Buy a New D800 from Individual

[ShunCheung]

<blockquote>

<p>Did you know that in over twice the amount time after the D800 was released that no one had it in stock?</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Did you read what I pointed out about people posted to DPReview that a few of them have walked into local Best Buy and bought the D800 off the shelf, all in the last few days?</p>

<p>Of course not every Best Buy has a bunch of D800 in stock waiting for you, but if you want one immediately, you need to do some work and check around, perhaps 2, 3 times a week. Otherwise, you can always put down a deposit now at your local store, and you can get it in a few weeks.</p>

<p>You can read that youself: <a href="http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1021&message=41000186">http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1021&message=41000186</a><br>

There are a few similar threads. If you want the details, do a little search yourself.</p>

[Two23]

<p>I bought a D5100 a few weeks ago to get video, and use as a compact travel camera. I actually like it. Image quality is quite good, at the expense of some convenience. If you can't take nice images with a D5100, you won't do it with a D800 either.</p>

<p>Kent in SD</p>

[luke_kaven]

<p>As Shun suggests, very often you can find a local dealer who has one in stock without a pre-order to cover it. Nikon has a fair distribution strategy. Surely they know they could funnel huge numbers of cameras through Amazon, B&H alone. But they tend to serve the local dealers even-handedly. I picked up my D3 at a small dealership when the big stores were wiped out. </p>

<p>About your D800 offer. The original dealer may be willing to re-invoice the camera to you if you transact the sale in the store. In that case, you'd get a full manufacturer's warranty. I have been offered the ability to do this by a local dealer where I am. In other words, if I want to sell my D4, then the dealer who sold it to me would re-invoice it to the buyer. That would give you more of the assurance you're looking for, as well as verifying the original purchase.</p>

[dan_brown4]

<p>I called the best local dealer, who sells to all the PJ's and studios, and they said the first shipment sold through, but that the next shipment would arrive within 2-weeks, and that it should more than satisfy their "list". So, it's not going to be so bad here in DFW, TX.</p>

[ShunCheung]

<blockquote>

<p>they said the first shipment sold through, but that the next shipment would arrive within 2-weeks, and that it should more than satisfy their "list". So, it's not going to be so bad here in DFW, TX.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>That is very typical.</p>

<p>I bought my D300 from my local store around Thanksgiving of 2007. Their first shipment satisfied everybody on their waiting list. They called me up when the 2nd shipment arrived a week later and I just walked in and bought one.</p>

<p>I pre-ordered my D7000. Once again the first shipment took care of everybody who pre-ordered. A friend of mine walked in and bought one off the shelf like 2, 3 weeks later. His problem was that they only had D7000 kits available, so he was stuck with the 18-105 that he had to sell privately afterwards.</p>

<p>At least there are no "kit lens" issues with the D800.</p>

<p>I am sure those scalpers are a bit concerned. Once people who read posts such as mine and are not so crazy about getting a D800 immediately, those scalpers could easily be stuck with some D800 that may have to try very hard to break even.</p>

[cyrus_procter]

<p>I think a re invoicing is a wonderful idea. And it really isn't that much more expensive than buying a new one anyways.<br>

Despite what everyone is saying, if it was me, I would pay $3250 for a camera today. But then again I've got film jobs that I could get if I had the camera today that would easily cover half the cost of the camera.<br>

<br />I've been told that B&H has over 7800 pre-orders. Lets say hypothetically Shun is right, and everyone who placed pre-orders on the D800 did so at 3 other places, and lets assume that 75% of the people end up cancelling there order. That's still almost 2000 pre-orders, and B&H received a total of 40 cameras (I heard). Maybe those scalpers will continue to make good on their investment after all. I think its a gamble to take the advice of anyone who suggests you look at other Nikon releases, and its ok to wait and in a very short time period they will be cheaper. I've already clearly stated my reasons. If I knew of a way to get one for sure, you betcha I would would tell ya, but right now, its all a crap shoot.<br>

