New digital camera

consultant31

Want to buy the Panasonic DMC FZ38 and looking for the best deal.

Would have been happy to buy from Amazon normally but their price isn't nearly as good as some I've seen and they don't offer extra guarantee etc. However, I'm mindful that a 5 year guarantee may not be worth much if the company selling it isn't likely to be there in a couple of years time.

Can anyone give me an opinion on simplyelectronics.net and ukcamerastore.co.uk.

Would like this for my holiday at the end of the month so speed is of the essence.

Many thanks

Lugh_Chronain

I see there are two other websites selling the Panasonic DMC FZ38 qtech & Deltatronics which are both cheaper than Amazon though I'm not sure if they have a delivery charge. I've not heard of these two websites so again you'll have to look into this yourself.

You could also keep an eye on HotUKDeals as Dixons were sell these cameras for £219 a couple of days ago as pointed out on there.

Coopdivi

Simply electronics are based in Hong Kong so even if your goods turned up you'd get stung for vat, customs duty and the Post Office handling charge.

SimplyElectronics Limited
1501-1508, Millennium City 5,
418 Kwun Tong Road,
Kwun Tong, Kowloon,
HongKong

On the Whois Lookup for domain registration they hide behind a privacy service based in Canada so there's no telling that even the Hong Kong address is legitimate.

http://whois.domaintools.com/simplyelectronics.net

I can't find anything overly negative on Uk Camera Store. They're based in Leighton Buzzard and they have a Leighton Buzzard phone number. They don't hide behind a box number and, as I've said, they use a geographical phone number.

Their Whois address details are different but still in the UK. For me that's not a negative though.

http://whois.domaintools.com/ukcamerastore.co.uk

The only thing I would quibble about is this line in their Terms and Conditions regarding the Distance Selling Regulations: All sealed items should be returned unopened and fit for sale as new, we will then be happy to offer an immediate full refund. If they are not we will be unable to take the goods back.

That's not true. DSR allows you to examine a product including unwrapping it.

A couple of things to bear in mind if you do decide to return your camera under DSR then you have to pay your own postage which is not refundable . Delivery charge for cameras (to you) is £8

Coopdivi

Qtech and Deltatronics are untrustworthy sites with unfeasibly low prices.

Coopdivi

The Dixons one is now back up to £235.

Lugh_Chronain

Yes that's right, Dixons were selling these for £219 and has just gone back up to £235 as you say. Their offer appears to have been on for less than a week unfortunately.

consultant31

Thanks for the input so far.

Coopdivi - I had seen the qtech price but was put off by the address and phone number given on the website so wouldn't have dealt with them, but many thanks for the heads up on Simply electronics......it's a minefield isn't it?

consultant31

Just in case anyone else is interested in this camera and looking for a deal - I finally ordered one from Amazon at £230 with a one week delivery instead of the 2 - 3 months they were showing early in the week. I feel much happier buying from Amazon as I've always rated their service as second to none.

It's a lot of money, granted, but according to all the reviews it's a lot of camera too

Lugh_Chronain

Maybe next time you're thinking of purchasing anything from Amazon try tracking it using Price Protectr or Zeezaw.

There's more info on Zeezaw here. I must say I do prefer Price Protectr though.

consultant31

Lugh_Chronain wrote: »

Maybe next time you're thinking of purchasing anything from Amazon try tracking it using Price Protectr or Zeezaw.

There's more info on Zeezaw here. I must say I do prefer Price Protectr though.

Thanks for this. I've never heard of either site before, but they do look very interesting