"Hello, let me start the review by saying that I almost didn't buy from CameraKings based on all of the bad reviews I read; but the price for the Sony A550 DSLR w/lens was the best I could fine that was not refurbished, after exhaustive research period...lol! I wanted to buy this camera as I am the owner of a packed away minolta 7000i that hadn't seen the light of day since the mid 90's; due to great advances in digital photograhpy. But being the packrat that I am, I don't like to part with things I think I might need later (80-200mm zoom lens/50mm lens and some other accessories that could work with this camera...lol! So I took a chance and called in to place order, because I wanted to make sure camera was not refurbished...here goes my experience: Called around 9:15am cst, was put on hold....guessing they were really busy...9:20...still holding; hey I couldn't beat the price they were offering ;)... so I waited, 9:35 a real live person answered the phone, I asked was the item I wanted to order in stock because I needed it shipped nextday air, and did I make the cutoff for nextday delivery; brief hold, comes back on the line, your item is available...great! I said I would like to place an order for Sony A550 camera w/lens $695 and nextday air $34.99= $729.99 right? Well he tells me the order total is 773.79! I claim to be no math genius, but I knew that wasn't right so I asked what was going on with the George Bush fuzzy math? I had already read reviews of how they tried to sell you insurance @ 6% of order total cost; and the way he said it, had I not been listening actively I would have agreed to the $773.79, so I tell him I didn't want the insurance and wait for it...wait for it... here comes the upsale for extra battery; if you remember eariler I called to confirm that this wasn't a refurbished model and everything was new! So I asked again this is a new camera right, and he thought I was new to photography but if you even know what a Minolta Maxxum 7000i is you would that I am not new to the game. Declined the extra battery & insurance, confirmed next day shipping...was told I would recieve confirmation e-mail next day what!!! wouldn't that defeat the purpose I confirmed; if the product would be here tomorrow, he agreed and said later this evening...(actually a true statement from these guys)...Wow! maybe they aren't that bad. To make a long short, received the brand new camera with free camera bag and cleaning kit, hey its free so not of the best of quality so no complaints there. Checking out contents of package, remove plug to charge battery and what in the H E double hockey sticks is this crap, appartently a plug for the U.K., not to worry I am (gadget man) as my wife so often calls me. I have owned previous sony products and refer to previously mention packrat disclaimer and you know I had the correct outlet plug to fit the charger...all is well right? Heck no I want what I paid for, so I called camera kings; gave them my order # and told them I recieved the wrong plug for the good ole U.S.A. and not something that resemble a 220v dryer plug. He apologized for the order mistake and told me problem would be corrected...wait for it...I'm ready to go off!...lol...wait for it! Sir we will have that to you tomorrow; tomorrow I confirmed, like today is the 4th of May; I will have it on Cinco De Mayo tomorrow...yes he laughed; well tomorrow came and sure enough UPS dropped it off before 9:15am cst. I don't know what all the other bad reviews were about but if you do your research, actively listen and confirm what you are being charge before you authorize charges you should have no problems shopping with them if they have what you need as was the case for me. I was looking for a great camera to help my wife in her budding photography business ****@**** well wish us luck and I hope that your experience will be as good as mine, despite the initial long hold time before placing the order; I leave you with this, what is the rush...as all photographers know its great to be ready but you sometimes have to be very patient to get that great shot...so be a little patient and enjoy your shopping experience. P.S. I meant to write this review sooner, but I was like a kid with a new toy and have been enjoying my Sony A550 that accepted all of my old minolta lens/flash....thanks camera king for coming through! I truly hope review helps in your decision! Because when I read a review I want to see more then great camera/service."

"Excellent service and product quality. I purchased a Sony A550 DSLR, Sony lens, and requested 2-day shipping. The order was processed within two days and the FEDEX shipping was like lightspeed. Tracking information was updated as the order was processed and shipped. No problems whatsoever.

For cautious buyers: Camera Kings low cost does NOT mean low quality. In fact, if you do your homework (read their "About Us" page), you will find their low prices can result from cutting out the middle man, which is good for us.

Camera Kings may require you to "confirm" your order in a phone call. They may use the call to push additional items, such as batteries, memory cards, extended warranties, etc. I consider that good marketing. My call to Camera Kings was pleasant, quick, and smooth. It did not delay the processing or shipment of the order. I purchased a 3-year service contract and warranty as a result, and at a very fair price.

