How many buy Grey vs Local ?

Energize · 7 May 2015 at 01:43

For bodies, always grey. Regarding lenses, with the cheaper ones like the nifty 50/35/85 there's not much room for any price difference and I'll buy local, but the more expensive ones like 70-200mm f/2.8 will be grey.

D.P. said:
Always by local.

If you want to take more risk and get lower prices then second hand beats grey import.

New beats used.

Columbo · 7 May 2015 at 05:13

A mixture of both for me, I try to support my local camera shop as best I can as they are a dying breed but on bodies they just can't compete with the grey suppliers.

deuse · 7 May 2015 at 07:52

D.P. said:
By definition you dont get a manufacturers warranty, you get a warranty form the shop that sold it, which is much the same as buy second hand from a shop.

Nope. I've got a official 3 year warranty with Nikon on my Grey camera\Lens.

I'll buy from who ever is the cheapest.

Steeps · 7 May 2015 at 10:01

I have a mix of grey, used and UK new and I don't have a problem using any of them. The UK new ones were only slightly more than grey at the time of purchase. I'm looking at a body upgrade and I'd save 1k going grey over UK stock!

D.P. · 7 May 2015 at 12:07

deuse said:
Nope. I've got a official 3 year warranty with Nikon on my Grey camera\Lens.

I'll buy from who ever is the cheapest.

Then it is either not grey, or the warranty is not in the UK, or you've been lied to.
The definition of grey is not local stock and thus no local warranty.

It wouldn't be the first time that a so called auK stock camera turned out,to be grey stock which Nikon refuses to touch.

a1ex2001 · 7 May 2015 at 12:56

Most of my gear is second hand and I've actually not got any idea if any of it is grey or not ooops. I have picked up a couple of imports as they were cheap and have had warranty repairs carried out by DR which was a simple and pain free process.

I will probably never buy brand new UK stock as I prefer the value god second hand stuff represents and can't stand how much cheaper imported stuff is!

Fr0dders · 7 May 2015 at 13:16

I bought mine via a US Grey import.

Great service from the importer, and even though my warranty is only with them and not with Canon, it doesn't worry me too much. At the end of the day, manufacturers only offer 3 year warrantys for a reason - its morel ikely to develop a fault after this period which is when your UK warranty won't help you. I've had TVs go wrong, computers etc.. and they've all gone wrong outside of the warranty period. I'm 32 and never actually claimed on a warranty for anything in my adult life. The stuff that failed has always been outside of warranty and not covered.

The import is still cheaper now than what used second hand models are going for on ebay taking into account my lens So i'm willing to take the risk. Worst comes to the worst if it breaks, you just pay somebody to fix it. If the cost outweighs what its worth you sell it as spares or repair on ebay and upgrade.

Steve M · 7 May 2015 at 13:41

Maybe i've just been lucky, but never had any electrical item i've bought in the last 15 years need replacing within the warrantly period either.

I'd take no manufacturer warranty and cheaper product over manufacturer warranty and more expensive product every time.

You pays your money and you takes your chance as they say.

Terminal_Boy · 7 May 2015 at 13:43

All my gear has been bought locally from a real shop apart from a lens I purchased from a real shop on a trip to the USA.

Something to do with my wanting to try before I buy I imagine.

peige · 7 May 2015 at 14:07

Columbo said:
A mixture of both for me, I try to support my local camera shop as best I can as they are a dying breed but on bodies they just can't compete with the grey suppliers.

This exactly for me. On my 6d there was just no way I could justify the "local" price over the savings I could make with a grey.

D.P. · 7 May 2015 at 14:28

Energize said:
New beats used.

Sometimes, but the advantage of used and new from shop vs grey which is online is you can try before you buy and check the specific copy of the lens works well on your camera without serious micro-adjustment.

IF you pay the VAT on a grey import then I have absolutely zero issues, it is all just a trade-off in cost and risk.
There are lot of other risks which people tend to ignore with grey imports. For starters you often aren't dealing with UK company so UK trading laws often don't apply, get shafted from an HK online dealer, well you are on you r own, and even your credit card protection may not be valid (and heaven help you if you use bank transfer). Then there are things like there are fake cameras out there, a Nikon gave an advisory that certain grey import D800E's sold on ebay were actually just regular D800 cameras. And then there is the risk that your warranty with the shop becomes useless. E.g, if the online shop closes down you are left with no warranty, while a UK stock item can always be repaired under warranty for free. And then there is just the customer service aspect, I trust the likes of B&H, Amazon, WEX lot more than an HK online only company that commits tax fraud

Energize · 8 May 2015 at 04:09

Oh c'mon buying off ebay? There are reputable HK based retailers with websites to buy from.

As for testing specific lens copies, you aren't going to get that from any online retailer, based in the UK, or HK. It's a premium that has to be paid for above that of mere VAT, and most people don't even have access to shops that stock such equipment anywhere near them.

Equipment failures during the time period your describing are so rare it's not even worth worrying about, and is more than covered by the savings you make over time.

9designs2 · 9 May 2015 at 21:29

Anyone used Kachashop on the bay? .... (Items said to be dispatched from UK warehouse)......... Check MM for my D7000.....

shadow_boxer · 11 May 2015 at 01:17

What are people's thoughts on buying from B&H. Not bought from there before and delivery/customs charges don't seem too bad to the UK. I'd just be concerns about returns. Read a lot of mixed reviews about them and their customer services.

Raymond Lin · 11 May 2015 at 07:11

shadow_boxer said:
What are people's thoughts on buying from B&H. Not bought from there before and delivery/customs charges don't seem too bad to the UK. I'd just be concerns about returns. Read a lot of mixed reviews about them and their customer services.

Only bought one lens and never used their return CS, but it's in the US so it's going to be a hassle either way.

ZG002 · 11 May 2015 at 07:23

All depends on the saving, My D7100 is a grey import. It was just shy of £300 cheaper at the time. if it had only been £150 or so I'd of bought local.

deuse · 11 May 2015 at 08:12

D.P. said:
Then it is either not grey, or the warranty is not in the UK, or you've been lied to.
The definition of grey is not local stock and thus no local warranty.

It wouldn't be the first time that a so called auK stock camera turned out,to be grey stock which Nikon refuses to touch.

Yes they are grey and I got a warranty card and signed up to Nikon using it.
One has to watch who they are buying from.

Why do you argue with people so much?

Fr0dders · 11 May 2015 at 08:44

He's arguing because this issue has come up time and time again - Nikon UK will not honour the warranty for stock bought outside the EU. Ring up Nikon and ask if your warranty is valid in the UK for a camera you bought from a shop in the USA or Hong Kong - and they'll say no.

I can only assume you're talking about a product that came with a worldwide warranty. What did your warranty card look like by the way ? was it a european one or worldwide one ?

https://nikoneurope-en.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/24908

deuse · 11 May 2015 at 09:03

Yep. Both of my greys came with a WW warranty card. As I said I check before I buy.

Fr0dders · 11 May 2015 at 09:26

what items were they out of interest ?

From reading nikons website it implies the worldwide warranty is dependent upon the type of product rather than the retailer / country of purchase