I Just Did It !!!! at DVinfo.net

Michael Moore · January 29th, 2004, 10:22 PM

I JUST BOUGHT MY 1st 3CCD CAMERA
I can't belive I did it. I just bought the DVC80 after spending over a year saving and reading forums I finaly did it.
I have to say thanks to every one that helped me pick this camera out.
I am getting it from B&H and I am getting the 2 to 4 day shiping so it should be here next week.
I am so stoked.
hey has anyone from BC gotten anything shiped from the US ... what kind of duty is there, is it just 14% or is there more ?
thanks again everyone
Michael
soon to be owner of a DVC80

Dylan Couper · January 29th, 2004, 10:57 PM

Congrats!
I ship lots of stuff in from the US. Are you using UPS? If so, be prepared for a $40+ brokerage fee on top of the duty. Some UPS shipping includes the brokerage, some doesn't. Purolator charges brokerage too. If you ship via the postal service, there is no brokerage. Not sure about FedEx.

I think it's 14% tax at the border.

Frank Granovski · January 30th, 2004, 01:04 AM

There is no duty. You just pay the same taxes as as you would with buying something locally (in Vancouver). That would be 14.5% (7% GST + 7.5% PST).

Depending how it was shipped, you may or may not have to pay brokerage fees. How did you ship it?

Glenn Chan · January 30th, 2004, 01:10 AM

I thought USPS brokerage is something like $8USD? Anyways, it's reasonable.

UPS is daylight robbery. My school bought a bunch of mini-DV tapes and the brokerage was around $40.

Michael Moore · January 30th, 2004, 02:17 AM

I got it shiped "UPS EXPEDITED" 2 to 4 days. I dont know if there will be a brokerage fee but i dont care it is to late now. I just want my camera !!!!

Frank Granovski · January 30th, 2004, 02:38 AM

There should be no brokerage fee then, since it isn't regular ground service.

Dylan Couper · January 30th, 2004, 06:15 AM

I just had a $40 item shipped from the US. I told the sender not to ship UPS but they did anyway. There was $7 in tax (fine), and $35 for UPSs brokerage fee, on top of UPS's $25 shipping cost. I told UPS to send it back, they said, OK, but it'll be another $25.
This has happened to me several times.

A friend of mine got it worse. His girlfriend in the US send him a NASCAR hat that cost $20 for Christmas via Purolator. She put the value as $25 or something (no tax on under $20 items), and paid them $25 for shipping to get it to him for Christmas. There was $3 in tax and a $30 brokerage fee. So the little $20 hat cost almost $80 (over $100cdn). Plus the best part... It arrived a week after Christmas.
None of these A-holes ever warn you that they will jack you up for brokerage, and when confronted as to why they do, but the postal service doesn't, they say "the government makes us do it". WHat BS.
Sorry for my anti shipping rant. I hate them so very very much.

Frank Granovski · January 30th, 2004, 06:25 AM

FEDEX first, UPS second (other than normal ground), are the ones I trust, though it's always a darn good idea to have the item insured---especially with UPS, based on my sad experiences with them.

Tim Borek · January 30th, 2004, 09:29 AM

I'm happy for you, Michael. I hope you enjoy shooting with your DVC80 as much as I do mine.

After five weeks of getting to know the camcorder, I'm trying to get in the habit of using the manual zoom instead of servo, mainly to improve battery life. I have plenty of batteries -- 3 x 1600 mAh and 1 x 3000 mAh, but I'm conservative this way. Overall, the DVC80 is easy to use, well balanced in handheld shooting, and just plain looks cool. Oh, and the external microphone mount does a good job of isolating mics from the camera.

TJB

Michael Moore · January 30th, 2004, 12:41 PM

Well I just got up... it is my day off and i needed to sleep in. When I got up I ran over to my PC to check my order status and my email, here is what i found

Please be advised that your order cannot be processed due to
the following reason(s):

Unverifiable address

Please fax or E-mail a scanned image of a phone bill, utility bill or
driver license showing the "shipping address"

I dont have a scaner !!!!!! that is BS. so i called them and i got a recording saying please leave all your info and if you have not heard back in a day they everything is OK. what is that !! grrrr I am not worried about getting the camera i know that B&H are the sh*t and that they will not burn me but i hate having to jump through hoops

Thanks
Michael

Michael Moore · January 30th, 2004, 07:48 PM

So I have called and left a message telling them my name and order # and regave them my address plus I faxed a copy of my phone bill with my address on it to the number. I did both 12pm PST and my order still says "Processing". is there anything eles i can do?
Thanks
Michael

John Britt · January 30th, 2004, 08:07 PM

First I'd recommend taking a second to catch your breath. I know that it is frustrating to have a delay, but you just ordered the camera yesterday. You waited a year already; whats an extra day or two.

And don't worry -- B&H is a very respectable company (as you already know). They are only doing this for both your safety and theirs. When I ordered my DVC80 from them I also had to confirm my identity, because our home number is still listed under my wife's maiden name. I simply had to tell them the name that the number was listed under and everything was fine.

