In need of second (and third) opinion on a fishy Amazon deal

[minc3d]

Well im in a dilemna here. The prices of digital rebel XT cameras on amazon, in particular the black version with kit lens, is priced real cheap on amazon by two guys who keep relisting their item, presumably after a sale that removes the listing as if they have many in stock. The price is $450 by each guy and I spoke with them both via email. Here is the page where i found them:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/stores/offering/list/-/B0007QKN22/all/ref=dp_pb_a/102-4064158-3775351?s=photo

I need some help to determine if i should go ahead and purchase a camera from one. Their responses sound a little fishy as they keep saying that i should send them my address and they will process the order thru amazon and anpther common line is an international warranty that is accepted by all canon reps. I feel a little safe because of amazons safe buying guarentee that covers up to $2500 of any purchase. Check out some of the responses they gave me via email last night:

Hello ,

The camera is brand new , and sealed in it`s box.

It comes with several accessories as following : Canon Gadget Bag for SLR cameras, Canon battery charger , Canon neck strap , camera tripod , Canon battery charger , 1 GB compact flashcard.

If you are interested in buying the camera we would ask you to provide us your full shipping details ( Name , Adress , City , Zip Code and Country ) to process the order.

The shipping is handled by UPS within 2 business days.

As soon as we receive your details , the order will be processed and Amazon will notify you with the confirmation of the order.

Thank you very much.

and

Hi ,

I am a 496 stared rated user on eBay , my username is sampam4 and my registered e-mail on eBay is canon20d@rep-canon.com

You may verify these details aswell.

About this camera, if you wish to proceed and purchase it , please provide me your shipping details to process the order.

Thank you

also

Hi ,

This is a special discount we are having at the moment , the camera is not stolen or anything. You will receive a authenticity certificate with it , and also international warranty to all Canon representative services if you would have any trouble with it in the future.
Also, your payment is guaranteed if anything is wrong with the camera , or you don`t find it suitable.
You have a period of 7 days since you receive the camera to request a refund. The payment will be sent back to you in maximum 2 days after your request.
After you will send us your shipping details , Amazon will notify you with the order confirmation , which includes shipping and payment instructions , and also the tracking number of the delivery which we will process after you send us your details.

lastly the other seller sent me this "similar" response...

Hello!

The product is new in original box ,it is US version, comes with it`s original software , cables, battery charger, software cd with EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Lens and it has an international warranty of 12 months accepted by all canon service reprezentatives.The transaction will be covered 100% by Amazon. You only need to send us your shipping adress and full name .The delivery will be made via UPS service in 2-3 working days.As soon we will have your shipping details we will process your purchase with amazon and they will inform you about shipping details and payment instruction.

If someone here could help me determine if this is real or fake id appreciate it. I know its too good to be true at the $450 price level for a boxed item, but hes given me an ebay account to check that also matched when i searched via email addy on ebay. The addy he uses on amazon is b44w00f@yahoo.com.

Thanks for the help, this price is ripping my gut!!!

[Rhys]

I'd say that $500 is about unit cost price... That should speak for itself...

[minc3d]

So are you telling me that this guy is just giving me the camera at unit price or is he a scammer like the rest? Your answer can go either way LOL.

[Rhys]

So are you telling me that this guy is just giving me the camera at unit price or is he a scammer like the rest? Your answer can go either way LOL.

If it sounds too good to be true, it is. I'd say don't touch it with a bargepole. The going rate for the XT is $800. The lowest realistic price you can find is on buydig.com. Buydig, BTW is the web name for Fry's as far as I can tell. Fry's is a brick and mortar chainstore that seems to spread over the west coast of the US. It goes as far east as Atlanta.

[minc3d]

Thanks for giving me the heads up, I was ready to fall into the trap right before my feet. Im going to report both of those sellers as scammers to ebay.

So you say that buydig.com is a good place? I also saw good prices on beachcamera.

If you have the best possible seller that offers the lowest price, id love to know. IN particular, im looking for someone that has the black rebel xt with kit lens.

[thebac]

buydig.com=beachcamera.com

Reputable sellers, by all (most) accounts.

buydig.com seems to have it for $844 (free S&H) for the silver kit right now. Their prices change frequently, though, so it wouldn't hurt to check back every once in a while.

[minc3d]

I gave him a go ahead to see what would happen and indeed this seems like a scam. I canceled once I learned the following:

The seller requests to be paid via Western Union Wire Transfer.
Thank you for the understanding.







To submit the payment with Western Union Money Transfer you have the following option: <!-- D([&quot;mb","
Pay for the transfer with cash at a local Western Union agent.
Click here to locate the agents in your area :
http://www.westernunion.com/info/agentInquiryIntl.asp ("")


Once the payment was sent, provide the seller with the following information:
1) MTCN (Western Union Money Transfer Control Number):
2) Sender name :
3) Sender address :
4) City where you sent the money from:
5) Amount sent:
Then wait for the confirmation that the payment was received. Within 2 business days,
you will receive the tracking number for your product.

Thanks for the heads up all and remember that these are scammers and no true seller would ask for a wire transfer. Pay via CC or Paypal only peeps!

[Rhys]

https://wumt.westernunion.com/info/faqSecurity.asp#faq2

That's a good place to look in order to avoid western union fraud.

[Rex914]

If it sounds too good to be true, it is. I'd say don't touch it with a bargepole. The going rate for the XT is $800. The lowest realistic price you can find is on buydig.com. Buydig, BTW is the web name for Fry's as far as I can tell. Fry's is a brick and mortar chainstore that seems to spread over the west coast of the US. It goes as far east as Atlanta.

Fry's is Outpost.com. Buydig is something different as far as I know...

[minc3d]

Got fed up with the hidden fees and non USA warranties of many sites and bought from ZipZoomFly.com. Thanks everyone!

[Rhys]

Got fed up with the hidden fees and non USA warranties of many sites and bought from ZipZoomFly.com. Thanks everyone!

I found a coupon in the paper giving me $50 off a Dreb XT at Ritz so I went to Ritz and bought my camera.

[beta]

As I stated on an earlier post. I have very bad experience(s) on Amazon Marketplace (not to be confused with items from Amazon.com)

Here it is:
In the past week I have placed SIX (thats right: SIX) separate orders for a new Canon SD400 from different sellers that were around $300. And ALL of them were cancelled or refunded. Not one of them went through!

This in itself seems statisticly highly unlikely to have six different merchants run out of stock at the same time. But here's the catch. With a few of the orders, I emailed the seller to ask why they cancelled my order. And I was suprised that they all replied the exact same way!!

Here's a quote from their email:

the reason you can't order is that my credit card can't accept international funds,that's why i am forced to use amazon payments.if you want to buy send me your shipping info's,so i can forward them to amazon.you will be contacted by them for the rest of the deal.
thank you

Can't accept international funds? All of the sellers are listed in the US.. hmmm
And three different sellers with the exact same reply?
Or are they any different at all?

The ones who replied to me used the name "dr dre", "dr marius" and "dragos marius", but with separate email addresses, separate Amazon merchant sellers, and some of them have pretty good ratings (4.5 stars out of five).

This seems to be a new scam operation, that lures people into paying them through Western Union instead of Amazon payments, that way they can laugh all the way to the banks with your money.

Avoid Amazon Marketplace for digital cameras!