Buy.com drops Canon prices...Drebel for $879!

http://www.buy.com …dmh=dm5.95909&d​caid=17289

B&H has it for $899 right now and the body only for $819.........

B&H has had it reduced for several weeks. It looks like the others are just catching up.

Have Fun,

Wouldn't it be interesting to know what kind of profit margin B&H has on a camera deal like that?

---Bob Gross---

I have seen the cost sheets for a small local camera store chain, and the profits are not that great. But Spiffs, volume kickbacks and the like make it hard to tell the actual cost that a retailer pays. I'm sure B&H pays less than the local camera store due to the volume, but it is also possible that they get a break from Canon to close out models that are about to be replaced.

Have Fun,

Well, if it is a low margin, they certainly make up for it in other areas. While I enjoy doing business with them (great service, shipping, products), I have become disappointed with their pricing. I am starting to find a lot of other vendors on the web with prices that are far lower than B&H, and the service has been just as good. I paid almost $100.00 less for my 70-200 4.0L by purchasing from Beach Camera instead of B&H, and I received it in less than a week. They even included a copy of the rebate form.

RFMSports wrote:
http://www.buy.com …dmh=dm5.95909&d​caid=17289

Add this $15 off $200 orders to save even more. For new customers only.

http://www.buy.com …?prid=88301879&​dcaid=1688

i bought the drebel for $899 thats with the kit lense free shipping no tax and for 69.99 got a 3 year extended full warranty for parts labor or replacemetn if necessary.

Aside from spiffs, volume pricing, and the like, the single most profitable item in electronics sales is extended waranties.

I've never seen an extended waranty that was really a proper deal for the customer. Most sales clerks split the profit with the store for every contract they sell. It tends to make the sales people really pushy about stuff like that.

Whenever I get something from Best Buy, I'm pelted with offers for extended waranty coverage on some of the dumbest items. I find that the only way to shut them up is to tell them straight out that "I *never* buy extended waranties" and refuse to explain why (if you do, they have a scripted answer for everything).

If you want breakage/theft insurance, you can get a much better (and more comprehensive) deal through your home insurance policy, with article floater policies, if required.

If you thought that the article you bought wasn't built well enough to last for the amount of time you are considering using it, why are wasting money on it? Buy a better quality article, from a better manufacturer.

With retailers like Best Buy, Circuit City, etc., there is no question that a large portion of their annual profits come from these extended warranty sales.

I find that it is even harder for me to justify an extended warranty when American Express (with certain cards) extends the manufacturers warranty to double or 1 additional year (whichever is longer). So, in most cases, I have a 2 year manufacturers warranty equivilent vs. a three year extended. I find that the extended warranty fee for the 3 year warranty (reading the fine print on many, you will find that it is not 3 additional years, but extends the warranty to 3 years) is way too high for just 1 year additional.

Exactly.


Now for those who might want to move on, what follows could be considered an old guy telling a war story - but it has a point. Consider yourself advised...

Several years ago I was replacing a 35mm point and shoot for my wife. I settled on the model (a Canon, of course, but I don't remember the model), but it was in short supply. I ultimately decided to get it from a store that was not my favorite, but they had the camera, and had the best price. I walked in, asked for the camera (it was one of those showroom formats), a roll of film, and the battery. The sales person launched into the extended warranty sales pitch, and I calmly but firmly refused. Undeterred, I was hit with reason after reason why I 'needed' the service policy, and, if I didn't already know that this place was one of the only stores that had the camera, I would have walked out. Ultimately I convinced him that he wasn't going to sell me a service policy. So I got all the stuff, and went home. I wrapped each piece (film, battery) for the presentation to my wife. We (me and the kids) gave them to her, and she unwrapped each one. We break open the boxes, and I put it all together, and then find out that the moron gave me the right battery, but the camera required TWO of them. So there I am late one Sunday afternoon running around trying to find a special camera battery because the moron was more interested in selling the service policy than knowing his product. Needless to say, I refused to go back to that store, and - surprise, surprise - they are no longer in business. Perhaps I wasn't the only one upset by their misguided 'sales' push.

Have Fun,

i got my camera through AAFES the wqarranty is back by the united states government
it is a military installation store

i awlays buy their warranty on everything i purchase

they are easy to work with and they hold to the warranty in full.

it covers accidental damage such as dropping the thing i have 3 very small children

Often the PX/BX stores have grey market products, generally at a discount, and the supplemental warranty makes sense, particularly if you are stationed around the world. I think that this is an exception to the extended warranty discussion, but glad you brought it up.

it covers accidental damage such as dropping the thing i have 3 very small children

Nice addition in this case.

The reason's why i Buy service plans.... . well from Best buy atleast

Manufacture's warrenty's are void as soon as i leave the country...
Manufacture's warrentys wont touch LCD's
Manufacture's warrentys wont touch Batteries
Maunfacture's warrentys only cover manufacture defects <deemed by them as such>
Manufacture's warrentys require you to ship the camera to a service center..
Maunfacture's warrentys are also 90 days parts AND labor... 1 yr labor....


Bestbuy will cover all normal wear and tear, Dirt, dust, heat, humidity, freezing, and dead pixals
Bestbuy will cover Battery replacement for 4 years...
Best buy will cover the problems with the lcd's
Best buy allows you to take it into any store nation wide, or call a toll free number and have a box shipped to you, to get your camera repaired
Best buy covers the cost of all parts in the 4 years, and if they cant fix it, a new camera for you...

so basically $99.99 get's you unlimited battery replacement..... 2 battery replacements pay's for the plan alone...
Normal cleanings for your camera.
Higer resell value's
AND when it breaks, you dont have to make a phone call to india... you can go to your local bestbuy and chew their friendly faces' out

now how could you say no to that?

Quite easily. Also, extended warranties makeup an extremely large share of Best Buys annual profits.

Operating profit margins on extended warranties are reported to be nearly 70% vs. only 10% or so on the products themselves.

So, with just about any other form of "insurance" you need to assess the benefit and weigh it against the "premium". At 70% profit margin, extended warranties are generally a bit rich for me, but others swear by them.