12 pm PST is 3 pm EST, which is pretty close to closing time (how hard do *you* work on Fridays? :D ) -- so your cam may not ship until Monday. IIRC, they do answer the phones on Saturday. Call them tomorrow and make sure that they got the fax. As always, get names -- who you are speaking to, whom to address the fax, etc. This will help you get a faster response (and it just sounds better than "Some guy told me to fax my info over to some guy there").

It also helps to use a credit card that has the same billing address as yout home, and to explain to B&H any discrepancies they find (like my wife's maiden name thing...)

Enjoy your DVC80!

Michael Moore · January 30th, 2004, 08:38 PM

thanks for the pep-talk. I know I have waited for the camera for over a year, but it seems like this last week is taking forever. Part of the deal I made with myself, is when I bought the camera, I would quit smoking. Now that I've bought it I have a lot of free time on my hands, because I've quit smoking (1and 1/2 days) smoke-free). I know b&h won't burn me, I know they're making sure that I am who I am. But this stinkin anticipation is killing me. I swear to god time itself is going backwards. Maybe I'm being a little melodramatic, or maybe its the withdrawal. So if b&h is open tommoroow I can call and confirm that they recieved my fax, and have satisfaction to know that there is a person at the other end of this transaction, and its not a faceless company.
thanks again,
still jonseing
Michael

Marco Leavitt · January 30th, 2004, 09:56 PM

You sure they answer the phones on Saturday? I'm looking at my B&H lighting catalog and it says they're closed. They're open Sunday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. EST. They close at 1 p.m. on Fridays, by the way.

Chris Hurd · January 30th, 2004, 11:25 PM

The good folks at B&H are people of faith. They always observe the Shabat, or Sabbath, which begins at sundown on Friday through all of Saturday. However, they are open on most Sundays! Here's their holiday schedule for 2004. Hope this helps,

January 29th, 2004, 10:22 PM	#1
Michael Moore Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Vancouver Posts: 94	I Just Did It !!!! I JUST BOUGHT MY 1st 3CCD CAMERA I can't belive I did it. I just bought the DVC80 after spending over a year saving and reading forums I finaly did it. I have to say thanks to every one that helped me pick this camera out. I am getting it from B&H and I am getting the 2 to 4 day shiping so it should be here next week. I am so stoked. hey has anyone from BC gotten anything shiped from the US ... what kind of duty is there, is it just 14% or is there more ? thanks again everyone Michael soon to be owner of a DVC80

January 29th, 2004, 10:57 PM	#2
Dylan Couper Wrangler Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Vancouver, British Columbia Posts: 8,314	Congrats! I ship lots of stuff in from the US. Are you using UPS? If so, be prepared for a $40+ brokerage fee on top of the duty. Some UPS shipping includes the brokerage, some doesn't. Purolator charges brokerage too. If you ship via the postal service, there is no brokerage. Not sure about FedEx. I think it's 14% tax at the border. __________________ Need to rent camera gear in Vancouver BC? Check me out at camerarentalsvancouver.com

January 30th, 2004, 06:15 AM	#7
Dylan Couper Wrangler Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Vancouver, British Columbia Posts: 8,314	I just had a $40 item shipped from the US. I told the sender not to ship UPS but they did anyway. There was $7 in tax (fine), and $35 for UPSs brokerage fee, on top of UPS's $25 shipping cost. I told UPS to send it back, they said, OK, but it'll be another $25. This has happened to me several times. A friend of mine got it worse. His girlfriend in the US send him a NASCAR hat that cost $20 for Christmas via Purolator. She put the value as $25 or something (no tax on under $20 items), and paid them $25 for shipping to get it to him for Christmas. There was $3 in tax and a $30 brokerage fee. So the little $20 hat cost almost $80 (over $100cdn). Plus the best part... It arrived a week after Christmas. None of these A-holes ever warn you that they will jack you up for brokerage, and when confronted as to why they do, but the postal service doesn't, they say "the government makes us do it". WHat BS. Sorry for my anti shipping rant. I hate them so very very much. __________________ Need to rent camera gear in Vancouver BC? Check me out at camerarentalsvancouver.com

January 30th, 2004, 09:29 AM	#9
Tim Borek Major Player Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Westfield, IN Posts: 353	Congratulations! I'm happy for you, Michael. I hope you enjoy shooting with your DVC80 as much as I do mine. After five weeks of getting to know the camcorder, I'm trying to get in the habit of using the manual zoom instead of servo, mainly to improve battery life. I have plenty of batteries -- 3 x 1600 mAh and 1 x 3000 mAh, but I'm conservative this way. Overall, the DVC80 is easy to use, well balanced in handheld shooting, and just plain looks cool. Oh, and the external microphone mount does a good job of isolating mics from the camera. TJB

January 30th, 2004, 11:25 PM	#15
Chris Hurd Obstreperous Rex Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: San Marcos, TX Posts: 27,368 Images: 513	The good folks at B&H are people of faith. They always observe the Shabat, or Sabbath, which begins at sundown on Friday through all of Saturday. However, they are open on most Sundays! Here's their holiday schedule for 2004. Hope this helps, __________________ CH Search DV Info Net \| 20 years of DVi \| ...Tuesday is Soylent Green Day!

