OT: Should I be leery?

Mikeof7 wrote on 6/21/2005, 3:14 PM
There exists a vendor in NY with a website that is offering Sony HDR-FX1 camcorders for $1319.00. The only catch, that I know of, is that the battery, battery charger and warranty (of course) are not included. This is called the "non-US model" and it is not a PAL camcorder.

Has anyone seen this or willing to admit a purchase? It does not appear to be illegal, but there has to be something I'm missing. It looks as though you can buy the charger and battery from the Sony website to make it go.

Thanks in advance.

Comments

PossibilityX wrote on 6/21/2005, 3:15 PM
Mikeof7:

Should you be leery? Yes.

Save yourself a lot of hassle and order from B & H in NYC.

Just my 2 cents...
John_Cline wrote on 6/21/2005, 3:19 PM
TOTAL SCAM. RUN AWAY!!
trock wrote on 6/21/2005, 4:24 PM
What I found with these scam companies is that often after you pay you get an e-mail asking you to "call to confirm your order". If you call, they tell you that it doesn't come with all the standard accessories or is a "non-US model" and then try to sell you the accessories at very exorbitant prices. If you don't bite, the item that you paid for and that was in stock suddenly becomes mysteriously "out of stock" or "backordered" and you have to fight tooth and nail to get your money back.
craftech wrote on 6/21/2005, 4:39 PM
Check them out at resellerratings.com.

I am sure if you mentioned their name though lots of people would give you some horror stories.

John
Jackie_Chan_Fan wrote on 6/21/2005, 4:55 PM
buying cameras is perhaps one of the most dirtiest thing you will ever have to go through.

First off, there are TONS of scammers out there. Many claim to be from New York. Some dont even have stores, but claim their form new york :)

Too often if the price is too good to be true, then it is... ESPECIALLY when buying cameras.

CAmeras are expensive peices of equiptment. There are lots of "grey market" dealers that deal foreign models here in the US for cheap. Often they are refurberd, or stolen.

They have no warranty.... etc

You MUST avoid dealing with any camera store that doesnt feel right. A good clue is very poor phone salesmanship.

Anyone publically advertising a price lower than the SRP is probably a scam. Generally you have to CALL UP to find out the price when dealing with dealers who are trust worthy. Most legit stores will not post ridiculously low prices publically.

If this is your first time buying a camera.... it will be a learning experience. We all learned it. Camera shopping is like the wild wild west. BUY from a REAL well known dealler and avoid prices that look way too low.

johnmeyer wrote on 6/21/2005, 5:26 PM
This link was posted a year ago in this forum. You definitely want to click on it and see what some of these places REALLY look like:

New York Mail Order Stores

Even if you get through all the problems listed in earlier replies, and get a functioning camera, it will not have a U.S. warranty (meaning it has no warranty), and if something goes wrong, you now own a cute rock.
Mikeof7 wrote on 6/21/2005, 6:13 PM
Thanks all.

Yep the phone etiquette was "lacking' to say the very least.
I checked NY Mail order stores, but didn't see the vendor whose name is...DigitalLiquidators.com, BTW.

You can find the HDV camera for $1319 at the site. Still doesn't feel right and seems like I called about a camcorder about 2 years ago and after ordering only the camcorder and paying in full...it was all of a sudden "out-of-stock".
TheHappyFriar wrote on 6/21/2005, 6:18 PM
that's why I always use my CC. Legally (i belive) if a store changes your card they hae to had shipped it.
Mikeof7 wrote on 6/21/2005, 6:22 PM
Fortunately, they actually did refund my money.
rs170a wrote on 6/21/2005, 6:46 PM
I checked NY Mail order stores, but didn't see the vendor whose name is...DigitalLiquidators.com, BTW.

You didn't follow craftech's suggestion of checking them out at resellerratings. If you had, you would've seen a lifetime rating of 0.34 :-(

Mike
Mikeof7 wrote on 6/21/2005, 6:53 PM
Mike & Craftech;

Thanks for the info. I have not, nor will I indulge this company...I never really had a warm, fuzzy feeling about this deal. Too bad. At those advertised prices, I could've made the jump into HDV with 2 or more cameras. Guess it was more wishful thinking anyway.

Mike