Beach Camera - Not A WALK ON THE BEACH . . . yet
Written: Jan 23 '02
| Customer Service: |
 |
|
| On-Time Delivery: |
 |
|
| Selection: |
 |
|
|
| Full Review |
Beach Camera . . . this image is grand. Hot sand. Sun out. Walking along (even in cyberspace). Stop and pick up a camera or such and capture those magical summer (or even winter) memories.
BC has TERRIFIC prices. When I did a search on some camera/photo items I wanted, Beach came in with the lowest on prices. I checked the ratings, and I noticed that BC is not max on ratings with customer rate sites or with professional raters. Then again, it is not low-low. About mid range overall.
I’m looking at a digital camera, photo printer with the 4 x 6 slot and 35 mm Owl cameras for my boys.
Since I’m worried about the delivery time on the Owls, I go into the chat section and talk to customer service. The girl is really nice there though when I try to check things on the site, I lose the chat and have to go back in and reboot the chat function. Click to any page – chat thing closes. BOOM. I end up pulling up my cyber help friend 4 x when I hit something to double check. Then I get email with the transcript of every log in and out. This, of course, reminds me that it does not work very well. Cyber friend says to check something. I lose her. I reboot. Start chat again. Then I get email with every time that happened. Only emails I get and several of those.
Turns out the Owls are not in stock. This reminds me of a local gas station owner. Someone asks him why he charges $1.06 when the guy down the road charges only 94 cents. “Why don’t you just buy it down the road then?” says the station owner with higher prices. The guy wanting a deal on gas says, “They’re out.” The high gas guy says: “Well, if I was out, then I would only charge 92 cents.” That’s about what I’m thinking. Beach can give great prices if they don’t even have the camera to sell. Might as well sell real cheap when you’re out anyway.
I check the digital camera, and it is lower than any I can find for that model. It is also in stock. Good news. It arrives on Christmas Eve with the extra charge for that fast delivery (high—about $40 I think- but still lower overall than others). No problem though it takes 4 days for overnight with the holiday weekend. It comes in time, so I’m fine. That was really my bottom line on that.
Beach has a rebate posted up so that if I get the printer at the same time, then I get $100 off the printer from HP. I’m thinking a digital camera is not that great if I can’t make prints at home when I want. With this good deal, I go ahead and order the next day on the printer I’m thinking about. I don’t pay fast ship and just figure a few more days on that. Time for the rebate. Santa does not have to bring a printer.
The camera came in as I said, but this is a month later now . . . and no printer. My credit bill comes in with a high charge. I start thinking “printer” then, and I don’t have one. Since Beach did not send any confirmation email or any email that anything was coming including the digital camera, I’m just not sure.
I call the phone number on the credit card bill. That is nice actually that the phone is right there on the Visa bill. The guy sounds nice when I call and go through 2 presses on the phone pad to get a person. He wants the order number, but I tell him I have no idea. I don’t have any email with order numbers. First he wants to know what company, so I figure he is sure not working at Beach Camera. He looks it up by my last name and zip code and says that the package came in. I say: “Now, was that the printer or was it a camera?” He says: “Printer.” When I say that I did not get a printer, he looks that up and says that such-and-such signed for it. Bummer. That is my son-age 9.
I shake down my 9 year old about the package. “What did you do with the box E?” I ask. He doesn’t remember back a month. We look the house over top to bottom. No printer in a box hidden anywhere. Then I go back into my saved files and emails (none) and also the print copies. The dollar amount matches the camera, so after an evening of searching I figure it is the camera so I will pay on that. But, I still don’t have that printer. And, I don’t know if I should buy a printer now or keep waiting. I would contact Beach Camera, but the phone number does not go to them and the site is down for updates now. The company covering that thinks I got a printer when it was a camera, so . . .
Here is what I think:
The prices are great – if they have the item.
Customer service is really nice – if they iron out the kinks in the online program and stop bumping off customers.
Contact is shaky – no email confirmation on orders or mailing. Phone help is with a company not connected to Beach Camera from what I could tell (though the guy was nice enough – though off target on what he said).
Overall . . . I doubt I would order here again. The camera came fine (with high ship), but I don’t know if or when the printer will come. They don’t know what they shipped me or didn’t tell the phone company place which meant a frantic evening looking for the printer. So, they tell me YES it was the printer when it was the camera which caused major headaches here.
If the printer comes in, then the rebate is dead. That was $100 but had to be postmarked by Dec 31. If it doesn’t come in, then I can’t buy in bundle and get a deal now. So, I’m just stuck waiting and wondering at the moment.
Here is what I suggest to Beach Camera:
Polish up a little. I would consider Beach with the great prices, nice people working at the company, and quick ship on that one critical order. Don’t farm out customer service. That was a mess when the guy didn’t know what shipped here and just told me a printer. I should have kept records better (and I know that), but Beach didn’t help out on that with not sending anything by way of confirmation. Fortunately, I keep pretty good records (if I have to go back and through all my many files), so I figured out that the charge was the camera. I’m glad to pay that (and any bills I do owe), but if I still thought it was the printer, then I would challenge a charge and that would take lots more time and effort for Beach and cost all of us in the long run. Also, Beach lost the sale on the printer (it seems), and I lost the rebate on that printer which is not a good thing for either of us.
Right now . . . Beach is NOT a walk on the beach. It is more like getting out the compass and trying to find your way through the briars though some of the views are nice along the way (and could be great). I’ll pass for now, but I hope that they get it together. This one shows promise, but it is NOT THERE yet.
Recommended:
No
|
|
|
|
About the Author
Member: Cyndi
Location: out in the yard grilling
Reviews written: 1176
Trusted by: 633 members
About Me: The first and greatest commandment is, don’t let them scare you. Elmer Davis
|
