Buying local - paying the price.

After the nightmare I had with Ritz Camera and their whopping 10 day return policy, I'll stick to B & H from now on. While it's great if the store has a real return policy for problems, if the local store has a crappy policy, order online and wait a few days.

Nothing like plunking $1500+ down on a camera and then being told 11 days later that unless I bought the 'extended' warranty, they wouldn't take it back. If you buy local, make sure you ask what their return policy is first. Get it in writing if you can.

<<For those who advise to buy local because you believe they will treat you better if there is a problem or what not think again...Circuit City...CompUSA...Kits Camera>>

Those are NOT 'local stores'!!! They are all national chains, with a local outlet filled with local hires who make little money and could care less about repeat customers. No wonder you get treated so poorly.
A local store is something owned by a proprieter who lives in the area, staffed with others from the area, and has names like 'Mortimer's Camera'.

Wilt - that is EXACTLY what I do - use the local store to "view" the products and then buy online baby! There is no better way! I would prefer the tag of "immoral" from you rather than "broke" from my banker.

<Wilt - that is EXACTLY what I do>
If your local store is not one which is merely a local outlet of a nationally-owned chain, I can somewhat accept that.
But it if is locally owned, I hope for your sake that the store is still in business when you suddenly need that $10 accessory on extremely short notice and cannot wait for shipment from NYC with the shipment cost someday when that is the only alternative which is left any more!
I used to be able to go to 5 stores around my area with good inventory selection to look and choose. NONE of them are still in business today. Now all I have is Ritz (yeech!) and one indepedent store.

My local camera shop is still heavily into film, heavily into Nikon, and heavy on their price. When I was looking for my 580EX, they had one in stock (a real shocker) but it was over $600!!!! I want to support them, but they carry hardly anything for Canon, and even when they do, it will cost you almost twice what an online shop charges.

Where are you located? USA stores CANNOT legally sell you items over list price without telling you in advance.

Local stores prices, to me, seem to be geared towards the more un-educated, first time camera purchaser. I constantly see people in my local stores buying their first camera and often times mixed with bad information from the under-educated sales staff. I have actually answered questions for people while in the store due to none of the staff being aware of the correct answer. (The question was can the flash sync on a 20D go above the 1/200 sec level - the answer was yes - just put the 420ex the customer was using in high speed sync mode....but they did not know that.)

i don't really have any local camera shops so i always buy from the net

it's so much cheaper on the net anways

I have found that at several local stores. If they are camera stores, they seem to look down on you for asking questions. If they are a mutli-purpose store, then often the sales people don't have the answers.

One of the reasons this is such a great place, is because you can ask questions without being made to feel that way, and trust the answer more than the "We don't stock that because of the problems...." vested interest answers.

I would prefer to buy local but sometimes they just can't compete on price - they wanted $400 more for the 20D than Dell with coupons (next-day shipped) and I just could not do it. I did, however, go and test the Tamron 28-75 at the local store and I purchased it ther because it was competitively priced - I paid a little more but that is ok. I also purchased my DRebel and 9100 from the local store so I try to support them when it doesn't cost me too much more. I do value having them around.

I agree, Some of the sales people in the local places really are stupid, But if their close(not over $50.) than I will buy local, I bought my tripod and head local because I was in Ritz checking them out and just decided the shipping would get me anyway. If it's something I feel I may need to bring back...Buy local, if not, get it online and don't get caught up in saving your local store, Let them drop their prices some and work together with repeat customers, If not........See ya! LOL

If you are a diehard online shopper. Don't complain when you lose your job to someone overseas, because they will do your job cheaper.

I think that we are really stretching now by saying that we will lose American jobs by buying online......EVERY camera that I have purchased online has been from an American company and sold to me by an American worker - I guarantee you. I'm also not blind enough to know that ALL outsourcing is not bad.