[BEWARE] The Camera Workshop


Dehl

Member
Mar 1, 2019
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Kindly give this a read (and possibly warn others about the shop) if you're looking to buy or have gone through a rather sketchy transaction with the mentioned shop:

So this whole saga started when I'd purchased a preloved fuji X-T20 body from a carousell account called 'lovethatcam' for the listed price of $650. The listing did not indicate any defects that were associated with the camera, and simply stated the accessories that would come with it, and claiming that the camera was lightly used. Upon meeting the dealer, I'd done the usual functional checks BUT the wifi communication function (a function that you can only check if you have images in your camera, I mean, what could you transfer if your camera is new and empty). Fast forward 2-3 weeks when I'd first shot with the camera, I'd realized that the wifi communication was dysfunctional; the camera would go into lock up whenever I tried to access that particular function. I contacted the same account over the chat that I'd negotiated the price, but found out that the listing was deleted, therefore, I was unable to view the original description. Said carousell account told me to bring the camera down for an inspection by their technician, and that is when I found out that 'lovethatcam' actually belongs to The Camera Workshop.

The next day, I brought the camera over and they were immediately made aware that it was a carousell transaction and therefore, camera was not covered under their store warranty (my mistake for not clarifying), they then said they would take the camera in and see what they could do. 2 weeks in, I had to call in and ask for the status of the camera and that is when I was told that there was likely an issue with the wifi module in the camera, and it would take easily $200+ and a month+ to make the repair. The person whom I spoke to over the phone then suggested that I should trade in the faulty camera + top up $200 to get a new set from them, alongside with a 1 year store warranty. I declined that option and said that I would go down to the shop and talk in-person.

At this point of the saga, it is already clear that they did not thoroughly check through the product(s) before retailing them at shopfront, it is only fair that I question the legitimacy of their service and knowledge of the camera gear they sell. So only 2 possibilities at this point:

1. They do not thoroughly inspect their used products before retailing them in-store/online. Buyer would take full responsibility for any faults that came with it.

2. It was a planned bait-and-switch attempt.

Upon arriving at the store, the shop employees then reiterated what they had said over the phone and recommended that I took the top up option to get a new set due to the cost it would take anyway to make the repair. I guess I was gullible enough to buy into the (possible) bait-and-switch attempt and agreed to it. It is also worth mentioning that the deal offered for the trade-in was significantly different when I'd dealt with them in-shop - the deal in the shop was instead a $240 top up and the purchase comes with only 6 months warranty despite me mentioning to them that the person over the phone had told me otherwise. I would also like to draw your attention to the fact that at this point, The Camera Workshop was already made fully aware of the defect of this camera.

A week on, I brought the accessories from the faulty camera down and made the purchase for this new set, leaving the faulty camera with them. While making the purchase, the shop attendant said that due to the fault in the camera, they would likely send the camera to HK to scrap for parts(???) since it wasn't economically wise to repair this camera and to retail it.

You might think that was all to it but the best is yet to come:

Just a couple of days ago I was walking past peninsula shopping center and to my absolute dismay, the X-T20 that I'd sold back to the shop was yet again displayed for sale. This time at a discounted price point of $585. Just earlier today, I had asked a couple of my friends to pretend to be interested buyers of the camera - to take a snap of the SRN that was on the camera, and true enough, it matched the SRN of the receipt that was given to me when I'd first sent my faulty camera to be inspected. According to the shop attendants, they now upfront mention the wifi communication defect of the camera and would provide a 1 month store warranty that would not cover the defect already mentioned. This sounded fair, except that the store attendant that served me had said that they would take the camera back and scrap for parts, which is clearly what they did not honor.

That's not all, I gave carousell a search for 'X-T20' and again, I saw a used X-T20 body that was listed just 3 days ago by an account called 'poprockzz', it actually is the faulty camera that was sold to me - exact same photos, I'd scrolled to the last photo of the listing, zoomed in, and no surprise, the SRN of this particular camera body is the exact match to the one that I'd returned to the store. A quick read of this new listing and you would realize that nowhere in the description is the defect being made known. In fact, the description suggests that the moment the camera is sold, they have nothing to do with it:

'Selling off my X-T20 body in working condition Sparingly used Well kept Comes with box, charger, battery, body cap Brandless strap Test before deal no problem'

Working Condition? Sparingly used?
For all I know, this camera had been passed through at least 2 users, and since they already knew of the defect, why was it not mentioned anywhere? Test before deal no problem? To me this sounds like an attempt to ghost after the transaction had been completed, what is the likelihood that a new user would test the wifi communication right off the bat when getting a new camera?

My point of this post is that, while I can't be 100% sure that what I'd experienced was a scam, they were certainly dishonest in 1. their words when they said that they would not retail the camera due to the fault, and the cost it would incur to fix and retail a fully functional camera, which whether purposefully or not, resulted in me paying the extra bucks to buy a new set from them and 2. the description of this new listing on carousell is complete and utter bullshit despite being already aware of the defect of the camera. If any of you guys have similar experiences with the folks @ the store, please do leave a reply below and we'll see what we can do.
 

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suck thumb, its buyer beware. c 2 c dealing by retail shop is a loophole against lemon law.
really up to buyer to check before buying for 2nd hand.
 

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suck thumb, its buyer beware. c 2 c dealing by retail shop is a loophole against lemon law.
really up to buyer to check before buying for 2nd hand.

I'm aware that what's done is done, just putting it out there for awareness, but yep I agree on the importance of checking thoroughly before purchasing, and most importantly the declaration of condition by the seller before transaction is made.
 

Oh..this shop in carousel. Better check and ask many times and keep all those conversations in written record. I have encountered some bad experience with them as well. Good luck to those who deal with them.
 

Oh..this shop in carousel. Better check and ask many times and keep all those conversations in written record. I have encountered some bad experience with them as well. Good luck to those who deal with them.
i was unfortunately forced to 'upgrade' my purchase with another $300 to only get a brand new gray set.