Anonymous
What does /p/ think of ordering photographic components off Hong Kong ebay shoppes?

Their prices are quite amazing and the positive feedback leaves me wondering...

Ever had any problem with taxes or warranty?
>> Anonymous
I can't say from experience on HongKong shops in particular, but the old saying "you get what you pay for" always applies with photographic gear. If you use it to make a living, spend the extra money on real Bronica, Nikon, Hasselblad, etc. If you just want to take medium resolution pics of cat image macros for 4chan, you can get away with cheap knockoff glass and bodies.
Taxes should be disclosed up front by sellers, either on ebay or at your local mall store.
Warranty? The seller's in Hong Kong. I wouldn't count on any honored warranties.
>> Anonymous
well, I'm not so sure about that old saying... since I used to buy stuff off the US of A for a lot cheaper than what I would have to pay here in Yoorop... for exactly the same product.

Stretching that to HK might be a little bit too much though :)

Do they really sell cheap knock offs of things such as, say, canon or nikon lenses?
>> jp !XZnYq6F5.6
>>55107
i generally dont trust anything ordered from HK
>> Anonymous
Oh heck yeah...There's nothing they won't copy in China/HK. Lenses are an easy one, since the technology's been around for ages. There's no reason a GENUINE high-end product would be offered by an asian merchant for significantly less than one in Europe or the US. The real stuff comes from one source (or its licensees)

The copies might be of passable quality, but they won't be using the Nikkor glassmaking process or the Canon coatings.

The main difference in prices probly have something to do with the euro/dollar exchange and VAT taxes...idk
>> Anonymous
>>55140
yeah, but you'd figure Canon or Nikon would sue the bajeezus out of them for selling cheap knock offs passing as their own product... especially since they have a physical frontend and are registered with ebay.
>> Anonymous
China Kong has no fear of lawsuits and owns infinite resources which grow every day.

From my personal experience...Sony branded memory cards for PS2. Bought locally, genuine from Japan. Bought from YinYang Ltd on ebay (I forget the real name, but you get the idea), counterfeit. Copied packaging and everything. Works most of the time but not 100% compatable with all PS2 games in my collection.
>> Anonymous
I've ordered some cheap networking equipment from hong kong and I must say the service was amazing and shipping was blazing fast (shipping to NF, Ontario, Canada was quicker than anything from new york state, for instance)

If you're buying anything, contact the manufacturer (I've contacted hoya + tiffen for example when buying filters) and see if the seller on ebay really is an authorized seller and don't just advertise it. If they are, go ahead, but I wouldn't save the few bucks on the chance they'll screw you over.
>> Anonymous
>>55140
I've been here a decade and I've never seen knockoff SLR lenses. Those things are just far too hard to copy well, and they sell for hilariously high prices which makes the advantage of piracy (selling tons of product) kinda lessened.

That's not to say there's not a lot of shady dealers, but if something does arrive on your doorstep (which is hard enough already), you can rest assured that it's real.

PS2 memory cards are much easier to copy, and have a much bigger market, so you're sure to be burned on those. But with expensive camera gear, just work under the same precautions you would with the shadier US dealers.
>> Anonymous
I've got my Hoya R72 IR filter of a hong kong eBay shop. Cheapest around, amazingly fast service, and it's not a counterfeit.