True costs of Costco & MORE newbie buyer tips
True costs of Costco & MORE newbie buyer tips
Hi all DVX100 newbies.
Just grabbed two DVX100bs in time for rebate. Researched like crazy before plunking down my seven grand (egads). So, I thought some fellow DVXusers might appreciate this, especially newbie buyers in the camcorder world.
If ya own a cam or have already been through the cam buying shell game- stop reading this and go read about follow focus or depth of field or something. This here's for dvx100b cam buying newbies only.
HERE's what I went through in ordering my first two beloved DVX100B cameras (wipes moist eyes proudly):
CAM A: went through B&H. Ordered 8 AM on MAY 31, shipped same day, received phone call, confirmation e-mail, tracking number all before 3 PM, item shipped out before close of business day. $3499 pre-rebate plus $35.50 ship for a total of $3,535.45- Includes the Impact 777 camera bag for free. NO SALES TAX to Orlando, FL.
See it here:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=406855&is=REG&addedTroughType=categoryNavigation
CAM B: Decided to take a chance on NEWEGG.com for second cam, as CNET showed their pre-rebate price as $3199. No bag included, but best price I found from a RELIABLE name. Never having purchased through newegg, I feared upsells, out of stocks, etc, so I checked tons of reviews of their site at epinions, bizrate, etc. Gambled. Won.
Camera was $3199, plus $12.62 shipping= [FONT=Arial, Helvetica]$3,212.61 total. Again, NO SALES TAX to FL.[/FONT]
See it here:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16830180049
The RESULTS:
CAM A: B&H package arrives UPS June 5. Order to delivery= 5 days!
CAM B: NewEgg package arrives UPS June 6. Order to delivery= 6 days!
Hugs and kisses of UPS delivery guys, cartwheels, multiple bottles of champagne with plastic cork, nude dancing to a tribal beat... you get the picture.
Very happy with BOTH companies. B&H slightly edged newegg in cust serv... only because they sent a mountain of confirmation e-mails in multiple formats and beat-em by one day in shipping, but newegg still had very good e-mail updates, NO PHONE CALL verification hassles and I will definitely use again.
Now, why no Costco?
$3499 price for Cam... So far, no problem, same as B&H. Pricey and at retail, but you get what you pay for, reliable customer service, local store returns, trustworthy name, etc.
$25.75 ship, PLUS $229.17 SALES TAX = $3,754.90 TOTAL
$229.17 Sales tax? Uggh.
I highly recommend newegg for anyone looking for a dvx100b. Without the tax, apples to apples I saved $542.29 over the costco deal.
I love buying at costco, and will continue buying 10 pound bags of tater tots and cases of Pilsner Urquell beer there. But when it comes to cams (mail order anyway) I will stick with B&H for awesome service and now, will also check newegg.com for price. BTW, B&H is only NY city dealer I will use. In either case, I rcvd NONE of the usual NY camera shop/huxster upsell/threat hassles at either dealer (new egg is CA based). Both companies smooth and easy.
BTW- I almost tried BEACH CAMERA- they seemed to have a good deal at $3325 before shipping. Site had good reviews (still, they are a NY city camera dealer- queasy feeling in bottom of stomach, alarm claxon, sweaty palms, etc) but newegg has 30 day return period.
Only 15 Day returns? With a 20% restock fee on opened shipments? Should I just spock mindmeld the unopened box right there in front of the delivery driver to see if the camcorder is working?
Sorry BEACH. I'd actually like to try putting batteries in the durn thing and see if it turns on. Maybe I missed something as I scanned your policy, but any way- I'll try ya again soon on a cam bag or focus ring or something.
I mean, how can you tell if a cam works within 15 days? Heck, it takes 3 days just to get over the hangover from the "DVX100B" arrival party, then another half day to find where you hid the camera, another afternoon to charge the batteries, two or three more days to track down a place where you can actually buy the Panasonic AY-DVM63MQ Mini-DV tapes locally (and Orlando is a big town- found only ONE place).
I know, I know... I could have tried any ole MINI-DV tape for testing, but I read all the stuff here at DVXuser about only using JUST ONE TAPE for the life of the camera to avoid tapehead dropouts- hey I'm trying to be a good father here with the newborn twins.
Bottom line is, after all that- a 15 day return policy aint gonna cut it (remember, you still have to ship it back in the same time frame).
So, go with Costco if you want to pay extra for sales tax but receive peace of mind. B&H is retail price, but c'mon, they ARE B&H so you get no hassles, very reputable, professional communication, fast shipping and no sales tax depending on where you live. Or try newegg for cheapest price, great service. ALL OTHER DEALERS read their return policy THOROUGHLY.
BTW, both NEWEGG.com and COSTCO advertise the cams as the PANASONIC DVX100BMBK. Being a newbie to this process as well, I kinda freaked out about this... but after some online research, determined it was a fancy way of saying the latest model DVX100B. In either case, what arrived from both B&H and newegg is actually the DVX100BP... which is apparently exactly the model number to strive for according to some internet articles.
Remember, your experiences may vary. But hope it helps- happy DVXing.
P.S.
I, like many, many other users of this forum have quickly found through these posts that BARRY is a DVX god.
Is he short, green and living on a swampy planet somewhere out there? I dunno, but I AM buying his book & DVD later today, to avoid the costly and lengthy x-wing fighter flight:
http://www.dvxuser.com/articles/dvxbook/
Bless you Barry.
