Info on EOS 20D prices

[Neil Grubb]

I checked out EOS 20D prices today, thinking about replacing my 300D for a camera with better build, higher frame rate, better metering, pic quality etc. Warehouse Express, from whom I have previously bought all of my kit, charge £899 body only and £965 with the 18-55mm lens. This price seems pretty good although on Kelkoo some other internet retailers can go a few quid cheaper. 7dayshop.com no longer seem to do Canon DSLRs.

Interestingly I phoned Jessops in Edinburgh today and they were, near enough, able to price match Warehouse Express - they initially quoted £1045ish for the 20D with lens, and came down to £976 when I requested a price match. And they threw in a fair number of free 7x5 prints. All of the prices above do not include the £100 cash back from Canon.

20D prices seem to be gradually falling. No doubt it will be replaced (and the 5D doesn't seem to be its successor - see other threads) but the current prices seem excellent for such a good quality piece of kit. And if the pricing strategy adopted for the D20 continues with any successor, a direct replacement is likely to come in initially at £1250-£1400.

[Adey Baker]

Presumably, the £100 will only apply to UK stock so that's worth bearing in mind when checking prices

Jessops will usually price-match the price + postage (and they'll usually clean your sensor free, as well, though I don't know how often they'll do this!)

[robski]

Emmm - I think some Canon politics (or british camera seller cartel) are at play here - I think you may of missed the really cheap boat. 7dayshop stop ( or were stopped ? ) doing canon camera gear. I've just looked up the site (e-buyer) I got my body from in June for £870 incl PP and VAT. It is now £860 plus vat !!. (PS just remembered xmas not too far away another reason to keep prices high - may have to wait for january sales ;) )

Both of these companies were grey imports - but they would of exchanged the product in the first year if any problems.

I found jessops price match a bit of a joke - they would never tell you their lowest price they were prepared to sell at and then found weak excuses why the would not price match some internet sites. They would never price match 7dayshop because it was French and E-buyer who are British ( also has an American arm) were infact a few pounds cheaper than 7dayshop.

Come on Jessops it's not that your offering a fantastic warranty for the inflated price you want to charge.


Robert

[Neil Grubb]

I found jessops price match a bit of a joke - they would never tell you their lowest price they were prepared to sell at and then found weak excuses why the would not price match some internet sites. They would never price match 7dayshop because it was French and E-buyer who are British ( also has an American arm) were infact a few pounds cheaper than 7dayshop.

Come on Jessops it's not that your offering a fantastic warranty for the inflated price you want to charge.



Don't understand your logic. Jessops will go down almost as low as anyone else in price. Very few shops will disclose their lowest price, it's like haggling to buy a car. Their deal seems okay and, because it's not a grey import you get the £100 cashback into the deal too.

[tommo]

Jessops Aberdeen price matched a 1dMk2 to Warehouses and Parks price and dropped their price by £400.!! They also matched on a 20D. This is the 3rd time they`ve been okay for me.
PS How come no one was interested on several forums when I sold my 20d plus grip for £750.( only 3 months old) I must have been mad.
Re 7 Day shop--apparently Canon pulled the plug.

[robski]

Don't understand your logic. Jessops will go down almost as low as anyone else in price. Very few shops will disclose their lowest price, it's like haggling to buy a car. Their deal seems okay and, because it's not a grey import you get the £100 cashback into the deal too.

This has NOT been my experience with them - I've often got a better deal from the independent dealer across the road from them. Maybe in your part of the country they have more latitude - shop rates and rents in my local area are forcing many businesses to close.

The £100 cash back was also a joke and worthless as I could still get stuff cheaper than UK high st prices with the £100 cashback. The fact was Jessops COULD not match 5 UK sites I quoted to them at the time. So I left the shop saying do you want to do business or not. Obviously not, they were not prepared to even come close. So I bought elsewhere ( I don't have time to play stupid games).

PS - What is the real benefit of getting a non grey import from jessops as opposed to 7dayshop ?

You get the same camera - 7dayshop supply a UK power lead.
7dayshop covered the first year warranty.
Duty and VAT paid.

The only difference when I bought from e-buyer was the power lead was USA which did not matter because I had a lead from my 300D.

I saved myself £150 on what jessops hinted was their lowest price.

Robert

[Adey Baker]

Reading threads on other forums, it does seem as if there's a difference between different branches of Jessops.

I've never had problems with price-matching in Leicester providing you're asking them to match a UK-supplied source - they don't like 7-day or Pixmania, etc!

I think the main difference between UK from a shop and grey from an internet site only becomes apparent if you have a problem (hopefully this will be rare!) - with the first, you just take it into the shop where you bought it and see a real person, with the second, it's over to posting via insured post, emails, etc - basically, convenience.

[Neil Grubb]

PS - What is the real benefit of getting a non grey import from jessops as opposed to 7dayshop ?

You get the same camera - 7dayshop supply a UK power lead.
7dayshop covered the first year warranty.
Duty and VAT paid.

The only difference when I bought from e-buyer was the power lead was USA which did not matter because I had a lead from my 300D.

I saved myself £150 on what jessops hinted was their lowest price.

