Just preordered the 5DIII, price is definitely $3499.99

[distant.star]

Any suggestion on the best place to steal one?

Talk to the guy who recently stole gear at one of the tradeshows.

Good idea. Can you give me his number?

 

[distant.star]

Thank you for saving us from ourselves!!

I do not know why so many people are complaining about the price in conjunction with the mp... just ignorant consumers mislead by marketing I guess.
1) You do not know for certain what the specifications are yet to be whining about them (though we will see in hours).
2) You do not know what performance the camera will have across the very broad spectrum of photography.
3) YOU DO NOT NEED SUPER HIGH MEGAPIXELS FOR ANYTHING! You simply need to learn more about the art of photography, and stop sitting in front of your computer hoping for some gigapixel pervcam to come along.
4) Super megapixels do not make the camera more suited to any type of photography than another. Medium format cameras have higher megapixels because they have larger sensors! Larger sensors have higher resolve. In addition, the supposedly best performing MF body (PhaseOne/180) uses pixel binning to get that performance - which lowers the pixel count as far as capturing detail. All you ignorant pixelhounds need to learn about the technology and stop listening to what some marketing team or other technology blind consumer tells you.
The more pixels crammed into a smaller sensor the less broad the cameras use becomes. Sure, there is certainly a sweet spot (usage/sacrifice) but without a change in the way cmos sensors are designed/made we have already started seeing diminishing returns - such as the shooting requirements for the D800 where tripods and lighting will be the norm instead of just walking around with a camera like we all need these tools to do in some capacity.

Canon had lead this tier of photography since the 5DmkII came out. They feel they have improved the body in all regards of that tier - hence the initial selling price.

 

[edy4eva]

I've owned the 5DII for almost 3 years now. It is an excellent camera with small annoyances.
I was hoping the the 5DIII would have a built-in flash/wireless controller and would be downsized by a notch (width wise).
Price wise it should have been put in the same market with D800. I was thinking of switching camps after seeing what the D800 is capable of, combined with Nikon having some decent light wide angle primes.

But after seeing that Canon released a couple of stabilised wide angle primes (the 24mm and 28mm) and seeing the the 5DIII isn't that much of a leap forward (save for the improvement in AF, continuous speed shooting and the LED's aspect ratio) it will be a hard sell for me.

I will be keeping the 5DII for a lot longer than I thought, getting rid of the 24-105 and investing in the 24mm f2.8 IS.

 

[jaduffy007]

If 5D3's price is 3.5K, I will either stay with 5D2 or switch to Nikon.

Both Canon and Nikon have hiked up the cost of their new DSLR's by at least $1000.00. While it is getting that much more expensive at $3500 for the 5D3 ($3149 for the D800 w/ AA and $3449 w/o)...for the features...I think it's not that out of line. I was considering the flagship models to get the features I want. Now we know the features for the 5D3...no need to spend 7k on a 1D-X or $4700 CAD on a D3s or $6k on a D4. For this I'm happy. And know what I'll be getting myself for Xmas.

Plus, going with Nikon (I'm guessing you mean the D800)...it's a different type of camera...high MP studio/landscape camera.

What currency are you using? US Dollar, D800 is 2999. D800E is 3299. D800 at 1.2 crop is 5fps at 25MP without grip. ISO performance will very likely be comparable once downsized to match 22MP. From this, I draw a very different conclusion.

 

[bvukich]

Just because the preorder price is $3499.99, doesn't mean the retail price will be that. Yes, it's a good indication, but until the MSRP is announced by Canon we won't know for sure.

That being said, I was skeptical at first (thinking that $3500 must be the kit price), but that number is consistently mentioned. I'm starting to believe it. Maybe just an echo chamber, maybe the truth. Only time will tell.

Quick question, if you pre order do you pay the MSRP price or do you pay the retail price once the product becomes avaivable?

I'll expand the answer a little bit to head off any other questions. Any one else with preorder experience please confirm or refute what I'm saying, as I've never personally preordered something with a demand (or pricetag) as big as this.

Any honest place waits to charge your card until they have one in hand to ship, and will charge you the current price if it is the same or less than the price you pre-ordered at, and if the price is higher they should give you the option to opt-out before charging.

Now, most place wont go below MSRP (and may even be above MSRP) until either the supply picks up, or the demand drops. So to specifically answer your question, expect to pay every penny of the MSRP on a preorder of an item as hot as this.

