Ordered a DSLR from ..... ??

[Dryce]

My backup DSLR - a 7 year old Konica Minolta 5D started playing up last weekend with the focus motor failing.

So this evening I pulled the trigger on a replacement ordered online from a very well known ubiquitous chain of large stores. Not a place I would have ever expected to buy a DSLR from (well technically it's a DSLT - but tomayto tomaato).

Can anybody guess who that chain might be?

 

[GordonTarling]

Tesco?

 

[davidsw]

Boots ?

 

[finisterre]

machine mart

 

[MarkJunedd]

Ann Summers ?

 

[brucemillar]

Cameraphones4u-Rus.com

 

[Merc Owner 2B]

BBC News - Ikea goes green with a cardboard digital camera

 

[Beetnik]

Maccie D's

 

[Troon]

Halfords?

 

[Dryce]

I wouldn't have raised my eyebrows so much if it had been Argos or even Tesco.

But it was Asda.

 

[Dryce]

Followup to this experience. Basically got a call about a week after ordering from Asda about the DSLR saying they had problems with their supplier and there would be a delay.

Today I finally gave up on them and cancelled.

Few comments. Staff I dealt with on the telephone were polite. Price of offer was very good. Website is not great - no status other than 'placed'. Their ordering setup takes the money as soon as you order and on cancelling today what they wanted to do was wait until I refused delivery of the order from their supplier - with no indication of when they might try to deliver (next week? next month? next year?). Meanwhile they still have a chunk of my money and I have no goods. On demanding an immediate refund they said they'd sort it out on Monday and give me phone call to confirm.

Would I order from Asda direct again for this sort of good? Probably not. The process just isn't good enough. The automated/web feedback is poor. And grabbing the money before dispatch when there is no stock and indeterminate delivery delay isn't IMO reputable practice.

 

[NW_Merc]

So in essence, the moral of the story is, if you want a DSLR, go to a specific dealer.

Funnily enough I can stock them if you want one, just tell me the brand and I'll see what I can do.

 

[The_Bhoy]

Asda's maybe not that surprising bearing in mind the Wal-Mart connection, but I normally find you can get good prices from Jessops if you go via Quidco & they normally have discount codes available as well.

 

[Dryce]

So in essence, the moral of the story is, if you want a DSLR, go to a specific dealer.

Funnily enough I can stock them if you want one, just tell me the brand and I'll see what I can do.

Thanks for your offer. I'll keep that in mind for future.

I ended up ordering an alternative via a dealer that uses eBay to sell refurbs and went for the next model up.

In the past I would have used a local Jessops branch where I liked the two older guys who ran it and could do a deal. But it closed when they cut back.

The remaining branches are not places I have any affinity for at all these days. (Sad as my first camera was bought from Jessops several decades ago when they were 'Jessops of Leicester' and used to advertise long small print lists of stock in Amateur Photographer).

 

[Mozzer]

How funny I have just put my old Olympus E-20p on e-bay cos I want to upgrade, what are you going for, I currently have a Canon 1100d in mind ?

 

[Dryce]

How funny I have just put my old Olympus E-20p on e-bay cos I want to upgrade, what are you going for, I currently have a Canon 1100d in mind ?

Oly E-20p - almost bought one of those in .... 2001. Nice piece of kit. But expensive in its day.

I'm firmly in the Minolta / Sony camp in terms of lenses and ergonomics so I've ended up with an A77.

 

[Mozzer]

Didn't expect to, but just bought a Bridge camera !

Liked the idea of getting a good range without having to change lenses, I'm not hard core enough for that, I just want to take decent pictures of my kids. Video and 10fps burst swung it.