Believe me I have checked around, of course presently I am in Idaho, not exactly a camera store on every potato farm corner. The local dealer has over 25 pre-orders and received 2 cameras last week. The Best Buys up here don't even carry a D300, or D7000, much less a D800.</p>

[eric_arnold]

<blockquote>

<p>it is easy for me to say that since Nikon is sending me a loaner for evaluation so that I don't have to pay and get to use one for a month.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>rub it in why dontcha?</p>

[awilliamsphoto]

<p>I placed a pre-order for the D800 through B+H just after 9:00 a.m. (CST) on February 7th. I browsed through a few forums over the weekend, and it seems everyone has a different story to tell. B+H's policy on the matter seems to <em>actually</em> be: any exact information regarding the number of pre-orders, or number of D800's they received is confidential. I believe that perhaps some of their customer reps are just telling stories to the floods of "where's my camera?!" calls they've no doubt been receiving. A lot of the info posted right now seems to be merely rumor and speculation.</p>

<p>I held off until early today to give B+H a call myself. The individual I spoke with told me they only received <strong>10</strong> D800's in their first shipment, but had been expecting far more than that. He also said that anyone who placed a pre-order after the first 1 or 2 days might be in for a very long wait. I was told that late April or early May was the best I could hope for on my particular order.</p>

<p>This is my first experience with pre-ordering a camera, and the D800 will be my first major upgrade since I started my business. I've been holding off on switching to full-frame for quite awhile now. I currently shoot with a D200, and it's technical limitations (mainly ISO and auto-focus) have became real hindrances. The enhanced resolution of the D800 will likely be a huge step forward as well. </p>

<p>As to Dan's question - As far as I know Nikon's warranties are <em>not</em> transferable. This individual seems to simply be looking to make a profit. If he really decided to go with a D800E instead of the D800, why not just return the D800? Looking across the web it's almost sickening to see all the people trying to "scalp" this camera. Everyone's wondering where all those D800 bodies went to...apparently to a plethora of people who never intend to even use it. As tempting as it might be, I'd pass on purchasing this particular D800. If I was going to pay $3250 for this camera, I'd just regularly check with Best Buy stores until I find one that received a shipment. You'd likely pay around that same amount with tax, and be assured that the warranty is valid. </p>

[johncrosley]

<p>The simple answer to your warranty repair question is 'no', and any other suggestion is fraud.</p>

<p>Nikon USA warranties expressly are non-transferable.</p>

<p>The re-invoicing idea is probably not fraud; it involves basically rescinding the sale and redoing the transaction, on paper at least; what legally might be called a novation. </p>

<p>I'm not so sure Nikon USA would approve, but that's probably between Nikon and the dealer; we don't know their agreement.</p>

<p>(Thanks to Luke Kavens for that idea; I never heard of it being done successfully or even tried.)</p>

<p>To those who think they can get a camera or lens Nikon USA warranty repair by claiming it was a gift when it was not and or claiming they were the original purchaser or recipient of a gift, and then fill and send in a blank registration card that came with used equipment, that is telling a lie, and to get a financial advantage from telling that lie is fraud. </p>

<p>Getting warranty coverage and/or repairs that way is a fraud and civilly and criminally illegal in all US jurisdictions, even if not prosecuted.</p>

<p>Of course, no one probably is going to prosecute on that alone, but if some prosecutor for some other reason starts going through your affairs toothpick by toothpick and catches that, that's the sort of thing they add to the list of 'things you shouldn't have done' and start adding to other charges, or if they can't make other charges stick, it may be the one that gets charged!</p>

<p>It doesn't matter that you might not get caught, if doing the right thing is important to you, but if doing a little cheating is OK by you, then at least acknowledge that falsely claiming a purchase as a gift is indeed a fraud.</p>

<p>Even if a camera or lens comes with a blank warranty card, there's no assurance somebody hasn't already registerred that equipment by telephone, fax or Internet, perhaps when they sought instruction, over-the-phone advice about whether or not to send it for repair, or for some other reason. Nikon's reps may have asked for ownership info at that time and they may have given it and registered it.</p>