Robert

Well, I think a couple of things apply here:

- 7dayshop are out of the equation for reasons stated above
- with a grey import, sure the camera's probably the same, but you usually don't get cashback. I take your point when you bought the 300D, but in my situation Jessops near enough matched the cashback-excluded price of the already good WHE price when I asked them to.

I'm not trying to say Jessops are the cheapest but it's nice to be able to walk into the shop, try the kit out, and buy it for a good price. For those who haven't seen a product and like to look at the kit before they buy, they're a good option. They have store overheads that internet retailers don't which is probably why, when you tried to drive a hard bargain, they backed off.

[robski]

I would of liked to of dealt with Jessops for the reasons you gave but was not prepared to pay the £1049 asking price for a body only. They did not have any in stock so it would of been a return visit. If they were prepared to go to £950 plus the £100 cashback then I could of done business with them. To be honest my local jessops just has it needle in the vein for the £200-300 point and shoot market. It carries hardly anything for the SLR market

[condyk]

To be honest my local jessops just has it needle in the vein for the £200-300 point and shot market. It carries hardly anything for the SLR market

The whole Price Match strategy in retail assumes only a small number actually bother to research their prospective purchase. Most 'consumer level' buyers assume the price of their P&S is competitive because the retailer will price match anything else around. Same with the 'we refund any price difference' idea. Who bothers?

I suspect Jessops have set margins on a product by product basis, but with some minor slack for lcoal interpretation. I also suspect that each manager will stretch that slack further if you pop in at the end of the month when their sales targets might need some 'help'.

I now look first at www.onestop-digital.com who are in HK and offer VAT/Duty free guarentee (that they do honour) and free and fast P&P. The only issue with them is the warranty means sending back to HK.

An ebay seller based in US, but operating 'VAT/Duty free' out of Scotland, called Kerso, offers similar prices BUT also International warranty. He is highly recommended and personal service. I look at Onestop first because Kerso will often beat or match them if I tell him the price AND I get the international warranty.

I still prefer to buy from Jessops when prices are close but that is VERY rare indeed and stock availability can be poor. I now just buy 98% from the other two now after doing a price search in UK and been very happy.

[Adey Baker]

On a general point, I use internet, mail-order and shops for various items, but if we all buy the expensive items from the internet and then 'pop in' to our local shop for small items, then one day there won't be any local shops to pop in to!

This is certainly the case in my town. I've used the local photo shops many times over the years but there aren't any left, now - Jessops in Leicester is my local shop!

[robski]

I think the high street shop ( of any kind ) is dead or dying on it's feet. My local town is just full of charity, fast food, cafes and estate agents. The recent rash of closure including a camera shop ( which has gone down hill steadly since the 90's) was due to the landlords doubling the rent. The camera shop and currys which was next door has been knocked down and they are building apartments. I think it won't be long before M & S and BHS go the same way. Dispite what people will have us believe this country is going into decline and more of us cannot afford high street prices.

Robert

[stevo]

Hi Robski

You could always try www.parkcameras.co.uk (http://www.parkcameras.co.uk) they are a Canon pro dealer & usually are pretty good on prices.I bought my 10D from them at the time it was the cheapest price around.

Cheers Steve.

[hollis_f]

Hi Robski

You could always try www.parkcameras.co.uk (http://www.parkcameras.co.uk) they are a Canon pro dealer & usually are pretty good on prices.I bought my 10D from them at the time it was the cheapest price around.

Cheers Steve.
And, if you can make it to their shops, are extremely knowledgable and helpful. I bought my 20D from them and still pop in whenever I'm in the area.

[John Gibson2]

My local Jessops said they did not price match anymore, so I went to Warehouse Express again.
I must have missed something here though, as the mention of £100 cashback from Canon is news to me. How does one get the money?
John

[HoppyUK]

Interesting thread, touching on some major issues. And there is bad news ahead.

Right now, as buyers we have the best of all worlds. 1) Read about stuff in mags or on the internet, 2) go and check it out at Jessops, 3) buy on-line for major discount, from UK, Hong Kong, wherever.

Jessops has a huge network of 300 shops and staff to support. A massive overhead cost that makes it impossible for them to compete with a mail-order-only outlet, which might only have one big warehouse in a low-rent area outside Norwich!

This can't go on, and I try to buy from Jessops when I can. I need to see and handle the kit before I buy. A couple of weeks ago I spent over an hour comparing tripods in Jessops Leicester - impossible with Warehouse Express. And they price-matched to within £3. And you can return stuff within 28 days, no quibble. I've done it a couple of times.

Of course, this isn't unique to cameras and virtually the whole High Street is in crisis. If things go on the way they are, we'll only have two choices left - Tescos or on-line :eek!:

Richard.

PS For anyone that remembers the history of Jessops, it's ironic. They started out selling cut-price cameras out of a chemist shop in Leicester in the 70s. What goes around comes around...

