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Andy Haney
12-12-2009, 10:11 AM
Ladies & Gentlemen,

Looking to buy a camera lens for my Daughter's Christmas. None are in stock locally (KC area), that I can fiind. I find 3 on-line vendors that may be acceptable (bad experience before). This time I'm asking in advance.:D

Are any of the following particularly good/bad to deal with?

TristateCamera.com (Tri-State Camera and Computer Inc. ,New York City) - lowest total cost); Abe's of Maine.com; and Amazon.com

Thanks in advance.
Andy

JohnT Fitzgerald
12-12-2009, 10:22 AM
Andy - I haven't bought a lot, but I have used B&H Photo before, and they were pretty good to deal with.

Baxter Smith
12-12-2009, 10:37 AM
Andy, I looked around a lot when I was shopping acouple of years ago. Ended up with B&H too. I do not remember finding anyone who had a negative thing to say about them. Judging by the number of B&H shipping boxes my Dad had to store stuff in, he didn't either!:)

Baxter

David G Baker
12-12-2009, 10:53 AM
Another vote for B&H Photo. Their prices are reasonable and they are good to deal with. I have purchased 4 photo items from them and have been very satisfied with them. When shopping for photo items I always visit their site first.

Brian Brown
12-12-2009, 11:33 AM
I am a professional photographer, and have been buying from B & H for 25 years. They are good to deal with. I refuse to buy frome Abes of main regardless of price or availability, and have never had personal experience with Tri state, but I heard some minor negative things years ago.

Bruce Page
12-12-2009, 11:43 AM
Andy, you’ll be fine with any of your picks. I have also have found good online prices/service and selection from Cameta Camera.

Myk Rian
12-12-2009, 11:54 AM
And yet another for B&H. Superb service and speedy shipping.
http://www.bhphotovideo.com

Dick Latshaw
12-12-2009, 12:13 PM
B&H Photo, Adorama, or Amazon are my usual places to look. I would avoid Abe's and have had no experience with Tri-State.

Dennis McGarry
12-12-2009, 12:40 PM
B & H Photo, if they dont have it, you dont need it. Great service as well

Steve Leverich
12-12-2009, 12:43 PM
Another minus for Abe's of maine - used to be called "honest abe's", and were NOT - at that time they were heavily into bait and switch. I won't go back.

A SERIOUS plus for B&H - I don't usually even bother looking elsewhere any more. Fast service, low prices, unbelievable selection, etc... Steve

Matt Stiegler
12-12-2009, 1:16 PM
B&H Photo, Adorama, or Amazon are my usual places to look. I would avoid Abe's and have had no experience with Tri-State.

+1. Adorama probably my first choice.

Scott Shepherd
12-12-2009, 1:20 PM
B&H or Adorama here. Never had a bad experience with either. Only issue is that I believe they are both owned by people that are Orthodox Jewish, and their hours are unusual to those expecting what we call "normal" business hours.

They close early on Friday and are closed all day Saturday, but do work on Sunday.

I'm not familiar with that culture/religion, so I'm not sure what happens, but I do know they are closed and they mean closed, closed, not just we say we're closed, but we are really here :)

Myk Rian
12-12-2009, 1:21 PM
Another minus for Abe's of maine - used to be called "honest abe's", and were NOT - at that time they were heavily into bait and switch. I won't go back.
Sounds like Superior Camera out of NYC. They have an office in some dive along with escort services, and other shady characters. If you don't buy a bunch of over-priced accessories, your order is mysteriously back ordered for a few weeks.

Larry Frank
12-12-2009, 1:54 PM
I've been using TriState Camera for years and have always gotten good prices and service. You might want to take a look at the exteneded warranty which includes accidental damage.

Brian Effinger
12-12-2009, 2:25 PM
B&H is a good outfit to deal with (as everyone else has said). Of course, you can't go wrong with Amazon either.

Howard Boehm
12-12-2009, 2:48 PM
http://www.resellerratings.com/

Before I buy from anyone online that I don't know I check them out here. This has saved my behind from making a bad error in judgment. It is good for checking any commercial site out there.

Jim O'Dell
12-12-2009, 3:06 PM
I will vote for Amazon. I just made a purchase from them for a digital picture frame that ships through Tiger-Direct. Had priced the same item direct from TD, but the shipping was almost 1/3 the amount if I got it through their Amazon listing (5.47 as opposed to 15.19). Plus you can go through SMC's Amazon portal (just click the shop button in the bar above, and wait a few moments for it to load, then use the search bar at the top left), and SMC gets a cut of the sale, and it doesn't cost you anything!!! So make sure the item you want either comes with free shipping from Amazon, or is maybe from one of the other vendors you like and the shipping may still be less. Everyone wins! Jim.

Steve Schlumpf
12-12-2009, 3:11 PM
I've been watching the Amazon site since Black Friday and hope to get a good deal on a Canon EOS T1i camera kit. So far the price has gone up every 2 days and is now $100 more than when I first saw the kit. Shipping is $24! Hope to see something change before long but have been checking other online sites.

Thanks to everyone for listing places to stay away from! Soon as I read negative things here - I deleted them from my shopping list!

Jon Grider
12-12-2009, 8:20 PM
B&H and Adorama, both are reputable. Let me add a local camera store [no affiliation] that also sells online.. Norman's Camera, Kalamazoo, MI. Good prices, very professional staff.

Josh Reet
12-13-2009, 12:49 AM
B&H, adorama, and amazon. Stay away from anything else:

http://photo.net/neighbor/subcategory-index?id=2

Tom Hintz
12-13-2009, 1:42 AM
I should be a major shareholder in B&H Photo by now. I have made lots of purchases from them, very happy with every one of them, pricing and shipping. Plus, they have yet to be "out of stock" on anything I have wanted.

Andy Haney
12-13-2009, 9:38 PM
I placed an order on-line with B&H this morning. I called first to discuss the alternatives they had available. My experience today reflected the positive things you told me about B&H. I've since received order confirmation and shipping information. I anticipate no problems.

Thanks again,
Andy