A2 Refurbs?

Anyone have experience buying the A2 refurbished?

I'm close to pulling the trigger, but it looks like most of the refurb vendors listed on pricegrabber are one and the same, just different web faces (same deals, same servers errors). None lists the contents of the box.

Did you receive the following items:

camera, battery, charger, neck strap, lens cap, lens hood, accessory shoe cap, USB cable, A/V cable, camera manual, software manual (both printed), CD-ROM?

Any recommendations, cautions?

TIA,

Steve.

kayners said:

Anyone have experience buying the A2 refurbished?
...
Did you receive the following items:
camera, battery, charger, neck strap, lens cap, lens hood,
accessory shoe cap, USB cable, A/V cable, camera manual, software
manual (both printed), CD-ROM?
...

Click to expand...

I purchased a refurbished A2 from a dealer friend. It came in white-box packaging with all of the above and has proven to be my most used camera in recent months.

I know two others who have purchased from ButterflyPhoto.com. They received exactly what I received, and are similarly happy with their purchases.

Godfrey

Tia,

I got my A2 about 6 weeks ago. It was a refurb from Willoughby's in NY. The camera seemed to be in mint(new) condition. The only thing that bothered me was a microscopic speck I noticed on the lens. It turned out to be dust, so no problem. As far as image quality, I believe it is ok. I'm still learning how to use it, so I've still not got a handle on getting a perfect exposure. But to the best of my perception, I don't think there are any camera problems.

The refurbs are shipped in a plain white box. The packing is not quite as good as a new product. Instead of form fitting cardboard with everything tightly in its place, everything is just in plastic and bubble wrap so it kind of moves around in the box a little which scared me when I first got it.

This particular camera had version 1.00 software which I immediately upgraded to 1.12. I really expected to see newer software in a cam that had been thru refurb. Obviously this one has been around a while. Whether that means anything significant, I don't know. The Willoughby's web site says there is a 90 day warranty. The warranty card in the box says 6 months. I need to find out which.

My logic for buying refurb.......... The pricing of course. I originally had planned to buy a 7hi or A1, but when I started searching and found I could get an A2 for about $100 more, I knew I had to have it. Also, since I had heard reports of some quality issues and problems, I was hoping that with the refurb camera, I would be getting one that had gone thru more thorough testing and attention than one straight off the line.

I got mine for $590US shipped from Willoughby's to Tennessee. I would warn you that the low price offers can sometimes be tricky. Seems like most of the NY camera shops offering the cheap refurb's have really mixed reviews for customer satisfaction. Some good, but a lot of horror stories. Seems like a good price is attached with strings or bad service. The scam seems to be selling you something that's not in stock and then trying to get you to switch, or pressuring you to buy overpriced accessories, or charging restock fees if you try to send a bad camera back. After reading the reviews, I feel like I got REALLY lucky to get a good camera, and get it when I did(They only shipped 1 day later than promised) After I had placed my order and started reading the reviews, I had big time remorse and considered maybe I should have just gone to the local store and paid $800. Please research the reviews on the company you are considering..... http://www.resellerratings.com seems to be a good place.

Bottom line, as for the camera, I'm really pleased, and believe the refurb was the right choice.

Hope this helps,

JP aka Uncle Jam

UncleJam said:

Bottom line, as for the camera, I'm really pleased, and believe the
refurb was the right choice.

Click to expand...

Unc,

Thanks for the comments. My last cam (Finepix S602Z) was a refurb. I was new to the "quality" digicam arena and didn't take the time to test for defects. Serious defect was discovered after warranty had elapsed. Lesson learned.

Will test this one straight away.

Thanks again

PS - TIA stands for thanks in advance.

Steve.

kayners wrote:
Duh!.... Sorry Steve.

kayners said:

PS - TIA stands for thanks in advance.

Steve.

Click to expand...

--
JP

Same for mine. I tend to wonder just what the "refurb" consisted of on a given camera, but in the end the fact that I got a good one at a reduced price and it works well is all that matters.

Godfrey

UncleJam said:

...
This particular camera had version 1.00 software which I
immediately upgraded to 1.12. I really expected to see newer
software in a cam that had been thru refurb.
...

Click to expand...

kayners said:

Anyone have experience buying the A2 refurbished?

Click to expand...

Ditto and likewise ... http://www.digitalmegastore.com (but don't buy anything else!)

Comes with a 6 month warranty.

Godfrey said:

I tend to wonder just what the "refurb" consisted of
on a given camera...

Click to expand...

Well, I often see posts from people in these forums who buy cameras, but then decide they don't like them, then send them back.

Then again, there were many who had to order several A2's to get one that worked "properly." These refurbs may have been fixed, or there may have been a defect so subtle or intermittant that it didn't get fixed. That's why I'm somewhat relieved there's a six month warranty, rather than 90 days (like the Fuji).

Now the only trick is getting the supplier to send me a camera. So far not even an order confirmation. And they didn't reply to my presales query, either. At least their ratings didn't implicate them as a bait&switch dealer.

Steve.

There are a number of A1 "refurbs" on ebay from a small company out of South Carolina. I don't think they are a camera store but their satisfaction rate on ebay is quite high. Their A1's are going for about $400 give or take depending on the bidding. I sent them an email query and received an reply right away. I decided to go for a new A2 from Butterfly at $659 after losing the bidding.

kayners said:

Anyone have experience buying the A2 refurbished?

I'm close to pulling the trigger, but it looks like most of the
refurb vendors listed on pricegrabber are one and the same, just
different web faces (same deals, same servers errors). None lists
the contents of the box.

Did you receive the following items:
camera, battery, charger, neck strap, lens cap, lens hood,
accessory shoe cap, USB cable, A/V cable, camera manual, software
manual (both printed), CD-ROM?

Any recommendations, cautions?

TIA,

Steve.

Click to expand...