FS700 in Canada

[Jef Gibbons]

Hey folks! I'm about to make a big camera purchase, and I would love to get the FS700, but I've noticed a large price difference between Canada and the US. It's $8500 here and $7500 south of the border!

I think there was a price drop in the States a few weeks ago, and I'm wondering if anyone has found it for the US price or close to it up here. I don't want to buy it and see a rebate come days later! Anyone have any information on that?

Thanks for any tips!

[Shaun Roemich]

Jef, my cameras come from Peter Bauce of Hamilton Video and Sound who used to be DVInfo sponsors but I don't believe we have Canadian sponsors anymore...

Aggressive pricing, fantastic service.

Give him or Mike VanderSteen a call. Let them know I sent you.

[Jef Gibbons]

Thanks Shaun! I'll do that for sure. I'm in Langley so I'm not far away (spent some time in Winnipeg as well!)

I'll let you know what happens.

[Tim Dashwood]

Originally Posted by Shaun Roemich

Jef, my cameras come from Peter Bauce of Hamilton Video and Sound who used to be DVInfo sponsors but I don't believe we have Canadian sponsors anymore...

Aggressive pricing, fantastic service.

Give him or Mike VanderSteen a call. Let them know I sent you.

I bought mine from Mike and Pete and I'm pretty sure it was about the same price as in the U.S. 905-522-1200 Hamilton Video and Sound

Don't go by the prices listed on Vistek's website as being the defacto going price in Canada. They usually don't publish the actual price you can get by speaking to a sales rep.
Also, keep in mind that B&H now adds proper duty and GST/HST to Canadian orders once you get to the cart so you can see the 'real' final cost before placing the order. You still have to consider the unfavourable exchange rate your credit card company charges, so for me I think it really makes more sense to buy local for the same price and get local support and warranty service. If something goes wrong with your camera a local dealer will typically give his customers a loaner until it is serviced. Local dealers are usually also open to do bundle deals with other gear (media, batteries, mics, tripods, etc.) They also take trade-ins or will sell your old gear on consignment.

[Jack Zhang]

You can call Fusion Cine here in Vancouver to see if they could lower the price. I got my EX1R at US list price in Canadian dollars from them. (when they were Genesis Matrix Video)

[Thomas Wong]

I've been to Matrix, and i feel they don't really care about the sales. They answer me nothing much they can do on price when i asked them to purchase a FS100

[Shaun Roemich]

Tim actually introduced me to Pete. Should have mentioned that.

BTW, Bauce is pronounced BOW-chay. (BOW as in the bow of a boat, bow before the Queen...)

If you tell Pete both Tim and I sent you, he MAY talk your ear off... he's a great guy with lots of stories...

Sad he couldn't make it to NAB this year. I miss seeing him and Mike.

[Jef Gibbons]

Thanks again guys. Fusion/ Matrix offered me $5 off the price. Not kidding. I'm hoping that was a mistake...

Vistek has been awesome trying to get me a deal, but what I still don't understand is the price difference across Canada with the States. I was really just wondering if this is normal, or if the price here should equalize in the near future. I'm willing to wait as I don't want to buy it and see the price go way down days later!

[Shaun Roemich]

Not unusual. In fact, when JVC collapsed the Canadian and US regions, Canadian prices went up $1000 on the GY-HD200... at least until Pete called me up when there was an appropriate rebate in place.

[Keith Dobie]

Tim's advice is right on. I would want to know if you would get warranty coverage in Canada if you bought it from the states. And I'd want to see if there is a service depot in Vancouver. Having to send your camera to Toronto for service is not good, believe me. I think service trumps price, if the price difference isn't huge.

[Shawn Lam]

The reason for the big US and Canada price difference is that Sony Canada sets their prices independent of Sony US. So Canadian retailers really don't have much room to move. Cameras are usually pretty close in price except when their are price adjustments on one side it may take the other a little bit to react. But the accessories are where you will see the biggest difference.

If you compare the NPF-970 battery you can buy two in the US for the price of one in Canada. Same for the battery chargers. But now Sony is not allowing B&H to export the batteries to Canada any more. I tried last week and wasn't able to.

Sony doesn't have a service depot on Canada but does have one in Coquitlam just under the Port Mann bridge (Mary Hill and United). Sony Canada will not honour a Sony US warranty.

[Shawn Lam]

Oops, I meant they don't have a service depot in Vancouver but they do have one in Coquitlam.

[Peter Walsh]

I buy almost all of my gear from the United States, usually at B&H. Prices in Canada are higher than in the US. It doesn't make any sense given that the dollars are the same value essentially, and have been for years. It isn't really fair when you think about it. I would buy from Vistek or Canadian suppliers if they were even remotely close in price, but even after factoring in duties and shipping the US prices are still significantly better than Canadian suppliers. This doesn't usually applies to Sony gear however. I had to buy my FS700 in person in the States and pay duties when I crossed the border. Again though, it was worth the hassle because I still saved money rather than buying in Canada.

[Paul Helling]

If I were you I'd wait until they start selling the upgraded (software & hardware) version at this point. It sounds like it will be a pain to get it in to the shop to have these done for you and we are weeks away from being able to get the upgrades.

Best, Paul