Buying online??

[r0n1n]

Especially shipping charges can cost you a bomb.

It much more cheaper buying from the shop.

we'll they claim that the shipping charges are already included, too good to be true huh :dunno: i'm just not sure if there are hidden charges :nono:

any idea how much 50D costs these days (here in SG)? My guess is around 2k with 18-55mm kits lens

 

[r0n1n]

Some of the more reliable US shops are Adorama and B & H.

There are many Bait-And-Switch(*) ops in the States, so please be ultra careful if you are not buying from either of the above shops.

(*) As in they market the products $100-200 below what other reputable shops are selling. After you have placed your order, you get a phone call from the salesman who tries to sell you other stuff, especially filters at over the top prices. Either that, or they sell you extra accessories.

have you tried those shops? any bad or good experience dealing with them? thanks!

Or refurbished sets so I heard ! :bigeyes:

When buying online, I go for reliable shops. For those transactions on overseas BnS forums, you may have to check out the feedbacks on any, and is a leap of faith if you are willing to risk. Beware if the price is too good to be true

Ryan

the price is indeed to good to be true, i'm just thinking maybe canon will be releasing a new mid-entry level dslr (60d probably :bigeyes that's why they're selling it cheap :dunno:

 

[localhost]

that's what i'm afraid of too, but seller provided me a reference who is also from SG and already bought an item from them. not sure if the reference is legit, but i will try to contact the reference.

this smells a rat, wat if this reference is in cahoots with the seller?

i thought shopper's information are confidential and should not be revealed? I will pissed if my contact is given out like that.

it seems that this seller is dying to get your deal till the extend of providing u a reference.


my advise is, dun cos of that little bit of savings (unless its 300 or more but thats too good to be true! especially SG > US exchange rates not in our favour!) then end up being scammed.

 

[ahbian]

I might have missed it, but I can't see any links to the shop you were mentioning.

Maybe posting it might give you more relevant feedback if anyone here had shopped there before.

 

[psyk1]

Actually the mode of payment is money transfer thru Western Union...credit cards or paypal is not an option. gosh i thought paypal is safe..anyway never used that before, and i'm glad i didn't :bsmilie:

This is a telltale sign of a scam, so if I were you.. I'd think twice, thrice.. Remember, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably isn't.. If you don't mind, can share with us here where did you get the contact to this seller? If it's a scam and someone has heard of it, maybe they can warn you first..

 

[ianwurn]

Hmmm..... Honestly, the Western Union transfer thing doesn't sound right to me.

Sounds like a one way street. What is your recourse if the paid item does not come in ? Will he wire the money back to you ? At least for credit cards, this still can be reversed.... or you can dispute payment on goods not honoured.... somewhere along that line.

I figured that most online retailers make use of credit cards or PayPal. They might not be 100% secure, but at least they allow a reversal of the transaction.

Additionally, if there is a damage, I doubt that Canon SG will honour. It's pretty clear that body warranties are local. You probably need to ship it to the origin country to get this repaired and pay for freight. Not sure what the retailer is telling you, but a simple call to Canon SG should clear this up.

I buy stuff a lot from online retailers honestly, but mostly from well visited sites and proven retailers and quite a bit from eBay with a US address. However, a couple of expectations that I have whilst buying online is :-

1. Don't expect warranty
2. Don't expect worthwhile product returns
3. Don't expect after sales service.... too far for them to do anything....

Advise you at least check with Canon to see whether this chap is pulling a fast one on you. And yes, do check the reference and try to verify that it's not some fake reference.

And oh, the GST will hit you too. That's 7% on top of everything, including the shipping charges if the included invoice lists that as well.

BTW, side question, just curious, if you were a happy buyer, would you take the trouble to be this chap's reference to the extent of meeting up with potential buyer(s) ? What's in it for this reference ? I don't mean to be distrustful, but some things might not add up at the end of the day. :dunno:

 

[localhost]

my advise is, dun cos of that little bit of savings (unless its 300 or more but thats too good to be true! especially SG > US exchange rates not in our favour!) then end up being scammed.

TS, alot of tell tale signs. So either you want to 'save' that money or u end up poorer from a scam.

 

[Octarine]

Western Union? Hands off!! That's 100% scam. At the WU office at the other side cash is handed out and that's it. You can't track it further. That's why it is happily used by such people. Any credit card transfer can be tracked to accounts and addresses and whatnot. That's why they don't like it.

 

[r0n1n]

this smells a rat, wat if this reference is in cahoots with the seller?

i thought shopper's information are confidential and should not be revealed? I will pissed if my contact is given out like that.

it seems that this seller is dying to get your deal till the extend of providing u a reference.

my advise is, dun cos of that little bit of savings (unless its 300 or more but thats too good to be true! especially SG > US exchange rates not in our favour!) then end up being scammed.

