think again as if everything you buy, or most of it, is refurbished then it's worth less than half what you pay for it!

So your £500 a week wages is actually a hell of a lot less. The one thing you cannot refurbish, energy and utility bills have also all gone UP!

Your £500 is actually more like £250!

So Argos is recalling baby seats because of safety issues?

Hmm, they crack under pressure? How exactly did they find that out? Any accidents out there on the Internet that Argos is conveniently forgetting all about?

Either that or Argos do there own testing? Didn't test the cameras I had very well! But then maybe they started testing themselves after they went through all that with me and saw me posting things on blogs and YouTube?

I still get comments every now and then from people with Nikon cameras having the same issues or other faults!

Argos recalls five Mamas & Papas car seat models - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-36185935