"I recently ordered a Nikon D5000 camera and 18-55 mm Lens kit from Photoloon. After a great deal of searching I found that they had the best price anywhere. The camera was $100.00 less than anywhere else. Of course the price included tax and shipping (typical for an on line order) but they also offered a free promotional kit including a camera case, a tripod and lens cleaning kit.

I placed the order online on a Friday and a few day later Photoloon contacted me by phone advising that they do not accept AMX, the initial credit card I used. This delayed the order a couple of days.

During the call the salesman offer to sell me a couple of accessories which when I refused he politely accepted. I'd like to point out that I never experienced any of the problems that have been mentioned on some of the reviews such as a "bait and switch" tactic or demands that I add shipping insurance to insure proper delivery.

When I received my camera I discovered that the promotional items were not included. I contacted Photoloon and reached Rodney in the Consumer Care Department who was very helpful. He assured me that I would receive the promotional items stating that they normally don't send them out until the return period expires. He then followed up with an email.

I would definitely order from Photoloon again. Can't beat their prices anywhere. And I think, at leas for me, the customer service was fair and reasonable."

"On 10/30/2009 I ordered a Canon 7D, a 15-85mm IS USM and a 70-300mm IS USM lens from Photoloon, a New Jersey company. On Monday 11/2/2009, Victor from Photoloon called me and informed me that they were having trouble with American Express and needed me to use a MasterCard or Visa instead. I told Victor that the website had no problem accepting my American Express. He apologized and said they were "negotiating a better rate with American Express". I gave him a Visa number and then he proceeded to tell me the battery that comes with the camera lasts only 30 minutes and did I want the 3 hour or 5 hour battery (for an extra charge of course). I told him I would go with the battery that comes with the camera and research batteries later. Next he wanted me to buy and extended warranty because the manufacturer does not offer a warranty. I told him that Canon would not sell a digital camera without an industry standard warranty. He said this camera does not come with one because it is not a US retail camera. I've read that the non-U.S. versions of digital cameras do not come with a warranty. I told him that his website did not disclose this very important information. I told him to immediately cancel my order. At this point he says alright and then immediately hangs up on me. Based on the lack of full disclosure, the pressure sales tactics and the abrupt end of the call, I would rate this vendor a 0 on a scale of 1 to 10. In addition, I want to warn everyone that in my opinion, this vendor is not a reputable vendor. I will be monitoring my credit card to ensure a charge for this camera does not come through. BEWARE OF PHOTOLOON!!

11/3/2009 update: A Customer Care rep named Rodney called me to inform me that the sales rep I dealt with was put on review (not quite sure what that means). He also asked me what I would recommend photoloon do to regain my business. I stated that photoloon should make it abundantly clear if a customer is buying a U.S Warranted product or an import with no usable warranty for each product they sell. He said he would fix this immediately. Before we finished our conversation, his website technician had put this information on the website (which means that had this information to begin with). I commend Photoloon for taking this immediate first step. This action does not change the facts I reported with respect to the sales rep. Sales reps that lie should be terminated, not "put on review". If he lied to me, he has lied to many customers and it is unlikely he will change his ways if it affects his compensation. The immediate action on warranties does give me some level of confidence that Photoloon takes customer concerns seriously. I may do business with them in the future, but only for the purchase of U.S. Warranted merchandise. The Canon 7D I wanted to buy, does not fall into this category."

"This is a company with a beautifully deceptive website. After looking like a legitimate company, it has become obviously clear that the best descriptor for Photoloon is "sheisty." I am appaled at the lack of customer service, the 45 minute wait times on the phone to try to talk to someone, and the utter lack of prompt shipping. I am wholly offended by their practices, and have filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau."

"Update: 11/9/09 WOW this company sure knows how to keep it's customers. I am very pleased to report my updated experience with this company. After I posted this review. Rodney in the customer care department e-mailed me asking me to get in touch with him. He was very pleasant to deal with and wanted to "ensure" I was "satisfied". He more than made up for my order with the free items he sent. I am pleased at the quality of customer service this company provides and to be honest, I was surprised to hear back from them. I will do business with this company again and will recommend it to my friends.