In the end and even with the added cost of an extended warranty, I saved $440 by shopping at Camera Kings. By the way- If you have to call in to confirm an order, ask for Michael. His ultra-thick New York accent is remarkably funny!"

"Poor customer service communication.

I ordered a new Sanyo Xacti VPC-HD2000, on April 22, 2010. I paid additional shipping to get my order quicker. I recieved a call the following morning, from a representative, that indeed the camera was instock (He told me that only after I asked him to verify stock availability) and I needed to purchase an additional "after market" battery, as the one that comes with the product "was unreliable". I declined the additional puchase and the male representative hung up the phone. Seven days later still no product, and no package tracking available on their website (As promised) so I wrote a friendy email to the company in reference to my order and the "rush deivery" I had paid. The next day the response from Camera King (Via email) was,
"Please call customer serice at: ***-***-**** ext2", which I promptly did. I sadly got the same man on the phone and he said the product was "slated to be shipped out today" and an additional battery should be included in the sale before he ships it. At this point I realized what they were trying to do and declined the battery and asked the sales rep to cancel the sale. He began to argue, and I simply said, "My decision was final" and I was "dissapointed with their lack of customer service." (These were my words exactly) and again, without a "goodbye" or "sorry about the problem, please shop with us in the future" I was hung up on, once again. I did promptly have an email confirmation of the canceld order, but unfortunately that was the quickest service I had from them. I am a 34 y/o elementary shool teacher, used to A LOT of abuse, and order A LOT of items online, from many websites. Please, please, please do NOT put yourself into this same situation to just try and save a few dollars. They DO NOT follow appropriate business practices, in my personal experience. Thank You

Update: 2 hours after posting this review I was contacted by Brian @ Camera Kings, via the telephone, to discuss my issues. He informed me that my item had been "over sold" and that's why it had not shipped out. I told him, had I simply been kept informed via: email/phone etc. we could have saved a lot of confusion and anger. He graciously sent me a camera case and lens protector for all the trouble. Although I still feel mislead by the sales person who called me to upsell and confirm availability, the day after placing my order. I give Camera Kings credit for trying their best to make me happy in the end, although I question if my review on this site was what finally "called them to action". I just wish it all would have happened before I canceled my order, and purchased from simplyelectronics.net (For the same price, and who provided me with a DHL tracking number, witin 24 hours after my order placement) I might add. My updated rating reflects this updated review. "

"Ordered 7D on 4/13/2010. Paid by PayPal.
Received a Call on 4/15/2010 Asking/Arguing to add stuff to my order. Refused all.
Called Camera Kings (Bobby) on 04/19/2010 to request the status of the order. Told that they had ran out and had just received a fresh shipment that day and it would ship out that day.
04/20/2010 and still not received the shipment email.
Called Camera Kings again and was told rudely by the rep that answered that it would be two more days before they received and that they did not have any.
Cancelled my order & asked for refund within 24 hours. Marked the Vendor as Crooks. Will actively dissuade people from buying anything from Camera Kings.
Refund received.
"

"Rep called and "confirmed" the order and after asking (pleasantly) about various options and any upgrades I might need reviewed the order, calmly mentioning a 6% charge for "handling and insurance".
I stated that this was not disclosed on their website and he said that it was not "required".

I won't support a company engaging in this sort of practice and sent them an e-mail immediately to cancel the order with the NYS business law cited § N. Y. General Business Law § 350 et seq..

It's quite clever to call the customer as it's harder to prove they attempted to charge more than if they had stated it in writing on their site."

" I would not recommend this retailer for purchases. In fact I would pay more from a reputable retailer because these guys are absolutely unreliable.

Day 1 (3/31): I ordered a camera on a Weds afternoon and no communication from seller other than automated order was received email.
Day 5 (4/4): I get an email saying order was shipped. I email back asking why iut took 5 days to process an order; I get an automated response that they are closed until 4/7. I ask them (via email) to expedite the order as I need it by end of week (which would be 10 days from order, plenty of time for ground ship). Another automated response.
Day 8 (4/7); I get a non-automated email saying order shipped, call 800# w/questions. I call; phone tree hell ensued. Voice mail says they are closed. I email back stating my absolute dissatisfaction; automated email response.
Day 9 (4/8); I pick up the phone again, speak to someone and ask when will my order arrive (online tracking did not provide an estimated delivery date). He cannot tell me and gives me a tracking # to use. I tell him that is not working and I want to know if order was shipped ground, 2 day, or other, he says he has no idea. I ask ‘what shipping service do you use on free shipping?’ He states “it varies.” He is unwilling to help me.
Day 9 (4/8): Since there is zero service from the telephone, I email back that delivery will be refused because “two weeks from order to delivery is absurd.” No response.

