Final word on digitalfotoclub.com?

N

Nick Larsen

Member
I searched a bunch and have found a lot of conflicting information about digitalfotoclub.com. If you didn't know, they have a 4.5/5 rating on resellerratings, and favorable ratings on other review sites. However, they are selling the Canon XH A1 for $3498.99 shipped, and have some complaints about grey market items/warranties.

Any info on this subject would be greatly appreciated as $500 is a lot of money to me, but even worse is spending $3500 and then getting a grey market cam, or getting scammed somehow. So please post and let me know your experience with them and the xh a1, and answer any of these questions that you know. I'm really on the fence here on where to buy from, so any help you could provide me, and everyone else looking to buy, would be invaluable.

1 - Grey Market or US model?
2 - US warranty?
3 - Authorized Canon reseller?
4 - All materials included in retail package?
5 - US serial number?
6 - Anything else to know about your purchase?
 
Check one of the threads here. Studiodirector or Scenedirector (can't remember his name) confirmed that his 3500 price wasn't legit.

Grey market Camera.
 
Thanks for the suggestion coffee, but despite your success with the company, there are another 500 that hate it:

1stopcamera aka inoax aka fotoconnection aka thenewconnection have an average rating of under 2 out of 10 from about 500 people at resellerratings. Whereas digitalfoto club has a reasonable 9/10 from about 1500 people.
 
Thanks for your input guys, as I think it is probably best to stave off my desire for bargain hunting and just go for a sure thing from a reliable retailer.
 
"Also, yes, I found out that digitalfotoclub.com has a physical store front under another name. That store I DID find on the CANON website as an authorized seller."

http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showpost.php?p=774731&postcount=153

"Just talked to a Canon rep AT CANON.

They are legit!!!

Hurry up and buy them why you can at digitalfotoclub.com guys. Great service, especially through Ken, great price, and of course, GREAT CAMS!!"

http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showpost.php?p=774057&postcount=144

isn't this two answers?..
 
Yeah, that's exactly why I was confused. scenedirector never really gave a definitive answer on whether everything was legitimate or not. So I was hoping some other members had bought from them and could share their experiences.
 
I can share the experience of calling Canon to ask them, and being told in no uncertain terms that they are *not* an authorized reseller.
 
An authorized dealer has a contractual relationship with the manufacturer and can buy the product directly from them. You are assured that you're getting legit US product, with the full manufacturer's warranty, etc.

An unauthorized dealer is someone who doesn't have any formal relationship with the manufacturer. We don't know where they buy their product from, but we do know that it cannot be from the manufacturer: the manufacturer only sells to authorized dealers. So non-authorized dealers have to get their product elsewhere, and that can mean gray-market imports (with no warranty) or who knows where?

Furthermore, the authorized dealer is required to deliver the box and all its contents to you. The un-authorized dealer? He can do whatever he wants. He can open the box and take out the battery, the lens hood, the manual, etc... just take those out, and then charge you extra for 'em, or sell 'em to someone else. And why not? I mean, in a crass example, he may be functionally no different than some guy selling it out of a van in a parking lot.

Not all un-authorized dealers are shady Crooklyn ripoff joints, obviously -- Newegg and Costco have both dabbled in selling camcorders that they're not authorized to. But all the Crooklyn scam joints are unauthorized dealers.

If you're buying a several-thousand-dollar item, it may behoove you (did I seriously just use that word in a sentence?) to get it from an authorized dealer, who has the full backing of the manufacturer, rather than from some unauthorized joint that came by the camera -- um, how? Where'd it come from? Who knows? The only thing we know for sure is that they didn't buy it from the manufacturer because they can't -- they're not authorized.
 
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Hey guys, I'm here. Just saw this posting.

Yes, Barry "The MAN" Green has confirmed that digitalfotoclub.com is bogus. I'll take his word. The Canon rep I was talking with didn't seem like he knew what I was really talking about.

I DID get ALL the materials the Canon supplies with their A1. This is the first AND LAST time I let a gray market company take my money.
The plus: I bought two of these babies, so I saved a grand, and got everything that was suppose to come with them.
The negative: these are gray market cameras, so if anything goes wrong with them, I guess I'm f-cked!

Hope this helps guys. I was just trying to help my fellow members out, but it seems I just left a lot of hope and confusion. Sorry. I'll try to be more responsible next time.
 
Manufuctures KNOW how many units they build and they KNOW who they're selling them to. They KNOW who the grey market buyers are and sell to them anyway depending on meeting their sales projections. Its like their internet outlet mall for making their quarterly numbers.

If you want to sleep well at night, purchase from an autherized dealer. These cameras are getting so inexpenssive they are almost disposable. If it breaks buy a new one...
 
I'm not quite sure what kind of income ChuckS has that sees a $4,000 item as disposable, but where I come from, $4000 is a lot of money, as is the $500 that could have been saved.

Thanks for clarifying your experience with them scenedirector. And now that I've satisfied my curiousity over pricing, I'm off to order myself an A1 from an authorized dealer.
 
One thing everyone should do in the US is start emailing Canon and saying to them, seal the goddam boxes. With the way they are its so easy to open em up, get yourself a bunch of legit paperwork stuff it in, customer is fooled on a grey market camera.
 
filmmaker1977 said:
i'll be with grey.. me likes grey.. sorry.. gray.. eheheh..
Click to expand...

Uherm sorry for speaking correct British English. Theres no chance you will be allowed to coloUr in my coloUring book any time soon either :P
 
:evil:

edit
don't take my jokes so seriously.. :) i was kidding.. relax :) you're the english speakers.. british, americanssssssssssssssssss, australians, austral africans.. spread allover the world.. well, i'm just a poor non native.. :crybaby: but your avatar rocks.. is she a relative? :Drogar-Love(DBG): :Drogar-BigGrin(DBG)
 
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