Best place to buy a DSLR

[mydogsteelo]

I am traveling to Singapore and Taipei in august and have decided its time to make the jump to a DSLR i figure its a good time as i can hopefully get it a little cheaper than i can here in oz? Does anyone know which country i'd be better off buying the camera in?

Im probably going to buy a canon 6d but there is every chance ill jump to a 5dmkiii on the spur of the moment, I realize these are really high end cameras but i am comfortable with manual controlls and i'd like to buy the best i can afford now rather than wishing i had gone for something better in the future.

Any help at all or story's of buying cameras in Asia i'd love to hear about.

 

[SeatBackForward]

I am traveling to Singapore and Taipei in august and have decided its time to make the jump to a DSLR i figure its a good time as i can hopefully get it a little cheaper than i can here in oz? Does anyone know which country i'd be better off buying the camera in?

Last month I visited Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong, and was hoping to buy some electronic gadgets from any of those places. The best price I had was actually anAustralian online website, that delivered to Aus from Hong Kong, as grey imports. They had a price (including delivery) that was cheaper than I could find in person at stores and markets in Hong Kong even. I was stunned.

 

[markis10]

I am not sure if Asia is the bargain it once was, in Taipei most of the camera stores are on whats called Camera Street between Bo Ai Rd and Hankou St, No. 28 Bo Ai Rd is probably the most popular Canon supplier:


https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=....047503,121.510543&spn=0.003912,0.008256&z=18

Ewhat is a popular gray market supplier next to Zhishan MRT Station on Fuhua Rd and the newer store is next to Zhongxiao Fuxing MRT

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Key Photo is a must for bits and pieces (they dont do bodys or lenses), located at 5F No. 37 Dongxin Rd, Taipei, located above the Carrefore Supermarket

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[AaronBradford]

Careful with warranties on grey imports - can be a bit hazardous to negotiate.

 

[kimjongun]

I bought a lens in Singapore and kicked the dog when I got home because digitalcamerawarehouse.com.au was cheaper

 

[markis10]

I bought a lens in Singapore and kicked the dog when I got home because digitalcamerawarehouse.com.au was cheaper

They do what you were doing, at least you got the goods in the end!

 

[SeatBackForward]

They do what you were doing, at least you got the goods in the end!

And..there are plenty of cases of these grey importers selling second hand and refurbished items as new. At least buying in person gives you the chance to verify what you're getting.

 

[ash.1111]

I'm a photographer so I know a few different sites to look at before making my purchase. Remember that for most brands, you need to purchase genuine Australian stock to get the manufacturer warranties. Unless you want to send your camera/lens back to another country to get serviced. I really DON'T recommend buying overseas. I've had problems with genuine stock being faulty and had enough trouble dealing with it in the country of purchase -- let alone another country. In saying that, I've heard Hong Kong-based DigitalRev (same company as the famous YouTube channel) is quite good all things considered.

So if you want to buy in Australia at the lowest cost, here's a list I have compiled through my own personal experiences. I don't know where you live, but this is a Brisbane stores list, sorry. BTW, I've had some problems with CameraPro in the past, so I don't personally recommend buying from them. Just use them as a pricing tool.

- CameraPro (Home page | CameraPro Australia)
- Digital Camera Warehouse (Digital Camera Warehouse - Sydney, Melbourne & Brisbane Stores)
- Photo Continental (Digital Cameras, Scrapbooking, Beading, Craft And Photo Superstore.) (good place to buy)
- JB HiFi (JB Hi Fi - Buy Cheap TVs, Computers, Laptops, iPads, iPhones, Mobile Phones, Home Theatre, Music, Movies, Musical Instruments, Games & Game Consoles.) (sometimes they go below their "cost price" to match an offer elsewhere)
- Ted's Cameras (Digital Cameras and Camera Accessories | Video Cameras | Teds Cameras Australia - Ted's Cameras) (usually get to try the product for 7 days)

 

[BensAdventures]

I've bought a lot of Canon Camera gear in Hong Kong and I've always found good service (really knowledgeable) and good prices from Wing Shing in Mongkok. Dad is looking at the same camera as you are looking at, and I'm dropping through Hong Kong is a month or two so and I'll probably be pricing it up for him. Good luck!

 

[Paddy55]

If you are spending good and (relatively) big $$$ on a DSLR, lenses, etc, etc there's only two places I would buy them from:

1. Aust web sites where you are assured of the warranty being honored (so no grey importers), or
2. BHPhotoVideo in New York, including from their web site -great reputation, including for online sales I'm told

... but I'm conservative

 

[drron]

Well I bought a new camera a month ago-mrsdrron actually bought it for me.I need an idiot proof camera and my Sony fits the bill.The cheapest price for the camera was from Sony Australia and their end of year sale.cheaper than B&H NYC where I bought my old one.Only 1 of the Hong kong online places had it at the same price-none cheaper.

 

[stewiejp]

Good on you for making the jump, I did it years ago and haven't been disappointed.

What has been said re grey importers ring true for warranties, as well as asia not being the bargain it once was for things like cameras. I ended up buying mine from Ted's but only because they matched a few online/instore quotes I got. From memory the package I got was going for around $1800 ("on special"), but they ended up dropping it to $1250. Not sure where you are but this was in their Melbourne City store, where there are a few other camera shops around, and they seemed eager to match each others' quotes. JB also matched this price. The Ted's $99 "club fee" may be worth it as well (longer warranties I think, plus an annual service and clean free for the first 5 years life of your camera.)
Bear in mind that if you are spending the kind of money a 6D or 5D will set you back, you'll soon be looking at lenses which cost even more. It's an expensive hobby but so worth it.

B&H in the US have some good deals, got a few lenses off them and they are happy to discount their shipping. ($25 from memory flat rate, and it arrived in a few days). If you are a frequent traveler to Asia, the lens prices could be worth it, as we (Aussies) seem to get charged a hell of a lot more than there and the US. Not sure if Canon have changed their policy but lenses warranties used to be covered globally - touch wood, nothing has gone wrong with any of mine so far and I've bought them from Aus, US and Thailand.

Look online for prices of bags and other accessories as well, another item that for whatever reason is often 2x what one would pay overseas.

Have fun.