Cracked NIkon D3100 body - Repair or replace?
In a moment of stupidity, our NIkon D3100 (about 5 months old) was dropped and landed on a concrete floor. The camera is completely still functional. There's however a crack near the battery compartment that exposes the inside. The piece that flew off is missing. Nikon's warranty will not cover this. Should we get it fixed? Patch it up with a body case? How much would a repair cost?
Just use the camera until you decide to upgrade to a D3200 or D5200.
You can check with Nikon to see what they will charge to repair your camera and then decide what to do
You can buy a "skin" for the D3100 that might work well enough that you don't have to replace the case:
It's working. You're lucky. Extremely lucky. From now on, use the strap all the time.
No need to replace. No need to repair. Just use until it dies. You will surely have a conversation piece with other photographers every time you bring out your camera. That will be the perfect time to recall you stupidity all over again.
You camera now has character. Others contend with a few scratches, nicks, dings and marks. Yours is a complete tear-out! Is It's a badge of honor showing the camera has been used thoroughly and abused unlike others that just gather dust on shelf. Be proud and don't hide it unless it's critical if you don't do so.
If you decide to cover the crack, I suggest getting an "armour". Your camera is one of the lucky models that have one available.