RichardSM Loc: Back in Texas

Could not have said it any better my feelings exactly.

CraigFair Loc: Santa Maria, CA.

42nd st has nothing to do with Nikon's superior cameras. Anybody doing business with 42nd st did not read their customer ratings.
I've owned Nikons for 40 years, some Grey Market, and have never needed a single repair.
There are very reputable companies that sell Grey Market equipment and do faithfully honor their Warranties.
I personally don't have a problem with Grey Market, they are the exact same equipment as the USA.
Craig

dcampbell52 Loc: Clearwater Fl

But, private repair shops that are NOT authorized Nikon repair shops can NOT get genuine Nikon parts. Repair shops that are Nikon repair shops can get genuine Nikon parts BUT are forbiden from repairing grey market. (with the exception of Adorama and B&H with are allowed to repair grey market that they sell ( actually, since they have their own repair shops, I don't think they bother Nikon with telling them that they are repairing camera xyz from India when it is one that they sold and are responsible for. 42nd Street Photo, on the other hand, is neither an authorized dealer or an authorized repair facility, so their customers are angry when it comes time for repair. This is a problem, even after the warranty is done. If the serial number comes up as an out of the country serial number, Nikon will ask for a copy of the invoice and proof that you are either visiting from that country or demand that it be sent back to that country for repair. I don't know how Canon deals with the situation, but that is how Nikon's support staff are told to deal with it and supervisors, and officers of Nikon USA will not budge on that issue. This is to protect the authorized dealers from others seeking to undermine their sales. Authoirized dealers are not allowed to discount the camera or any Nikon parts BUT, they are allowed to include 3rd party accessories to sweeten the deal on a Nikon sale.. (for instance, your purchase of a Nikon body, with a 3rd party camera bag, battery, filters etc for the price of the camera body alone.)

Carl 383 Loc: Southampton UK

Grey market bodies are exactly the same as a camera body bought in America, the only difference is that it has a manufactures warranty honoured in America. It depends how reliable the camera is, as to whether it is worthwhile paying the extra.
What you are doing is hoping it will break down within the warranty period, that way you will feel as if you are getting value for money but the way Canon and Nikon have released cameras with poor research and development resulting in far more recalls and warranty claims than in the past means buying an officially imported body you are more than likely to get customer satisfaction as you send it back for repair.
For me, if I am going to save 10% or more by buying grey then it will average out as cost effective to go grey.

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

The local importer sets the policy. I think it's fairly safe to say that the importer does not want to foot the bill for warranty service if it is not their responsibility. The US warranty is provided by the US importer, not the manufacturer. If you try to get your US warranted camera fixed by an English importer's repair facility, there is likely to be a standard repair charge, if they'll fix it at all.

OlinBost Loc: Marietta, Ga.

I bought a used D70s not knowing it was a Japan issued unit. No problems so far and the shutter count was low.

Dan Mc Loc: NM

Much ado about nothing, or....a community of incredibly Much ado about nothing, really; or a community of pessimistic and paranoid folks!

How many have actually had serious issues with any camera or lens? Most never encounter a problem unless it is something they themselves did!

Do you buy ye more expensive razor blade because it is "gareunnnnteed" to be better?

Really????

Tomcat5133 Loc: Gladwyne PA

Let's see dropped an old Nikon 20 ago on tour and had
film door replaced. Had a cheaper Leica and sensor went a few months after use about 10 years ago. Sent Nikon D800 back for card acceptance problems fixed got back in week and worked.
Owned many camera's and lens. And many video camera's. Used by not used at pro pace even though much involved my marketing creative work.
So Camera's and len's are remarkable for their reliability.
Not problem. And if you are buying a Nikon and are in the US
buy a US model!!

Math78 Loc: Scottsdale, AZ

I agree completely. Buying gray market is not a moral question or legal guestion, it is strictly dollars saved and how much risk you are willing to take. A warranty is just an insurance policy - usually overpriced. When possible, I prefer to be self-insuranced on consumer goods. If occasionally I get a lemon, I'll eat the cost and still come out ahead in the long run.

In 1971, a new college graduate without much money, I wanted to get a good 35mm camera. I bought an SRT-101 from an ad in a photography magazine. I sent a money order to Hong Kong, and three weeks later the mailman delivered my camera and collected $10 in duty. As I remember, the Hong Kong price was less than half of what a US shop charged. I don't know if the term gray markey was used back then. I just considered myself to be an importer. Over the next few years, I bought some lenses and other cameras the same way. Never had a problem. I still have the Minolta gear and it still works.

Last year, I bought a new D7100 from a retail seller on eBay. I paid $1200 for a body and two kit lenses. The exact same items on B&H were $1800. Modern electronic items are very reliable. The chances of a Nikon camera failing in the first year has got be to be much less than 10%. More than that and they would be out of business. $600 savings easily covered my risk. A year later, the D7100 still works fine. If it stopped working (or fell in the lake), I can replace it for about what I saved originally. Adorama has refurb for $700 and eBay new bodies are selling for $600 to $700.

Does anybody know why cameras have this huge difference in price for gray market? I don't see gray market TVs.

londonfire Loc: NY to NC

Wow, a problem with 42nd St. Photo? Imagine that....

mborn Loc: Massachusetts

I bet it has to due with taxes and import duties plus Nikon USA its authorized dealers must sell within a certain limit. That is why the prices on Adorama, B&H etc. are so close in price

jmizera Loc: Austin Texas

Your example of razor blades is not actually the same. You're actually talking about different products, vs. a version of the same product intended for one market, and not another. The distributor is compensated for providing warranty service for those authorized imports. And if it's a good product, why do you even need a warranty after all?

Well, four years ago I bought a fairly high end Sony camcorder. Actually bought it from the local dealer, as I would be using it professionally. After a couple of shoots, it was displaying an error code, and would not record. Contacted Sony, sent it in, it was returned after service, and worked fine since. The flat rate service would have cost $900, nearly 1/4 the cost of the camera.

So grey market on a tripod, sure. Lens, maybe. Camera? Nope.

Mick1967 Loc: Tucson, Az.

I have a Canon Rebel xti, it is a wonderful camera easy to use and easy to edit my photographs. However I used to have a Pentax K1000, and a Pentax Mk, the K1000 was fully manual, while the Mk had automatic ufeatures. I have never taken pictures like I used to when using my old manual K1000, and semi automatic Mk. With the right film and film speed my photos were amazing and easy to work with. Plus any photograph can be scanned to any computer, and these days even with film, you get not only the negatives but a digital CD WITH YOUR photos. I love my Canon Rebel and I will probably upgrade to a newer model, but I am definitely going to buy a new or used (more likely) Pentax K1000.

Anandnra Loc: Tennessee

Come on Jerry .... Not so naive! Canon and Nikon make a ton of money on gray market products as well. It's the distributors/middle men who make the incremental profit on non gray market stuff. I am not by any means endorsing gray market merchandise just pointing out that manufacturers make their profit either way just so long as their products are sold.

rob s Loc: La Mesa, CA

NO! Another reason to avoid 42nd St like a case of ebola. I'm not a fan of Nikons although they are fine cameras - just a personal thing about how they handle BUT it's not the equipment's fault.