"This store was my second choice when looking to buy my next digital camera. My first choice didn't work out. I eneded up purchasing from this store and overall was satisfied. My ordering process was easy and I got a call from them to confirm my purchase. They offer me some accessories but I pollitiely said no. No high pressure sales after I said no. He then asked me how I wanted my shipping and offered me to upgrade to 3 days for 10 bucks. I said no and he said their standard shipping would take 7-10 days. I said fine. I got my package at about 7 days and everything I expected was there. No major complains."

"Given some of the reports others have issued here, I'll admit I was not completely comfortable using this vendor to purchase a 15" Toshiba flat screen/DVD/CD player. However, I'm happy to say that the product was delivered as promised with no sales calls, no "sorry, it's out of stock even though the website says it's in stock" games, no delays and no need to contact customer service whatsoever.

The company did send me an email, as a confirmation of my order, that included a note stating that I needed to contact my credit card company if I was shipping the product to an address other than my billing address, which I was. This turned out to be a non-issue, but it was the first time I had heard of this (apparently, sometimes a vendor may call a credit card company to confirm a delivery address. Many of the credit card issuers can only authorize delivery of a product to a card holder's billing address unless the card holder gives the issuer definitive direction to allow delivery to an alternate address. If that alternate address is not authorized, the order/delivery process stops).

So, given my experience, I'd use these guys again. But, probably on low dollar stuff only. "

"I bought a Minolta Dimage Z2 from Butterfly a year ago. I did get the email to contact them as everyone else does and they did try to talk me into buying acessories. However my sales rep pointed me towards a kit that upgraded me from plastic to glass lenses for only about $25 more and inlcuded the adapter for them free. They also found me a rebate for $100 that I had not been aware of. So all in all that purchase went very nicely. This year I'm ready to buy another camera and looked back to butterfly to give them repeat business, however I've started to read the reviews of camera sites I've considered and have found that this "sell for cheap and force acessories" is a popular scam. So because of so many bad reviews I will have to keep looking this time, although I am surprised that my first order went so well. As much as I would love to give them repeat business, I cant buy from anyone with reports of this technique"

"Ordered a camera from them. Looked perfectly OK on the webpage. Next day get a phone call saying that I forgot to order a warranty, since, according to their words, the camera comes with only 90-days replacement plan. Knowing that all Canon SLRs come with at least 1-year US warranty, I ask them whether the camera has a US warranty. The answer is "No." apparently, they were trying to sell me a grey-market version. I immediately asked them to cancel the order. Would not buy again from this seller."

"After reading reviews about this reseller, I was very worried, but decided that $150 would be worth the risk. I called them to place my order and was pleasantly surprised. They tried to sell me a lot of garbage and they were very pushy about it, but I politely declined and my product was shipped the same day and should be arriving soon.

I suggest doing what I did and just playing the oder over the phone and assertively (but politely) declining ALL the accesories and warranty packages they will try to offer. (And they will try to offer many of them.)

One little issue as far as integrity goes, the salesman tried to catch me into buying a warranty package by "upgrading" my shipping. He said instead of receiving it in two weeks, I would receive it by Tuesday. I decline and he never gave me the "upgrade." Despite that, FedEx says I will receive the package on Monday. Maybe he lied or maybe he was just wrong, but either way, Im getting the camera cheaper and faster than anywhere else.

Id buy from this merchant again. You keep playing with fire until you get burnt."

"I had read lots of reviews on here, so I was ready when my online order prompted an email asking me to call to confirm my order. When I spoke to "George", he tried to sell me some stuff, which I declined. The most shonky bit of selling was that he told me that the battery that ships with the camera will only last 35 minutes! Not true of course. Anyway, I declined everything else and he said it would process and ship soon. The next day I got a call from their billing department to clear up some confusion over my CC# and to check that I'd authorised the item to be shipped to my work address rather than my billing address. All was in order and they said it would ship on that day or the next (Weds or Thurs 26/27th).

With no emails saying it had shipped, or anything else for that matter, I called at the end of business on Friday 28th, and was told it should ship that day......but nothing, so I called on Sunday 30th and spoke to Daniel, who told me they were actually out of stock! And had been since some mysterious time between me placing the order and then, despite not getting any contact to let me know. I wouldn't have minded it being a bit delayed, but I did mind that they hadn't told me.

