Camera Query regarding B&H photovideo and customs for Camera gears

sabby

sabby

ex-Mod
Hi ! My questions are mainly for those who have bought stuffs from B&H and/or who have bought camera gear in general from US or EU.

I want to buy the Sony NEX-5R and some other lenses & accessories. It seems that the damned India dept of Sony doesn't care about releasing their NEX series - heck they haven't even bothered releasing the 2nd gen and the lenses other than kit/18-200. So, I was browsing through the B&H site and found good prices for NEX-5R, lenses, filters etc. The shipping charge is about 80$ which I don't mind unless there's some heavy custom duty. So, here are the questions:

1. How are the shipping and time frame if you've bought something from B&H to India ?
2. How are shippings in general for UPS ?
3. Do the Indian Customs guys charge duty for Camera gears ? ( And whether there is any price bracket)
4. Is it possible to gift wrap the items to avoid customs duty and do B&H do this on request ? ( Or any other online shop who does this)

Yo are most welcome to suggest reliable and tested alternative online shops. I have a few friends coming from US in May/June but I DO need these before mid-March and besides they might have other similar requests from their relatives as well so I don't wanna burden them.

P.S. - I posted this in General section instead of Camera sub-forum as my queries are more related to shipping/customs in general than on the Camera gears.
 
Not even a single reply ? :(

I got replies from B&H that they can't gift wrap it and no idea about customs.
@6pack , @Gannu or any other MOD Could you please move this thread to camera gear sub-forum ? I think this will be lost in countless general talk threads here.
 
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+ 1, I too would like to have the same query answered. How much would customs charge for camera products (below or above Rs. 10,000) if the product is marked/non-marked as gift. In case, the product comes from a HK/ China seller at ebay.com, will there be any difference in customs?
 
I haven't imported camera gear from the US but have done other electronics so here are my thoughts seeing as no one else has answered so far.

Customs duty will be charged and irrespective of where you get it from (US, China, UK, EU etc.) See this page for a rough calculator.

India Customs Duty | Import Duty in India | Customs Tariff

Enter the product name as "Camera" and you should get a page showing the different types of cameras with an option to calculate duty for each.

UPS is a good courier service with full tracking so no worries on that aspect. Duty is pretty much guaranteed to be charged with Fedex, UPS, DHL etc. though you might get lucky.

Gift wrapping, marking as a gift does not make a difference to Customs unless the value of the gift is less than Rs. 10K, it is declared as a gift and you have not gifted it to yourself.
 
It will turn out to be more expensive to import then buying it officially in india.Have you contacted Sony corporate office in bangalore,call them and ask for the person in charge of alpha division.
In their face book page they have said that its available on request.
Also check out in grey market,some grey dealers do get them from abroad upon paying advance.
 
@adder yeah, I asked many times in FB about the availability. Earlier they used to reply that it will be released. Today They said it is available on request, took my mail id and number. Some rep is supposed to contact me. I also called a few SONY centres here by phone. The one nearest to my house took my number and will revert back. The one at Mantri mall said that NEX new gen will definitely be released here, along with the newer lenses. When asked about the time frame, they said mid-feb at earliest. I'm hoping they get it within Feb. :)

The reason I wanted to buy from B&H is their great bundle offer - for $846, I can get NEX-5R with 55-210mm telephoto zoom with 16mm pancake thrown in for free :D Moreover, there's one more bundle offer for Sigma 19mm & 30mm (both f/2.8) for only $199 :drool:

I don't know how they'll price the models in India. I'll try to get a deal to replace the kit with the tele-zoom with some extra cash. I can still get the Sigma bundles, they should be worth even with the 36% duty added. :)

Btw, I've never dealt with grey markets, any idea how/where should I approach ? Considering the sturdy build of NEX-5R and that I was ready to buy from US, I guess I can buy it without mfg warranty.
@jsmithe Thanks for the tips. If I get the camera here, I'll try to get some good filters and the SIGMA bundle sent via friend.
 
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Grey market dealers are located in Sukh sagar mall,when i asked about the nex way back in 2010 in grey market (when it wasn't launched in india) they said its not available,but one dealer in sukh sagar located towards on the left side ground floor immediately called some one in chennai ,then he said they can get it.So its worth a Shot .
My guess is it may be a bit cheaper in grey then official price of 39k as reported in their facebook page and other websites .But you will not get the official 3 year warranty+memory card + possibly a case .

