Purchasing Cameras Made In Japan and Repairs in USA

[John Parham]

If you purchased a Minolta camera intended for the Japanese (or any othe market), will Minolta USA repair it outside of the warrantee period?
--
Dr. John

 

[Chuck Strickland]

If you purchased a Minolta camera intended for the Japanese (or any
othe market), will Minolta USA repair it outside of the warrantee
period?
--
Dr. John

I don't have the reference here at work, but I read that they will not repair any camera not bought in the US with a US warranty, either in or out of the warranty period. This applies to grey market cameras also. Even though you can buy them in the US, minolta USA will not honor the warranty because the camera was not destined for the US market originally when it was produced. That's why the grey market camera sellers sell the extended warranty through another repair facility.

 

[John Parham]

Just talked to Minolta USA (New Jersey). They will repair a camera outside of the warranty period if it were purchased in say, Hong Kong. If it has an international warranty, they will repair it within the warranty period. I called them on March 2 when I was having problems with my D7. They still have my name in there database. The number is 1.877.462.4464.

If you purchased a Minolta camera intended for the Japanese (or any
othe market), will Minolta USA repair it outside of the warrantee
period?
--
Dr. John

I don't have the reference here at work, but I read that they will
not repair any camera not bought in the US with a US warranty,
either in or out of the warranty period. This applies to grey
market cameras also. Even though you can buy them in the US,
minolta USA will not honor the warranty because the camera was not
destined for the US market originally when it was produced. That's
why the grey market camera sellers sell the extended warranty
through another repair facility.

--
Dr. John

 

[Chuck Strickland]

If you purchased a Minolta camera intended for the Japanese (or any
othe market), will Minolta USA repair it outside of the warrantee
period?
--
Dr. John

I don't have the reference here at work, but I read that they will
not repair any camera not bought in the US with a US warranty,
either in or out of the warranty period. This applies to grey
market cameras also. Even though you can buy them in the US,
minolta USA will not honor the warranty because the camera was not
destined for the US market originally when it was produced. That's
why the grey market camera sellers sell the extended warranty
through another repair facility.

--
Dr. John

That is good news - I wonder if that includes grey market cameras - I got the impression that the other case I was reading about was a grey market camera.

Chuck

 

[Bryan Biggers]

Just talked to Minolta USA (New Jersey). They will repair a camera
outside of the warranty period if it were purchased in say, Hong
Kong. If it has an international warranty, they will repair it
within the warranty period. I called them on March 2 when I was
having problems with my D7. They still have my name in there
database. The number is 1.877.462.4464.

Yes, that is right. If you buy a camera in Hong Kong that was imported for the Hong Kong market, Minolta USA will repair it under international warranty. HOWEVER if you buy a camera from Hong Kong, and it it was either imported illegally from the Japanese market (I don't know how they could actually tell) or if you live in the USA and have them ship it to you, then Minolta USA will NOT repair it. The difference is someone buying a camera in person in another country, vs. importing a camera into the USA (for example) around the normal import lines. I guess it all comes down to what it says on your receipt and what it says on your warranty card (there are different ones for different markets). If you have a receipt that says "Joes Camera Shop in New Jersey" and you have an imported camera, they will not work on it even if you offer to pay them.
Bryan

 

[John Parham]

Bryan,

You are right on it. The one detail that the Minolta tech told me was the importance of the receipt. She said that if the receipt matches the place were you bought it, then they will repair it under international warrantee. So buying it from someone in Hong Kong or Europe then having them ship it to you will cover the camera.

Just talked to Minolta USA (New Jersey). They will repair a camera
outside of the warranty period if it were purchased in say, Hong
Kong. If it has an international warranty, they will repair it
within the warranty period. I called them on March 2 when I was
having problems with my D7. They still have my name in there
database. The number is 1.877.462.4464.

Yes, that is right. If you buy a camera in Hong Kong that was
imported for the Hong Kong market, Minolta USA will repair it under
international warranty. HOWEVER if you buy a camera from Hong Kong,
and it it was either imported illegally from the Japanese market (I
don't know how they could actually tell) or if you live in the USA
and have them ship it to you, then Minolta USA will NOT repair it.
The difference is someone buying a camera in person in another
country, vs. importing a camera into the USA (for example) around
the normal import lines. I guess it all comes down to what it says
on your receipt and what it says on your warranty card (there are
different ones for different markets). If you have a receipt that
says "Joes Camera Shop in New Jersey" and you have an imported
camera, they will not work on it even if you offer to pay them.
Bryan

--
Dr. John