Daniel told me they were expecting a new shipment on Tuesday and would ship my camera from that, and I should call if there was no shipping notice. Of course, there wasn't, so I called, and he told me that Nikon hadn't included what *they* said they had in their delivery, so they still had no stock. There was nothing I could do but wait until the next shipment, which should have been today. So I called today, and apparently Nikon didn't even fulfil their shipment today. Remarkable bit of blame-shifting, but I suppose it could be true. They have no stock of D50s at all, including the kits that show as in stock on their website. Anyway, I've decided to cancel my order and buy it from somewhere else. I will be watching closely to see how quickly they refund my credit card!"

"Was a little uncomfortable with some reviews on this site, but ordered anyway. Called to verify and everything was smooth, rep tried to sell me memory card and battery but I explained I found better deals elsewhere and he agreed and stopped trying to sell me them. Ordered last night and it was shipped today, picked ground and FEDEX says it will only take 2 days, excellent shipping. Overall very pleased with my transaction!"

"I ordered a Nikon D50 with the 18-55mm kit lens on Wednesday afternoon. As usual, I got an email thanking me for my purchase and asking me to please call. The gentleman I called tried to sell me accessories and upgraded components (which he is required to do, I'm sure). He was persistent, but not pushy. I'm sure Butterly makes more from accessories than the cameras, because their prices are usually fantastic. Anyway, my camera shipped the next day, and I had it on Friday."

"I just received a Canon Powershot S70 from Butterfly Photo. I originally placed my order online, but specified the wrong shipping method. I called to cancel the order and place a new one. After being on hold three times for Customer Service for 10 minutes each, I went through the Billing department and ended up talking to a salesperson named Angelo. I was already planning to order an extra battery and an extended warranty, but still the upsell came: "What kind of pictures do you take?" ...ignored my answer... "How about a wide-angle adapter?" Sheesh.

I had two problems with this order. He offered me an extra AC charger with a car adapter because the included one "only charges from your computer." Well it turns out the included one is an AC adapter and although I could use the car adapter, I was deceived into buying it. Also, I clearly heard him say "I'll give you free 2-day shipping" and later when I called back to confirm the order he said "upgraded shipping" which wasn't an upgrade at all--it was $20 for 2-day Fedex, which is the normal rate.

Anyway, the camera is brand-new with a U.S. warranty. Most places only have this model refurbished, so ultimately I'm happy to have received a new one in the box for a fair price."

"I have extremely high expectations of companies and was skeptical of ButterFly Photo after reading the very helpful reviews on this site. I was stunned, however, at the transaction. The purchase of my Panasonic PV-GS500 was flawless. Yes, I got the dreaded phone call, but knew exactly what I wanted. I would definetly recommend this store to any person who can intelligently prepare for a transaction. "

"Can one SAVE more than $1500 dollars shopping on-line vs. their local electronics store? Yes they can! Read on... I researched and decided to purchase a Sony KDS-R60XBR1. All of my local electronic retailers wanted MORE than $4000 (Circuit City, Best Buy, Fry's, Etc..) I spoke with managers at each and let them know I found the set on the internet for as low as $2700 and gave them the info. NO price match - not even an effort to get more than a few hundred dollars off! Additionally - EACH was going to tag me with approx $400 in sales tax and then still charge delivery fees! Bottom line, purchasing this from Butterfly Photo saved me MORE than $1500 cash money. The unit was delivered as advertised, and there are no negative stories to tell. Customer service was spot on, and the delivery was tracked right to my door. LOOK into these folks before you throw your money away @ Circuit City or Best Buy! "

"AVOID THIS COMPANY LIKE THE PLAGUE!!!
They LIE, LIE, LIE!!!
Before I placed my order for a digital camera, I called to check if the camera was in stock. I was assured it was. I placed the order on Wednesday, April 5, 2006, and was promised it would ship the next day. The sales person offered a 3 year extended warranty for "half price" and told me that if the camera need service, I could "take it to any authorized Canon service dealer" and "that if one wasn't within 35 miles of my home, they would pick it up from me." That sounded too good to be true, but I added it to my purchase. Later I found out that was just another LIE!

