BH vs. Adorama

Steve Game · May 14th, 2011, 01:52 AM

I had my second short break in NYC last week. I had been to B & H on a previous visit, so knew what to expect, - but had to visit again! I also looked at Adorama but they seemed to be more stills focussed (apology for pun) with less video coverage. Same style of (knowledgeable) help although the queue system (calling numbers) seemed to have quite a backlog even though it was before 10:00 and not on a Friday.
B & H were helpful in the areas I wanted, and also had an interesting conversation with a salesman on the Canon stand re aliasing issues with SLRs when used for filmmaking vs broadcast. The only downside was the time it took to get served at the closeout sales area. One person part-time took over 20 minutes to get to me even though I was only replacing an old basic monopod that broke whilst in NYC.
Overall, the experience of both stores was good, and I live in hope that such an enterprise could be set up in Europe, (preferably) London. A vain hope as it's the duplication of stock that would be prohibitive unless the product range was developed slowly. The nearest we get to it is the annual shows, 'Focus On Imaging' that mainly concentrates on stills and BVE which is moving more and more towards high-end pro and broadcast video. International mail-order is not much of an option as shipping costs wipe out any cost savings on low-cost items, more expensive kit attracts import charges and there are often warranty issues.
These NYC outlets will always appear on my list of tourist attractions.

Steve

Helen Oster · May 15th, 2011, 03:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jim Greene

Perhaps a little off-topic, but since Helen from Adorama is so helpful with responses...
I posted a review of a product I bought online from Adorama, and I got the verification email from powerreview.com, but my review is not posted. Is this because it was a negative review or does it take more than a day to see the post? The review was on the Bescor LED-150. Thanks.

I can confirm that your review is now up on the website.

Ned Soltz · September 11th, 2011, 08:32 PM

Another great example of Adorama customer service. I was looking at used lens on website potentially for my Sony F3 but didn't want to order until I actually saw lens. Went into store but lens was sold between the time I checked on the site early AM and I reached store. Sales rep gave me his card and told me that any time I wanted to check out a used item, simply call, text or email him and he would put it aside until I could get into the store. But no loss for Adorama-- my friend who schlepping along with me dropped a few hundred on impulse!

Ned Soltz

Sabyasachi Patra · September 13th, 2011, 03:09 AM

I am a highly satisfied customer of B&H. I have been buying a lot of expensive stuff from them since the last five years. In a recent incident, how ever small it might be, I was pretty satisfied. I have described the situation here: Reliable Equipment Purchasing | Diary - Tales from India's Wilds
They have shown a nice gesture and I am sure I will always be buying from them.

Cheers,
Sabyasachi

Henry Posner · September 13th, 2011, 08:58 AM

Quote:

I am a highly satisfied customer of B&H. I have been buying a lot of expensive stuff from them since the last five years. In a recent incident, how ever small it might be, I was pretty satisfied.

Thank you. This is very gratifying.

G. Lee Gordon · September 13th, 2011, 10:43 PM

I'm ordering from Helen because she's cuter than Henry...
...Just kidding of course. I've had experience with both. Not a $1,000,000 customer but a lot of indy items. They are both extremely reliable, both are sponsors, both have excellent customer service, so it's whoever has the best deal and whoever has what I need in stock.
And I must say that I am not an Orthodox Jew, but have much respect for both companies for staying true to thier beliefs. I hope one day that I could have the strength to do that with my company.

Helen Oster · September 25th, 2011, 01:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by G. Lee Gordon

I'm ordering from Helen because she's cuter than Henry...
...Just kidding of course. I've had experience with both. Not a $1,000,000 customer but a lot of indy items. They are both extremely reliable, both are sponsors, both have excellent customer service, so it's whoever has the best deal and whoever has what I need in stock.
And I must say that I am not an Orthodox Jew, but have much respect for both companies for staying true to thier beliefs. I hope one day that I could have the strength to do that with my company.

Thanks!

BTW PLEASE note Adorama upcoming Holiday schedule http://cot.ag/nfsgly; please plan accordingly. We appreciate your understanding & business

Vicky Orsini · September 29th, 2011, 05:10 PM

Hi all. Just wanted to post a Thank You to the staff at B&H. I ordered the Azden WMS-Pro system from B&H on Tuesday. It got here today (Thursday)! Even when I factored in the exchange rate, shipping and taxes/duties, buying the system from B&H saved me about $200 vs buying locally! Thank you, B&H!

G. Lee Gordon · September 29th, 2011, 08:56 PM

Question for the B&H and Adorama Reps:
Why for the life of me can't I find a Canon XF100, but there is an abundance of XA10's? The XA10's are out of stock and then stock is replenished, But not the XF100's. Explain please.

