what is a "hot pixel"?

Tell us more about the use of monkeys for assembling complex products -
I've never come across this before.
Dave Cohen

The idea that refurbs get a going-over by a good tech doesn't fly with
me.
This is very similar to customer service, which certainly doesn't
connect with a competent tech very often.
With refurbs, even DSLRs, the camera will first go to a "technician"
with a spiral-bound book of flowcharts showing what steps to take to
solve a specific problem (just like when you call for customer service

make much economic sense. And kicking the device up the line can be
more expensive than simply replacing it with another, much more
cheaply fixed sample.
IMHO.

Consumer Reports did a piece on refurbished cameras a couple of years ago,
and they were not keen on them.  They noted that these units were often not
even repaired or checked over--if they looked all right they were just
repackaged and often sold by jobbers.

The other negative was that those cameras often came with warranties that
ran 30-90 days, and the warranty might have been issued not by the
manufacturer but by the refurb seller.  If a customer returned one of these
cameras , chances were good that the refurb seller would simply send them
another one from their inventory, rather than waste time trying to fix the
bad one.  If the customer got a second dud, he had a very limited period of
time to send it back--and if the replacement was also a dud, the warranty
period might have already run out by the time he found out that the camera
was no good.

The magazine recommended that buyers steer clear of third-party sellers of
refurbished goods if possible, and that they purchase them only through
official manufacturers' channels.  They also noted that if the warranty was
very short, and the price discount was not all that great, it might have
been better to buy brand new, with a full warranty.

There is an element of gambling involved with these type purchases.  I
personally have avoided refurbished goods, because I don't like the idea of
buying units that may have problems which don't always show up at first
glance.  If one can live with the risk, and if the price is low enough, it
might be okay.  But there is no way to generalize in advance.  You might get
a good deal, or it might be a nightmare.

I have several DCs, including a D70, and wanted a camera for a seashore
holiday--  in other words, one for less-than-squeaky clean situations.  I
bought a refurbished Canon Powershot S45 offered by Canon on eBay.  It works
OK, but it certainly had a lot of miles on it already and wasn't nearly in
the condition of the camera depicted in the photo Canon placed on eBay.
Several of the symbols were worn off and it is generally pretty shabby
looking.  Obviously Canon doesn't have good presentation standards when it
offers refurbished cameras on eBay.