Buying from overseas: An experience.

[Harry Muff]

I just thought I'd recount my recent experience with E-Infinity via their own online store. They are one of many Hong Kong based retailers offering genuine equipment for a lot less than RRP.


I am based in the U.K. and refuse to pay the inflated prices asked of us here, knowing that other countries are paying a good deal less.




However, I really wanted a 5D Mk III...



I had considered buying the whole package from them (5D3, BG E11, extra battery and SD card), but decided to play it relatively safe.


I chose, instead, to buy the body from ProCameraShop, who I've used many times as they are based in the U.K. and, on most items, are not much more expensive than their Hong Kong based competitors. The transaction, as always, couldn't have been better.


I then chose to buy the BG E11, battery, and SD card from E-Infinity.


I chose correctly...


First things first, the company is legit and the service is very good. From email communication to delivery times, I really can't complain.


The items arrived as described and in good condition.


Unfortunately they didn't arrive, as I had been led to believe, from Royal Mail via E-Infinity's U.K. warehouse, and therefore without any import tax duties.


Nope, FedEx brought it all the way to my door.




Royal Mail, not to be left out, delivered the invoice from FedEx...




So, now I've got an invoice to take care of which, had I gone all in and bought all of the gear from E-Infinity, would have been considerably more than it is.


So that's that...




The bottom line is not so clear, however... Yes, I got stung (very mildly), but I still made a big saving over U.K. prices.


My advice, if you are going to go this route, is make sure that the saving is considerable, so that if an invoice does appear, then you can pay it off in the knowledge that you've still come out of it a winner. Otherwise, spend the little extra someone like ProCameraShop charges in the knowledge that there won't be any little surprises a couple of weeks down the line.


In case you were wondering, at the time I bought it, the 5D3 was £1,855 through E-Infinity, and £1,880 through ProCamerShop. Something tells me the import duties would have been a good bit more than the £25 difference in price...


On the other hand, the Canon BG E11 was £250 on ProCameraShop, and £177 through E-Infinity. Worth the risk.




The invoice was £17, so I'm not complaining. Just wary of buying anything big from overseas in the future.




That's it. That's my experience of this subject.




I hope it helps someone thinking of buying from abroad.




Harry.

 

[adhocphotographer]

I know it is annoying that things can be cheaper elsewhere, particularly the other side of the pond. I only once ordered abroad long ago, and got stung with import tax etc... In the end the saving was minimal and I didn't think it was worth the prolonged delivery and worry. Now i buy local. I live in India now and buy from Indian shops. When i lived in France I did the same, as when i was in the UK.

I try and buy local if possible. though if i am going to a "cheap" destination, i will save some purchases until then.

I think it is rarely worth the couple of quid saved compared to the worry and actually supporting local shops/economy.
additionally, warranty is always a concern in these situations, so the money you are saving you might loose +more if there is a problem!

Thanks for sharing your story! Just my 2p on buying abroad...

 

[J.R.]

I know it is annoying that things can be cheaper elsewhere, particularly the other side of the pond. I only once ordered abroad long ago, and got stung with import tax etc... In the end the saving was minimal and I didn't think it was worth the prolonged delivery and worry. Now i buy local. I live in India now and buy from Indian shops. When i lived in France I did the same, as when i was in the UK.

I try and buy local if possible. though if i am going to a "cheap" destination, i will save some purchases until then.

I think it is rarely worth the couple of quid saved compared to the worry and actually supporting local shops/economy.
additionally, warranty is always a concern in these situations, so the money you are saving you might loose +more if there is a problem!

Thanks for sharing your story! Just my 2p on buying abroad...

+1 I buy locally unless there is something that I need which can't be obtained in India - Lee filters for example

 

[Schruminator]

I used E-Infinity to purchase my 24-70 2.8 II. The service was second to none, they emailed me photos of my addressed package and it came through their London warehouse-- no import duties, no problems.

I've considered using them again to purchase the 24L II, but I have a trip to the States coming up soon, so I may just spring for the lens then.

