Pentax camera prices have taken a dive yet again in the US. See the links below for details. If you get the AF 540 K-3 flash bundle, it's like only paying $446 for the camera!

K-3 + Grip = $996
Pentax K-3 DSLR Camera Body 15530 B&H Photo Video
Pentax K-3 Digital SLR Camera Body 15530

• Pentax K-3
• DA 50mm F1.8
• BG-5 Grip
• Order for $1046.95

($450 freebie value)

• Pentax K-3
• AF-540 Flash
• BG-5 Grip
• Order for $1046.95

($600 freebie value)

• Pentax K-3
• BG-5 Grip
• FluCard
• $1046.95
  Order at B&H
  Order at Adorama

($300 freebie value)

• Pentax K-3
• 18-135mm WR
• BG-5 Grip
• $1346.95
  Order at B&H
  Order at Adorama

• Pentax K-3 Silver
• Silver BG-5 Grip
• Exclusive Strap
• Order for $1196.95

• Pentax K-50
• Free $50 gift card
• Order for $396.95

• Pentax K-50
• 18-55mm WR
• Free $50 gift card
• Order for $496.95

• Pentax K-50
• 18-55mm WR
• AF-200 Flash
• Memory Card
• Bag
• Software
• Order for $496.95

($218 freebie value)

• Pentax K-50
• 18-55mm WR
• 50-200mm WR
• Free $50 gift card
• Order for $596.95

[Tanzer]

What do consumers do when they feel like they lost out on a good deal? Improperly accuse a merchant of a price blunder is one tactic. But when faced with the facts, should the complainant retract the statement? Yeah, we understand this is a free country and people can say whatever they want and are not responsible for false statements, short of libel, but I've seen so many mistakes lately ... it's getting a bit ridiculous.

I'd be curious to know how often a private individual here on the forums who makes a bad accusation will own up to it.

[shaX 07]

What do consumers do when they feel like they lost out on a good deal? Improperly accuse a merchant of a price blunder is one tactic. But when faced with the facts, should the complainant retract the statement? Yeah, we understand this is a free country and people can say whatever they want and are not responsible for false statements, short of libel, but I've seen so many mistakes lately ... it's getting a bit ridiculous.

I'd be curious to know how often a private individual here on the forums who makes a bad accusation will own up to it.

Whether this one was a mistake or wasn't, isn't even the point. Screwing up a listed price on the internet and then changing it, or putting up a price that 2 days later you think is too low and then raising it, really isn't any different. The point is, Adorama's internet pricing is more fluid than any website i've ever seen. Today something is $500, tomorrow it's $600, next week it's $575.

The reality is you don't know what price you're paying until the product is on your doorstep. Plenty of orders get cancelled because of these non-mistakes, or changes, or whatever you want to call them.

I can't speak to it personally, however I am referencing other threads where orders were cancelled, and those folks aren't here talking about it probably because they aren't even opening Adorama price deal threads anymore.

For what its worth, I have done a lot of business with Adorama and have been happy with the service and products I have received. I just feel for those others who've had orders cancelled because of "mistakes" or um "market changes" to pricing on orders they paid for.

[Tanzer]

Fluidity is good. Putting out a price and then changing it based on market conditions seems like a completely fair and reasonable practice. As was suggested, if I don't like the deals that a merchant has to offer, I don't have to buy from them. Large merchants have a choice to compete with each other as well as against small vendors who will sell on eBay or Amazon, who might never have had a chance to offer their goods to the greater public. That seems like normal economics to me. I like this practice. It makes Black Friday and Cyber Monday possible.

A lot of folks are still upset over previous pricing mistakes made by a few merchants. I think that if everything posted on the Internet were required to be taken as committed into law, then nobody would post or sell anything on the Internet. Then it would be back to brick-and-mortar stores, and sales out of the Sears catalog. Even Target and Walmart occasionally make errors in their printed weekly flyers.

