[captain_flymo]

Hi all

I will soon be visiting an old friend who now lives and teaches English in Hong Kong. However, I also want to buy a new digital camera (like just about every visitor to HK!). Thing is, I have recently been told that prices in HK these days for items like digital cameras are not that different from those in the UK, which I find a little hard to believe seeing as how we do pay through the nose for everything here.

I found one site listing the kit I want (Canon EOS 400D + 18-55mm lens kit) for about 5300HKD (about 340GBP) at a place called "SheungWan Gd World " but that's the only price I can find and there is a website which sells the same kit to the UK for about the same money. Thing is, if there is no significant saving then I don't want to risk warranty issues by buying in HK, so my question is this:

Are cameras still significantly cheaper in HK than the UK, and if so, can anyone tell me where to find representative prices so I can make a decision?

Many thanks in advance for any help you can offer me. Looking forward to visitng as it will be the furthest east I have ever been!

Steve

[BenderBends]

i would be absolutely shocked if you can find a legit (non water goods / grey market) 40D for HKD$ 5300.

I bought mine 2 weeks ago for just over HKD$ 8K (body only) and then a few thousand for some L lenses. The camera was just released and is averaged street price is around USD$ 1300.

[AussieDave]

G'Day guys

I think captain_flymo was talking about the Canon 400D, not the 40D. Sorry to correct you BenderBends, But you are right, it just got released recently.

The 40D is the latest Digital SLR from Canon on the latest EOS platform valued in the US: $ 1,299

I am actually looking at the 400D when I visit in October. I will be shopping around for some good prices.

I'm currently looking at this site http://www.ygdragon.net/ it was last updated 13th August . Maybe the same site you was looking at captain_flymo.

If anyone can confirm the price for the Canon 400D it would be much appreciated.

Cheers

[captain_flymo]

Ah, beat me to it!! Yes, it's the 400D not the 40D.

That's exactly the same site as I was looking at Aussie Dave. On one of the pages it lists the 400D at 5350HKD and has an updated date of July 19th this year, but that's as recent as I can find.

[BenderBends]

my bad folks....
my eyes were too watered down in the morning from all the smog and misread

[oklah]

I just got back from Hong Kong where I picked up a Nikon D40x w/ 18-55mm for 4690HKD. It was at Coxell Cam2. They had pretty good service and a good range. Right next to the MongKok Station (E Exit) 9th floor, Yau Sing Comm Centre, Sai Yeung Choi Street.

Cheers,
Henry

[dipper]

In terms of prices I only really know HK prices but from my understanding from talking to photographers on forums, prices in HK are similar to those in the US and on the basis that people in the UK (and the rest of Europe) are always bitching about why cameras are so much more expensive there than the US they should generally be cheaper in HK than UK (if that makes any sense).

Whether enough to make it worth your while I don't know and of course whether you can get a particularly good deal on a particular model at a particular shop in the UK is another matter. That said, is the cheap online place in the UK kosher?

Good places to buy cameras in HK (reasonable price/good range/no rip-offs/know their stuff) include Tin Cheung in TST, Kowloon Photo in Yau Ma Tei and Wing Shing/Man Shing in Mongkok. Of these only Tin Cheung have a site AFAIK http://www.tincheungcamera.com.hk
They list the 400D kit at HK$5932.50 at the moment.

[eirrab]

Priced the 400D at Man Shing in Mong Kok - one of the most reliable to deal with in HK - price was HK$5480 for kit and HK$49880 for body. They often throw in a 1 or 2 GB card and a spare battery as well if you push them, so that makes it a bit better deal.

[CarterTG]

I would guess as far as a decade ago, the notion of (non Chinese) electronics being cheaper in HK had merit. Not being an expert at the dynamics back then, I would guess HK's proximity to Japan along with other factors resulted in favorable pricing.

In my frequent visits to HK since 2001-2002, I've spent my freetime combing through the typical Kowloon hotspots catering to both the locals and those setup to net the "gwei-lo" and my finding is that in today's world of globalization with many countries showing a voracious appetite for electronics, HK no longer has its pricing advantage.

In the US, the Canon EOS-400 is relabeled as the Rebel XTi. It's officially available as a body-only version as well as a kit version with a EF-S 18-55mm zoom lens.

Just doing a quick price-check, an online store from California (buy.com) lists the kit at $799usd ($6209hkd). Amazon lists the kit at $692($5378hkd). One of New York's most reputable camera stores (B&H Photo Video) lists that same kit at $679usd ($5284hkd). In the US, they all include a USA warranty. In HK, your choices are those kits that carry an international warranty or "sui-foh" which carry none. My pricing hasn't taken into account the more recent favorable HKD rate over the USD. YMMV.

Unless it's a specific gadget/model not available/marketed/imported in the US, I've been making my big-ticket purchases back in the states.

If I'm in HK and in a pinch for an extra camera/camcorder battery, I'll likely go to a camera shop located near the Golden Computer Center in ShamShuiPo or meander the shops in MongKok.

[larac]

We finally got the Canon 400D with the 17-85 lens, 2 batteries, 2 x 2gb memory cards, a screen protector and a lens filter/protector (not the polarised one yet) and a backpack that fits the camera on the bottom and is a regular bag on top. All this for $9600 HK.

To buy your camera you want to go to Stanley Street in Central. It is easy to find on a map - it runs parallel to Queens Road between the escalator and Lan Kwai Fong and most of the camera places are close to the intersection with Pottinger Street.

There are a couple of shops there that our friend goes to with lots of old fashioned cameras on display. These shops are not fancy and don't know much about customer service or merchandising but they do have good prices and would be good if you knew what you were doing. One was called Mirama and they have a light up Canon sign outside.

The place we ended up buying from was right beside these ones but looks like your regular 'Camera House'. The service was excellent, the price was the same as the cheapest one and they were very professional and I would highly recommend them.
It was called Sky Photo, 27 Stanley Street, Central and the guy was Ricky Ho. He was so good that this week I went back and bought a little Samsung digital from him.

Sky Photo's price on the 30D was $7,250 for the body or $9,900 with the 17-85 lens.
As a comparison, Fortress which is a big electronics chain store it was $11,480 with the 17-85 so the smaller shops are definitely cheaper.

I also did some comparisons on some othe cameras for a friend.

Sony T100 8.1 mega pixels = $2,750 HK at Sky Photo
Canon A570 7.1 mega pixels = $1850 HK at Sky Photo

At Fortress which is a big chain electronics store the prices were;

Sony T20 = $2,590 HK
Sony T100 = $3,290 HK
Sony W200 = $3,090 HK
Sony W80/B = $2,190 HK


At 55 Sai Yeung Choi St, Mong Kok is a big shop called Man Shing which has everything. This is the street between Nathan Road and Tung Choi St which is the Ladies Night Market street. Everything around here is open till about 10-11pm every night.

I didn't get any prices because it is pretty hectic there but I imagine they would be very competitive because that is the 'market' area and although this street is all proper shops there are alot of smaller camera places so I don't think you could charge any more than anyone else and stay in business.