 

[paul13walnut5]

Digital Rev were good with my EOS M
Bought a Kiss x4 and a T3i off of digigood with no issues
Bought my 7D, grip and 70-200 f2.8 off of Kerso (ebay) no issues (though not quite as cheap, still cheaper than amazon, who are cheaper than high street)

In each case I've asked if the relevant duties and taxes are paid before buying and I've bought on the information provided that they are.

 

[Hannes]

I think it is rarely worth the couple of quid saved compared to the worry and actually supporting local shops/economy.
additionally, warranty is always a concern in these situations, so the money you are saving you might loose +more if there is a problem!

But £500 is more that a couple of quid though

 

[AlanF]

If you are happy to have no camera shops on the high street, if you are happy to have unemployed staff, if you are happy to pay more income tax and a higher rate of VAT because there are no camera shops that pay taxes, less revenue is collected from VAT and there are more unemployment benefits to be paid, then go ahead and buy from Hong Kong and also have extra hassles when you can't exchange or you have to send it back there under warranty.

 

[paul13walnut5]

If you are happy to have no camera shops on the high street, if you are happy to have unemployed staff, if you are happy to pay more income tax and a higher rate of VAT because there are no camera shops that pay taxes, less revenue is collected from VAT and there are more unemployment benefits to be paid, then go ahead and buy from Hong Kong and also have extra hassles when you can't exchange or you have to send it back there under warranty.

I buy used from LCE, MPB, FFordes. I don't buy new from them because I can't really afford to. I think I save about 25% - 33% of the purchase price on my grey gear.

I used to work in camera retail and know the margins are tight (in fact used sales are worth more) if Ffordes, LCE and MPB were all on my high street I would use them, they aren't. I use calumet, mainly for studio and support gear, but Jessops and Curry's... no way. And Tesco? Forget it.

Your energy would be better directed to Canon, the small guys (where you might pay the extra for the kbiowledgable service from enthusiasts) can't afford to deal with them, and the big guys are staffed by muppets. I can only presume you've never had a starbucks, and don't use vodaphone or any apple products given your robust stance on responsible taxing?

 

[AlanF]

If you are happy to have no camera shops on the high street, if you are happy to have unemployed staff, if you are happy to pay more income tax and a higher rate of VAT because there are no camera shops that pay taxes, less revenue is collected from VAT and there are more unemployment benefits to be paid, then go ahead and buy from Hong Kong and also have extra hassles when you can't exchange or you have to send it back there under warranty.

I buy used from LCE, MPB, FFordes. I don't buy new from them because I can't really afford to. I think I save about 25% - 33% of the purchase price on my grey gear.

I used to work in camera retail and know the margins are tight (in fact used sales are worth more) if Ffordes, LCE and MPB were all on my high street I would use them, they aren't. I use calumet, mainly for studio and support gear, but Jessops and Curry's... no way. And Tesco? Forget it.

Your energy would be better directed to Canon, the small guys (where you might pay the extra for the kbiowledgable service from enthusiasts) can't afford to deal with them, and the big guys are staffed by muppets. I can only presume you've never had a starbucks, and don't use vodaphone or any apple products given your robust stance on responsible taxing?

It is dangerous to argue by analogy because situations are rarely exactly analogous. I dislike intensely the tax ethics of those major corporations. But, your analogies are particularly bad. The local Apple store employs a host of young people who receive wages and pay their income tax and the company pays the government VAT. So, I am contributing to the local and national economy by buying from them. Buying an Apple computer from some dodgy Hong Kong dealer who tries to sneak it into the country would not be good locally or regionally.

 

[docsavage123]

Just got a sigma 18-50 f2.8-4 for use with my t2i (550d) for when girlfriends son wants to use it, as cheapest in uk was £165 I got it for £110 delivered from Digital Rev. This was delivered by courier but I picked up from Royal Mail collection office - no duty paid at all by myself. They also supply a supposed 12 month local warranty which I hope I never have to use.

Im off to the states and thought about buying a 6D from over there, but from Dig rev its £1159 its crazy that in UK i will pay over £1500 for a 6D, I could get a 6D and 24-105 for not much more.

looking at the price of the 70D £1059 for a body in the UK and $1199 in the USA a saving of around £250 on the uk price. Assuming you go to US on holiday.

I don think buying from over seas hurts the main camera dealers but the big online retailers such as amazon.

 

[AlanF]

Just got a sigma 18-50 f2.8-4 for use with my t2i (550d) for when girlfriends son wants to use it, as cheapest in uk was £165 I got it for £110 delivered from Digital Rev. This was delivered by courier but I picked up from Royal Mail collection office - no duty paid at all by myself. They also supply a supposed 12 month local warranty which I hope I never have to use.

Im off to the states and thought about buying a 6D from over there, but from Dig rev its £1159 its crazy that in UK i will pay over £1500 for a 6D, I could get a 6D and 24-105 for not much more.

looking at the price of the 70D £1059 for a body in the UK and $1199 in the USA a saving of around £250 on the uk price. Assuming you go to US on holiday.

I don think buying from over seas hurts the main camera dealers but the big online retailers such as amazon.

Those figures for the 70D are the official Canon prices, which are really unfair on us the UK public and our dealers. To be fair, the UK price includes 20% VAT, and you will have to add only a much smaller sales tax to the US price, as it is not included. Even so, after removing the VAT, the UK price is £882-50 = $1341; that is £94 more than the US price, not £250. You could, of course, go the US and then smuggle it back into the UK to avoid the VAT - a centuries old tradition.

Lenses are worth importing as Canon honours their international warranty. But, they do not honour warranties on bodies.

 

[Rienzphotoz]

All my current gear (except EF 50 f/1.4, EF 24-105 f/4 lenses & tripod legs) is bought from overseas ... mainly from B&H (USA), Adorama (USA), Amazon USA/UK), DigitalRev (Hongkong), Yongnuostore (China) ... I price hunt online and buy from whoever has the got the best price & fastest delivery ... so far I bought over 30 lenses & 7 cameras (most of them now sold to upgrade to my current gear) ... good thing about in this part of the world (Qatar) is that you only have to pay 5% customs duty if the total value is over $700.

 

[Harry Muff]

Im off to the states and thought about buying a 6D from over there, but from Dig rev its £1159 its crazy that in UK i will pay over £1500 for a 6D, I could get a 6D and 24-105 for not much more.

6D body only is £1,047.62 (including the extra 3% off) at ProCameraShop, and they are based in the U.K.


So quick delivery and no import duty worries.

 

[DonLargo]

I am not sure that cannot really cares about jobs in Europe.

 

[Maiaibing]

I just thought I'd recount my recent experience with E-Infinity via their own online store. They are one of many Hong Kong based retailers offering genuine equipment for a lot less than RRP.

I am based in the U.K. and refuse to pay the inflated prices asked of us here, knowing that other countries are paying a good deal less.

Sometimes the price differential around the world is mind blowing.

I travel and move a lot and can often pick up gear wherever its cheapest. Generally, the risk of not having a local warranty to rely on is negligible when it comes to high end camera gear. I've had a lot from a range of brands. Still, only once in 30 years did I have to send a camera body (a Nikon) from Europe back to the US for a warranty repair after the camera "died" following a firmware update.

I could send in the repair from Europe and re-import from the US without paying excise or VAT. You just have to make sure to get the paper work right. However, meanwhile the price to send such a package has sky-rocketed. The potentially prohibitive transportation cost is actually the biggest problem you face with such a repair.

 

[TheJock]

Just got a sigma 18-50 f2.8-4 for use with my t2i (550d) for when girlfriends son wants to use it, as cheapest in uk was £165 I got it for £110 delivered from Digital Rev. This was delivered by courier but I picked up from Royal Mail collection office - no duty paid at all by myself. They also supply a supposed 12 month local warranty which I hope I never have to use.

Im off to the states and thought about buying a 6D from over there, but from Dig rev its £1159 its crazy that in UK i will pay over £1500 for a 6D, I could get a 6D and 24-105 for not much more.

looking at the price of the 70D £1059 for a body in the UK and $1199 in the USA a saving of around £250 on the uk price. Assuming you go to US on holiday.

I don think buying from over seas hurts the main camera dealers but the big online retailers such as amazon.

Here in Dubai, that 6D costs £775 brand new from an online store called Souq.com, I’ve used them a lot and I recently bought a new 600EX RT for £225.
A 70D is £494 too.