Some folks cried "bait and switch" for the Pentax Web Store. That's total bull crap. It isn't like they suckered people into travelling all the way to their retail store, only to claim they are out of stock, and then tried to upsell them as a captive audience on something more expensive. Even if someone has to take the bus or subway to the library to get Internet access, the merchant doesn't know that, nor do they have any means whatsoever to try to upsell them -- it is just a lost sale. I can't fathom why any merchant would deliberately post a bad price on the Internet -- there is just nothing to gain for them, and plenty of risk of alienating customers through bad word-of-mouth.

Now, if a merchant posts a price in good faith (i.e., one which isn't just an honest mistake), but then cancels existing orders just because it realizes the price was just too low, well that is pretty slimy -- yes, this is hard to prove -- and good luck to them trying to somehow capitalize on that new-found information with customers they just lost. Adorama is a huge retailer and can get virtually unlimited quantities of stuff, so I just don't see them as the type of place that would have anything to gain by doing this. And I certainly haven't seen any evidence of this, in the case that is the subject of this post.

For what it is worth, I haven't always had a 100% first-time satisfactory experience with Adorama (they always made it right afterwards). But the claim of any blunders or mistakes, deliberate or otherwise, in this case is simply misplaced, and doesn't belong in this thread.

[Adam]

For what it is worth, I haven't always had a 100% first-time satisfactory experience with Adorama (they always made it right afterwards). But the claim of any blunders or mistakes, deliberate or otherwise, in this case is simply misplaced, and doesn't belong in this thread.

Agreed. The bundles were available for $996 for a few days before going up in price at both B&H and Adorama. Many users were able to take advantage of the lower pricing. Now, the $996 deal is still available, but with only one free item. Still a great deal if we compare it with the competition.

Adam
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[shaX 07]

Just to follow up, the rep I sent a couple of emails to the rep I originally made the order with "Lewis Arthur," yesterday, and was ignored on them, so I sent him another asking for his manager's contact information. Finally, he got back to me, stating "I have sent this to our customer service division they should be contacting you shortly." This was after he told me this bald-faced lie:0

"Sorry heard different SKU ; heard IPXK3KC , that kit is 1046.95, you kit was $ 996.95."

Mind you that in the original call, he repeated the correct SKU back to me and assured me that it came with the 540FGZ flash. This was also after he stated that "It is now listed at $1046, but I can do my magic and bring it down to $996 for you."

Of course absolutely no one called or wrote, and now they are closed through Sunday for the Succoth holiday.

I regularly have used Adorama in the past, for both gear and prints, but I am just about ready to switch all my business over to B+H. Even if it was an "honest" mistake rather than an intentional bait and switch, the fact that this guy was incredibly pushy and in obviously a hurry to get me of fhte phone the other day raises all kinds of red flags.

In the meantime, the box sits unopened in my hallway. Maybe if they won't send me the flash they've already sold me, they'll at least have the basic professionalism to send me a call tag to return the non-confomring kit.

I'm sorry to hear about the troubles you had with them... This is the sort of stuff that's gone on that I was trying to point out in this thread.

I hope that when Adorama re-opens, Helen can come on here and possibly help you out or provide an explanation as to why you were treated this way. I sure hope it goes down that way.

[tvdtvdtvd]

Well, the K3 + 50mm + grip deal still looks very good at $1046, but the fact that it's listed as out of stock makes it irrelevant. Not even an ETA
for arrival of new stock. Or, are they waiting to see which bundles get the most attention before deciding a currency fluctuation adjustment is
necessary? Hate to be so cynical, but have to agree the tales, as reported above, don't inspire confidence.

[randee]

When I saw that deal, with the flash and grip I was sold, just had to wait till payday. I have been thinking of getting a K-3 for a long time, and only now have the money to swing it. I love my K10D and instead of spending money on cameras throughout the last 6 years, I have spent it on lenses at the rate of 1 per year... This year it's time to upgrade the camera, excited to upgrade!

Any market experts have any guesses if we have seen the end of that bundle with the flash, or might it return after the holiday?

I saw one deal that allowed you to purchase 2 flashes at bargain prices, that would have been awesome... kickin' myself for not jumping on that...