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08-21-2011, 12:30 PM   #1
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K5 buying

Hi All,

I am planning to buy K5 (cannot resist anymore), currently prodigital 2000 and tri-state camera have the best prices on ebay. Prodigital has the best price, with a difference of 20$. But will the warranty be valid in the U.S.? Also, I'm still concerned about the shutter problems and makes me think if I have a wait a little longer to sort out the problem. Your input is appreciated.

Thanks

Kriss

08-21-2011, 12:44 PM   #2
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Suggest you familiarize yourself with TriState Camera before you make your
purchase:


TriState Camera, Video and Computers - tristatecamera.com - Reviews, Ratings and Prices at ResellerRatings
08-21-2011, 12:49 PM   #3
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Well don't make the biggest point over a few dollars for a camera that will be in use for some years and buy where you trust the resellar.

K-5 is a good camera and you can get a good copy without having to win the lotery. I'm using K-5 since november and with three copies (one returned for staines) I have over 60.000 actuations on the shutter for the three combined. So it is usable as a workhorse.
08-21-2011, 01:18 PM   #4
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My first and only k-5 was trouble-free. From what I understand the shutter problem issue is related with using third party batteries (not sure, never experienced it myself so never looked into it). The staining issue and the FF issues are all fixed now.

08-21-2011, 01:43 PM   #5
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QuoteOriginally posted by kriss15 Quote
Hi All,

I am planning to buy K5 (cannot resist anymore), currently prodigital 2000 and tri-state camera have the best prices on ebay. Prodigital has the best price, with a difference of 20$. But will the warranty be valid in the U.S.? Also, I'm still concerned about the shutter problems and makes me think if I have a wait a little longer to sort out the problem. Your input is appreciated.

Thanks

Kriss
In order to have a USA warranty, according to what I was told by Pentax, you must buy the camera in the USA. There may be an International warranty on cameras purchased by Prodigital, I'm not sure, and don't really know what it does. Your best bet is to ask Pentax about it rather than getting and playing guessing games here.

As for TriState, I've dealt with them a few times before, had no problems. Just call to place your order so you can verify right then, they have them in stock (which is a typical issue with Prodigital).

08-21-2011, 01:48 PM   #6
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Hi Kriss.
There will never be an end to the concerns about any electronic piece of equipment, particularly those with mechanical parts that can fail. Nevertheless, most people who have K-5s never get any of the reported problems.

Warranty/insurance is a good way to go in any case.
08-21-2011, 03:32 PM   #7
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The QA problems seem to be gone indeed, but make sure you get it with warranty just to be safe.


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08-21-2011, 07:00 PM   #8
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Thank you all for your inputs, really appreciate it. After some searching in google, I found these two sellers having a great price.
1.Best Price Photo
2.42nd Street Photo
But, again how reliable they are is something to think about. I know B&H, Adorama and other very reliable sellers, but the price difference is really high. Please share any of your or know experiences in dealing with them.

Thanks
Kriss
08-22-2011, 04:57 AM   #9
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QuoteOriginally posted by kriss15 Quote
Thank you all for your inputs, really appreciate it. After some searching in google, I found these two sellers having a great price.
1.Best Price Photo
2.42nd Street Photo
But, again how reliable they are is something to think about. I know B&H, Adorama and other very reliable sellers, but the price difference is really high. Please share any of your or know experiences in dealing with them.

Thanks
Kriss
You need to check the ratings and customer feedback for the sellers you mention against each other, here:

Store Ratings & Reviews - ResellerRatings.com - Find Trusted Stores

Then it may become clear why some retailers appear to be able to offer significantly cheaper pricing........
08-22-2011, 09:01 AM   #10
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QuoteOriginally posted by Helen Oster Quote
You need to check the ratings and customer feedback for the sellers you mention against each other, here:

Store Ratings & Reviews - ResellerRatings.com - Find Trusted Stores

Then it may become clear why some retailers appear to be able to offer significantly cheaper pricing........
Agreed. In fact, I was in Adorama's NYC store this morning... and left with a brand-new K-5 and accessories. In-store price for a K-5 body was $1269 - which is as low a legitimate price I can find these days - even lower than Amazon.com.
08-22-2011, 09:06 AM   #11
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QuoteOriginally posted by Biro Quote
...I was in Adorama's NYC store this morning... and left with a brand-new K-5 and accessories. In-store price for a K-5 body was $1269 - which is as low a legitimate price I can find these days - even lower than Amazon.com.
Good to hear! [and if you ever need any advice or after-sales support, I'm only an email away.....Helen@adorama.com]
08-22-2011, 11:44 AM   #12
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QuoteOriginally posted by JeffJS Quote
In order to have a USA warranty, according to what I was told by Pentax, you must buy the camera in the USA. There may be an International warranty on cameras purchased by Prodigital, I'm not sure, and don't really know what it does. Your best bet is to ask Pentax about it rather than getting and playing guessing games here.
I live in the USA and bought my K-5 from Prodigital 2000 via the buy.com marketplace. I was not aware that they were actually a Canadian seller (Carman's Foto Source) and that the camera would be shipped from Pentax Canada. I had no issues with the purchase and ended up saving a few hundred dollars with cash back and whatnot, but it should be noted that buying from Pentax Canada with a US address does affect your warranty coverage.

If you have a US address, you will get a 1 year international warranty instead of the 2 year Canadian warranty. Also, you are not eligible to purchase the 2 year extended warranty from B&H, as that is only for cameras supplied by Pentax USA.

You definitely made the best choice by buying locally.
08-23-2011, 08:12 AM   #13
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QuoteOriginally posted by EWJ2l Quote
I live in the USA and bought my K-5 from Prodigital 2000 via the buy.com marketplace. I was not aware that they were actually a Canadian seller (Carman's Foto Source) and that the camera would be shipped from Pentax Canada. I had no issues with the purchase and ended up saving a few hundred dollars with cash back and whatnot, but it should be noted that buying from Pentax Canada with a US address does affect your warranty coverage.

If you have a US address, you will get a 1 year international warranty instead of the 2 year Canadian warranty. Also, you are not eligible to purchase the 2 year extended warranty from B&H, as that is only for cameras supplied by Pentax USA.

You definitely made the best choice by buying locally.
Only if something goes wrong with the camera which, in my case, it did. Sensor Stains on the first camera, replaced by Pentax USA in less than a month.

08-23-2011, 11:32 PM   #14
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QuoteOriginally posted by JeffJS Quote
Only if something goes wrong with the camera which, in my case, it did. Sensor Stains on the first camera, replaced by Pentax USA in less than a month.

Luckily I didn't have the stain problem, but I did have the main board fail after three months of use. It was replaced by CRIS under warranty, but took almost 8 weeks. That's when I found out about the warranty. Really wanted to be able to extend the warranty after having something that major go wrong in such a short time and then having the camera in repair for almost as long as I've owned it! Seems to be an isolated issue, so hopefully I'll see a few more years before I have to worry about it. On a side note, if it were to fail after the warranty expired, I wouldn't hesitate to pay for the repairs or buy another one. Definitely the best camera for my purpose bar none.
08-24-2011, 01:31 PM   #15
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Thank you all for sharing the information.
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