Can I RMA my digicam if i find a hot pixel?

[shuy]

1st things 1st, a hot pixel is 1 which appears only at higher shutter speeds rite? i have this irritating pink dot which appears at 1s exposure and higher...... can i exchange my cam for a new 1?

 

[darkness]

Hot pixels are a result of the CCD producing unpredictable results due to heat in the CCD (they have certain thermal characteristics that causes them to behave differently to light under different temperatures).

One way of reducing hot pixels is to let your camera cool down before you want to take any long exposure, in this way you reduce the number of hot pixels.

And no, you cannot RMA a digicam due to hot pixels becoz they are within specs.

And just to be sure, a hot pixel and a *dead* pixel are 2 seperate issues. You can exchange your camera if it's a dead pixel.

 

[shuy]

my hot pixel seems to be at the same spot all the time... hmm. is that a characteristic of a hot pixel?

but im quite sure it's not a dead pixel cos it appears only at higher shutter speeds

 

[Midnight]

Originally posted by darkness
Hot pixels are a result of the CCD producing unpredictable results due to heat in the CCD (they have certain thermal characteristics that causes them to behave differently to light under different temperatures).

Good description. One thing to note though is that hot pixels are not entirely unpredictable; it'll always be the same pixels (sensor elements) that exhibit hot pixel behaviour first. Some camera companies may be able to fix (or else remap) these particularly bothersome pixels under warranty, if you complain hard enough. Generally, though, it's just a characteristic of digital photography that we have to live with at this point in time (though cameras with built-in so-called noise reduction algorithms do help).

 

[Midnight]

Originally posted by shuy
my hot pixel seems to be at the same spot all the time... hmm. is that a characteristic of a hot pixel?

Hmm I didn't see your post before writing my earlier response. :embrass: Anyway, yes, as I wrote above, it'll always be the same few pixels that'll exhibit hot pixel behavior first, though if your camera heats up sufficiently, more and more other pixels will also start to behave similarly. It's a well-known problem with CCD sensors that astronomers have had to deal with for many, many years.

 

[Zoomer]

Originally posted by Midnight
Hmm I didn't see your post before writing my earlier response. :embrass: Anyway, yes, as I wrote above, it'll always be the same few pixels that'll exhibit hot pixel behavior first, though if your camera heats up sufficiently, more and more other pixels will also start to behave similarly. It's a well-known problem with CCD sensors that astronomers have had to deal with for many, many years.

Astronomers don't have too much of a problem, they just dump liquid nitrogen/helium with their CCDs.

Can't do that for a camera!

 

[darkness]

Do they *really* use liquid nitrogen?!?

And shuy, just realised that your avatar pic if OOF.

 

[shuy]

Originally posted by darkness
Do they *really* use liquid nitrogen?!?

And shuy, just realised that your avatar pic if OOF.

wat do u mean?? :dunno:

 

[darkness]

OOF = out of focus

Either that or it's a poor scan from a photograph??

 

[shuy]

i took it against one of those ad displays on a busstop, so the reflection wasn't too gd.... resulting in me being underexposed.... the original pic looks alot better at normal size hehe