<p>It's possible therefore the equipment may have been without anyone's sending any warranty registration card, so the blank card's presence in any box or with any equipment is no guarantee of anything, no matter what they tell you. </p>

<p>And since you would be perpetrating a fraud by saying it's a gift and registering for repairs , if you are refused repairs because it already was registered, you have no one to complain to if your seller has cheated you, because you know you're doing a fraud, and by that time so does the manufacturer. You're just stuck and your lying seller gets away Scot Free.</p>

<p>john<br>

John (Crosley)</p>

[ilkka_nissila]

<p><em>I can't believe all this craziness about getting the D800 immediately.</em></p>

<p>I also watch it with eyes wide open. I think what's going on is that people who have been holding off on an FX camera purchase now figure that the advantages with the D800 are sufficient to warrant the cost, and the high price of the D3X may have upset some users and increased the perceived desirability of high resolution. Finally, the tsunami and flooding in Japan last year caused some delays in Nikon's schedule for introducing new cameras (and poor availability of the older models in the USA) leading to further increased demand. All of this is released with the D800 coming to the market.</p>

<p>I would recommend people to listen to Shun. I've seen the same things many times over and over again - each time there is a major release with significant improvements there is a lot of huffing and puffing and pre-ordering etc. And people complain about the delays in the first three months. Then six month later the cameras sit on dealers' shelves and traffic is slow, so the prices are gradually reduced. In my opinion, 4-6 months after general release of a camera is a good time to buy. You get to check it out, how it feels in your hands, and you've heard of all the problems there are and can make an informed decision as to which camera to purchase. Yesterday's Nikon event in Helsinki changed my mind about the D800 but for a different reason I had expected - what I had feared turned about not to be true (24 PC-E works ok), but the viewfinder eyepoint was not sufficient with the positioning of the ocular in this body, and I will not be buying this camera. I also felt while quieter than the D700 that they could do some work on that aspect of the D800. I guess the FX cameras will always be a bit louder than the D7000. I will most likely buy a D4 in 6-12 months, hoping to get it for just over 5000€. I should expect the price of the D800 may not be reduced as quickly as Canon's 5D Mk III is priced significantly higher than the D800, so Nikon doesn't have immediate pressure to reduce the price but eventually that too will happen, it might take about 12 months though as first Canon has to get competitive with their pricing. Unfortunately even if Sony does bring a 36MP FX model out it is not likely it will pressure Nikon or Canon price-wise as Sony doesn't have all that many users of their high-end gear. But there are always some users. Sony certainly has the expertise on video, another matter is whether they are willing to apply it in their DSLRs. I am not too much of a fan of the pellicle mirror designs; I think that is a mistake. But for someone needing fluid AF in video it does make it possible.</p>

 

[ShunCheung]

<blockquote>

<p>I would recommend people to listen to Shun.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Hard to believe Ilkka would ever say that. :-)</p>

<p>Not that I would to send people to other Nikon forums, but if you have a few minutes, take a look at DPReview's Nikon D4/D800 forum: <a href="http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/forum.asp?forum=1021">http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/forum.asp?forum=1021</a><br>

There are a lot of threads from people who pre-ordered as soon as the D800 was announced on February 6, 7 (depending on your time zone), and they keep calling and writing Amazon, B&H, etc. trying to find out why theirs is not shipped in the first batch. These folks merely generate a lot of totally unnecessary anxirety for themselves.</p>

<p>The D800 is just a camera, perhaps a very good one, but your old D200, D300, D700, D3 or D7000 is still working ok. You'll survive if you have to use those for another 3 months. Nikon is making 30,000 of them each month; that is a lot. But if you indeed can't wait, there is some scalper on Amazon that is selling a D800 for a mere $4200. As a bonus, you will get a receipt to remind you how much NAS and being impatient cost you. :-)</p>