[Tinca]

I remember the early jessops well,bought a k1000 and two lenses for a price that beat all the local shops easily,in the early 80's.But even if jessops hadnt been there i would and could have equipped myself with an slr of good quality that wouldnt have bankrupted me.
I've been looking,since joining BF and realising their obvious benefits,at digi slr's and i am astounded at the prices for camera models designated "entry level" etc.Surely mass production and popularity would bring digi slr's into at least "weeks wage" category.Ok if you earn 6-800 quid a week but most of us dont.Whats going on?
I accept im a dinosaur in terms of modern cameras(i still love my mx's) so is it a case of the price coming down in time?VCR syndrome i call it,sour grapes others may label it but are we/you being taken for a digi ride?

[HoppyUK]

Tinca, I don't think we're being taken for a ride and D-SLR prices are coming down all the time. Also, how much did you pay for your Pentax MX? Around £200 with standard lens? What's that in today's money? And today, you get a much more capable camera and lens for your money - and they don't even need film!

I bought a Minolta SRT101 in 1970 for £170 and I was earning £20 a week at the time as holiday job in Sainsbury's warehouse.

Richard.

[Tinca]

Tinca, I don't think we're being taken for a ride and D-SLR prices are coming down all the time. Also, how much did you pay for your Pentax MX? Around £200 with standard lens? What's that in today's money? And today, you get a much more capable camera and lens for your money - and they don't even need film!

I bought a Minolta SRT101 in 1970 for £170 and I was earning £20 a week at the time as holiday job in Sainsbury's warehouse.

Richard.

On the face of it,a fair point Hoppy,but 170qiud in 1970!A severe case of vcr syndrome methinks.Probably directly comparable to the digi slr scene now,ie.new tech=mucho folding stuff : :D

[Adey Baker]

My Olympus OM1 was £121.85 from Jessops in 1973, when my weekly gross wages were £40 but the price they eventually quoted for the Zuiko 400mm lens when they became available was £387 so for many years I had to make do with a 300mm which was never really long enough

[Tinca]

I remember the long tele prices well,even in the mid 80's i couldnt afford anything over 300mm,i made do with a 200 and 2*convertor,most unsatisfactory.So i'll wait a while and enjoy the cut price prime lens prices of quality used 35mm equipment,and suffer the development costs and hassle of scanning to pc(which i've yet to try,truth be told).
Have any off you put transparency's onto your pc's?I have 20 yrs worth of colour negs and transparency images,some of which may be worthy of wider attention.At the very least i could use my own images as avatars,,using someone elses isnt quite the same!

[Adey Baker]

I remember the long tele prices well,even in the mid 80's i couldnt afford anything over 300mm,i made do with a 200 and 2*convertor,most unsatisfactory.So i'll wait a while and enjoy the cut price prime lens prices of quality used 35mm equipment,and suffer the development costs and hassle of scanning to pc(which i've yet to try,truth be told).
Have any off you put transparency's onto your pc's?I have 20 yrs worth of colour negs and transparency images,some of which may be worthy of wider attention.At the very least i could use my own images as avatars,,using someone elses isnt quite the same!

That 400mm Olympus lens that I would have liked never did comply with the vcr syndrome. OK, it was never going to be a huge seller but the final price at Jessops was, I think, a penny short of £3000!

Scanning slides and negs is fine - depending on your boredom threshold! It can be quite time-consuming, sorting out the slide/neg, cleaning it, pre-scanning and adjusting it for scanning, cropping and everything else you need to do in Photoshop and, although you've now got something to put on the internet, in effect all you've got is the same photo that you've already got, anyway!

[Tinca]

That 400mm Olympus lens that I would have liked never did comply with the vcr syndrome. OK, it was never going to be a huge seller but the final price at Jessops was, I think, a penny short of £3000!

Scanning slides and negs is fine - depending on your boredom threshold! It can be quite time-consuming, sorting out the slide/neg, cleaning it, pre-scanning and adjusting it for scanning, cropping and everything else you need to do in Photoshop and, although you've now got something to put on the internet, in effect all you've got is the same photo that you've already got, anyway!

Good point,might be bored enough one day to try,plenty of time at present but hate wrestling with techie things at the best of times.Many thanks for advice,much appreciated :t:

[RoyH]

I checked out EOS 20D prices today, thinking about replacing my 300D for a camera with better build, higher frame rate, better metering, pic quality etc. Warehouse Express, from whom I have previously bought all of my kit, charge £899 body only and £965 with the 18-55mm lens. This price seems pretty good although on Kelkoo some other internet retailers can go a few quid cheaper. 7dayshop.com no longer seem to do Canon DSLRs.

Interestingly I phoned Jessops in Edinburgh today and they were, near enough, able to price match Warehouse Express - they initially quoted £1045ish for the 20D with lens, and came down to £976 when I requested a price match. And they threw in a fair number of free 7x5 prints. All of the prices above do not include the £100 cash back from Canon.

20D prices seem to be gradually falling. No doubt it will be replaced (and the 5D doesn't seem to be its successor - see other threads) but the current prices seem excellent for such a good quality piece of kit. And if the pricing strategy adopted for the D20 continues with any successor, a direct replacement is likely to come in initially at £1250-£1400.

Hello Niel

Check this out www.dabs.com - I can't way their price up for the 20D it looks like a print error to me. Saw this in my October Digital Photo magazine.

Roy.