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Question

Help Connecting to computer??

Nov 24, 2011 11:02PM PST

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Hi everyone, i have recently purchased the Sony WX10 camera
for our first overseas holiday.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> We have
just arrived home & we are trying to transfer all of the photos we took
onto our computer & laptop.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> When i
connect the camera to the computer via the USB cord supplied i get a message on
the camera screen saying "USB mode connecting to mass storage" then another
screen pops up on the camera saying "USB mode connecting...Check connected
device".<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> Then nothing happens???

Im new to this whole thing and i have no idea what to
do!<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> We have tried it on both a laptop
and a desktop computer and we get the same error message on both computers.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> I have an older canon camera and the photos transfer
fine when i connect that via USB, its only on the new sony camera that it
doesnt work.


I have checked the camera settings also and it is set in the
USB settings to "mass storage".<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> These photos are so important to us and we are now worrying we wont be
able to save them to our computer!<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> Any
help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!!

Thanks in advance!!!

Discussion is locked

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Answer
Choices
Nov 24, 2011 11:32PM PST

Four choices:

1. The Sony camera came with software for handling the download of pictures from the camera.
... You can load that software to your computer.
... Read about it in the camera User Manual.

2. When you connected the Sony to the computer, it sounds as if the computer recognized the camera.
2A... Use your computer software (My Computer or Windows Explorer) to look at the computer files and look for a new hard disk. That hard disk is your camera's memory card.
... Use the computer to drag and drop the picture files to the computer.

3. If your computer has a card reader, do not connect the camera to the computer.
3A... Instead, take the memory card from the camera and put it in the card reader.
... Then, follow the instructions in step 2A.

4. Buy a card reader for your memory card and install the card reader on the computer.
... Do not connect the camera to the computer.
... Then, follow the instructions in step 3A

..

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Help
Nov 24, 2011 11:43PM PST

Hi Snapshot, thanks heaps for your reply. Unfortunately i have loaded the PMB software that came with the camera but i still get the same problem. It doesnt come up in the 'computer' section with the other drives either. Thats how i connect my canon, i just plug it in via USB and it comes up like another drive next to the C & D drive etc. But with the new sony, nothing happens. I was refreshing the 'computer' screen as well but still nothing new would come up.

I have a card reader on my computer but im not sure if there is something wrong with it as when i put memory cards in, nothing happens. Even memory cards on my old canon dont work, nothing connects or comes up as a new drive, but the canon works fine connected via USB.

Do you think it could be a problem with the USB cord? It is brand new and the only time it has been used is to charge the camera 3 or 4 times while we were on holidays as the USB cord is part of the actual charger that connects to the wall. Could that be the problem? Do you have any other suggestions??

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Something to Try
Nov 25, 2011 12:05AM PST

Turn-on the Sony Camera and put the camera in "playback" mode.
Playback mode is the mode you use when you are using the camera to view pictures in your camera.
Then with camera still-on, plug-in the USB cable at the camera and then the computer.

The Sony software might recognize it now.
If not, use the computer to look for a new hard drive which will be the Sony camera.


Card Reader:

Just plugging a memory card into the card reader, may (or may not) create any reaction by the computer.
Plug it in, and then use the computer to look for it.

Just be sure that you are using the correct card reader slot that matches your memory card.
Regarding SD memory cards, if you have an old computer (card reader) it may not be able to read a SDHC (High Capacity) card. A SDHC card is any card with a capacity over 2 gig.

..

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??
Nov 25, 2011 12:16AM PST

Thanks so much. I didnt know that about my card reader not being able to read high capacity memory cards. Do you think the high capacity memory cards will work if i buy a memory card reader and attach that through USB??

I have already done the first step, with the camera in playback mode, but nothing happens. I forgot to mention before though, when i connect it to the desktop computer, a yellow error message pops up down the bottom right corner saying the USB device is not recognized or something? The same error message
is still displayed on the camera though. However on the laptop nothing
at all happens, just the error message on the
camera.

I am always in the 'computer' screen when connecting the camera but no new drive comes up, i refresh the page, but literally nothing happens & nothing is recognised. And on the desktop computer no new drives appear, the only thing that happens is the yellow error message down bottom right saying its not recognized.

Do you think the cord could be broken? Or is there anything else i can try? Sorry for all the questions. I feel like ive tried everything and nothing is working =(

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Reply
Nov 25, 2011 5:48AM PST

If you have an older computer and have SDHC memory cards, you should buy a new card reader.
Get one that says it can handle SDHC cards (most of them do now).
I have seen them at WalMart for around $10.

Connecting camera to USB:

Since you are using two computers and getting different results, I have to wonder if one of the computers even works at all with any USB device.
If you have reinstalled Windows on one of the computers lately, it is possible that the USB does not work because you didn't install the USB drivers.

Do you currently have some USB device on each computer that is functional?
(printer, mouse, scanner, etc)
Just so that you know the USB actually works.

You can also go to the Control Panel and see if the Device Manager shows a Universal Serial Buss (USB) device.

USB Hub:
If you have installed an external USB hub on either of the computers, do not use it while testing.
An unpowered Hub can cause many strange problems.

Cable:
It is possible that the USB cable you are using can be defective, but that would be unusual.
The USB cable for the camera is a special cable and may be hard to find.


..

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!!
Nov 25, 2011 3:30PM PST

Hi again, i finally got the problem sorted. After trying everything possible on the computers at home it still wouldnt work. So i took it into a camera shop & they tested it on their computer and it still didnt work. They tried it with a new USB cable & it worked perfectly, so it looks like the USB cable is faulty!!! We have only had the camera 1 or 2 months and the USB cable is part of the actual charger. Do you know if this is common?? I was having problems charging the camera on our holiday as well so its all making sense now.

I will take the camera and cable back to where i bought it and hopfully they will be able to replace the faulty cable. A bit disappointing from Sony having such a main part not work.

I was able to transfer all of the photos and videos onto the computer using a card reader which worked perfectly. Allthough the videos dont work properly! So that is the next problem lol. They are .MTS files and when i play them in VLC player some of the videos are either sound only with no picture or some of them the picture comes up but it is all jumpy. Is that a problem with the player i am playing it in? I know the camera takes HD videos but the laptop isnt HD but i was told it should convert the videos to play in standard quality. I have also tried to play the videos in Windows media player. Any advice on this issue? Or should i start a new topic for this?

Thanks once again

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Good News
Nov 25, 2011 10:45PM PST

I am glad you discovered the cause, I was running out of ideas.

A faulty USB cable is rare.

Video:

VLC is one of the better players.
But if you are having problems with sound, that is usually the fault of the player.
So try other players for video.

If your video is jumpy, the usual cause is dropped frames.
And that is usually due to using a memory card that is too slow.
HD video requires a very fast card.

Speed is measured as "class" or 00x
For HD look for class 10 or 66x speed.
Here is a link that explains speed markings on a memory card:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secure_Digital

Scroll down to the second and third chart, for Speed Class Ratings.

Regarding players:
Yes, it would be a good idea to start a new thread about player problems.
I don't use players and a new thread will likely attract some people who have suggestions about players. Be sure to mention the .MTS files and that the video file came from a Sony.
Mention the Sony camera model number, and the Windows Operating System (XP, Vista, 7, etc).

Regards
Snapshot2