Is it good idea to buy camera from ebay?

Question

is it good idea to buy (new/used/refurbished) camera from ebay?

should i go for used or refurbished camera?

Answer 1

In my opinion, the ONLY time it's safe to buy a camera off of ebay is when it is being sold by an authorized dealer with a very high rating (99%+). And only when those dealers can guarantee that the camera is not gray market goods, and is based here in the USA, and also that it comes with a genuine USA warranty as well. There are WAYyy too many con artists and scammers on ebay. But be careful, and you should be OK. On the other hand, I think that it's just all around easier, and better to buy from a reputable online photo store to begin with and forget about risking your hard earned money on ebay.

But, when I say reputable, I do mean only reputable and well known online stores with an outstanding history of being legit in all ways. A couple of examples? Adorama, and of course - B&H Photo. Beach Camera is also pretty good, as is Amazon.com as long as you get it straight from them, or a reliable partner store of theirs. Even on Amazon, there are a few shady online partner sites (the correct term?). Avoid anywhere with prices that sound too good to be true. Use B&H and Amazon - for example, as a baseline for how much a particular camera should sell for at any given web site. If the price is way lower than what B&H sells it for, beware...It's probably a scam...

I know that some reputable sites sell refurbished equipment and you can get a good deal on some things. It's a good way to save some money, and you can get a better camera for the same price as a lesser quality new item.

Answer 2

try amazon, b&h and adorama

if you buy from ebay, check the seller's feedbacks.  

Answer 3

JMO

For every one good story there are ten bad ones. That's been my and my friends' experience. It's no skin off my back, I've never spent more than 35 bucks on camera equipment at ebay. And what I spent was worth it, though I had to do some fixing of my own as the cameras did not arrive in the condition described by the (highly rated) seller.

The above answer is correct, don't buy unless you know where you're buying from. And why not buy directly from Adorama, B&H or Amazon (with caution)?

Answer 4

I got my Nikon D40x from ebay, and I couldn't be more pleased with it.  My suggestion is just to make sure that you buy only from a seller who is offering it with the original boxing and such, and has a very high seller rating (99+).