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JamesM
15th of March 2007 (Thu), 05:01
Hello. I have decided to buy the Canon EF 24-70 mm F2.8 L USM lense. The unfortunate fact is the best price of this lense is SGD2200 here in Singapore. The price is $1450 USD after currency conversion and very expensive compared to $1150 at B&H in the US. I have a colleague who travelled back and forth from Hong Kong for work every several weeks. The shop there says they can give him a price comparable to in the US which is around $1150. Unfortunately, he recently resigned from his job last week. The shop he frequented in Hong Kong has a website: http://www.tincheungcamera.com.hk/ although I am unsure if they can be trusted as I personally have never dealt at all with them before. I thought of ordering via the website so the lense can be delivered here but the only payment method is PayPal. I understand PayPal is more risky than direct CC payment like 2CheckOut.com and that Hong Kong does not have a very good reputation among westerners. If I buy from Hong Kong, it can take up to 48 hours payment confirmation and 72 hours shipping which is 5 days :confused: and I would not know if the lens hood and pouch are in the box until then.

I am having trouble deciding where I should buy from.
Pros buying from Hong Kong - Save $300 USD (a lot of money that can be used towards another lense, 85 mm F1.8)

Pros buying locally (Singapore) - I know my local camera shopowner, Singapore 1 year warranty, inspect goods in person (good lense copy, lens hood and pouch in the box)

Advice please. Thank you - James

JamesM
15th of March 2007 (Thu), 05:18
Update: I just called my local camera shop and the owner says he can sell me the lense at SGD2050. That is around $1350 USD. So I will save $200 USD if I buy from Hong Kong (instead of $300 USD previously)

EOS Man
15th of March 2007 (Thu), 07:07
I googled the company up and the comments about them seemed rather negative (esp on their customer service). I haven't bought any lenses in years but now that I got my 30D, time to shop... I'll leave the pointer-giving to more experienced members who buy their lenses all over the place, but I've given my word of caution based on search engine results :eek: