eBay Canon 5D MkIII - would you?

futureal33

futureal33

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Hi all,

I am going to be buying a Canon 5DmkIII either today or tomorrow, and am currently trying to decide where to buy it from.

At the minute, I am tied between two Hong Kong importing companies, and also considering Jessops on interest free finance, though they are a lot more expensive.

This is currently my #1 - http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=300679349789&ssPageName=ADME:X:RTQ:GB:1123

I have emailed the seller and they import the item to a UK redistribution centre (which handles the import, pays any import fees and VAT etc) and they then re-distribute the item to your door via Royal Mail.

On paper this sounds good.... Im just wondering if you would do it?

Other option is Digital Rev - great feedback, but slightly more expensive.

Thoughts?
Thanks for any help!
 
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The price they offer is certainly credible in terms of providing the trading co./individual with a mark-up.

I bought a 5DIII from an official Canon retailer in Kuala Lumpur for just over £1900 (including a Canon screen protector, applied for me without bubbles!, a fast Sandinsk 32gb SD card, and an SD card reader.)
 
mmmmm...looks intresting....
I'm looking for a 5D3 myself...and I thought DigitalRev was the best price...
I do like this bit though?....
'For environmental friendly reason, instruction BOOK Manual may or may not be supplied'....
 
Don't use DigitalRev via eBay as I had them confirm that via eBay any issues will result in it being shipped back to HK & you pay the duties etc. They are okay via the main website though as I belive they repair locally and pay the import.

I don;t know about these guys though.
 
HDEW Cameras sound good.. just their price is quite a bit more than DigitalRev, I like the 3 year warranty too, although Im not sure how bulletproof that would really be?

Ive been scared off the eBay one for now (a lot of money to risk) and am currently most attracted to DigitalRev because of the popularity on these forums...

I will be ordering at 12noon tomorrow so tonight is going to be spent reading reviews of various traders etc, so any help is much appreciated!

Nick
 
Have you had a look at the canon outlet shop on eBay I've bought 2 500ds of there and a couple of lenses all come with a years canon warranty just had a problem with the shutter on one of the 500d sent it to Colchester camera all repaired under warranty
 
I would be astonished if any 5D3's appeared on the eBay outlet shop any time soon!
 
I procured my grey import 5d3 from Ebay at a good price. I guess the main difference was that it was already in the UK so there was no possibility of being stung for tax.

Not sure I would've wanted to risk something from Hong Kong if only for that reason.

If there's an only slightly more expensive option with much more peace of mind then I'd plump for that myself.
 
Well ive bit the bullet and have just bought one from the eBay ad above!
Im already worrying about it!!

There was a fault on DigitalRev's website which kept giving me a red error message whenever I tried to click checkout, so I had to go with the eBay advert.

Fingers crossed for a smooth (and speedy) transaction, as I have an upcoming wedding and need the camera for it!

Will keep this thread updated!
 
hope it works out ok for you - fingers crossed here :)
 
Greed and fear is what drives the market!
 
Good luck - I'll keep a good eye on this :)
 
futureal33 said:
Well ive bit the bullet and have just bought one from the eBay ad above!
Im already worrying about it!!
Will keep this thread updated!
Click to expand...

Hope it doesn't come back to shoot you in the foot!!....will keep watching, did you pay by credit card??
32 already sold, really.
 
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futureal33 said:
Well ive bit the bullet and have just bought one from the eBay ad above!
Im already worrying about it!!
Click to expand...

Did you request a manual with it? Just read this on the advert:

For environmental friendly reason, instruction BOOK Manual may or may not be supplied. For most of the brands and their products, a CD manual (normally in PDF format) is included in the package. In case NO CD manual is supplied, please either go to the official website of the brand to download it or ask us for the link. If you insist to have a BOOK Manual, please make the request by message first and awaits our confirmation prior to your purchase.

How conscientious of them to be so environmentally friendly!! :lol:
 
Looks promising - just took a look at the feedback and there are a few in there of that specific model with positive feedback form different people - just a shame I don;t have 2.1K kicking about!

Only 8 left now
 
I wouldn't have bought it if not for 2 reasons

1) His feedback (and the fact that feedback has already been left for some 5DmkIII's he's sold on the same listing)

2) The fact he has a UK redistribution centre (which I know is probably just some bloke's bedroom, but at least its something, rather than an address in Hong Kong!) and this should mean that any import duties are picked up by the redist-centre, rather than me..
 
