Canon 5D Mark II For Sale?

Best Price Cameras is attempting to capitalize on the Canon 5D Mark II rumors even though there has been no official word that this camera will ever exist. According to the product page, the Canon 5D Mark II is a 16MP camera.

Hold your horses though before you try to buy something from these yahoos.

Check out Best Price Cameras Reseller Ratings at a whopping 0.14 out of 10!!! BPC’s customers have spoken the following kind words about their experiences:

1. The day after I placed my order I received a call from the infamous Chris. Initially he said he wanted to confirm my order, which he did.

He then asked what camera was I going to use the lens with. I told him it was for my Canon Digital Rebel XTi.

Chris said that the XTi had image stabilization built-in so I was wasting my money buying an IS lens. That sounds like good advice, except for one thing. Chris is wrong. The XTi does not have built-in IS.

Now Chris turned on the hard sell. He had a Sigma lens for me that “has better glass anyway” than the Canon lens.

No thanks, I said. I’ll stick with the Canon lens. Then it was which haze filter did I want with my lens. No thanks, I said. Then lens is all I need. (I wonder if he was going to try and sell me the $70 haze filter or the $100 “multi-coated” haze filter.)

2. They don’t carry any merchandise in stock. They will attempt to sell you “grey market” merchandise at a higher price. Their Customer Service is a total joke. They won’t respond to emails. To cancel an order, you must call their Customer Service (it states this in their policies), but get this: THEY WON’T ANSWER THE CALL!

3. It took two attempts and over a half hour on hold along with talking to no fewer than four people to finally speak with someone that informed me that I would be receiving a form through email that I would have to resubmit in order to get an RMA number. Also, there is a 10% restocking fee and what worked out to be another 15% shipping fee which all came to more than $350!!!

4. I placed an order online, only to receive an email followed by a phone call the next day stating I needed to confirm my order. Then I was asked whether I wanted “the six hour battery, or the nine hour battery.” He told me the camera came with a battery, but it only lasted about 15 minutes. When I inquired about the price of the batteries, he gave me a couple of numbers, both over $150. Suspicious, I told “Vic” I would call back. He was unreachable 15 minutes later. The next day, I called again and waited on hold about half an hour to talk to “Mike.” He told me my order was confirmed and again wanted to know if I wanted the 6 or 9 hour battery. I told him neither, and this time he said the camera came with NO battery.

5. Yes, they sell a brand new Canon EOS 40D body for $449. But, that is all you get. No manual, cables, battery, disks or warranty.

6. I ordered a Nikon D80 camera package with two Nikon lens and accessories for $659.00 from them. Ken emailed me and called me saying I should upgrade to glass lens for crisper pictures and it would cost me $130 per lens of the two this made the order $919, when I got the order they had charged me $1289.00 and did not send what was described in the package, the only thing I got that was as described was the Nikon D80 camera, the lenses that came were cheep Tamron lenses which I checked around and sell for a little more than the $130 I was charged for “upgraded” glass Nikon lens I had been sold.

7. I ordered a Canon G9 camera at the “In-stock” low price and received an “order confirmation”. Got a call two days later to try and upsell me a bunch of additional stuff. They took “no” for an answer and that was that. Called 5-days later to check status and it was backorder until “we don’t know when”. However, if I were to order the “executive pack” then they could ship out the camera and pack today. I cancelled the order (or at least told them to cancel and they said “okay”). This is a total bait-and-switch outfit that offers no real service or integrity as a reseller. STAY AWAY FROM THEM!

8. Well, I got an email Sunday morning from someone at BPC telling me to call him to “confirm” my order. I called immediately. From the moment he answered, I could tell something was not right. He didn’t even state the compmany name, just “hello.” I told him who I was and that I wanted to cancel my order. He asked why, and I told him, “just because I want to cancel it.” He stated the order had already been processed and that I’d be charged a “cancellation fee” of $78.

9. Fell for the classic bait and switch. Internet ad for a Canon EOS D40 kit was $1,179 with free MP4 player and free shipping. The camera and lenses came, sans any warranty registration cards,for a total price of $2864. The package included a cheap lens cleaning kit, camera case, and tripod. The agent said that the internet offer was for a Japanese model with plastic lens mount. I guess that I received the US model, however the fact that the warranty cards were missing suggests that I might have a grey market item. I would, as have others, strongly recommend avoiding this company. I’m sorry I didn’t do my due diligence first.

10. Buyers beware! I did not exercise due dilligence and I got burned. Needing a camera quickly for a trip I ordered the Canon EOS Rebel XTi Black Package #4. ($469.00) I called them to verify the order and I was asked if I wanted a lens upgrade, I agreed, I also ordered the fastest shipping. I thought that the total was going to be $660.00 It turned out to be $1310.00

If you need more reasons not to shop at Best Price Cameras, go to the Reseller Ratings page to read 347 more reviews of similar experiences. In my humble opinion, you should not purchase anything from this company. Stories like these are why I always recommend sticking with Amazon, B&H Photo or Adorama. These three vendors are reliable, trustworthy and generally have the best (legitimate) prices.

If you are waiting for the Canon 5D Mark II or 6D or whatever it’s called, stay tuned to this page. I promise I’ll have the news there on its announcement and availability as soon as some legitimate info surfaces. In the mean time, I’ll keep posting the latest rumors and speculations as well. Remember, however, until Canon gives the official nod, it’s all just rumors and speculation.

[tags]canon, 5d mark ii, 6d, dslr, news, rumors, availability, pre-order[/tags]