Hong Kong Dealers for R-D1 -- Updated Advice?

[jkunetka]

I am ready to purchase a R-D1. Several friends have recommended buying the camera from Hong Kong, especially from Dr. Joseph Yao.

Although Yao and other HK dealers have been reviewed in earlier posts, it would be helpful for me -- and others, I suspect -- to have an update on forum members' recent experiences with Yao and others.

Would any of you like to recommend -- or re-recommend -- Joseph Yao and/or other camera dealers in HK, especially for the R-D1?

Thanks.

James Kunetka

 

[Terence T]

I deal with Joseph on a regular basis and he's been nothing but full of good advice and reasonable prices. He stocks a wide range of RF related gear, including the R-D1.

 

[Sean Reid]

What's Mr. Yao's current R-D1 price?

Cheers,

Sean

 

[Terence T]

What's Mr. Yao's current R-D1 price?

Cheers,

Sean

Best to check directly with him Sean. He's at joseph@yao.com

If I recall correctly, his last quote (3 months ago) was approx $2500.

 

[Dan Lazin]

I have an R-D1 on the way from Tin Cheung Camera, which is also well recommended. (Since mine isn't here yet -- PayPal's slowness, not Tin Cheung's fault -- I can't yet add to that recommendation myself.) They take orders directly over their website now at www.tincheungcamera.com.hk, but note that while you can browse in US dollars and HK dollars (and other currencies), you'll get a slightly better price buying in HKD. Their 19,600KHD price works out to about US$2525.

 

[Terence T]

Tin Cheung doesn't quite enjoy the same rep here in Asia. I have personally been ripped off by them before and have heard similar stories. They are well known for passing mint- gear as new, misquoting prices and charging excessively for shipping. They are a larger store and stock a wide range of equipment but unlike joseph, they sell to the masses and the salespeople are not very well versed in the stuff they deal with

Joseph, on the other hand, actually takes much more care in recommending equipment to suit your needs and is patient and forthcoming with his advice. As for the problematic R-D1 , he had wanted to personally test the camera before shipping it to me. That way he figured the faults would be discovered and a replacement can be sourced from Epson. I don't think you'd get that sort of service from TC. I never did get the R-D1 in the end, due partly to his advice and also a bout of Leica GAS.

 

[jkunetka]

Yao's current price is approximately $2600, shipped, to the U.S.

On a related issue, I've purchased two Leica M lenses from another well-known Ebay dealer with superb results. They were new with international Leica warranties. Fortunately, I haven't had to explore just what exercising that kind of warranty entails.

Yao indicates that the R-D1 comes with an Epson warranty. Does anyone know about, or has anyone had experience with, getting a camera repaired under an "Epson" warranty?

Thanks to those who contributed to this question.

James Kunetka

 

[Dan Lazin]

So, uh, Terence, care to reassure me? It won't make me happy, but I can deal with not-quite-new product, and since the transaction has already gone through Tin Cheung's website and is just waiting to negotiate PayPal's system, I'm hoping I'm past the point of misquoted prices or excessive shipping (the shipping, which was a little north of US$50 for international UPS, is already paid). I'm a pretty easy-going guy, so my sole worry is this: will I get the camera in the end? The rest of the Internet seemed to think Tin Cheung was pretty good, but now you have me worried. Thanks.

 

[andrewch]

I will second Terence's recommendation, Joseph is really an honourable gentleman. I didn't get mine from Joseph as I didn't know he carried R-D1, and I bought mine from Tin Cheung. But then, Dan, I don't think you should worry, as there are very few used R-D1 floating around Hong Kong, and I think the US$50 postage is not excessive.

About Epson's warranty, if your camera comes with a Japanese warranty, you will have to send it back to Japan for repair.

 

[Terence T]

Dan, sorry if I put doubts in your mind but I'm just relating my own personal experience with this store. I'm sure you'll get your camera without any problems but probably shouldn't count on the store for help if it should prove to be a problematic set.

To elaborate on my experiences... I had been looking around for a Fuji TX-2 and some of the new Zeiss M lenses. I had negotiated a price through email with Tin Cheung. Had a friend who happened to be in Hong Kong at that time so I asked him to help pick up the items at Tin Cheung. Thank goodness my friend is a photographer himself cos the TC salesperson tried to sell him a TX-2 with 2 dents in the top plate (it turned out this unit was put at the store on consignment by another seller) which was actually a pre-owned unit passed off as a new one. As for the lenses, they said since I wanted the black lenses instead of chrome, they would have to charge me more. This was done even though my quote specifically asked for black lenses. My friend got me a new TX-2 in the end and ended up paying almost 5% more for the black lenses. The shipping quote was almost $80 for that order before I had asked my buddy to help pick up the order.

To put the shipping charge in perspective, Joseph sent me a R2A along with 2 lenses and other accessories for a mere $20 and took only 3 days.

Another incident of misrepresentation was when an acquaintance of mine asked about a R-D1 he saw displayed in the store. He knew the unit was put up on consignment by another acquaintance and was definitely pre-owned. The salesperson proceeded to pass it off as a new unit and quoted the price accordingly.

Their sales techniques does leave a lot to be desired but I guess if you're not too picky, you'd end up paying a bit more than you really should for something that might of might not be new. You'd definitely get your goods but know that they'd be taking a cut with the shipping charges. I bet they tagged on a hefty fee for using paypal too huh?

Sorry it this scares you but I say it like I see it.

Good luck on your transaction.

 

[RML]

Another big Yeah for Dr Yao! I got my R-D1 from him. All went smoother than butter. Be aware, though, that your local Customs and Revenue service could slap taxes on your new purchase!