Originally posted by Votesh Actually, I believe both stores ran out of stock (at least their websites said they did) around March or April this year, for about a month. I got one used because of it, and then a week or so after the fact they were listed as in stock again on both sites.
That may be. I bought mine in April and had been periodically checking availability/pricing for about a year before that. I was sort of hoping that the price would drop in a close-out gesture with the release of the 35/2.8, but that never happened. What I suspect is that there was a buying rush sparked by rumors of future unavailability. I saw several used ones for sale above MSRP in May, perhaps as a result.
In any case, there is no need to pay inflated prices for used goods yet. However, if a person is considering this purchase, there may be no time like the present to buy this excellent lens.
Steve