Beach Camera

Beach Camera's name has appeared here as being a reliable vendor.
I notice, however, that it charges a 10% "restocking fee." Is that
true of other reliable sources, such as B&H ?

Perhaps you should read this before making a purchase from beach camera.
http://www.resellerratings.com/seller1936.html

If a lens is actually defective, any Canon authorized dealer of which Beach is one will exchange the lens without fees.

Otherwise, I think tire-kickers should pay for the convenience of in-home testing.

nt

John

chrisrichc said:

Perhaps you should read this before making a purchase from beach
camera.
http://www.resellerratings.com/seller1936.html

Click to expand...

That surprises me since they came highly recommended by several people. I've ordered a ton of stuff from them with never an issue - not even a minor one. There prices are great, shipping was great, etc. I've never had to return anything though, so ... who knows, but with the excellent service I've received, I find it hard to believe they wouldn't be that way 100% across the board.

And ... after having credit card fraud committed against us in the past, I appreciate the fact that they verify purchases. Just my 2 cents.

Rick Knepper said:

If a lens is actually defective, any Canon authorized dealer of
which Beach is one will exchange the lens without fees.

Otherwise, I think tire-kickers should pay for the convenience of
in-home testing.

Click to expand...

Generally I agree. One should go out of one's way to avoid creating open box specials.

B&H doesn't penalize you for mistakes though. That's one reason I use them without hesitation. They are fair and square.

i've purchased several items from beach camera, but that was before i found B&H. nothing against beach, they treated me well, but they can't compete with the professionalism that B&H provides. beach comes off more as a "bargain" site by comparison.

items i've bought from beach
powershot G2
rebel XT kit (kit lens, CF card, filters)
EF 50mm f/1.8 II

all good service and a fair price. however, like i said, i typically shop at B&H now. the only other online vendor i use is sigma4less, which i've also had a great amount of luck with (sigma 70-300 APO, sigma 10-20)

I purchased my 20D through them and received it promptly & without hassle.

ANY retail outlet, bricks & mortar included will have problems, occasional rude employees and mixups. It is the long haul that tells you about the company and its policies.

--
'A bad idea in search of a good cause is..
just a bad idea' ... me

I have purchased several items from them, a body and two lenses,
and they have delivered what they promised at the cost they
advertised, and in a timely manner. They are very careful to
verify orders, something that while being a bit of a pain protects
me as well.

The one thing that comes through is that they are not very adept
at stroking customers: they tend to be direct and somewhat abrupt
when "pushed."

They didn't rate that poorly at resseller ratings, and the few who complained were usually taken care of by the end. So not the best, but definitely not the worst! The majority of buyers had a good experience though.

Rick Knepper said:

If a lens is actually defective, any Canon authorized dealer of
which Beach is one will exchange the lens without fees.

Otherwise, I think tire-kickers should pay for the convenience of
in-home testing.

Click to expand...

There are many shades of gray - and truth - between being a
compliant consumer and being a "tire-kicker."

When I picked a source for my new 30D and 85 f1.8, I monitored B&H, Beach, Amazon, and Beach was the best price overall. I had about 5 lenses I was interested in well in advance of the latest rebates. Beach not only was best price, but shipping was free. For my Sigma 10-20, I did the same but ordered thru Sigma4Less who had a 10 day return policy. After about 1 month, I wanted to return it due to softness and it took a little wining, but they allowed the return. These are all good companies IMHO.

they did not charge a restociking fee. They were really nice and paid the return shipping too

--
RLH1861

I think Beach/Buydig are the same thing based websites and mailing address. I use to use BH because well it was reliable and I lived in MD and payed no sales tax. However, now I live in NY, so I use buydig/beach (NJ) for things. 10% restock is common, unfortunate but common. In the end even with the 10% they can be less than others. In most cases BH is 5% more than Buydig, so if have to return I look at it as a 5% loss, not a 10%
--
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bbryce/

I have purchased most all of my major gear in the past year from Beach Camera. 20d body, 4 lenses and a flash.

I would have bought any if not all of the above gear from BH, but Beach's prices were better. (I always compare prices like crazy and thoroughly research a potential seller before engaging in a transaction -money is tight! and I don't want to be a victim!) (I, as other posters here am a big fan of resellerratings.com, -if this doesn't yield beneficial results about a retailer than a simple google search of the company name should reveal any major problems.)

