Don’t buy camera gear via Froogle etc
It’s old advice, but it certainly hits the spot…
Since the dawn of the commercial web we have been warned to not be suckered by “too good to be true” online deals. Keep your friends close and your credit card closer. Over and over scummy retailers are exposed but a quick name-change are back online trading their crap, fake or purely imaginary goods.
Still forum posters continue to be burned by dodgy online traders. The problem comes down to customers shopping on price alone. Like the apocryphal lemmings over a cliff they are drawn to the low bidding merchants in shopping search engines. When the item doesn’t turn up, or unexpected (and unexplained) costs appear on the credit card statement or when they get zero (or abusive) customer service they look around for help and sympathy. But there is only one person to blame in the end; the customer. Emptors and caveats, etc.
When you understand how these businesses operate you can see why there are so many problems and how little is in your power to avoid being taken. When I started this blog one of the ex-members here had his own online camera store. I learned a lot about how the business worked and the more I learned the more sure I was my policy of sticking to the high street was the right one, even though it meant paying a premium.
… Thus begins the fantastic article by Chris over on the dSLR blog. He explains how some of the scams work, and also tells you how to avoid them.
I’ve been bitten by one of these scams myself, ages ago when I was buying my first article, so take heed, folks, there’s nothing quite as horrible as the feeling of being parted with your hard-earned cash, and seeing none
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Insights, suggestions and comments
There is nothing wrong with using froogle or other shopping websites to find the gear at good prices, but just pick the cheapest price being sold by a reputable merchant. There are many reputable sellers out there whose listings can be found via froogle, etc. but sellers should check out the ratings listed on froogle, or check forums to see who is good, and who to avoid.
Sketchy online stores do suck… I’ve had some really good luck with Craigslist (http://craigslist.com), though. The beauty is, since you’re meeting in person, if the gear sucks you don’t pay. Hunting around for deals can also save some decent money. When I was buying my 70-300 IS USM, most places had it for about $800, but I was able to find a little store just around the corner from my house that had it for $730 with a 7 (yes, seven) year warranty. Not huge, but worth the half hour I spent.
Froogle can be very useful. I have found stuff on well know websites, like B&H, that I could not find via their own search. Froogle can also help you avoid those shady dealers. Since they show the prices for so many stores at once it’s easier to see when a price is too low.
To be honest, most of these are in the states but yeah, be careful kids!
I just go for the easy traditional way of going to a dedicated photography shop where experienced people can show me the goods and perhaps try-before-you-buy.
Far safer.
There’s another element here folks. If you happen to have a good local retailer that gives you good service, why not pay a little over the e-prices. After all, you’re buying the service as well as the final product.
If we all keep scrimping and saving for every last penny on the web, don’t be surprised when you can’t find a good local retailer who’s prepaired to give a decent service!
I was wondering about this myself–not with Froogle per se, but some of the online retailers in general. I remember reading magazine articles about the pitfalls of buying cameras from mail-order shops. Some would give you exactly what the camera-maker intended. Others would strip the camera–send you just the camera body but would keep the lens caps, body caps, straps, and other accessories, and sell them to you separately. Or you’d buy a kit: a 35mm camera body with two lenses and a flash. You’d get your camera body, but you got two no-name, third-rate lenses and a low-power flash that ran on one AA battery, and a handful of other piece parts that were either useless or should have been included to begin with.
The point of the article was: always be very careful to make sure what it is you’re ordering, and what you should expect to receive.
blaming ‘Froogle’ for the scams of others is like blaming a dictionary because you found a ‘bad’ word!
My husband bought me a SLR a year ago. He was trying to find the best deal he could found by searching deals online. It ended up falling into one of the tricks you are talking about. He ended up paid more than street stores prices, and no warranty and rebate on the camera which were offered by the manufacturer in stores and amazon at that time.
Of course, I never blamed him for the mistake, it was a lesson for us. From then on, we only buy things from a few reputable online websites or local stores.
I bought my most recent digital camera, a Canon Powershot A710, via Google Checkout, which is pretty synonymous with Froogle. The list price of the camera is $350-400, but I managed to get it for $260 + S/H. Yeah, I was really worried that with a price like that, I was going to be royally screwed, but I really just put a lot of research into what I bought, taking into account how long the business had been around, their average rating, and even reading hundreds of the several thousands of reviews. I got my camera just fine–though a week later than expected–and it is indeed a factory-sealed official Canon product. Sometimes the risk is worth it. :)
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