grey imports and whats the difference

hi i am going to purchase a new 70d and was looking on a popular auction site seen a cannon 70d with 18-55 stm lens for £624. was tempted to press the buy it now till i remembered someone talking about grey import cameras. can someone in the know please explain the difference if any between the two

many thanks

The big difference between "grey" products and a normal purchase is, I believe, in 1) the legality of your purchase and 2) the warranties that are offered.

hi thanks for replying tony. have just had a good read of what it all means

Then you already know that a gray market item meant for sale in some other country, will not be repaired in the USA (or wherever you are) unless you have some kind of internationl warranty.

I just bought an interesting compact camera, but unless I want it repaired in Dubai or Australia, I'm out of luck!

B&H has a good explanation: http://www.bhphotovide​o.com/find/HelpCenter/​USGrey.jsp

thanks guys. going to pay the bit extra from my local shops at least that way i get peace of mind

Bear in mind that not all grey imports are the same deal.

A great deal depends on where you buy it, and what is included. There have been two main points raised above, legality and warranty. The main legal issue is have the taxes been paid on it when imported. This is especially critical if you are buying from a dealer that purports to be a UK dealer but only has a postal address here (Usually a PO box which is just a letter drop and forwarding service). These outfits tend to hide the fact that they are not physically in the UK and will send your camera from outside the country. That leaves you liable for the taxes when it arrives and, whilst you may be lucky and not be charged anything, you could find a bill for 20%+ arrives first, which you must pay if you want the camera delivered.

The other issue is warranty. If the camera is sourced from another market (such as Hong Kong) then that is where the original warranty will be based. Therefore if work needs doing you need to send it back to HK, or wherever, or pay to have it done locally.

However, not all grey import dealers leave you to take these risks. The reputable ones import the cameras, pay the taxes and provide you with a local warranty. They aren't as cheap as the less accomodating sellers, but cheaper than a regular main dealer. One dealer who gets very good recommendations from many people on here, and I have bought from them myself, is HDEW. They started as a small chain of bricks and mortar camera stores but, with the coming of the internet, switched to online selling from a main base. They provide grey imports but the gear has all taxes paid on it and you can go in and buy it over the counter if you wish. So, there are no legal issues, the gear is as legitimate as anything else bought from a UK dealer.

As for warranty, they provide a three year warranty on bodies, as opposed to the standard one year warranty. In theory, you need to arrange work through them and they get it done at an official Canon service centre in the UK. So, no different than a non grey item apart from going through the third party warranty. I have seen several people who have said that Canon have accepted the cameras directly, within the first twelve months, and they say they were told that as the cameras were sold by a UK dealer with a VAT receipt, they will cover them. I cannot personally verify that though, as my 5DIII I bought through HDEW has never faltered in the two years I have had it. Obviously, you would need the third party warranty in years 2 & 3, but that is because the standard warranty would have run out.

Before I purchased from HDEW I researched them carefully. All I could find was happy reviews and happy customers. When problems did occur (as they will with any dealer) they were sorted quickly and to the customers satisfaction.

They can't match the £624 price you were looking at, but that 70D / 18-55 IS STM kit is £779 on their site, compared to around £859 (£959 less £100 cashback) from an official UK source. Less of a saving but still worth having, and of course you get the extra two years warranty as well. I suspect that anybody selling the kit as low as £624 is selling gear without the tax paid and without a decent warranty.

(I have assumed that you are in the UK, as you quoted a price in sterling)

This may not make any difference with your decision for the 70d and your location in UK(?). However, pertaining to the subject, the 6D model with US warranty has Wi-Fi & GPS. Whereas, the import model does not.

All my cameras, five in number over the years, have been "grey market imports". Canon has an official importer who provides a three year warranty, but there are at least a dozen stores that working through an agent, usually in Hong Kong, import merchandise and sell it a a considerably cheaper price. Israeli law requires them to give at least a one year warranty, but many offer an option to pay extra for an extended warranty and sometimes compete by giving a longer one at no additional cost. The trick in knowing where to buy is in knowing where they do their repairs; whether they do them themselves or send the cameras to somebody else. Some use the same lab that the official importer uses and in fact that lab has recently started selling grey imports itself. In all likelihood my next purchase (a 5D4 if it is great) will be from them.

thanks sandpiper had a look on there site but have allready made up my mind to go to currys

Usually the difference in price is so small that I see no point in opting for the import/grey model.

Right now, the import/grey and the US models are the same price (at B&H) for the Canon 24-105.

I bought my grey market 1DX for $2,800 off the US model, tax free with some sort of 3 year warranty which I would probably never use but its nice to have. I think that's a huge savings

panicatnabisco wrote in post #17057423
I bought my grey market 1DX for $2,800 off the US model, tax free with some sort of 3 year warranty which I would probably never use but its nice to have. I think that's a huge savings

Where did you buy it?

eBay, there's been a few ongoing deals for $4,999 that pop up once in a while, mostly from the seller allnewshop

tjs42 wrote in post #17053254
thanks sandpiper had a look on there site but have allready made up my mind to go to currys

Before buying from Currys make sure you check their prices against online stores with a good reputation - WEx and Park Cameras being two of them. You'll possibly find a better price and better customer service from them.

Talking of which - refuse point-blank to even contemplate an extended warranty. They are a rip-off and not worth the money. The drones in Currys, and similar stores, get a lot of money if they can sell these over-priced insurance policies and will push and push.