 

[moreorless]

I'd guess that Canon's view is that the 5D mk3 is a departure for the line bringing in features that had previously only been on offer with the 1Ds hence thinking they can get away with a higher price.

Another thing to consider is I'd say that the generations between cameras seem to be getting longer amd higher launch price gives more room for price drops over an extended lifetime. If the 5D mk3 is say $500 cheaper this time next year then the perception of value will likely be greater than if it had launched at that price and stayed there, meanwhile Canon will be bringing in larger profits from early adopters who'll probabley buy reguardless.

 

[justsomedude]

I'll expand the answer a little bit to head off any other questions. Any one else with preorder experience please confirm or refute what I'm saying, as I've never personally preordered something with a demand (or pricetag) as big as this.

Any honest place waits to charge your card until they have one in hand to ship, and will charge you the current price if it is the same or less than the price you pre-ordered at, and if the price is higher they should give you the option to opt-out before charging.

I'm going to disagree with you on this one.

In my experience, most Canon dealers stand by the "money talks" motto when customers want to get in line for new product launches. They will not be willing to give up a pre-order position to some one who can't back up their order with cold hard cash. You don't always need 100% up-front, but pre-orders on announcement days usually require a $1000 deposit (or more) to show intent. Otherwise, everyone and their brother would call up screaming "put me on the list" - and then when the shop calls 6 weeks later to tell them their 5D Mark III just arrived, they might change their mind and the shop would be out the wholesale money on their product orders. Not smart business.

And don't worry - stores will know first thing tomorrow what Canon's MAP and MSRP pricing is for the 5D3. This is one of the biggest product launches in Canon's history, so the prices will be set from the start. And the MAP guarantees that all stores will be selling for the same price.

So - needless to say - anyone who wants a Canon 5D Mark III will need to shell out some serious coin to get on a pre-order list. It's just the nature of the beast. The shops are not going to put themselves at risk on the whims of thousands of photographers dreaming of the next best camera, only to have them back out weeks later when they can't come up with the cash.

 

[takoman46]

I am not liking how supposedly people who have connections to authorized dealers are able to put their preorder in before the camera has even been officially announced. I know that this is the way of the world and there are always perks to who you know but it's unfair in my book. How many preorders do you think bhphotovideo is going to get? Does anyone think that it will be worthwhile to place a preorder with one of the major online dealers? Or just wait until stores have it in stock?

 

[nighstar]

my question regarding preordering is when will the camera actually ship? because while i may not have the money now, if the camera isn't shipping until June i could probably have the money by then. so i would like to put in a preorder ASAP as it's probably only those who preorder who will get the camera that soon.....

...i guess i will have to call my local store and hope that they know the shipping date. :/

 

[eeek]

I am not liking how supposedly people who have connections to authorized dealers are able to put their preorder in before the camera has even been officially announced. I know that this is the way of the world and there are always perks to who you know but it's unfair in my book. How many preorders do you think bhphotovideo is going to get? Does anyone think that it will be worthwhile to place a preorder with one of the major online dealers? Or just wait until stores have it in stock?

Eh, grain of salt. I don't believe them for one second. They didn't preorder.

 

[Penn Jennings]

I'll expand the answer a little bit to head off any other questions. Any one else with preorder experience please confirm or refute what I'm saying, as I've never personally preordered something with a demand (or pricetag) as big as this.

Any honest place waits to charge your card until they have one in hand to ship, and will charge you the current price if it is the same or less than the price you pre-ordered at, and if the price is higher they should give you the option to opt-out before charging.

I'm going to disagree with you on this one.

In my experience, most Canon dealers stand by the "money talks" motto when customers want to get in line for new product launches. They will not be willing to give up a pre-order position to some one who can't back up their order with cold hard cash. You don't always need 100% up-front, but pre-orders on announcement days usually require a $1000 deposit (or more) to show intent. Otherwise, everyone and their brother would call up screaming "put me on the list" - and then when the shop calls 6 weeks later to tell them their 5D Mark III just arrived, they might change their mind and the shop would be out the wholesale money on their product orders. Not smart business.

And don't worry - stores will know first thing tomorrow what Canon's MAP and MSRP pricing is for the 5D3. This is one of the biggest product launches in Canon's history, so the prices will be set from the start. And the MAP guarantees that all stores will be selling for the same price.

