topcat Loc: Alameda, CA

Stay away from these "Deals", because they usually are not. Check B&H, Adorama Cameta and KEH. All are reputable and stand behind their products.
That being said, I have purchased from ebay, but not one of these phony deals.

BHC Loc: Strawberry Valley, JF, USA

pappy0352 Loc: Oregon

I've been buying on e-bay for years but when it comes to my camera equipment I only use Adorama and B&H.

Pappy

georgevedwards Loc: Essex, Maryland.

I have a 5200, it is a great camera, and I consider the 18-55mm one of the best lenses I have ever used. The 24 megapixels make almost macro shots possible without a macro lens just by cropping because if the focus is good you can do a lot of enlarging with no loss of detail. The price sounds good. Check the reputability of the seller. BH and Adorama are good advice as others mentioned, usually they have as good a price as you can get. Recently BH kept telling me my item was on backorder and I finally cancelled because others had it, and they promptly complied, although it took a while to get the warranty refunded. I tried one of those extra good deals once and they tried to sell me extra batteries and stuff, and upped the price, and when I tried to back out they didn't want to let go. E bay rates the sellers, and if they have a high rating they are usually reliable. I had a private seller once try to rip me but Ebay actually stepped in and helped. The D5300 is out but I think it is not a big change, I do not feel a need to upgrade. The D5200/5300 has a flip out view screen, called "fully articulated" in the specs. It is rare to find this on even the top of the line cameras, and I personally would not want to be without it now, I think it is great, I find so many times it makes an awkward shot easy. there should be some good deals on the 5200 now.I am curious, you said 3 lens, but mentioned the kit 18-55mm, what are the other two? The other 2 lenses would be what makes it a great deal. I am also curious what kind of software is 24 gb, usually camera deals are hardware items.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Isn't it nice to get all these good answers? Although it's tempting to go for a "good deal," sometimes it isn't a good deal. If you have a Costco within driving distance, they often have very good camera packages. You can even buy from them online if you're not a member, but you pay slightly more.

Also, look for refurbished bodies. That's what I always look for first. Check back here when you're ready to buy.

Hando Rei Loc: Long Island New York

Go to Cameta Camera . Have dealt with them for many years . Have purchased over 40 cameras from P&S to Full frame . Never a problem . Great deals .

BobInNJ Loc: In NJ, near Phila. Pa

NOt to add to the confusion, but state-of-the art today means Sony Alpha (also NEX) mirrorless. Go to a store and try one out; the 5 or 5n may fit your budget. Good Luck and welcome to UHH.

jcboy3

Most of the accessories in these bargain bundles are junk. The worst part is the filters and tele/wide adapters can reduce/ruin the quality of your pictures.

It's not clear what you are doing to research for a new camera. You can find a deal on any camera out there, including these trash bundle deals.

I suggest you decide your budget, what type(s) of photography you want to do (which will determine speed, quality, and focal length range of lens(es)), develop a comparative list of camera models that satisfy those criteria, and then shop for what you want.

If you have a decent local camera store, use it. Let them help you with the decision (after you have done the above). But if you think they have helped you, then do them the favor of buying from them. They will be able to provide a good price, and you should be willing to pay a small premium for the help and service they provide. Be sure that you are comparing prices on US warranty goods; grey market is cheaper but you will be stuck if you need service.

When you decide you need a particular accessory, shop for that. But it's hard enough to settle on a camera without cluttering the decision with extraneous stuff.

EddieC Loc: CT

Also check out the warehouse stores like BJs, Costco, etc. They have new camera kits at great prices with extra lenses, etc.

PhotoPhred Loc: Cheyney, Pa

Go with a reputable dealer as others have mentioned. Cameta, Adorama, B+H,or the Nikon store. You will get a warranty and on site experts to help you.

dennis2146 Loc: Eastern Idaho

I have to totally agree. A friend decided to buy a camera years ago and bought one of these, "kits", that looks to have tons of great equipment at a sweet deal. Now these years later he has still never used some of the equipment. Other items in the kit are of poor quality. It is basically a rip off.

I also suspect that many cameras sold like this are grey market cameras and lenses and you will have a hard time finding service if something goes wrong with them. Always ask the dealer if it is a Nikon USA warranted item.

The information given to you by the other posters is spot on. There is no problem with the Nikon D5200 and the 18-55 lens. They are a great combination but buy from a reputable dealer or go to the Nikon site and see if they have the same camera that has been refurbished. You won't be sorry. B&H or Adorama are also great places to shop.

Dennis

RKL349 Loc: Connecticut

:thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:

RKL349 Loc: Connecticut

The suggested deal by Nikon_DonB from Cameta Camera is the best deal and a great choice of camera and lenses. Many on this site deal with Cameta and they have excellent service. A factory refurbished camera and lenses, emphasis on "factory" because that means Nikon factory experts worked on the equipment and assure that it meets all factory specs, is an excellent buying choice. Seriously, if Amehta and Jerry on this site endorse such deals, you can feel confident that you are making a good choice since they are both well respected contributors on UHH.

Oly Guy

I would say get the d5200 and the kit lens-18 55 or whatever-then get the 2.8 40mm lens-about 175 used and maybe a 70 300 if you want. Then things are pretty well covered. Have the 3200 and with the high iso you can get beautiful stuff at 1200 iso still with the kit lens and the 40mm macro will astound you. Buy used KEH and the whole thing is about 7-800 and a 6 mo wty. The Tamron 18 250 is good also but does have the slight distortion for people and straight lines common with that type lens-but still is a great walk about lens-

rocketride Loc: Upstate NY

What are the other two lenses? Are they actual interchangeable lenses for the camera or are they "adaptor" lenses which go on the front of the 18-55?

If it's the latter, the deal is definitely a rip-off. Add-on lenses of the grade these are likely to be always degrade the optical quality of the main lens.

If it's the former, I'd still want to know specifically what focal length ranges they are and what brand of lens. If they're Nikon, Sigma, Tamron or Tokina, they're at least decent. I'd be leery of other brands.

And I have no idea what that "24GB kit" is-- it would be a weird size for an SD card. They usually come in 8, 16, 32, 64 and 128 MB sizes. It could be that the kit is three 8GB cards. (Which isn't necessarily terrible, in and of itself.) The main things to worry about on the storage front is that the cards are likely to be lower speed and not fast enough to keep up with the camera and that they may be some obscure brand of unknown quality.

{Amended after seeing the link.}

Yup, they're add-on lenses. Optical dreck. Any photos taken with either on front of the main lens will be at least a bit blurry unless you stop way down. f/11 would probably be OK. The telephoto one would probably be OK to burn ants with if you took the rear element out. :D

The SD cards look OK. Transcend is a decent brand. I have several that work well. It's a 16 and an 8 (instead of 3 8s). I'd still want to know what speed they are, vs. what speed the camera wants, though.