Internet Shopping Woes

[gundy74]

I just ordered my long awaited nikon D50 and 18-70mm lens and its backordered! I nearly cried when I got the e-mail. its going to take an unsoecified number of weeks to arrive. anyone else have any bad experiences shopping online?

 

[Big Mike]

Let me guess, you searched for the lowest price...

This is quite a common 'scam'....well maybe scam is too harsh a word but there are quite a number of these mail order places that advertise super low prices and then tell you it's back ordered...once they get you money/c.c. number. They usually tell you that their price is for 'the camera only' and then sell you on the accessories that should be included. Then they sell you on other accessories like cards, batteries etc.

Check www.resellerratings.com and see what kind of rating your store gets.

There are links on this page to B&H and Adorama. Those two stores probably sell more photo gear than any other stores in North America. They are both very reputable. If you find a price that is lower than theirs...there is probably something fishy going on.

It's quite possible that the store you ordered from is honestly out of stock...but I would check with those two stores...if they have it in stock...I would try to cancel payment to your store and order from B&H or Adorama...or even a local store and save yourself the shipping costs.

 

[DepthAfield]

Sadly… Big Mike is right about these Internet scammers.

The best price online is rarely the best deal, or any deal at all.

 

[rmh159]

Yeah I had somewhat of a horror story getting my D50 w/ 18 - 55 from PreferredPhoto.com.

I had gone to their site (awesome price... this proves Big Mike's point) and ordered the camera. I got an email asking me to call for verification... I did and was given a 15 minute speech on why I should buy extra batteries / memory. Then I was told that the model I ordered was the Japanese version and the US version would be $699 (which is the typical price I've seen). I told him the site didn't specify an import so I wanted to cancel my order since there was no savings. I told him I'd stick with him for $650 and I got the discount but I called daily for order updates and held my breath until it arrived at my door.

Granted I got the $50 off but if I had to do it again I would've gladly paid the $50 to avoid the bait and switch. Best of luck...

 

[gundy74]

im at resellerratings.com now and expresscameras has horrible reviews. I think ill cancel the order.

 

[Oldfireguy]

Adorama can sometimes be a bit pushy, at least that has been my experience but I have always gotten my orders in a timely manner and at a fair price. B&H is by far the best I have delt with.

 

[Digital Matt]

There should be a splash page for this site that reads, "Don't buy from Express Cameras!!!!!". Cancel immediately.

 

[Unimaxium]

At least they're not as bad PriceRitePhoto (hopefully)

 

[Iron Flatline]

Man, I cannot speak highly enough of B&H or Adorama.

Just to show you how much I trust B&H. They sent me a Canon 24-70 1:2.8 L lens (almost $2,000), and after two days it was clear there was something wrong with the lens (turned out the diaphragm was bad.) I needed to go on a six week vacation shoot though, so they said to me "just go ahead and buy another one (!). Send the bad one back, and we'll refund the price when we get it." They threw in overnight shipping, and the only called I got from them two days later was whether I wanted a check or the money back on to my credit card. No other questions asked, no up-sell, just extremely fast (and rather curt) service. Yes, I bought TWO $2,000 lenses from them, but knew they would refund it so fast (within the same statement period) that I would never have two on my CC bill.

 

[electrickiisses]

I got my Nikon D50 off of ebay w/the seller called digitalcorp.

It was a GREAT deal. I got the camera w/a 28-80 mm lens, a tripod, 1 GB memory card, a table tripod, a HUGE carrying case (those metal ones), a regular carrying case, a macro lens (not the big nice fancy ones..the one you skew atthe end of your lens) a cleaning kit for the camera lens, a usb cable card reader, some filters that help w/the color of your photos.

all of that for $740 i believe. its a GREAT deal.

maybe you tried ebay but if you haven't just check up on peoples feedback.

 

[Soocom1]

Here is what I can tell you from personal experience.

first and foremost, if its too good to be true, it probably is.
Secondly, I have come to learn that when buying high end equipment, review,review,review. Never stop searching. I do this with every item like that that I buy. I even looked up info on the people whom I was buying my house on.

Hint: Google this phrase every time: "Complaints about______"

Usually, you will get an eyeful if it is there.

I purchased my KM 7D from Calumet, and yes it was a bit higher in price, but they also have a huge reputation to keep up.

Sorry for the experience, and good luck on finding a camera.

 

[darin3200]

Man, I cannot speak highly enough of B&H or Adorama.

Agreed, they are the people to buy from. Very fast and professional and you can support TPF at the same time :thumbup: