Fantastic customer service!
I am so impressed!
On October 4 I ordered a blue Gorillapod directly from the manufacturer, Joby. I got the smallest size, which has a maximum weight load of 9.7 ounces; my camera weighs 7.4 ounces.
It was shipped on October 5, so I've only had it for about three weeks. I haven't had an opportunity to use it yet, although of course I tried it out and it seemed fine. On Wednesday I went to Patapsco Valley State Park and brought the tripod with me, thinking it might come in handy for a long exposure in deep shade. I smoothed the legs out straight and together, and tucked it in my fanny pack.
Much to my dismay, when I took it out, my brand new Gorillapod had become a dipod! The third leg was still in the pack -- it had broken off.
I was horrified. I wasn't even using it! Today I called Joby and left a message on their voicemail. I made a note of the date in case I had to call back and say "I tried to call you on November 2 and didn't get a response." But they called back just a couple of hours later.
The Joby guy asked what size I had and what my camera is. I mentioned that in addition to my camera being well under the Original size's weight limit, the page on the Joby website where you enter your camera model specifically told me the Original was the appropriate size for a Canon A710.
He asked whether the tripod mount is in the center or on the side. I got the camera and looked, and said it's on the side.
"We've had some problems with that," he said. "I'll send you the next larger size."
"But it didn't break while I was using it!"
"I know," he said, "but with the mount on the side the weight is distributed unevenly, so it's better to use the larger one."
"But ... but it was just in my fanny pack -- I wasn't even using it!"
"That's okay. I'll send it you the SLR size."
Being used to dealing with difficult customer "service" people, I had been primed for an argument about how it broke. I had made mental notes to make sure they understood that I had put it in my fanny pack carefully, not just jammed it in with the legs askew.
You know how when you lift something that looks heavy but isn't, you feel a bit startled when your hand comes up too quickly and easily? That's how I felt when I finally understood that he didn't care how or why it broke, if I said it broke they would send a new one, period. He never asked me to return the old one -- my word was all he needed. Apparently they have been breaking with the side-mount cameras, and he didn't question it. (I checked the size page again, and sure enough -- the A710 does come up as needing the SLR size now.)
I'm not at all happy that the new one will be much bulkier and weigh almost four times as much as the one I had. I'm mildly disappointed that it doesn't come in colors. (I had spent some time deciding what color I wanted -- it comes in yellow, red, pink, green and blue with black. The SLR size only comes in plain old gray and black.) And I'm a little concerned that it was so flimsy.
But on the other hand the SLR size costs $40 and I'm getting it for $22 (what I paid for the small one), and it will be sturdier. Most of all I'm delighted that it was so easy! No questions asked, no packing the broken one up to send back ... just, "We'll send you a new, larger one."
If you're considering a Gorillapod, make sure you get it direct from Joby. I'm not sure whether one bought through a vendor would have to be returned through the vendor, or if they would have replaced it anyway, but it's cheaper anyway since Joby doesn't charge anything for ground shipping. And their customer service is awesome.
On October 4 I ordered a blue Gorillapod directly from the manufacturer, Joby. I got the smallest size, which has a maximum weight load of 9.7 ounces; my camera weighs 7.4 ounces.
It was shipped on October 5, so I've only had it for about three weeks. I haven't had an opportunity to use it yet, although of course I tried it out and it seemed fine. On Wednesday I went to Patapsco Valley State Park and brought the tripod with me, thinking it might come in handy for a long exposure in deep shade. I smoothed the legs out straight and together, and tucked it in my fanny pack.
Much to my dismay, when I took it out, my brand new Gorillapod had become a dipod! The third leg was still in the pack -- it had broken off.
I was horrified. I wasn't even using it! Today I called Joby and left a message on their voicemail. I made a note of the date in case I had to call back and say "I tried to call you on November 2 and didn't get a response." But they called back just a couple of hours later.
The Joby guy asked what size I had and what my camera is. I mentioned that in addition to my camera being well under the Original size's weight limit, the page on the Joby website where you enter your camera model specifically told me the Original was the appropriate size for a Canon A710.
He asked whether the tripod mount is in the center or on the side. I got the camera and looked, and said it's on the side.
"We've had some problems with that," he said. "I'll send you the next larger size."
"But it didn't break while I was using it!"
"I know," he said, "but with the mount on the side the weight is distributed unevenly, so it's better to use the larger one."
"But ... but it was just in my fanny pack -- I wasn't even using it!"
"That's okay. I'll send it you the SLR size."
Being used to dealing with difficult customer "service" people, I had been primed for an argument about how it broke. I had made mental notes to make sure they understood that I had put it in my fanny pack carefully, not just jammed it in with the legs askew.
You know how when you lift something that looks heavy but isn't, you feel a bit startled when your hand comes up too quickly and easily? That's how I felt when I finally understood that he didn't care how or why it broke, if I said it broke they would send a new one, period. He never asked me to return the old one -- my word was all he needed. Apparently they have been breaking with the side-mount cameras, and he didn't question it. (I checked the size page again, and sure enough -- the A710 does come up as needing the SLR size now.)
I'm not at all happy that the new one will be much bulkier and weigh almost four times as much as the one I had. I'm mildly disappointed that it doesn't come in colors. (I had spent some time deciding what color I wanted -- it comes in yellow, red, pink, green and blue with black. The SLR size only comes in plain old gray and black.) And I'm a little concerned that it was so flimsy.
But on the other hand the SLR size costs $40 and I'm getting it for $22 (what I paid for the small one), and it will be sturdier. Most of all I'm delighted that it was so easy! No questions asked, no packing the broken one up to send back ... just, "We'll send you a new, larger one."
If you're considering a Gorillapod, make sure you get it direct from Joby. I'm not sure whether one bought through a vendor would have to be returned through the vendor, or if they would have replaced it anyway, but it's cheaper anyway since Joby doesn't charge anything for ground shipping. And their customer service is awesome.