Helen Oster · October 2nd, 2011, 07:36 AM

We last had a delivery on 19th September, but they all went straight out to customers with them on back-order.
As we don't charge your cc until your order actually ships, with hard-to-get items, many customers find that this is usually the best solution.

If you find one elsewhere before we've got yours out to you, you only need drop an email directly to me: Helen@adorama.com, or to our CS team, and your back-order can be cancelled right away.

Henry Posner · October 3rd, 2011, 11:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by G. Lee Gordon

Question for the B&H and Adorama Reps:
Why for the life of me can't I find a Canon XF100...

In a nutshell -- Canon USA simply cannot get enough to meet demand. I'm sure they'd like to and I know we would too. Offhand I don't know what's happening elsewhere in the world. but in the USA this is a very popular item. I don't know if demand exceeded expectations but considering the press release is dated Aug 31, 2010 <http://bhpho.to/qkcn3C> it'd be nice to think supply and demand will stabilize soon.

Ned Soltz · May 29th, 2012, 06:50 AM

To reactivate this thread....

Adorama offers a considerable inventory of both new and used products on eBay. I just was able to purchase via buy-it-now both a Kessler 3" Cineslider kit as well as a KPod+Hercules head. Both were used and prices were considerably below that of new equipment. I was very satisfied with my "metziah" (Yiddish slang for a good deal) until I noted that both of the items were priced less on the Adorama web site. I've written to customer service about it, but just thought it worth posting. Be sure to check both the eBay as well as store prices prior to pushing the buy button.

I've not yet received the gear but I have no doubt that it will be in excellent condition as represented by Adorama.

Ned Soltz

Helen Oster · May 29th, 2012, 07:04 AM

Correct, items are indeed less expensive when purchased from the Adorama website; we have to cover a number of additional costs for items sold via Ebay, which is why the items will cost fractionally more.

Ned Soltz · May 29th, 2012, 11:54 AM

Good to know. So buyers should make certain to check Adorama's site before bidding on eBay items.

Differential on the Cineslider was a little over 5%. K-pod may or may not have been the same item since it was 20% less than what I paid. Most likely it was the item without the Hercules head. in which case, the differential between eBay and store price of that item would have been 10%.

Greg Clark · May 29th, 2012, 12:21 PM

I have been a loyal B and H customer from Canada. But with the new fees that B&H is charging it seems like they are gouging their Canadian customers. I will be looking for alternatives like Adorama in the future.

May 14th, 2011, 01:52 AM	#61
Steve Game Major Player Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: London, UK Posts: 353	Re: BH vs. Adorama I had my second short break in NYC last week. I had been to B & H on a previous visit, so knew what to expect, - but had to visit again! I also looked at Adorama but they seemed to be more stills focussed (apology for pun) with less video coverage. Same style of (knowledgeable) help although the queue system (calling numbers) seemed to have quite a backlog even though it was before 10:00 and not on a Friday. B & H were helpful in the areas I wanted, and also had an interesting conversation with a salesman on the Canon stand re aliasing issues with SLRs when used for filmmaking vs broadcast. The only downside was the time it took to get served at the closeout sales area. One person part-time took over 20 minutes to get to me even though I was only replacing an old basic monopod that broke whilst in NYC. Overall, the experience of both stores was good, and I live in hope that such an enterprise could be set up in Europe, (preferably) London. A vain hope as it's the duplication of stock that would be prohibitive unless the product range was developed slowly. The nearest we get to it is the annual shows, 'Focus On Imaging' that mainly concentrates on stills and BVE which is moving more and more towards high-end pro and broadcast video. International mail-order is not much of an option as shipping costs wipe out any cost savings on low-cost items, more expensive kit attracts import charges and there are often warranty issues. These NYC outlets will always appear on my list of tourist attractions. Steve

September 11th, 2011, 08:32 PM	#63
Ned Soltz Major Player Join Date: May 2006 Location: Teaneck, NJ Posts: 659	Re: BH vs. Adorama Another great example of Adorama customer service. I was looking at used lens on website potentially for my Sony F3 but didn't want to order until I actually saw lens. Went into store but lens was sold between the time I checked on the site early AM and I reached store. Sales rep gave me his card and told me that any time I wanted to check out a used item, simply call, text or email him and he would put it aside until I could get into the store. But no loss for Adorama-- my friend who schlepping along with me dropped a few hundred on impulse! Ned Soltz