I should have read the reviews before I ordered and went with Abe’s of Maine or Crutchfield; they actually care about customer service.

4/12: Seller called in response to this post. They stated they were sorry I was not happy and wanted to explain the shipping "glitch." They also offered a small credit or extended warranty on camera. I am happy that they finally dealt with the situation and made the effort to "make it right.""

"Exceptional Service and Price. I placed an order knowing the were closed for holidays untill April 1st. On april 1st I received Notice of Shipment complete with a tracking number I clicked on the tracking number and saw that it was out the door and on it way to me. It arrived within the prescribed time. The free gifts that came with my order were what I expected with one exception. The camera bag they sent me far exceded what I was expecting. I ordered online as a guest and payed with my Pay Pal account and NEVER received any annnoying emails or upsell calls I saw others complaining about. When the time comes to order accessories, Camera Kings will be the first place I check. They already saved me over $50 fro the next pext price on the web. HIGHEST MARKS FOR Camera Kings."

"I ordered and there was a mishap in my shipping address so they took off the shipping (i paid for 3 day) charge and gave me a $35 credit toward the shipping insurance. the products look good. there was no warranty card with the camera but i was assured that this is not an issue and that i do have an USA product and all i need to do is register it online. my order was shipped by the date they said it would ship and so far everything looks good."

"As other reviewers have mentioned, I was concerned about ordering from this vendor. While their prices are good, I was worried about add-ons and items that were not as described.

I placed my order on April 1, when they were closed, and although I received e-mails about the order shipping, I received a call from them a day or 2 after it supposedly shipped. They gave me the same pitch as everyone else seems to have gotten; you need another battery, how about a better case, how about a memory card. I said no to all. He said ok, and said he was going to "toss in" insurance. Ok. But when the package arrived, lo and behold, I was charged $49 for the "tossed in" insurance, and "handling", which is never mentioned on the website as something they will charge you for. There was no mention on the website or during our phone call, that this charge would be put on my invoice. Not a happy camper about that dishonest maneuver.

In addition, my items (DSLR and lens) were supposed to be new and US warranty, but when they arrived, there was no warranty card for either, and paperwork enclosed seemed to indicate an international warranty. I immediately sent them an e-mail about this, saying I wanted to return them if they weren't US warranty as advertised. They were closed yesterday for religious holidays, but supposedly open today, and yet I haven't heard back from them. I hope problems don't snowball from here...

If you order from them, be prepared that there may be some hidden charges, and some extra work involved in getting what you thought you paid for, at the price you agreed to pay.

Update: Brian G. called on 4/8 and apologized for the added cost that was not disclosed, and said that he would refund it. He was friendly and courteous. Their willingness to correct this is appreciated, although in a perfect world I would wish that it had never happened in the first place. He also said it is a US warranty on the Pentax items I bought. So, ultimately, got what I wanted at a good price, in a relatively timely manner (considering the religious holidays intertwined with my order)."

"Camera Kings...wow. They indicate in print that they would be closed "Due to the Holiday" from March 29 to March 31. OK fair enough we respect that. I ordered online on 4/2/10 a Panasonic AG-HMC 150 listed at $2995. I called in to their listed number to expedite processing and NOW the outgoing message said "Due to the holiday we will be closed until Wednesday April 7th!"
Closed from March 29-31 and closed again from
April 2-7. I had to go online and find out that Passover was from March 30 to April 6. It would have been easier to tell us that upfront than to have a such a confusing and frustrating scenario.
Also my "invoice" which was emailed to me had the order number but no total amount. The website now lists the camera at $3179 not $2995. Are there any rules about how a company must honor the purchase price when they take "1 to 3 days" to process the order, which I assume will be on WEDS April 7, FIVE DAYS after the order was placed? Nothing against the passover holiday but I am not too happy at all with how these guys approach their business and am today considering canceling my $3,057.00 dollar order as there are other vendors who maintain a more user friendly ordering system and are open during holiday hours."

