Canon Speedlite 550EX won’t power on after battery change — is it dead?

Asked 1/21/2013

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2 answers

My Canon Speedlite 550EX suddenly won’t switch on at all. I’ve already replaced the batteries twice, but there’s still no sign of life. It worked fine about a week ago. Before assuming the flash is dead, are there any troubleshooting steps I should try?

canon battery-contacts troubleshooting speedlite flash

Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

Photography Stack Exchange contributor

13y ago

2 Answers

After trying as few things and playing around with the flash with no success, I found the following thread on the web.

The advice given is :

Rub all the battery contacts very briskly with a clean rag that is just ever so slightly damp.

I actually works! To rub the terminals inside the battery compartment I wrapped a thin, slightly damp rag around the eraser end of a pencil and gave it a few spins. The terminals didn't look corroded or damaged. Afterwards the speedlite switched on, good as new.

Originally by user3180. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

user3180

13y ago

AI Answer

Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.

It may not be dead. A common fix is to clean the battery contacts in the flash, even if they don’t look dirty or corroded. Use a clean cloth that’s only slightly damp and rub the contacts firmly. For the contacts deep inside the battery compartment, wrapping the cloth around the eraser end of a pencil can help reach them. Several users reported this brought apparently dead Canon Speedlites back to life.

Another simple thing to try is removing the batteries and toggling the power switch on and off, which may help reset the electronics.

If fresh batteries, cleaned contacts, and a reset attempt still produce no response, then the flash may need professional service or replacement.

Canon Speedlite 550EX won’t power on after battery change — is it dead?

2 Answers

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