My friend recently picked one up in Thailand for £1.9k, I wonder why its so much more expensive at around £3k retail in the UK
 
Just received an email from the eBay store to say my item has been shipped. They have posted it Royal Mail Special Delivery and have given me the tracking number.

I guess this means it is in the UK!

**edit they have also sent me photo's of it!!* attaching now...

shipimg.jpg


shipimg2.jpg
 
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That is not RMSD from the photos. That is bog standard signed for postage. Confused why they have a 1st Class postage page sticker on but have covered it in 2nd class stamps?

But if they've gone to the trouble of sending photos lets hope it reaches you safely and you've grabbed yourself a bargain.
 
If i was spending that much i wouldn't be buying it from ebay, i wouldn't be buying from abroad.

Hope it arrives and any warranty is honored.
 
One thing though, if its in uk and sent 2nd class recorded, you wont get hit for import duty etc.
 
Balb0wa said:
One thing though, if its in uk and sent 2nd class recorded, you wont get hit for import duty etc.
Click to expand...

Which is half the reason I bought it from there ;-)
Slightly misleading, but the advert says FEDEX, when I emailed them, they said they were changing to Royal Mail and setting up a UK Depot where they re-distribute from.
I didnt want to be stung for import tax so this was very appealing.

Oh and the price was too ;)
 
Its a very nice camera, decent price compared to uk , like all new canon things, way over priced, in a few months no doubt it will 1700-1800 on import.
 
There were several reasons why I bought this particular camera, which, for me, were enough to sway me.

  1. Price. £850 cheaper than in UK, £150 cheaper than the next cheapest Hong Kong
  2. Paypal Protection
  3. eBay seller feedback (plus the fact he had already sold 30 of them, and received feedback from those sales)
  4. Import tax - the fact it would be posted from within the UK, negating the fear of import tax from other Hong Kong importers
  5. Quick turnaround promised by seller - as I need the camera urgently this was important
  6. Communication - sent around 10 emails to seller before purchase, received replies to all of them within 24hours, and usually within 15 minutes

All of those reasons combined together helped make my mind up.

Fingers crossed for a happy ending...
 
futureal33 said:
There were several reasons why I bought this particular camera, which, for me, were enough to sway me.

  1. Price. £850 cheaper than in UK, £150 cheaper than the next cheapest Hong Kong
  2. Paypal Protection
  3. eBay seller feedback (plus the fact he had already sold 30 of them, and received feedback from those sales)
  4. Import tax - the fact it would be posted from within the UK, negating the fear of import tax from other Hong Kong importers
  5. Quick turnaround promised by seller - as I need the camera urgently this was important
  6. Communication - sent around 10 emails to seller before purchase, received replies to all of them within 24hours, and usually within 15 minutes

All of those reasons combined together helped make my mind up.

Fingers crossed for a happy ending...
Click to expand...



Reasonable assumptions. My only 2 "concerns" which I think mentioned before is

a) Std recorded delivery so not trackable until delivered whereas special delivery tracked at every step. So it is insured for about £50 or so.

b) All the stamps and the first class thing as well.


Good luck though - it sound's like you've done your research. (His return address is a house though in Stockport)
 
or8it said:
Confused why they have a 1st Class postage page sticker on but have covered it in 2nd class stamps?
Click to expand...

Not sure that bears any relevance to the service, stamps are just a value.
 
My big concern would be that if it's not a UK model ( I guess Canon know by the serial number ) then there is no Canon Warranty

Bodies are country specific warranties, but lenses are worldwide.
 
Lynton said:
Reasonable assumptions. My only 2 "concerns" which I think mentioned before is

a) Std recorded delivery so not trackable until delivered whereas special delivery tracked at every step. So it is insured for about £50 or so.

b) All the stamps and the first class thing as well.


Good luck though - it sound's like you've done your research. (His return address is a house though in Stockport)
Click to expand...

Fingers crossed :)
Haha yeah I thought the "uk redistribution centre" may well be a flat/apartment in the UK
 
there is no import duty on cameras from hong kong
just Vat
if it is shipped to you from the uk I doubt you are liable for any VAT
IMO most of these Honk Kong companies are avoiding the VAT
 
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