January 30th, 2004, 01:04 AM	#3
Frank Granovski Outer Circle Join Date: May 2002 Location: Hope, BC Posts: 7,524	There is no duty. You just pay the same taxes as as you would with buying something locally (in Vancouver). That would be 14.5% (7% GST + 7.5% PST). Depending how it was shipped, you may or may not have to pay brokerage fees. How did you ship it?

January 30th, 2004, 01:10 AM	#4
Glenn Chan Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Toronto, Canada Posts: 4,750	I thought USPS brokerage is something like $8USD? Anyways, it's reasonable. UPS is daylight robbery. My school bought a bunch of mini-DV tapes and the brokerage was around $40.

January 30th, 2004, 02:17 AM	#5
Michael Moore Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Vancouver Posts: 94	I got it shiped "UPS EXPEDITED" 2 to 4 days. I dont know if there will be a brokerage fee but i dont care it is to late now. I just want my camera !!!!

January 30th, 2004, 02:38 AM	#6
Frank Granovski Outer Circle Join Date: May 2002 Location: Hope, BC Posts: 7,524	There should be no brokerage fee then, since it isn't regular ground service.

January 30th, 2004, 06:25 AM	#8
Frank Granovski Outer Circle Join Date: May 2002 Location: Hope, BC Posts: 7,524	FEDEX first, UPS second (other than normal ground), are the ones I trust, though it's always a darn good idea to have the item insured---especially with UPS, based on my sad experiences with them.

January 30th, 2004, 12:41 PM	#10
Michael Moore Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Vancouver Posts: 94	Well I just got up... it is my day off and i needed to sleep in. When I got up I ran over to my PC to check my order status and my email, here is what i found Please be advised that your order cannot be processed due to the following reason(s): Unverifiable address Please fax or E-mail a scanned image of a phone bill, utility bill or driver license showing the "shipping address" I dont have a scaner !!!!!! that is BS. so i called them and i got a recording saying please leave all your info and if you have not heard back in a day they everything is OK. what is that !! grrrr I am not worried about getting the camera i know that B&H are the sh*t and that they will not burn me but i hate having to jump through hoops Thanks Michael

January 30th, 2004, 07:48 PM	#11
Michael Moore Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Vancouver Posts: 94	So I have called and left a message telling them my name and order # and regave them my address plus I faxed a copy of my phone bill with my address on it to the number. I did both 12pm PST and my order still says "Processing". is there anything eles i can do? Thanks Michael

January 30th, 2004, 08:07 PM	#12
John Britt Major Player Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Atlanta, GA Posts: 621	First I'd recommend taking a second to catch your breath. I know that it is frustrating to have a delay, but you just ordered the camera yesterday. You waited a year already; whats an extra day or two. And don't worry -- B&H is a very respectable company (as you already know). They are only doing this for both your safety and theirs. When I ordered my DVC80 from them I also had to confirm my identity, because our home number is still listed under my wife's maiden name. I simply had to tell them the name that the number was listed under and everything was fine. 12 pm PST is 3 pm EST, which is pretty close to closing time (how hard do you work on Fridays? :D ) -- so your cam may not ship until Monday. IIRC, they do answer the phones on Saturday. Call them tomorrow and make sure that they got the fax. As always, get names -- who you are speaking to, whom to address the fax, etc. This will help you get a faster response (and it just sounds better than "Some guy told me to fax my info over to some guy there"). It also helps to use a credit card that has the same billing address as yout home, and to explain to B&H any discrepancies they find (like my wife's maiden name thing...) Enjoy your DVC80!

January 30th, 2004, 08:38 PM	#13
Michael Moore Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Vancouver Posts: 94	thanks for the pep-talk. I know I have waited for the camera for over a year, but it seems like this last week is taking forever. Part of the deal I made with myself, is when I bought the camera, I would quit smoking. Now that I've bought it I have a lot of free time on my hands, because I've quit smoking (1and 1/2 days) smoke-free). I know b&h won't burn me, I know they're making sure that I am who I am. But this stinkin anticipation is killing me. I swear to god time itself is going backwards. Maybe I'm being a little melodramatic, or maybe its the withdrawal. So if b&h is open tommoroow I can call and confirm that they recieved my fax, and have satisfaction to know that there is a person at the other end of this transaction, and its not a faceless company. thanks again, still jonseing Michael

January 30th, 2004, 09:56 PM	#14
Marco Leavitt Inner Circle Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Albany, NY 12210 Posts: 2,652	You sure they answer the phones on Saturday? I'm looking at my B&H lighting catalog and it says they're closed. They're open Sunday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. EST. They close at 1 p.m. on Fridays, by the way.