O.K., But do Your Homework
Written: Feb 10 '02 (Updated Feb 11 '02)
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I purchased a Nikon Coolpix 885 digital camera from IbuyDigital. Their advertised price was not the lowest, but much better than I could get from local stores, and better than the well-known online retailers. I chose them because they had a good rating for shipping on time. I needed it quickly because I was leaving on a trip, so ordered by talking to a sales person via the 800 number instead of online. He assured me that it would ship on time and arrive by when I needed it. The camera was delivered one day ahead of time, and as promised.
I did expect them to push for accessories, so I checked prices on some that I knew I would want. Their listed price for the Lithium Ion battery and charger was quite high. I had looked up what the Nikon battery/charger set was selling for on other sites. When I told them the competitive prices, they reduced their price to only $10 above those prices. That sounded good. However, it turned out that they shipped me a 3rd party charger and battery, not Nikon branded ones. The charger works, but the battery seems to have less capacity than the Nikon one. Since I had assumed that I was getting a Nikon brand and didn't verify it with them, I can't really blame them for it. I would strongly suggest that anyone buying accessories from IbuyDigital verify the manufacturer.
Second, they suggested I buy a UV filter (which I hadn't thought about) for $30. I do use UV filters on my other cameras, so was not opposed to getting one at a reasonable price. When I told them that their price was a bit high (I knew that they usually sold for around $20 or less), they offered to include the stepdown ring, need to attach filters or lenses to the 885, for free. I had planned to get the ring anyway since I wanted to add a wide angle lens adapter to the camera, and had determined that the ring sells for around $10. This sounded like a reasonable deal and I agreed to get the filter and ring. What I discovered when the shipment arrived is that again, the ring was a 3rd party product, not Nikon. This one however does work well and I have no complaints. What I didn't know was that the filter, while fitting properly, is pretty useless on the Coolpix 885 since the lens mechanism extends out when the camera is powered up. The stepdown ring, therefore sticks out all the time when it is installed with the attached filter, and makes the camera much less portable. Consequently, I never use the filter on this camera. I suspect that the sales person knew that the filter was of little use on the 885 when he suggested that I buy it.
They also tried to sell me a wide angle and telephoto lens kit for 1/2 price (this week only). This time I asked, and found that they were not the Nikon parts, and even at the 1/2 price were overpriced compared to other online sites.
Overall, I would buy from them again because their price on the camera was good and shipment was prompt. However, I would determine exactly what I need, get a list of prices from other sites ahead of time, and MAKE NO ASSUMPTIONS about the brands of any accessories! I would also not buy anything unfamiliar based on their sales person recommendation.
Recommended:
Yes
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About the Author
Reviews written: 16
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