But nothing beats the deal in b&H ,that sigma deal is a killer.
 
adder Thanks :) Although I do not know where is the Sukh sagar mall :ashamed: Do you by any chance have their phone number ? If SONY India don't release the camera by March, I might consider getting it via grey. There's a large market for entry level DSLRs in India. don't know why they are not trying to capture the market with their excellent NEX series :|

One more thing, Do you own a NEX/SLT camera ? I'll be travelling in near future and was thinking about getting some external charger and battery pack. But the popular Wasabi charger kit with two batteries are priced at 3-4 times more than amazon at ebay india. So I was wondering whether I can get by a day without a second battery ? I can always charge it at night at the hotel.
 
Yes i own a A57 SLT .I just use the stock charger,there are a lot of el cheapo chinese batteries in dealextreme,they won't show the info in percentage but they should work.

Sukhsagar mall is located in gandhinagar near majestic bus station.The don't say any info on phone even for long time buyers.

If i am not mistaken isn't the wasbi charger just for Go Pro batteries.
 
Same here. Sony contacted me on FB and took my mail id, phone no. Let me know if you hear from them again. BTW, if you wanna get those sigmas, get them soon. sigma will most likely phase out those models and launch their art series for nex
 
adder said:
Yes i own a A57 SLT .I just use the stock charger,there are a lot of el cheapo chinese batteries in dealextreme,they won't show the info in percentage but they should work.

Sukhsagar mall is located in gandhinagar near majestic bus station.The don't say any info on phone even for long time buyers.

If i am not mistaken isn't the wasbi charger just for Go Pro batteries.
Click to expand...
Thanks, I'll venture out there after a couple weeks if I don't hear anything from Sony. Wasabi has batteries for Canon/Nikon/Sony SLRs as well as the mirrorless cams. Just listed as diff products and a bit varied price. The external charger with 2 1300mah battery for NEX is selling for ~$25 in Amazon :) Ebay India has the same but for 3500/- :mad: The reviews say that NEX-5R lasts for arouns 350-400 shots. Should be enough for 1 day I think :)



smoky004 said:
Same here. Sony contacted me on FB and took my mail id, phone no. Let me know if you hear from them again. BTW, if you wanna get those sigmas, get them soon. sigma will most likely phase out those models and launch their art series for nex
Click to expand...

Sure, updating this thread will be the first thing :) The main prob is I must be sure that I'll get the NEX 5R, only then I can order those little Sigma beauties. Good news is B&H just got them in stock yesterday, so I hope they will be in stock for a couple of weeks :)

Edit: Just talked to B&H rep via chat, he said there's no indication in his system that the Sigma bundle will be discontinued soon. Plenty are in stock and no info when the new updated lenses will come to them. :)
 
^^ Have to agree Will wait till mid march and if sony doesn't make it available by then, will have to import from america or get a D5200(too heavy ?????).
 
thing is this
camera and allied gear is charged 26% Duty and no alt to that if it comes via courier.
better to bring it with friends.
 
Its actually 32% :angry: Otherwise, B&H has so many superb deals which are worth even after paying $100 shipping.
@smoky004 If size is an issue then you can try Canon EOS-M, its pricey though at 48k. And for additional lens you have to go via adapter route. Or you can always try the m4/3rds. For traditional DSLRs, anything below D90 is not much worth the weight.
 
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^^D90 is too heavy for me.Besides D90 is quite an old camera. If i am not wrong D5200 is not only better but also lighter and smaller.4/3rds camera might be an option.Always loved the color rendering of Olympus and Fuji cams.But just like sony,lens availability would be an issue.
 
smoky004 said:
^^D90 is too heavy for me.Besides D90 is quite an old camera. If i am not wrong D5200 is not only better but also lighter and smaller.4/3rds camera might be an option.Always loved the color rendering of Olympus and Fuji cams.But just like sony,lens availability would be an issue.
Click to expand...

If size is an issue then only m4/3rds are your options. If you are only into Landscapes/travel photography then you can check out the RX100. Truly pocketable with impressive IQ. Even I think the crops from RX100 should be better than the telephoto pics from the super-zooms because of their tiny sensors.
 
Well, i do a lot of night photography so RX100 might not be the right camera.

Anyway since i have a cousin in boston, what's the cheapest and reliable way to get stuff from america ?? I can just ask him to send it via DHL but customs would be a problem
 
@smoky004
Cheapest is probably USPS (US Postal service, not the UPS). Yeah, I don't think the customs guys would miss a camera. Better wait till he comes himself or be ready to pay 32% duty and possible harassment. Otherwise you can always get a D5100 and a couple of fast primes. The extra price for D5200 isn't worth IMO, instead get the Nikon 35mm f/1.8 with the money :)
 
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