"Not impressive, good prices, but overrepresenation of quality and value. Got bunch of stuff I would not have gotten in that quality range. Camara bag will not be used, battery pack is not top quality as indicated. They are friendly and made some adjustments to make me happy. "

"I ordered my camera from Camera Kings because the price was $31 below the in-store price and included free shipping. I read the reviews about their past problems, as well as their current (much better) reviews and decided to give them a shot. We ordered the camera Friday night and immediately received the confirmation email and my card was charged on Saturday. After receiving no follow up, I called their office on Tuesday to check the status and received the recording about their office being closed Mon-Wed for Passover. I sent an email, thinking surely they were at least responding to emails, but I received no response until today, 6 DAYS AFTER I placed my order. The response simply said "your order has shipped today. You will receive a tracking # tonight." There was no "thanks for choosing Camera Kings", "Sorry for the delay"... nothing!! Not even a name! Then my husband called to request over night shipping since we were expecting the camera for Easter photos and he was told that the order had shipped and there was nothing they could do (yet they do not have a tracking # yet??). I completely understand religious holidays and respect them being closed, however they run an INTERNET business, which caters to the entire world. They should have, at MINIMUM, added a clause to the confirmation email stating that the office would be closed, etc. Had I known that I would have spent the $31 extra to have it for my family pictures. Now I have to shell out an additional $350, in order to buy it from the other store and then deal with the hassle of returning this one to Camera Kings and waiting for my refund. What a mess!! Not to mention, I ordered on Friday and their store hours state they are open 8a-3p on Saturdays and 6p-9p on Sundays... It would have been great if they had called to let me know they would be closed and given me the opportunity to expedite my shipping. I even included my hesitation of ordering due to their past problems in the "notes" section of my order... My initial $31 savings has turned into a huge headache... Lesson Learned.

*Update~ After posting my review above, Brian, the manager called to offer incentive to make up for my inconvenience. He was unable to expedite the shipping, as the order really had left the building. I still will not have my camera for Easter, but it was nice to see effort. I will update again if anything else noteworthy takes place. "

"Well, I learned my lesson. I will never shop at Camera Kings again. I purchased a DSLR from them that had a very low list price. I was called by a salesman(id: 218 wh6-"mark") who wanted to confirm that I was a real person. He then told me a series of lies about the poor battery performance of the canon 7d battery life, and convinced me to buy a new battery and quick charger. He said it was valued at 80 dollars but I looked up what he gave me and it is 9.99 everywhere. He then sold me several small accessories, that he claimed I needed. He got me as I was on my way to work, and like a sucker I fell for it. basically I got a really great camera that should have cost 1300 bucks for 1629. So, I paid 300 extra bucks for a bunch of worthless crap that I would love to return. The invoice however ONLY lists the camera. All the other items are listed as zero. I think I am going to return the camera, drive to best buy and get the same thing. STAY AWAY from camera kings or at least ORDER NOTHING OVER THE PHONE!!! OH, "Mark" also said I would have to get two day air because I am in Hawaii, but I got UPS ground and took more than a week to arrive. ORDER NOTHING OVER THE PHONE!!!!!!"

"Excellent prices and fast shipping. They will call to try to upsell some items, but nothing unreasonable at all. Highly recommended for their prices and speedy shipping."

"I ordered the new Sony HDR-xr550v. Sony listed it at 1399.99 and camerakings had it for 1185.00

I purchased the item on the 18th of March. I was leary with all the reviews of pushy salesmen and add on items. I decided to go for it with the price being lower. I intended to purchase an extended service plan from Sony, so no worries if the package arrived safe. I emailed them 20 minutes after I called to make the purchase on the phone. I wanted them to know I wanted the bonus items and I would be submitting a review of the experience. I would of much rather gone with the web purchase but deciced to get the extra pachage they offered which was free. I asked about the free package but when the camera arrived, it was not included. :( I asked the salesman to include it at the time of the sale and after having seen the other reviews that the bonus items were not included. I also emailed them 20 minutes after the sale to make sure it was included. email sent to ****@**** and ****@****.

I requested a tracking number but did not recieve one until today - the date of delivery. Seems their email forwarding system was down. I got the package 4 days from purchase from New Jersey to Texas, great response time. The package arrived factory sealed and in good working condition.

I had to be stern with the seller about the 6% fee for insurance and handling - which totalled 60 something dollars. I had to insist it not be added or I would cancel the sale. It was left off and I got the 1185.00 price. I paid 30 bucks for 2-3 days shipping and recieved the item quickly. I was pleased. I did have the salesman push batteries and protection plans but I had allready purchased these items from Amazon and got the protection plan from Sony style.

All in all, it was a good experience. They have to make money on sales, so pushing batteries is no biggie for me.

The omitted package was sent out immediatly upon reciept of my email today."