TS, alot of tell tale signs. So either you want to 'save' that money or u end up poorer from a scam.

that's what I'm thinking too, that is why I want to take extreme precaution. regarding the reference, I was the one who actually asked for it hoping that someone can testify the seller's credibility. as you've mentioned, they could be into this together :dunno: thanks!

 

[r0n1n]

I might have missed it, but I can't see any links to the shop you were mentioning.

Maybe posting it might give you more relevant feedback if anyone here had shopped there before.

i saw the offer posted on a forum (not CS), so i just dropped an email to inquire. Based on the email, my guess is that the shop's name is Digital Camera Village. I tried to google search such shop but to no avail. I then asked the person who replied me back and he said "their site is under construction" very suspicious indeed :thumbsd: he claimed that their shop is in Florida.

anyone ever heard of the shop's name?

 

[r0n1n]

Hmmm..... Honestly, the Western Union transfer thing doesn't sound right to me.

Sounds like a one way street. What is your recourse if the paid item does not come in ? Will he wire the money back to you ? At least for credit cards, this still can be reversed.... or you can dispute payment on goods not honoured.... somewhere along that line.

Western Union? Hands off!! That's 100% scam. At the WU office at the other side cash is handed out and that's it. You can't track it further. That's why it is happily used by such people. Any credit card transfer can be tracked to accounts and addresses and whatnot. That's why they don't like it.

Even credit cards (and paypal as they say) are not secured; but at least way better than WU. thanks for the input!

 

[r0n1n]

BTW, side question, just curious, if you were a happy buyer, would you take the trouble to be this chap's reference to the extent of meeting up with potential buyer(s) ? What's in it for this reference ? I don't mean to be distrustful, but some things might not add up at the end of the day. :dunno:

You have a point, maybe for the retailer can offer the reference discount on future purhase(s)? i really don't know, but as what localhost mentioned from previous post, buyer information should be kept confidential and should not be shared

 

[psyk1]

i saw the offer posted on a forum (not CS), so i just dropped an email to inquire. Based on the email, my guess is that the shop's name is Digital Camera Village. I tried to google search such shop but to no avail. I then asked the person who replied me back and he said "their site is under construction" very suspicious indeed :thumbsd: he claimed that their shop is in Florida.

anyone ever heard of the shop's name?

If you value your money, stay away from this deal and buy from a trusted shop, local or otherwise.. :sweat:

 

[r0n1n]

If you value your money, stay away from this deal and buy from a trusted shop, local or otherwise.. :sweat:

Well it's very clear, that in my case, purchasing something quite expensive from a not-so-trusty source is a big risk since CONs outweighs the PROs. I guess I'll just have to save more and buy from reputable shops here in SG instead.

Thanks to all! :thumbsup:

 

[coinfucious888]

With a good SGP dollar to AUD dollar exchange rate of 0.91444, and if you have any friends visiting Australia, perhaps you should look at another alternative of sourcing your equipment from here.

Purchases made here when exported out of the country is exempt from GST of 10%

 

[coinfucious888]

Just had a quick look at the website of a reputable seller in Perth.

• For a Canon EOS 50D with EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM, the listed price is AUD $2325.
  
• For a Canon EOS 50D with EF-S 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 IS AUD $2595
  
• For Canon EOS 50D Body AUD$ 1700.

Take off the GST of 10%, how does it then compare with buying similar in S'pore ?

 

[cyquek]

Actually the mode of payment is money transfer thru Western Union...credit cards or paypal is not an option. gosh i thought paypal is safe..anyway never used that before, and i'm glad i didn't :bsmilie:

WESTERN UNION???? You sure the fooker is not from Nigeria? :bigeyes:

Paypal is not safe, my friend's account has got suspended before. They say someone trying to use his account to buy things.....:embrass:

 

[localhost]

With a good SGP dollar to AUD dollar exchange rate of 0.91444, and if you have any friends visiting Australia, perhaps you should look at another alternative of sourcing your equipment from here.

Purchases made here when exported out of the country is exempt from GST of 10%

yeah dats a good alternative, at least u are buying from a store in australia then an online shady website.

by the way australia dollars went up already...

 

[Erikkson]

Anyone bought from Lensmate before?
How long do they take to ship the package through the US Postal Service?

I placed an order for some lens and adapter for my Canon SX10. It's been a week but I my package hasn't arrived.

Thanks.

 

[cyquek]

Anyone bought from Lensmate before?
How long do they take to ship the package through the US Postal Service?

I placed an order for some lens and adapter for my Canon SX10. It's been a week but I my package hasn't arrived.

Thanks.

my experience with USPS is it will take sometimes up to 3 weeks. did they give you a tracking number?