Hey Guys,
I just got home from work and found that I had received 3 8gig sandisk extreme III's that I ordered from Beach Camera. I opened the box and found 3 boxes in there. When I grabbed the first box I found that the bottom had previously been open, and when I pulled out the plastic inside it had previously been cut. I took the card out and put it in my camera and it gave me a CHAR error, I tried formatting the card on 2 different computers of mine and it failed to format on both computers. I am wondering if anyone has experienced this error before, or has any recommendations as to what I should do. I tried a google search for the error and didn't find any information. Would it be easier to contact sandisk and tell them that my card is defective, or should I contact BeachCamera and tell them they sent me a defective product that had previously been used? I tried another of the cards they sent me and it worked fine. I will test the 3rd one here shortly. I am kicking myself for not waiting an extra day for BHphoto to be accepting orders.

Sorry to hear about that. Beach Camera are reputable so this comes as a surprise to me. I would contact Beach Camera immediately to resolve the matter.

I'd go directly back to Beach. They're the ones who created the problem by shipping you a previously opened package and should respond accordingly. If you send it to Sandisk, it may take quite a while compared to Beach, assuming they have it in stock.

The only problem is if you purchased the cards to submit subject to the rebate, which I assume you plan to use. (Here's a link to B&H's Sandisk listing. Just click on the rebate link beside the price of your card and then the PDF link in the resulting window.):

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/shop/7857/Memory_Cards_Card_Readers_CompactFlash.html/BI/4775/KBID/5289/

It needs to show an invoice date by October 11, 2008. But your current invoice should do that, and should be able to be used for the submission, along with the other rebate requirements, which must be submitted with a postmark by November 11, 2008. I'd also ask Beach to pay for the return/new shipping as well. Good luck!

OldPhotos
"If everyone possesses some measure of this intangible quality called creativity, photography is unprecedented as an outlet for its expression." - Ansel Adams

Call Sandisk -- they can tell you if it is one of their cards or a counterfeit.

then you have more information to talk to Beach Camera.

ledmun

Beach camera?????