I called Butterfly Photo the next day for an order confirmation and a shipping tracking number because I hadn't received any correspondence via e-mail from them. They gave me my invoice number, but said that the camera hadn't yet shipped. They told me it would ship "tomorrow" meaning Friday, April 7th. This company is closed on Saturdays, but they are open on Sundays, so I called again on Sunday, April 9th for a tracking number. The camera still hadn't shipped, but the customer service rep assured me that the camera was in stock and that it would ship "first thing Monday" and that they have "upgraded the shipping to over night". Tuesday, April 11th, I again called for a tracking number and was informed that the camera was NOT in stock but that they would have it in 2 days! They again promised to ship by Friday, April 14th. Almost a WEEK after I placed my order AND they charged my credit card, they STILL hadn't sent me an order confirmation, nor shipped my camera!

After ALL the LYING to me and the FALSE promises, I canceled the order. They did, however, promptly credit my credit card.

Do yourself a favor and AVOID this company like the PLAGUE!

"

"I have to admit that I was scared after I read other people's complaints about butterflyphoto. But I got my olympus E-500 for $70 less than in any other store and a free two day shipping without even asking for it. The sales person was polite and just asked me if I wanted a memory card since the camera comes without any, a case and a warranty extension. Overall I was very pleased with my shopping experience and the price I got.
I am now considering buying a sony camcorder from them, since they still give a better price from the other reputable stores"

"Let me be the first to admit that I was skeptical about ordering my new Sony DSC-R1 from Butterfly:

1. Their price was $140 less than my usual source on a thousand dollar item... I figured there had to be a catch.
2. I suspected that the most of the positive experience reports here were from shills.
3. I had read plenty of horror stories about ordering from Brooklyn-based electronics discounters, and in point of fact, there are some here regarding dealings with Butterfly, although far fewer than “average” for this type of operation.

Two hours after I ordered the camera online on a Wednesday afternoon, I received a call from “Tom” at Butterfly. Tom asked if I wanted to buy:

a. Any memory cards. I told him I had plenty all ready (I do).
b. Filters or cases. I explained I was flush with those as well.
c. A three-year extended warranty. I declined. He then offered a two year extended warranty. I thanked him for the offer and passed.

I was not pressured unreasonably to accept any of the offered accessories. Tom thanked me for my order, and told me I would receive the camera by the following Wednesday. The online status of my order remained at “sent to warehouse to be picked” until late Friday afternoon. I received a FedEx tracking number via email shortly after that. The camera arrived on Tuesday (one day early).

The camera I was sent was a new unit, but according to Canon the camera was not manufactured for the US market (per the serial #) and they will not honor the warranty. There was no warranty card in the box, and there were several color brochures in the box that were printed mainly in Chinese. Butterfly’s return policy states “Any merchandise missing the original Universal Product Code (UPC) cannot be returned for any reason” and you guessed it…the large sticker that has the serial number and UPC code had been removed from the box before it was sent to me.

I called Butterfly Customer Service and spoke to “Daniel”, who promised that a “product specialist” would investigate the matter and call me back the next day. It is now three days later and no one has called.

So there you have it…I paid about $140 less than the cheapest reputable source (Provantage) I usually use, and I do have a new DSC-R1 that seems just fine. On the other hand, Butterfly failed to deliver on their claim that “Each product is fully guaranteed by the manufacturer. The complete warranty is included with the product.” At this point, their customer service follow-up is at best, sorely lacking, and is more likely non-existent.

If Butterfly resolves this matter to my satisfaction, I’ll be happy to post an update here.

Edited for grammar by submitter: 4/9/06"

"Bad Company.
Placed the order. It was voided even if they state that they have it in stock online.
Called to verify. The sales person said they just do not have it in stock and didn't even care that I was unhappy with their service.
This company doesn't care about costumers, they do not update their instock status online. Most likely they want you to place the order "because of their good price" and then they check if they can get a good price from their distributors, if not they will just cancel the order.
Very bad way to make business.
Order BFW320436 of a total $1,085.60.
I have placed two orders online at butteffly.com,
both got cancelled.?????????????????????????????
I still do not understand how do they have a ratting of 6.68.
Try Newegg.com, BUYDIG.com, BeachCamera.com, digitalmegastore.com. I have received the order the next day.
STAY AWAY FROM THEM.
"