donrent wrote:
I have brought every Camera , every photo item, (for years and years) from one, and only one place.
And that is EBay.
NEVER had a bad deal or been screwed !
Me too--for years I bought mostly large format that way.
My Canon 650D is actually the same as the American Rebel series T4, only for Asian market. The 650D is not sold to US dealers. It was cheaper than the stores prices here for T4, sold new on eBay. It came with warranty card from Canon, standard package. I have never needed service on it (10 years), but whenever I have called for assistance about it they never cared where I bought it. If it is warranted in Asia, why would they not warrant it here--especially since an Asian might bring it here?
Long ago, I am thinking 30 or 40 years ago, the Courts ruled that manufacturer warranties apply whether you send in a card or not--if you have a receipt for the new product. I have always thought of the term "grey market" as based on the antiquated idea of "authorized dealers"--Kmart killed that idea 50 years ago when they won an Anti-Trust case that manufacturers must sell to any retailer, who can then sell at any price. Before that, manufacturer's put tags on items showing Manufacturer's Suggested Price (and would not sell to discounters). That was conspiratorial price-fixing, illegal.
When I was in camera retail, we did not buy anything unless the wholesale supplier (or manufacturer, if bought direct) would take everything back without question when defective. So we never argued with a customer--we got our money back, and they got theirs. No skin off our backs. Later, however, as computers were used for purchasing and bookkeeping, and sales reps who authorized returns became redundant, suppliers agreed on a set amount of credit to cover all defects, possibly 5% of sales. Then the stores just tossed the goods when they refunded them. But wait--they got greedy. Stores like Walmart and Kmart that had always been generous about refunds started putting limits and exceptions--they took their defect allowance from suppliers, then stiffed the customers by various rules and exceptions. Even computers can be greedy.
When I worked at Kmart, a woman brought in a box of antique camera lens filers we had not carried for a long time. She said, "He passed away, and I have no use for them." They had our price tickets on them, so they were refunded. Note--when Kmart got sticky about refunds, they were in bankruptcy court within 2 years. Same with Sears--they went from warranty-forever, to warranty for extra price, only with paperwork.