September 13th, 2011, 03:09 AM	#64
Sabyasachi Patra Major Player Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: New Delhi, India Posts: 507	Re: BH vs. Adorama I am a highly satisfied customer of B&H. I have been buying a lot of expensive stuff from them since the last five years. In a recent incident, how ever small it might be, I was pretty satisfied. I have described the situation here: Reliable Equipment Purchasing \| Diary - Tales from India's Wilds They have shown a nice gesture and I am sure I will always be buying from them. Cheers, Sabyasachi __________________ Wild Tiger Productions http://www.indiawilds.com/about.htm

September 13th, 2011, 10:43 PM	#66
G. Lee Gordon Major Player Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Dallas, TX Posts: 431	Re: BH vs. Adorama I'm ordering from Helen because she's cuter than Henry... ...Just kidding of course. I've had experience with both. Not a $1,000,000 customer but a lot of indy items. They are both extremely reliable, both are sponsors, both have excellent customer service, so it's whoever has the best deal and whoever has what I need in stock. And I must say that I am not an Orthodox Jew, but have much respect for both companies for staying true to thier beliefs. I hope one day that I could have the strength to do that with my company. __________________ "Get Er Done!!!"

September 29th, 2011, 05:10 PM	#68
Vicky Orsini New Boot Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Barrie, ON Posts: 14	Props to B&H Hi all. Just wanted to post a Thank You to the staff at B&H. I ordered the Azden WMS-Pro system from B&H on Tuesday. It got here today (Thursday)! Even when I factored in the exchange rate, shipping and taxes/duties, buying the system from B&H saved me about $200 vs buying locally! Thank you, B&H!

September 29th, 2011, 08:56 PM	#69
G. Lee Gordon Major Player Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Dallas, TX Posts: 431	Re: BH vs. Adorama Question for the B&H and Adorama Reps: Why for the life of me can't I find a Canon XF100, but there is an abundance of XA10's? The XA10's are out of stock and then stock is replenished, But not the XF100's. Explain please. __________________ "Get Er Done!!!"

October 2nd, 2011, 07:36 AM	#70
Helen Oster Sponsor: Adorama Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: New York Posts: 44	Re: BH vs. Adorama We last had a delivery on 19th September, but they all went straight out to customers with them on back-order. As we don't charge your cc until your order actually ships, with hard-to-get items, many customers find that this is usually the best solution. If you find one elsewhere before we've got yours out to you, you only need drop an email directly to me: Helen@adorama.com, or to our CS team, and your back-order can be cancelled right away. __________________ Helen Oster Adorama Camera Customer Service Ambassador Helen@adorama.com http://twitter.com/HelenOster

May 29th, 2012, 06:50 AM	#72
Ned Soltz Major Player Join Date: May 2006 Location: Teaneck, NJ Posts: 659	Re: BH vs. Adorama To reactivate this thread.... Adorama offers a considerable inventory of both new and used products on eBay. I just was able to purchase via buy-it-now both a Kessler 3" Cineslider kit as well as a KPod+Hercules head. Both were used and prices were considerably below that of new equipment. I was very satisfied with my "metziah" (Yiddish slang for a good deal) until I noted that both of the items were priced less on the Adorama web site. I've written to customer service about it, but just thought it worth posting. Be sure to check both the eBay as well as store prices prior to pushing the buy button. I've not yet received the gear but I have no doubt that it will be in excellent condition as represented by Adorama. Ned Soltz

May 29th, 2012, 07:04 AM	#73
Helen Oster Sponsor: Adorama Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: New York Posts: 44	Re: BH vs. Adorama Correct, items are indeed less expensive when purchased from the Adorama website; we have to cover a number of additional costs for items sold via Ebay, which is why the items will cost fractionally more. __________________ Helen Oster Adorama Camera Customer Service Ambassador Helen@adorama.com http://twitter.com/HelenOster

May 29th, 2012, 11:54 AM	#74
Ned Soltz Major Player Join Date: May 2006 Location: Teaneck, NJ Posts: 659	Re: BH vs. Adorama Good to know. So buyers should make certain to check Adorama's site before bidding on eBay items. Differential on the Cineslider was a little over 5%. K-pod may or may not have been the same item since it was 20% less than what I paid. Most likely it was the item without the Hercules head. in which case, the differential between eBay and store price of that item would have been 10%. Last edited by Ned Soltz; May 29th, 2012 at 12:55 PM.

May 29th, 2012, 12:21 PM	#75
Greg Clark Major Player Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Surprise Arizona Posts: 297	Re: BH vs. Adorama I have been a loyal B and H customer from Canada. But with the new fees that B&H is charging it seems like they are gouging their Canadian customers. I will be looking for alternatives like Adorama in the future.