I have been very pleased with Beach Camera. On each occasion I received the items as promised and promptly. (interestingly enough every time I order I use the cheapest shipping option- (which is often offered for free) it is labled as 7-10 delivery but on every occasion I have received my order witin three business days of placing the order.)

Interesting that several posters mention having their orders verified- I placed all of my orders online and was never contacted to verify my order. As for returns and exchanges I have not as of yet had the need.

matt

I have purchased many times from Beach/Buydig.com (same company) and have been more than satisfied by their service. Their prices are extremely competitve and legit. I purchased my 1DMKII, S3 IS and most recently, my Rebel XT. I am planning on purchasing a 5D and the 100/2 from them soon too. And depending on what the new releases are, I may get that from them as well. When I decide to get the 300/2.8, I will go to them too.

Mike
--
A picture is no longer worth a 1000 words, it's worth about 5MB.

postpurchase said:

I have purchased most all of my major gear in the past year from
Beach Camera. 20d body, 4 lenses and a flash.

I would have bought any if not all of the above gear from BH, but
Beach's prices were better. (I always compare prices like crazy and
thoroughly research a potential seller before engaging in a
transaction -money is tight! and I don't want to be a victim!) (I,
as other posters here am a big fan of resellerratings.com, -if this
doesn't yield beneficial results about a retailer than a simple
google search of the company name should reveal any major problems.)

I have been very pleased with Beach Camera. On each occasion I
received the items as promised and promptly. (interestingly enough
every time I order I use the cheapest shipping option- (which is
often offered for free) it is labled as 7-10 delivery but on every
occasion I have received my order witin three business days of
placing the order.)

Interesting that several posters mention having their orders
verified- I placed all of my orders online and was never contacted
to verify my order. As for returns and exchanges I have not as of
yet had the need.

matt

Click to expand...

Everybody needs to eat. As long as the price is in the ball park I don't nickel and dime a vendor. What I get from B&H is a complete service. It starts with their comprehensive online catalog. It's second to none. That takes a lot of effort to maintain, let alone create that huge data base. I can order something at 2 in the afternoon and have it tomorrow morning. Their inventory is huge.

I've dealt with the same sales rep from about 3 years now. He has taught me tricks from when I knew really nothing about photography to now, when I know enough to be dangerous. He was a pro shooter for 10+ years and still shoots as a hobby. His knowledge of technics, equipment, and manufactures is extensive and impressive. Every time I talk with him I learn something that helps me shoot better. How much is that worth?

B&H is the best, if your time is worth something, that's who you use, and this is why.

I bought a lens from beach Camera. The autofocus did not work at all. They returned 100% of what I paid but I had to pay shipping to return the defective lense. I bought the replacement at Amazon where you can return with no cost for shipping or questions asked.

Greg Pavlov said:

Beach Camera's name has appeared here as being a reliable vendor.
I notice, however, that it charges a 10% "restocking fee." Is that
true of other reliable sources, such as B&H ?

Click to expand...

Rick Knepper said:

Otherwise, I think tire-kickers should pay for the convenience of
in-home testing.

Click to expand...

It depends on the product. Many lenses I've tried aren't factory sealed--the boxes can easily be opened, the lens tried out, then wrapped back up and put back in the box good as new. I would certainly object to paying a restocking fee for something that they're going to simply put back on the shelf once I hand it back to them. For other products, I can understand the practice. I'm not fond of it, but I understand it.

Personally, I'd be very hesitant to buy a lens from a store that charged a restocking fee if I couldn't try the lens on my camera first. With QC as variable as it is with some lenses, and variations between individual lenses and cameras, there's no guarantee that a lens will work with your particular camera. If I'm buying an L glass and for some reason it doesn't play with my camera, I'd be paying $150-$200 to learn that lesson. (Okay, I could then send the lens and camera to Canon for calibration, but that's also money out of my pocket.) Thank you, but I'll pass on that "deal."

Give me a brick-and-mortar store where I can put the specific lens I'm buying on my camera to make sure it works, and that gives me a period of time to thoroughly test the lens with the option of returning it without penalty. Yeah, I may pay a few pennies more than the on-line stores, and have to pay sales tax, but I'll take that cost of in-home testing any day of the week. (And if I'm paying "L" prices, you bet your a** I'll be kicking the tires every single day of that return window.)

Later,

K