True costs of Costco & MORE newbie buyer tips
Hi all DVX100 newbies.
Just grabbed two DVX100bs in time for rebate. Researched like crazy before plunking down my seven grand (egads). So, I thought some fellow DVXusers might appreciate this, especially newbie buyers in the camcorder world.
If ya own a cam or have already been through the cam buying shell game- stop reading this and go read about follow focus or depth of field or something. This here's for dvx100b cam buying newbies only.
HERE's what I went through in ordering my first two beloved DVX100B cameras (wipes moist eyes proudly):
CAM A: went through B&H. Ordered 8 AM on MAY 31, shipped same day, received phone call, confirmation e-mail, tracking number all before 3 PM, item shipped out before close of business day. $3499 pre-rebate plus $35.50 ship for a total of $3,535.45- Includes the Impact 777 camera bag for free. NO SALES TAX to Orlando, FL.
See it here:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=406855&is=REG&addedTroughType=categoryNavigation
CAM B: Decided to take a chance on NEWEGG.com for second cam, as CNET showed their pre-rebate price as $3199. No bag included, but best price I found from a RELIABLE name. Never having purchased through newegg, I feared upsells, out of stocks, etc, so I checked tons of reviews of their site at epinions, bizrate, etc. Gambled. Won.
Camera was $3199, plus $12.62 shipping= [FONT=Arial, Helvetica]$3,212.61 total. Again, NO SALES TAX to FL.[/FONT]
See it here:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16830180049
The RESULTS:
CAM A: B&H package arrives UPS June 5. Order to delivery= 5 days!
CAM B: NewEgg package arrives UPS June 6. Order to delivery= 6 days!
Hugs and kisses of UPS delivery guys, cartwheels, multiple bottles of champagne with plastic cork, nude dancing to a tribal beat... you get the picture.
Very happy with BOTH companies. B&H slightly edged newegg in cust serv... only because they sent a mountain of confirmation e-mails in multiple formats and beat-em by one day in shipping, but newegg still had very good e-mail updates, NO PHONE CALL verification hassles and I will definitely use again.
Now, why no Costco?
$3499 price for Cam... So far, no problem, same as B&H. Pricey and at retail, but you get what you pay for, reliable customer service, local store returns, trustworthy name, etc.
$25.75 ship, PLUS $229.17 SALES TAX = $3,754.90 TOTAL
$229.17 Sales tax? Uggh.
I highly recommend newegg for anyone looking for a dvx100b. Without the tax, apples to apples I saved $542.29 over the costco deal.
I love buying at costco, and will continue buying 10 pound bags of tater tots and cases of Pilsner Urquell beer there. But when it comes to cams (mail order anyway) I will stick with B&H for awesome service and now, will also check newegg.com for price. BTW, B&H is only NY city dealer I will use. In either case, I rcvd NONE of the usual NY camera shop/huxster upsell/threat hassles at either dealer (new egg is CA based). Both companies smooth and easy.
BTW- I almost tried BEACH CAMERA- they seemed to have a good deal at $3325 before shipping. Site had good reviews (still, they are a NY city camera dealer- queasy feeling in bottom of stomach, alarm claxon, sweaty palms, etc) but newegg has 30 day return period.
Only 15 Day returns? With a 20% restock fee on opened shipments? Should I just spock mindmeld the unopened box right there in front of the delivery driver to see if the camcorder is working?
Sorry BEACH. I'd actually like to try putting batteries in the durn thing and see if it turns on. Maybe I missed something as I scanned your policy, but any way- I'll try ya again soon on a cam bag or focus ring or something.
I mean, how can you tell if a cam works within 15 days? Heck, it takes 3 days just to get over the hangover from the "DVX100B" arrival party, then another half day to find where you hid the camera, another afternoon to charge the batteries, two or three more days to track down a place where you can actually buy the Panasonic AY-DVM63MQ Mini-DV tapes locally (and Orlando is a big town- found only ONE place).
I know, I know... I could have tried any ole MINI-DV tape for testing, but I read all the stuff here at DVXuser about only using JUST ONE TAPE for the life of the camera to avoid tapehead dropouts- hey I'm trying to be a good father here with the newborn twins.
Bottom line is, after all that- a 15 day return policy aint gonna cut it (remember, you still have to ship it back in the same time frame).
So, go with Costco if you want to pay extra for sales tax but receive peace of mind. B&H is retail price, but c'mon, they ARE B&H so you get no hassles, very reputable, professional communication, fast shipping and no sales tax depending on where you live. Or try newegg for cheapest price, great service. ALL OTHER DEALERS read their return policy THOROUGHLY.
BTW, both NEWEGG.com and COSTCO advertise the cams as the PANASONIC DVX100BMBK. Being a newbie to this process as well, I kinda freaked out about this... but after some online research, determined it was a fancy way of saying the latest model DVX100B. In either case, what arrived from both B&H and newegg is actually the DVX100BP... which is apparently exactly the model number to strive for according to some internet articles.
Remember, your experiences may vary. But hope it helps- happy DVXing.
P.S.
I, like many, many other users of this forum have quickly found through these posts that BARRY is a DVX god.
Is he short, green and living on a swampy planet somewhere out there? I dunno, but I AM buying his book & DVD later today, to avoid the costly and lengthy x-wing fighter flight:
http://www.dvxuser.com/articles/dvxbook/
Bless you Barry.