<p>P.S. I would take all of those B&H order and sales numbers of a grain of salt. That is proprietry information that I am sure they would not release.</p>

[cyrus_procter]

I think Ilkka is right a lot of people have been waiting on the D700's successor to upgrade to FX, so the demand is

particularly high. I'm not ashamed to say I've waited for this camera for over two years (ever since I shot the D3s I've

waited for Nikon to release a FF camera with solid video). I have been forced to use a D7000 for the past year because

no other Nikon camera has decent video. I'm not happy with it, I think it's AF system is so so, it's not weather sealed

nearly enough for my uses, I always finding myself in situations I need FF (I've got the 24mm F1.4 and frequently find

myself up against the wall because it isn't wide enough, and yes those are scenarios where F/1.4 is necesisary).

 

I'm not ashamed to say I need FF, I need better AF and I need better weather sealing. And when im shooting video i often

need the ability to shoot in a type of lossless codec. And I'm not ashamed to say that those features will improve my

photography. I will say that I'm in a very small group. Most people could get a D700 or other Nikon FF body today if they

really need it, but I require a solid video mode and only the D7000 has that (beside the D800 & D4 of course).

 

Ilkka, I take Nikon's new MSRP program seriously, and it is my humble opinion that we will not see price drops in these

new models. Of course time will tell, but personally I would not advice anyone to wait based on a future price reduction

because I think it's a crap shoot.

[ilkka_nissila]

<p><em>I've waited for this camera for over two years</em></p>

<p>That has been your choice. The D800 is not the first capable video camera nor the first high quality still camera, and there is no law that says that you have to use one camera for both tasks, convenient as it might be if it really worked well. Trust me, there is never going to be a perfect camera; an important part of the design process is to make it good enough that many people will buy it and not too good so that they'll also buy the next model. It won't take long before you will find flaws in the D800 which put you into waiting mode again, if you're inclined to do that. While you wait, others do.</p>

<p><em>I take Nikon's new MSRP program seriously, and it is my humble opinion that we will not see price drops in these new models.</em></p>

<p>After Nikon announced the MSRP program they conveniently announced a significant price drop on the D700 and that there would be no minimum price on it. Prices are always reduced on consumer electronics products after the initial demand has subsided, unless some extraordinary event prevents supply (or the currency rates change so drastically that you get the illusion that prices are not dropping). Nikon does not have the power to change how the market economy works, and neither do I believe they really want to.</p>

 

[cyrus_procter]

Ilkka, you've clearly never done my kind of work, or else the D800's revolutionary new features that exist in no other

camera on the planet currently, except it's bigger brother the D4, would be much more apparent to you.

 

When you said that you didn't like the 36MP sensor because the RAW files will take up too much space, I didn't tell you

that was your choice, that you could choose to buy bigger hard drives/cards if you wanted. I respected the fact that the

D800's features didn't work for you, because I believe you know your work and it's flow better than anyone, so only you

can be the judge of what works and what doesn't for you and your jobs. I would appreciate the same respect in return,

you don't know my work, what my clients require, the limitations of my travel, or how the D800 will have a huge impact on

these things.

 

The D800 will allow me to do things I could not previously, because it offers things that no other cameras does. That

makes it important enough to preorder or take the scalpers seriously.

[Mary Doo]

<p>I am shocked B&H claimed they only received 10 cameras - for such a large customer base. If this is true, I recommend Nikon to apportion their quota more equitably. I got mine from Hunts Photo, who also claimed to have received 10 cameras. But it's a smaller outfit (at least so I think).</p>

[Mary Doo]

<p>Just checked eBat: Many D800 have been sold for much more than $3K!</p>

[ShunCheung]

<p>Mary, eBay is always a crazy place. Sometimes used lenses are sold for more than new prices. Again, NAS is powerful. Hopefully the craziness will die down after a few more days (and some more supply from Nikon).</p>

<p>Of course, some of us are posting images of the D800 and images captured by the D800. We are not exactly helping. :-)</p>