Good price for a well reviewed high-end compact. About $30 less than grey stock and $200 less than local.
You're right! Might be almost the same price after currency conversion though :p
Thanks!
Now, does the camera work with a [recent] Apple Mac OS X?
no warranty though unless you ship it back to the US… :(
$339 at DWI with 1 year australian warranty…
http://www.dwidigitalcameras.com.au/astore/Panasonic-Lumix-D…
If we buy these sort of imported cameras, is there any way to purchase a warranty for local repairs, replacements etc?
Sure. All you need to do is purchase a SquareTrade warranty from B&H along with whatever else you're buying. The coverage is international, and servicing can be done locally. You have to run around and organise a repair quote yourself, get it approved, and then be out-of-pocket until SquareTrade reimburses you, but it can be done.
Please correct me if I'm wrong but as far as I remember SquareTrade warranty does not cover postage to an authorised repairer.
Pentax has their authorised repairer in Melbourne, so if I live in Adelaide I have to pay postage there and back.
I've found it in their terms and conditions.
Again I can be wrong, but if I am I would like to see a proof. And I would appreciate it.
You're correct about postage not being covered if you are making an international claim. But this is essentially no different than a typical local manufacturers warranty in situations where you don't have a service centre nearby. I know there are exceptions of course.
The main caveat with ST warranties is that the coverage value doesn't exceed the purchase price. In other words, if you get $250 worth of repairs done on a $300 item, you only have $50 worth of coverage left for the remainder of the coverage period. You no doubt know this yourself - I'm simply stating it for the benefit of anyone else. The up side is the drops and spills component which covers accidental damage.
So if you don't buy the ST warranty, will Panasonic US (after repairs) send your camera back to Australia or will they only send within US?
You don't have a US warranty at all, since you're not a US resident. Theoretically B&H might be able to act as a middleman for you, but they certainly wouldn't be legally obliged to. In any case, I'm sure you'd be liable for postage costs both to AND from the US.
The bottom line is that when making such enquiries of B&H, they recommend that all international customers purchase a ST warranty if they have such concerns.
I see, good to know, thanks.
For whatever my opinion is worth, I ordered an LX7 from B&H a couple of weeks before Christmas last year. It was on special then, too. The choice to go with B&H + SquareTrade instead of other options was a carefully considered and extensively researched one. When dealing with the same ballpark for cost, it gave me greater piece of mind due to the exceptional reputation that both B&H and ST have (in particular ST seem to be a cut above other similarly priced extended warranty options).
Thank for confirmation and clarification. I did not know the last bit.
Those external warranties (like insurance plans) always have a catch (or a few).
Quite often it is just easier to go to the church purchase a $2 candle and pray for your gear to last at least 4 or 5 years.
The only thing we ozzies can say is that we are ripped off by our retail outlets.
The funniest thing though is that instead of becoming more competitive they are complaining about people buying stuff overseas.
Great deal; they had this price for the LX7 back on Black Friday briefly, and now again.
Cameras are going cheap(er) these days and we are spoiled for choice.
Personally I'd rather deal with B&H than 99.9% of stores in Australia, in the unlikely event of a warranty claim. Despite the postage costs.
Just take out valuables insurance. When the camera fails, simply "drop it" and get pay out.
which one would you recommend ?
ive never claimed one to be honest. most policies are pretty similar anyway.
B&H is another eBusiness that
-won't- ship to an Aussie P O Box(!!!)
-won't- accept payment via PayPal, -and-
has "order entry" web pages that are just "too busy"
I'm glad there are alternatives about! :-)
Mastercard debit card or Visa debit card for the win.
Manual orders via email and payment via telegraphic transfer (wire transfers) are always an option with B&H, especially making sense for larger orders, since the exchange rates are often better than PayPal's, so the $30 fee you may be charged by your bank for one of these would probably only amount to a $10 premium on (for example) orders in the vicinity of $800 or so.
They are a pain though, since they require more time (by you, and by them) and only really make sense (financially) for larger orders where you can make some savings on the exchange rate to cover your wire transfer fee.
Increased to $348 without delivery as I write this. No doubt it will go down again in future.
Cheaper grey..Camera Paradise comes to $328 delivered..