OT: take care -- EX1 firmware upgrade

Serena wrote on 3/16/2010, 12:56 AM
I've found time to catch up with DVinfo and read with interest that Sony have a user-installable firmware upgrade to v1.2. However on checking I've found that it requires (for reliable function) for at least v1.13 to be already installed. Mine is v1.11, so I'll be getting it done by the local ASC. Nevertheless, people report successful installation from earlier firmware versions.

Comments

farss wrote on 3/16/2010, 3:45 AM
I upgraded my EX1 from 1.11 with zero dramas. I suspect the "erratic behavior being referred to is the progress indicators which get quickly to 99% and then take a long time to get to 100%.
There's one documented case of someone getting impatient on DVInfo and bricking their camera. If you watch the Vimeo video that someone kindly put togther on DVInfo I can see no reason why you'd have any problem.
The advice to run the camera off mains with a battery fitted and to use a laptop also running off the mains is a good idea. That way even a mains failure will not bring you unstuck. The hardest part of the whole process is getting the cover off the maintainance USB port. Well maybe getting it back on was harder, darn tiny black screw and old eyes.

Bob.
craftech wrote on 3/16/2010, 6:27 AM
The problem with the firmware upgrade is that it doesn't seem to add anything necessary that firmware 1.11 doesn't already have.

It adds to the media it works with the following:

* SxS-1 series memory card added.
* Memory Stick PRO-HG Duo HX added (with optional MEAD-MS01 Media Adaptor).
* SDHC card added (with optional MEAD-SD01 Media Adaptor).

For that someone bricked a $7000 camera?

John
Jay Gladwell wrote on 3/16/2010, 6:39 AM

John, I just read (not five minutes ago) on another forum that a guy bricked his $8,500 EX3 doing his own firmware upgrade.

Unless I'm terribly mistaken, Sony made it clear from the beginning that do-it-yourself upgrades were done at the owner's risk.

My EX3 is running just fine. I see no need to upgrade the firmware at this stage. Actually, from everything I've read, it's a step backwards.


farss wrote on 3/16/2010, 7:08 AM
"Unless I'm terribly mistaken, Sony made it clear from the beginning that do-it-yourself upgrades were done at the owner's risk."

You are terribly mistaken. This upgrade is the first one sanctioned by Sony as a user upgrade. Most of use have been bitching about having to pay to get the upgrades done and the downtime on the cameras. The last one for the EXs costs us a lot of money and it really did nothing. What Sony failed to reveal in the release notes was the change only affected the Region60 cameras. We only found out about this after we paid almost $1000 to get 5 cameras upgraded.

If you were referring to the guy on DVInfo, after a little jumping up and down he found a Sony service centre who fixed the camera he broke by NOT following the instructions for free.

What is not mentioned in the release notes:

1) Much improved performance using SDHC cards. Most cards go to 60fps now.

2) Seemingly faster boot time.

3) Faster write completion which means quicker to get back into record. Even with an SxS card you can get problems hitting record with the red light on.

Get used to doing upgrades yourself. Our PMW 350 is only a few weeks old and already I have to upgrade it. At least the port is easier to get to.

Bob.

Jay Gladwell wrote on 3/16/2010, 8:31 AM

Bob, see below...

EDIT:

It wasn't DVi, so went there to read the thread.

As Alister pointed out: "Sony are not forcing anyone to do the update themselves, you can still get it done by Sony or you can have it done by a dealer. Us end users now have a choice. It's no different to servicing a car. You can save money and do it yourself or take it to a dealer or to a local service center. If you mess up doing it yourself, say with a wrench that's not quite right and damages a bolt so it cant be removed, you have no recourse, if you get it done by a dealer and they mess it up then they would need to sort it."

As you said, maybe the person in question didn't follow the directions. Whatever the case, he did it at his own risk. He screwed it up. He can't expect Sony to pay for his mistake.

EDIT #2:

From Alister:

"It's very clear on the Sony UK web site:

" 'IMPORTANT! Before attempting to upgrade your firmware please read the installation instructions carefully. Failure to follow the instructions may result in damage to your camcorder. If you don’t feel confident to upgrade the firmware yourself, contact either PrimeSupport, your Sony Accredited Dealer or Authorised Service Centre...' "


Ros wrote on 3/16/2010, 10:34 AM
Bob,
you mentionned: Faster write completion which means quicker to get back into record.

Would you be able to put a figure on that, have time been cut by half or more. If I press record and stop and record again, how long is the delay with SxS or even MxR if you have?

I have still not upgraded the firmware on my EX1 since other than faster write completion, there is nothing else for me in there.

Rob
Serena wrote on 3/16/2010, 4:17 PM
Bob,
I'm fairly confident that you're correct about the safety of DIY upgrade, and hard to see what can go wrong if it is a full installation rather than a patch, so not influenced by existing firmware. However the phrase that gave me pause was "camera operation becomes erratic", rather than "update process becomes erratic".
farss wrote on 3/16/2010, 10:18 PM
Jay,
sure, if you don't have a PC (it seems harder to run the upgrade on a Mac) or better still a laptop then you might be well advised to send it to Sony to get it done. However as I said, previous updates were being done by users without Sony's blessing. This one has been released for us to do.
I live a short drive from Sony AU's headquaters and repair centre however for some people here sending a camera to Sony takes a long time and costs a lot of money. The risks of shipping a camera definately outweigh the risks of bricking it IF you follow the instructions.

I'd think it in Sony's interests to fixed bricked cameras for free. Given the number of EX cameras on the planet the manpowere to update all of them has to be considerable. The update does take around 20 minutes. Figure 0.5 manhours per camera, thats a HUGE load on a service centre moreso when shipping is involved.

Rosto,
sorry my EX1 is back being used by someone else making me money. I would have had to time it before I did the upgrade and then after to give you a definative answer. Even then that time is a bit variable.

One downside to this update is you do loose 2 minutes record time on a card. Nothing definate why that is however the best guess is Sony are now using a less effecient FAT that's faster to update. That explains all the symptoms good and bad.

One other warning that you could miss and perhaps relates to the above. The new firmware may not be able to restore cards written with the older firmware. You can still read files OK but if there's an error on the card you might have a problem restoring it. So best to make certain all your cards are dumped and backed up before doing the upgrade.

Bob.