 Pentaxian Premium join:2008-01-23 West Milford, NJ | reply to Cliffy Re: New York AG after Brooklyn Scammers
years ago B&H was notorious for grey market shenanigens - after a few media busts they cleaned up their act. |
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  Stacy FotoDogue Premium join:2001-11-02 New York, NY
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1 edit | said by Pentaxian :years ago B&H was notorious for grey market shenanigens - after a few media busts they cleaned up their act. Pentaxian Sorry I'm not familiar with these "grey market shenanigens" and I've been shopping at B&H since it was a small store near City Hall. Yes they do carry USA Warranty and Grey Market but in my experience they've always been quite clear about the difference.
I also remember a time where there were more camera stores in New York than you could count and most of these stores wouldn't even allow you to even see the item until after you had paid for it. Many of these stores were notorious for removing items and accessories normally supplied by the manufacturer and then selling them as "must purchase accessories" to jack up the price. B&H was always one of the good guys who actually delivered on the advertised price - no strings attached.
B&H (and Adorama) were also two of the few discount New York camera stores that would allow customers to handle equipment before they purchased it. The fact that they now have showrooms with prices attached is light years ahead of the type of photo supply shops we had back in the 80s.
I'm not saying there may have been some instances where grey market may have been substituted for USA Warranty, or customers may have been confused by the two (you'd be amazed to see how little some shoppers know about photography) but this kind of practice, at least in my experience, certainly is not the norm at B&H. |
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  Chuck22 Premium join:2003-11-10 Salt Lake City, UT
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| reply to Pentaxian said by Pentaxian :years ago B&H was notorious for grey market shenanigens - after a few media busts they cleaned up their act. Possibly I'm one of the exceptions, but I have purchased many items from B&H during the past seven years, and have never encountered any grey market shenanigans. I've received only quality products as advertised, at very reasonable prices, in a most timely manner. Of course, YMMV  -- amicitia sine fraude |
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  tmpchaos Requiescat in pace Premium,Mod join:2000-04-28 Hoboken, NJ clubs:   
Host: All Things Macintosh Team RC5 Digital Imaging Digital Imaging Te..
| reply to Pentaxian Re: New York AG after Brooklyn Scammers
The one that was really well known for those types of moves was 47th Street Photo. Of course some of us remember the good old days around Herald Square... -- ***ATMFAQ***DIFAQ***Kitchen Sink*** |
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 Pentaxian Premium join:2008-01-23 West Milford, NJ
| reply to Pentaxian quote: said by Stacy :
Yes they do carry USA Warranty and Grey Market but in my experience they've always been quite clear about the difference.
They were busted for false advertising and bait and switch techniques. B&H used to run large ads in newspapers with pricing in which they would advertise a camera at a great price with no mention of grey market - an unsuspecting customer would buy the product and NEVER be the wiser until there was a problem. Of course the consumer was screwed because B&H had yanked the warranty card from the merchandise.. It was no good in the US anyway..
Now don't get upset with me because you like B&H - I use them almost exclusively and I like their prices and have never been screwed by them. But there was a day when not everyone could say that.. |
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  Stacy FotoDogue Premium join:2001-11-02 New York, NY
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| said by Pentaxian :They were busted for false advertising and bait and switch techniques. B&H used to run large ads in newspapers with pricing in which they would advertise a camera at a great price with no mention of grey market - an unsuspecting customer would buy the product and NEVER be the wiser until there was a problem. Of course the consumer was screwed because B&H had yanked the warranty card from the merchandise.. It was no good in the US anyway.. Got a link? I remember plenty of photo supply houses that operated this way, often running large ads in the Sunday papers, but not B&H. In fact, B&H is one of the few photo supply houses that publishes and widely distributes a catalog with current prices. |
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  Splitpair Premium join:2000-07-29 Cow Towne
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| reply to Pentaxian Re: New York AG after Brooklyn Scammers
said by Pentaxian :years ago B&H was notorious for grey market shenanigens - after a few media busts they cleaned up their act. Have some links to back that up with?
I have heard these rumors before but no one can never seem to find or post any real proof of them actually having happened.
For what it is worth I have purchased enough from B&H to buy Miami twice over and never had a single problem or misrepresentation of an items listing or origin.
Wayne -- If you cannot fix it with a buttset and some beanies you ain't a technician |
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  Jodokast96 R.I.P Bassman442 Premium join:2005-11-23 Erial, NJ | Contrary to popular belief, everything that ever was is not necessarily on the Internet. |
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