So - needless to say - anyone who wants a Canon 5D Mark III will need to shell out some serious coin to get on a pre-order list. It's just the nature of the beast. The shops are not going to put themselves at risk on the whims of thousands of photographers dreaming of the next best camera, only to have them back out weeks later when they can't come up with the cash.

For a lot of people, $3,500 is nothing. The waiting list might be 50 names long while the first shipment might only be 5 bodies. They don't care if a few credit cards get declined, they will simply move on to the next name and credit card. Charging customers prior to even having the product on hand for the first time is a VERY poor business practice. I've never even heard of a reputable business charging a deposit for a product like a Canon camera body that they have never even had on had.

I've only seen the "deposit" practice with very expensive products, products with low demands or products that require ordering, i.e. car, homes, speciality items etc. Even at $3,500, it will be months before supply catches up to demand I bet.

However, maybe I've been REALLY lucky in my dealings with photographic equipment retailers.

 

[squarebox]

to those talking about the prices going up, comapred tot he MK2... in actualality from teh JPY side they haven't. The USD was trading at 108 yen to the dollar back in 2008 when the MKII was released. The USD is now trading at 80 yen to the dollar. THat alone would justify the seemingly 25% increase in the price of the 5D MK3.

One thing that is a shame is that all the new lens and bodies coming out this year will have be based on the new exchange rate, meaning I won't be able to buy stuff for a 30% discount by buying from the US and having it shipped over.

 

[darkmatter2k12]

With that price i'll better buy Nikon d800.

 

[jlev23]

i think the price is right, they scared me with that 1DX pricing!
ill take two!!!

 

[jwong]

to those talking about the prices going up, comapred tot he MK2... in actualality from teh JPY side they haven't. The USD was trading at 108 yen to the dollar back in 2008 when the MKII was released. The USD is now trading at 80 yen to the dollar. THat alone would justify the seemingly 25% increase in the price of the 5D MK3.

One thing that is a shame is that all the new lens and bodies coming out this year will have be based on the new exchange rate, meaning I won't be able to buy stuff for a 30% discount by buying from the US and having it shipped over.

Except that Canon's competition is pricing their offering at $3000. That is the market. If the 5DIII is $500 better than Nikon's D800, then Canon scored a coup with the 5DIII design. Unfortunately, specwise, it is not obvious that the 5DIII is a lot better than the D800. I'll wait for the reviews to come out comparing the two. Will I get a D800? No, but I'll be tempted to get a discounted 5DII and a new lens for the same cost.

 

[sailingsilkeborg]

I went to the store of a major retailer that also runs a major online camera/electronics site (One Call) at 1:00 PST, and they did not know what the camera was going to retail at, nor what dealer cost is going to be. The sales guy checked their internal pricing data base and could only tell me "it may be around $3500" retail. That may be where it ends up, but he clearly did not know for sure even now. He didn't invite me to "preorder" at that price, even though he knows I'm a serious buyer.

You're talking about one salesman at a shop, and I'm sure he'll tell you tomorrow that you can preorder for $3500. And do you have a personal relationship with these people or are you just another customer walking into a photo store? Is this store one of the 17 stores that Canon chose to carry the C300?

In my situation, I know the people at the shop very well, and have spent over $20k there in the last year. They are also the biggest canon dealer in Georgia. They didn't invite me to do anything, I went in there with $4k and demanded that I get one of the first ones they get. They wouldn't take my money, but they put me on the list. I asked if they thought it might be any cheaper or more expensive, and they said no, not to worry because they already had the SKU in the computer for it, $3499.99.

People have been saying $3500 all over the web and they said the same thing, meaning that is the set price until proven otherwise. I go to the shop, and they say $3500. If that's not enough for someone to believe that it's going to be $3500, they must really really want it to be cheaper. See when you really want something, you'll cling onto any little shred of evidence that you may be right. Even if you read 10 articles contradicting your belief, you'll only focus on the one article you found just to hold on to that little piece of hope. It's called confirmation bias, and if you have a brain this affects you, and that's ok, it affects me too. But in this situation I am indifferent, if it cost $4000 I wouldn't care, and if it cost $3000 I wouldn't care.

