Nice camera, but LCD failed after less than 3 months

Author's Rating:

Pros: Lots of functions, great picture quality.

Cons: Poor durability, poor support

The Bottom Line: 
I would not recommend this camera because of poor durability and Sony's sub-par support, which is a shame because I was enjoying the camera and all its features.

Author's Review
I have used Sony products for many years because to me the name Sony was synonymous with quality. Until recently, I was never disappointed. I was excited about this camera after a review I read in a magazine, so I purchased it in May. I used it only a few times, taking a total of maybe 200 pictures. The camera is a little heavy, but it has a lot of great features and in full auto mode is relatively easy to use. It takes great pictures, especially in TIFF mode - not film quality, but getting closer. About a month ago I noticed a small black ink blot-looking blotch in one corner of the LCD. It went away after a few days so I disregarded it, but a few weeks ago when I went to use the camera the LCD display was blank. After a call to Sony support I reset the camera per their directions, but the display still wouldn't work, rendering the camera pretty much useless. I shipped it to their repair facility using a repair tag number supplied by Sony, only to receive a bill for $171 dollars 2 weeks later. When I called to inform the repair shop that the camera was under warranty they informed me that they had no knowledge of that from Sony, so I had to mail them a copy of my receipt. It's now been another couple of weeks and I haven't heard anything about the status of my camera. Oh, and Sony refused to pay the shipping charge even though the camera was under warranty, so after paying well over $500 for a camera that lasted less than 3 months I had to pay about $12 more to have it shipped to a repair facility. I rated this camera 1 star because of it's poor durability (and I am always very careful with my electronics) and Sony's less-than-satisfactory customer service. Until the camera stopped working I was very pleased with its functions and quality.