Zeiss 16-80 prices in Singapore

[Misza]

Hi Everyone,

My name is Michal and I'm a member of a very active Polish Konica Minolta (/Sony) club.

I will soon be visiting Singapore for a weekend, and therefore I'm trying to make some planning here... One of the key parts of my visit would be perhaps to look for good deals for our beloved A-mount system equipment

I have been looking to buy the Sony Zeiss 16-80, and since the prices in Europe are much higher than elsewhere, I have made some research as to what they look like in the States and it seems they are really good at about 700USD. However, I will not be there any time soon, and the hassle (+ additional cost) of shipping and taxes is not very enticing. Plus I like to see what I'm buying before I lay the money down... difficult when you're not there.

Then I found out I will be here soon and I also heard that Singapore is one of THE places to look for good deals. Hence my questions:
- What is the average "street" price for this lens in Singapore? (I have searched the web but couldn't quite find a reliable site)
- Which shops you would recommend and how to get there? (I have never before stepped out of the Changi Airport)
- Is the warranty given by Sony in Singapore a world-wide one, or local?

I will be more than grateful for your advise.

Kudos in advance!

[s2s1]

Originally Posted by Misza Hi Everyone, My name is Michal and I'm a member of a very active Polish Konica Minolta (/Sony) club. I will soon be visiting Singapore for a weekend, and therefore I'm trying to make some planning here... One of the key parts of my visit would be perhaps to look for good deals for our beloved A-mount system equipment I have been looking to buy the Sony Zeiss 16-80, and since the prices in Europe are much higher than elsewhere, I have made some research as to what they look like in the States and it seems they are really good at about 700USD. However, I will not be there any time soon, and the hassle (+ additional cost) of shipping and taxes is not very enticing. Plus I like to see what I'm buying before I lay the money down... difficult when you're not there. Then I found out I will be here soon and I also heard that Singapore is one of THE places to look for good deals. Hence my questions: - What is the average "street" price for this lens in Singapore? (I have searched the web but couldn't quite find a reliable site) - Which shops you would recommend and how to get there? (I have never before stepped out of the Changi Airport) - Is the warranty given by Sony in Singapore a world-wide one, or local? I will be more than grateful for your advise. Kudos in advance!

You can call or email the following shop before coming here. Try not step into Simlim or Lucky Plaza if there is no experience local friend with you.

MS Color
http://www.mscolor.com.sg/

Cathay (Peninsula)
http://www.cathayphoto.com.sg/

[Rashkae]

Originally Posted by Misza Then I found out I will be here soon and I also heard that Singapore is one of THE places to look for good deals. Hence my questions: - What is the average "street" price for this lens in Singapore? (I have searched the web but couldn't quite find a reliable site) - Which shops you would recommend and how to get there? (I have never before stepped out of the Changi Airport) - Is the warranty given by Sony in Singapore a world-wide one, or local? I will be more than grateful for your advise. Kudos in advance!

Singapore is absolutely NOT one of the places to get good deals. There's a VERY GOOD reason most of us order from Hong Kong or the USA. It's far cheaper.

For the official price, you can check the SG sonystyle. It's about 1050 USD. If you ask at the recommended shops, you might get it for about 900 USD.

If you have no idea how to get to Cathay or MS Color, send me a PM with your exact arrival dates. I'll take you around if I'm in SG at the time.

[sevensummerset]

CAUTION!!!
DO NOT BUY any SONY lens in SG, very much overpriced!!!
get it from HK or even TAIWAN or USA!!!
BTW if wan2 order from HK, which online shop is reliable?
HK SONY official website does not support oversea order...

again DO NOT buy it in SG!!! if ur fren using A-mount system, tell them do not buy lens in SG!!!
you can check & compare price in the official SONY website of SG & HK.

sorry for my over-reaction on the SONY pricing stradegy...

[astrise]

Originally Posted by sevensummerset CAUTION!!! DO NOT BUY any SONY lens in SG, very much overpriced!!! get it from HK or even TAIWAN or USA!!! BTW if wan2 order from HK, which online shop is reliable? HK SONY official website does not support oversea order... again DO NOT buy it in SG!!! if ur fren using A-mount system, tell them do not buy lens in SG!!! you can check & compare price in the official SONY website of SG & HK. sorry for my over-reaction on the SONY pricing stradegy...