I was just about to write a "jump back, dude" response to this, when it occurred to me that you probably thought I was a doubting Thomas about your preorder experience, rather than just a guy who had a contrasting experience at a different location. Sorry if you took it that way, that's not what was intended.

 

[Axilrod]

I am not liking how supposedly people who have connections to authorized dealers are able to put their preorder in before the camera has even been officially announced. I know that this is the way of the world and there are always perks to who you know but it's unfair in my book. How many preorders do you think bhphotovideo is going to get? Does anyone think that it will be worthwhile to place a preorder with one of the major online dealers? Or just wait until stores have it in stock?

I didn't actually pay for it, I'm just on a list to get one of the first ones that arrives, that's all. I'm pretty sure they'll let anyone do it, I just got there early When they do arrive, they call me, I go pay for it.

 

[Axilrod]

I'm going to disagree with you on this one.

In my experience, most Canon dealers stand by the "money talks" motto when customers want to get in line for new product launches. They will not be willing to give up a pre-order position to some one who can't back up their order with cold hard cash. You don't always need 100% up-front, but pre-orders on announcement days usually require a $1000 deposit (or more) to show intent. Otherwise, everyone and their brother would call up screaming "put me on the list" - and then when the shop calls 6 weeks later to tell them their 5D Mark III just arrived, they might change their mind and the shop would be out the wholesale money on their product orders. Not smart business.

So - needless to say - anyone who wants a Canon 5D Mark III will need to shell out some serious coin to get on a pre-order list. It's just the nature of the beast. The shops are not going to put themselves at risk on the whims of thousands of photographers dreaming of the next best camera, only to have them back out weeks later when they can't come up with the cash.

I went in there with cash and they told me it wasn't necessary, told me I was 4th on the list and assured me I would have one from the first shipment. Granted I go there all the time and rarely leave without spending at least a grand, so they know I'm good for it. I'm not sure if they made an exception or if they're doing it for anyone, I didn't ask.

 

[Axilrod]

I went to the store of a major retailer that also runs a major online camera/electronics site (One Call) at 1:00 PST, and they did not know what the camera was going to retail at, nor what dealer cost is going to be. The sales guy checked their internal pricing data base and could only tell me "it may be around $3500" retail. That may be where it ends up, but he clearly did not know for sure even now. He didn't invite me to "preorder" at that price, even though he knows I'm a serious buyer.

You're talking about one salesman at a shop, and I'm sure he'll tell you tomorrow that you can preorder for $3500. And do you have a personal relationship with these people or are you just another customer walking into a photo store? Is this store one of the 17 stores that Canon chose to carry the C300?

In my situation, I know the people at the shop very well, and have spent over $20k there in the last year. They are also the biggest canon dealer in Georgia. They didn't invite me to do anything, I went in there with $4k and demanded that I get one of the first ones they get. They wouldn't take my money, but they put me on the list. I asked if they thought it might be any cheaper or more expensive, and they said no, not to worry because they already had the SKU in the computer for it, $3499.99.

People have been saying $3500 all over the web and they said the same thing, meaning that is the set price until proven otherwise. I go to the shop, and they say $3500. If that's not enough for someone to believe that it's going to be $3500, they must really really want it to be cheaper. See when you really want something, you'll cling onto any little shred of evidence that you may be right. Even if you read 10 articles contradicting your belief, you'll only focus on the one article you found just to hold on to that little piece of hope. It's called confirmation bias, and if you have a brain this affects you, and that's ok, it affects me too. But in this situation I am indifferent, if it cost $4000 I wouldn't care, and if it cost $3000 I wouldn't care.

I was just about to write a "jump back, dude" response to this, when it occurred to me that you probably thought I was a doubting Thomas about your preorder experience, rather than just a guy who had a contrasting experience at a different location. Sorry if you took it that way, that's not what was intended.

It's cool man, just having one of those moments. Anyways, I hope you have better luck getting your preorder in soon, hopefully they'll be able to do it tomorrow for you.

 

[eeek]

I went in there with cash and they told me it wasn't necessary, told me I was 4th on the list and assured me I would have one from the first shipment. Granted I go there all the time and rarely leave without spending at least a grand, so they know I'm good for it. I'm not sure if they made an exception or if they're doing it for anyone, I didn't ask.

I'd tell you that too, if I was selling cameras. Congrats- you didn't do anything special.