Need help shopping for 10D

[Vince_Z]

Hi all,

I'm strongly considering jumping on the Digital SLR bandwagon now. I've had my Rebel 2000 and Olympus D490 for some time now but I've never really had the best of both worlds in one unit.

If there are any Canadians here, I could sure use your advice looking for the best deal.

I'm in Vancouver, British Columbia. There's a store here that's been nice to me over the years but this time he's only willing to let the Canon 10D go for $2300 CAD. Add to that federal GST(7%) and provincial PST(7.5%) and I'm paying an extra $333.50CAD in taxes (Yikes!).

However, if I buy out-of-province - say from Toronto, Ontario - they won't charge me PST as per federal revenue regulations and I just pay $50CAD or so in shipping.

This is a big investment for me so getting a good deal is very important to me. Any help is greatly appreciated!

So....
Should I buy locally and maintain rapport with my local store but pay extra taxes...OR

Should I buy elsewhere from a store I don't know where future deals may not be likely but save some taxes....OR

Should I buy from the US? I don't know much about the duties imposed on this kind of equipment when it crosses the border, though.


Sorry for all the question. Thanks in advance.
Vince

[ssim]

I have done a considerable amount of searching and this is where I buy most of my "big ticket" items in Canada.

http://www.cameracanada.com/index.asp

They are very price competitive and may be willing to dicker slightly if you find the same product for less elsewhere.

Good luck.

[lightandlife]

Vince_Z wrote:

I'm in Vancouver, British Columbia. There's a store here that's been nice to me over the years but this time he's only willing to let the Canon 10D go for $2300 CAD. Add to that federal GST(7%) and provincial PST(7.5%) and I'm paying an extra $333.50CAD in taxes (Yikes!).

However, if I buy out-of-province - say from Toronto, Ontario - they won't charge me PST as per federal revenue regulations and I just pay $50CAD or so in shipping.

This is a big investment for me so getting a good deal is very important to me. Any help is greatly appreciated!

So....
Should I buy locally and maintain rapport with my local store but pay extra taxes...OR

Should I buy elsewhere from a store I don't know where future deals may not be likely but save some taxes....OR

Should I buy from the US? I don't know much about the duties imposed on this kind of equipment when it crosses the border, though.


Sorry for all the question. Thanks in advance.
Vince

I understand your situation.
The street price for 10D is USD1500. So it should be about CND2100 in Canada. If you have a chance to visit Seattle or any other major city in the US, it may be the time to buy it.

I do not understand full details, but some Koreans are boycotting 10D, claiming that 10D's autofocus has a problem. Apparently, they received a bad batch.

Today I bought mine in a store (but have not had time to use it). I would not get a 10D by mail order (although I bought lenses this way), given the autofocus problem. Visit a store, and test autofocusing personally with a good lens in the store or yours. If it focuses OK wide open (max aperture), then buy it. Whether you pay a hundred dollars more or less is not a serious concern. Returning it to Canon and waiting it to be fixed will be a serious problem. It will cost a lot more, and there is no guarantee when and if it will be fixed.

If you local one tests perfect, it may be a good choice. Also, import tariff will be offset by the sales tax you would pay in Canada. Good luck!

lightandlife.

[hurry]

I do not understand full details, but some Koreans are boycotting 10D, claiming that 10D's autofocus has a problem.

That's named hystery. It is done by "summer hole".

10D is a fine camera, but you also can take pictures with a $-400-machine. Less weight, less money, more fun :-)

[mkaplan]

Hi,
I bought mine in April for the same $2300 as you are paying now. I knew the owner of the store and still had to bargain with him to even get that price.

I would have no problems dealing with www.cameracanada.com or http://www.henrys.ca .
Henrys are a large chain in Ontario. They are very reputable. I have been in one a few times while visiting my brother in Toronto. They are well stocked and have knowledgeable staff. As far as importing, you will still get stuck paying the taxes if you mail ordered from the states. My suggestion, get the camera from Canada and have your local Canadian warranty and order your lenses from U.S. or I also have a good source from China. That is where I ordered my 70-200 F2.8L IS, 1.4X TC, 550ex and TC080N3 from. The lens prices in Canada are totally ridiculous. Example the Sigma 15-30 I paid $430 U.S.. It sells at cameracanada for $951.99. The 70-200, I paid $1520 U.S. and cameracanada has it for $2887.50 (Ouch)

[Vince_Z]

Ok. Thanks for the replies. I took the plunge and bought the 10D from Carman's Foto Source in Stratford, Ontario. UPS says it should be here by Tuesday.

My price: $2190 Camera + $50 Shipping + $157 Taxes = $2397CAD. This is the best I could do.

Now, to find the elusive Sandisk Ultra memory card. The Ultra line seems to have several product ID numbers. If you do a google search for "SDCFH-256-784", "SDCFH-256-785", and "SDCFH-256-786" they all point to Sandisk Ultra 256 cards. Anyone know the differences among these?

Thanks.
Vince

[RedShoesGirl]

For more info on the Ultra SanDisk cards check out Rob Galbraith's site http://www.robgalbraith.com/bins/index.asp