Do cameras "degrade" over time?

[northwest monkey]

Might sound stupid but I'd like to know!

I've got a Sony F828 which I've had for about 9-10 years. Its probably been used for taking somewhere between 60k & 100k photos so it's not like it has been sat in a bag for all its life. So will anything have degraded over that time - lens, processor etc that would lead to images not being as "good"?

The "Memory Stick" slot no longer works so I use a 4Gb CF card but other than that it seems ok. I'm convinced that the pictures no longer look as "sharp" as they used to, but then again my eyes are 10 years older than they were when I got it!

[CVP]

Don't forget you're probably subconsciously comparing it to images you see out of other cameras which are a lot newer. For instance when I first saw images out a D100 I was impressed, then years later blown away by images from a D3. Once you get used to things and the tech moves along it will seem a bit old hat.

It's like comparing an old Mk II Golf GTi to a new Golf R. The tech has come on such a long way, what once was deemed brilliant is now a bit old hat (and I know that's unfair to the Mk II)

Chris

[northwest monkey]

Hmmm - you're probably right.

So basically, I think I need a new camera and you are saying I'm right?

[Craikeybaby]

I'm still using a 5D and 20D both of which are 7 or 8 years old, the only thing that has degraded are the batteries, which were cheap to replace.