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The Benefits of Having a Video Camera Protection Plan
August 18, 2020 *
The hundreds of millions of people around the world who use smartphones to take pictures and videos have put a real crunch on dedicated camera sales — both DSLRs and camcorders. But the traditional companies — GoPro, Vivitar, Canon, Sony, JVC, Panasonic — haven’t been napping. Their latest video cams come with multiple shooting modes, IR night vision, Wi-Fi, wireless remote control, slo-mo, and a host of features no smartphone camera can match. For starters, consider just a few of these…
- Low Light Videography – Despite some phones using sensors with more than 100 megapixels, a tiny smartphone sensor can only collect so many photons compared to the much larger sensors in dedicated cameras. While a phone can take low light still pictures, capturing a video that contains motion will give you, at best, a muddy, blurry picture.
- Aperture – Most smartphones have a fixed aperture usually in the range between f 1.8 and f 2.2. That’s great for close up scenes where you want a shallow depth of field. Photographers want good bokeh – which refers to the quality of the out-of-focus areas in a photograph’s background and foreground Most smartphone cameras cannot give you this highly desirable and popular effect.
- Background Compression – When you shoot video with a telephoto lens with a video camera, an interesting effect becomes evident. The background appears to move closer to the subject of your video. That’s known as “background compression.” It’s a technique that professionals use to make the subject stand out. Smartphones, for the most part, cannot give you the same effect.
- Multiple Lenses – Phones don’t generally accept professional-grade lenses, although many video cameras do. Smartphones use fixed lenses that are roughly equivalent to a 28 mm lens on a conventional cameral. Some multi-camera phones mimic a 50 mm field of view to try and recreate professional-style portraits. Even with adapters (such as the Olloclip), smartphone lenses rarely hold up to dedicated lenses mounted on interchangeable-lens video cameras.
Video cameras available at Amazon and other retailers range in price from less than $100 to upwards of $3,000. Whether you’re buying a professional-grade camera to capture video that meets all the requirements for broadcast television, or you’d like to record local sports events, family gatherings, YouTube content, etcetera you should study the warranty that comes with your video camera. That’s especially important if you’re buying a camera because videography is your job!
No one expects a brand-new camera to fail, but statistically, you know that some will. A typical manufacturer’s warranty provides one year from the date of purchase for defects in workmanship or materials that occur during normal use. However, most video cam warranties have several exclusions. For instance, such warranties don’t cover damage caused by faulty setup adjustments, maladjustment of user controls, improper operation, lightning damage, or damage attributable to acts of God.
That’s why extended warranties are so valuable. At Upsie.com, we recommend getting one as soon as you buy your video camera because an extended video camera warranty covers many risks the original manufacturer’s warranty doesn’t. For instance, whether you get a 2-year or 3-year warranty, it covers your new camera for:
- Mechanical Failures Including Drops – Manufacturer defects and accidental failures to motors, gears, ball bearings, internal tubing, computer chips rotors, and other internal moving parts.
- Liquid Damage – On accident protection plans, Upsie covers damage as a result of liquid spills or submersion.
- Power Failure – Upsie covers power failure, power shorts, and internal cord replacement.
- Zoom Issues – Upsie covers problems with the zoom function of your camera or lenses.
- Screen Failure – Upsie covers manufacturer issues with screens including dead pixels, screen burn in, and other display problems.
Take a look at extended warranties on popular video cams from Sony, Canon, Nikon and GoPro and compare Upsie’s price with the competition. You’ll quickly see that Upsie pricing comes in as much as 70 percent less.
How Upsie’s Extended Warranty Works
Not only do you save with Upsie, you can take your camera to a certified repair center or let us handle it. We will pay for round-trip shipping to and from our certified repair center. It will be diagnosed, repaired, and then sent back to you in working order.
Upsie warranties cover an unlimited number of claims up to the purchase value of your camera. For example, if you have a camera with a purchase value of $999.99, and it costs us $249.99 to repair it, then you would have $750.00 remaining in claims.
Also, you can buy an Upsie warranty for your used or refurbished cameras as long as you can show proof of purchase within the last 60 days.
Still Have Questions?
If you would like to learn more about warranties, the FTC website explains the basics. But if you have questions about Upsie extended warranties, check out our FAQ or, better yet, contact us by phone at 877-844-7745 between 9 AM and 4 PM Central time. We promise a live person will answer your call.
* This article is over 6 months old and may or may not be updated.