Nikon has not posted my review

Several weeks ago I sent a not good review of my DR 6 Right Angle Finder.  It did not show on the NikonUsa site.  So I wrote it again and re-submitted it….and it still has not shown.

Question:  Has anyone else submitted a poor review to the NikonUsa site for a piece of Nikon equipment ….. and not had it published ?  

So put it here...I think it's allowed.

I doubt any company is going to post negative reviews on their own website.

aolander wrote:I doubt any company is going to post negative reviews on their own website.

Not true!!! I've seen many negative reviews on reputable companies own websites that are definitely not flattering!

Joe

SantaFeJoe wrote:

aolander wrote:I doubt any company is going to post negative reviews on their own website.

Not true!!! I've seen many negative reviews on reputable companies own websites that are definitely not flattering!

Joe

If the product has a lot of bad reviews, a company might publish a few, but they will be cherry picked.

IMO, for the cost of the better part of $200 I think that the DR 6 should be a rock.  It is not.  IMO, it is cheaply built for that price.

It IS optically very nice….sharp.  I really like that quality of it; i.e. the sharpness.

But…..

1.  The DR 6 must be focused for your own eyesight.   And I expect to do that.  I do not mind that.  The user is to grasp the rubber collar (sleeve) that is mounted on the barrel and rotate it until the image is sharp.  That is the position that the barrel should stay in for that particular user…always, permanently; i.e. once focused, it is supposed to remain in that position every time you use it.  

Well, mine never did!  And I suspect that none of them do. It should stay in the position that it is focused in. 

The friction that is to hold the barrel in the focused position is very mild.   By even lightly pressing on the eyecup with my superorbital ridge, the DR 6 constantly slid out of focus.   I tolerated this for a few years.  Then I marked the correct relationship between the rotating and fixed barrel and simply kept repositioning them.   In the end, I pushed silicone into the narrow sinus that is between these two barrel parts.  After it dried, the barrel was locked in place.  That is where I had wanted it to be all along.  It should have been adjusted at the factory with much more friction.  

2.  The rubber eye cup kept falling off much too easily for my liking.  I finally superglued it in position so that it will not be coming off anymore.  

3.  The DR 6 barrel rotates from vertical upright to horizontal in either direction and to down vertical.  That is good.  Mine became defective after a few years and I could not rotate it.  I was frustrated enough with it by then (and of course it was long off warranty) that I decided to force it.  Now it is a little wobbly.  But the interesting thing is that (except for this wobbling that is really my fault) the DR 6 now works the way it should have right out of the factory…..but did not…..not for all the money one pays for yet another overpriced Nikon accessory.

Nikon outrageously overcharges for their accessories.  I am asking Vello (or any other manufacturer) to make a solid, optically sharp, right angle finder that is worth the money.  Make it for Canon too.  The right angle finder is easily my most used, my most valued accessory.  I use it a lot.

In fact, what I really would like to see is a binocular right angle finder.  Is that posslble?

Back to the complaining now:

Another example:  My Nikon battery grip for my D610 actually wobbles (moves), albeit slightly, when it is fully tightened.  It did right from the start!  FOR THE MONEY NIKON CHARGES FOR IT….IT SHOULD NOT MOVE AT ALL!    


I am one loyal Nikon person who is fed up with Nikon's outrageous prices for accessories that are often made better by other manufacturers.   So, I am calling them out on it.  You know you are doing it Nikon.  So tighten it up! 

There,  thanks…...I got that off my chest

SantaFeJoe wrote:

aolander wrote:I doubt any company is going to post negative reviews on their own website.

Not true!!! I've seen many negative reviews on reputable companies own websites that are definitely not flattering!

Joe

You should visit the Canada Goose Facebook page as winter approaches.  The stuff they allow people to post there.  Think they may have figured a way to minimize it by having such posts as a side bar.  It used to be that every other post was anti-fur.  I was thinking that CG allowed it because people who want to buy CG know what they're buying and if the anti-fur people have an outlet to vent they will feel like they've gotten their message across and won't revert to something more serious.  It hasn't been too bad of late.

Right angle viewer...are they still around? I have one for my A900 (made by seagull who bought the Minolta one)but rarely use it since all my new cameras have articulated screens. No more is this old fellow getting on his hand and knees. Removing the eyecup of a DSLR loosens it and eventually you will lose it (can't super glue it back on).

I feel your DR 6 pain. My problems with the thing:
- In the field, I am rarely if ever wanting to be viewing the subject at an exact 90 degree angle (most use is with copy stand).
- The act of screwing it on is difficult because the threads are to fine.
- As an appendage to the camera, it can be easily bumped resulting in expensive repair.

I searched for an articulated version without success. The advent of articulated screens on cameras will eventually put this product off the market. I understand some higher end bodies don't have articulated screens because of challenges maintaining weatherproofing on cameras with articulated screens. When these problems are solved, the DR 6 will have no use I can think of.

Mike in O wrote:

SantaFeJoe wrote:

aolander wrote:I doubt any company is going to post negative reviews on their own website.

Not true!!! I've seen many negative reviews on reputable companies own websites that are definitely not flattering!

Joe

If the product has a lot of bad reviews, a company might publish a few, but they will be cherry picked.

Here are a few on Nikon's site for the D600:

http://reviews.nikonusa.com/7022/25488/ ... tm?page=12

Seem pretty critical to me, and  if you read the last one on that page (page 12), you will see it is directly critical of Nikon's response to a complaint. A complaint Nikon later had to acknowledge was true!!! Pages 9, 10 + 11 are more of the same!

Joe

stevenmajor wrote: ...I understand some higher end bodies don't have articulated screens because of challenges maintaining weatherproofing on cameras with articulated screens. When these problems are solved, the DR 6 will have no use I can think of.

Well, may be they can ask Olympus how to do it. As an example, Olympus's EM-5 (from 2012) is weather-sealed and has an articulated screen that is also a touch-screen.

stevenmajor wrote:I searched for an articulated version without success. The advent of articulated screens on cameras will eventually put this product off the market. I understand some higher end bodies don't have articulated screens because of challenges maintaining weatherproofing on cameras with articulated screens. When these problems are solved, the DR 6 will have no use I can think of.

I would rather look through a right angle viewfinder any day than look at an articulated screen, especially when the sun is bright. It's like looking at most of the new P&S cameras that don't have a viewfinder at all anymore. The articulated screen definitely has some very useful purposes, but not when the light is bright!

Joe

SantaFeJoe wrote:

stevenmajor wrote:I searched for an articulated version without success. The advent of articulated screens on cameras will eventually put this product off the market. I understand some higher end bodies don't have articulated screens because of challenges maintaining weatherproofing on cameras with articulated screens. When these problems are solved, the DR 6 will have no use I can think of.

I would rather look through a right angle viewfinder any day than look at an articulated screen, especially when the sun is bright. It's like looking at most of the new P&S cameras that don't have a viewfinder at all anymore. The articulated screen definitely has some very useful purposes, but not when the light is bright!

Joe

But then, if you have bad back and knees, a right angle viewfinder might not be the best tool for you either

Besides, it's really easy to shade the articulated screen if you want to. And usually an articulated screen allows viewing from more than one angle. You can always change the position of the screen if the sun is not cooperating.