A Hong Kong forum has a price list for A-Mount compatible lenses/accessories. It's in Chinese, but you can run it through google's translator. Price is significantly cheaper as a lot of people have mentioned.


The List

Translated: The List

[sevensummerset]

Originally Posted by astrise A Hong Kong forum has a price list for A-Mount compatible lenses/accessories. It's in Chinese, but you can run it through google's translator. Price is significantly cheaper as a lot of people have mentioned. The List Translated: The List

k lar bro, will go look see look see...
i can read chinese, u c my "england" so broken and chinese style oredi mah...
thanks bro...

[Misza]

Thanks everyone for your replies!

It actually turned out I will not be in Singapore next week, but in KL instead (my employer's decision). I have investigated the prices there through a friend and found out it is about 2,600MYR which is about 800USD - so apparently better than Singapore prices.

Regarding HK - it seems to be unrealistically cheap! Are there any taxes applied to these prices? Not that I'm going there so probably I would not be able to buy it for such a good price (shipping + duty tax), but it is quite remarkable with the official price at about 700USD and the quoted one even below 600...

[mysilentkaopei]

no taxes. not sure bout your home country though.
i once met this customer who told me that if the customs find stuff in his bags, they'll give him an import tax receipt. yikes!

[Rashkae]

Originally Posted by Misza Thanks everyone for your replies! It actually turned out I will not be in Singapore next week, but in KL instead (my employer's decision). I have investigated the prices there through a friend and found out it is about 2,600MYR which is about 800USD - so apparently better than Singapore prices. Regarding HK - it seems to be unrealistically cheap! Are there any taxes applied to these prices? Not that I'm going there so probably I would not be able to buy it for such a good price (shipping + duty tax), but it is quite remarkable with the official price at about 700USD and the quoted one even below 600...

Those HK prices are real, and the main reason why we try to import from there.

[downhere]

Hey, any link to websites that will ship to SG? Prices look really good!

[Misza]

Originally Posted by mysilentkaopei no taxes. not sure bout your home country though. i once met this customer who told me that if the customs find stuff in his bags, they'll give him an import tax receipt. yikes!

Yes, this is true.
If you're buying with a shipping service the VAT + duty tax will be applied in 99% of the cases.
The only way of not paying it is bringing the stuff personally - a way of "smuggling", yes... The way people usually do it is get rid of all the boxes etc. and just pretend they have had it before If you're randomly picked for inspection and there are any signs that you actually bought the product outside the EU you will need to pay VAT and duty tax. I was told it is quite easy for the customs officers to see that as the name tags on routes within EU have a stripe in a different color... I've flown outside of Europe many times but haven't observed it... It may be true though as the only few times I was kindly stopped by the officers was when I was flying from outside the EU (but with the last connecting flight within Europe!). They asked me what I was bringing in my luggage - I was never inspected though.
Anyway, the tax rates depend on product type and you can easily assume it will be no less than 20% of the price you paid. Even though, the HK prices that were quoted above would still be a bargain after applying those taxes...

[mysilentkaopei]

i think thailand is doing the same now. which brings me to wonder, will i need to discard the boxes in thailand when i make my purchase?

Note: my HK camera mission has been aborted due to the thailand duty tax thing... so i'm buying from thailand.

[trexsg]

Anyone can help where is the shop/contact add to buy Sony lens in HK? Laser or 10-10? thanks

[Rashkae]

Originally Posted by trexsg Anyone can help where is the shop/contact add to buy Sony lens in HK? Laser or 10-10? thanks

These are about a dozen threads on recommended camera stores in HK... Try a search. But I can tell you it's not Laser or 10-10. It's Wing Shing, Citicall, etc.

[stvc11]

Originally Posted by Rashkae These are about a dozen threads on recommended camera stores in HK... Try a search. But I can tell you it's not Laser or 10-10. It's Wing Shing, Citicall, etc.

Haha i think he translate from madarin, laser = citicall