Free items were not included with shipment as described on site "FREE Case,Tripod & Lens Cleaning Kit w/Any Camera/Camcorder Purchase!" Billing was charged on 10/19/09, Item didn't ship until 10/23/09(4-5 days processing time). On a scale of 1-10, 10 being best. I would rate my experience as a 7. Price was fair and the agent that called was friendly"

"I found the Photoloon website while researching the Nikon D90 SLR. I was very skeptical of the low pricing so I gave them a call to be certain there were no hidden costs. I talked with Mickey, the SLR sales rep who was very knowledgeable and friendly. Mickey confirmed the pricing on the internet and gave me a good upgrade on various accessories. I felt absolutely NO pressure during the conversation and he was willing to give me his phone extension should I have any further questions. I phoned back a day later to place the order and Mickey upgraded my shipping so it would arrive quicker. I would have to highly recommend ordering from Photoloon and I will update my review once my order arrives.

Thanks Mickey and Photoloon for the excellent shopping experience.
"

"I ordered a camera from Photoloon because it was listed as the best price. I placed the order online, and was a little upset when I had not checked my email and found they needed to verify my credit card info, but I understood, it is to protect me and them. The only thing that bothered me about it was that I had to keep calling their sales person back to chase him down to get him to verify. Since it was my first time ordering I stayed on top of it, but they were charging insurance on the purchase, which I would have just liked to know upfront. Once I verified the information, the camera dropshipped and arrived quickly. I was happy with the product that arrived, however, I did not receive my promotional items. I contacted them and Rodney at their consumer care department was very attentive and helpful, he made sure that I would receive it, and kept in contact with me rather than me having to chase them down. I would definitely order from them again. "

"I placed an order for a Nikon D300S kit from Primo Cameras. My third DSLR purchase online in the past 6 years. I have to admit my first online experience was mediocre, the second one was horrible but this purchase was spectacular. Being that my last purchase experience was almost short of a tragedy, I almost gave up all hope on shopping for my camera equipment online, but I decided to give it one last try. I called and spoke with Allen Shafer, who not only answered 36 of my questions but he assured me that I would receive my camera and lens kit on Friday as my wife and I were traveling to Thailand for a 2 week vacation. Order was placed on 10/22 which was a Thursday at 10:30 am. The package arrived Friday 10/23 at 12:00pm. I must admit Allen changed my mind about shopping online, and I must admit there is a sales pitch but fellow camera buffs, memory cards and batteries are essential, especially if your going on a two week vacation. I am currently in Pukhet, Thailand writing this review. I have taken over 1500 pictures and I can not thank Allen enough for throwing in that extra memory card, thank you guys! Thank You Allen! Primo is lucky to have you!!! A+++ Great Pricing! Amazing service and most of all, delivery on time as promised! I would recommend Primo to anyone looking for great prices, great service and great products. Also I would recommend asking to deal with Allen since he was so helpful!

Patrick Carp"

"This is the WORST customer service experience I have ever had. EVER. I ordered the camera from Photoloon because I wanted to support what appeared to be a smaller company, although the price was the same as at Amazon and Newegg. Also, the website stated all over the place that all cameras came with all sorts of extras like a tripod, camera case and cleaner.
Representative called to verify my credit card (although I am not sure why, as the billing and shipping address matched, and they called to say it didn't.) Then, while verifying, it was discovered that they did not put my apatment number on the shipping label. When I asked them to fix it, they told me there was nothing they could do, and I would just have to hope that it made it to my apartment.
They tried to breeze over the total during that phone call, which was MORE than the website stated it would charge when I confirmed my credit card number. They stated there was a 15 dollar "handling" fee. It is illegal to change the price after stating that my credit card would be charged something else, yet I had to argue with them on the phone for over a half an hour to get this charge reversed.
Shipping took FOREVER, and came with NONE of the promised extras. And, the camera I received took nothing but blurry photos (and this was not a cheapo camera).
Tried to call about a return and their customer service hours are ridiculous. They are only open between 5 and 7 hours per day. I was hung up on multiple times after waiting on hold for 15 to 20 minutes. Each person I talked to was rude and condescending. Even though I was within the 21 day return period, they stated that they couldn't take the camera back, and suggested that I try to sell the faulty product on EBAY. Now I am stuck with a broken camera.
Please, please, PLEASE don't make the costly mistake I did. Stay FAR FAR away from this company!"

"Great price and excellent service. A rep called to confirm the order and the address. Free shipping made this an even better deal, and the product arrived in 4 business days. "

"I just wanted to let you know that I could not believe my eyes when I found your Website by searching for a Digital Camera. Your prices are amazing, much better than the ones I looked into.

I will definitely be ordering more often from your website.

Thank you for thinking of the people in these difficult times. I will be forwarding your website to family and friends.

Sincerely:

Vanessa Hernandez"

"This company went through a few hoops to get everything straightened out for me. It took a little bit but we got everything fixed. Overall, a very good company. "

"Mickey did a great job. He upsold my order from $2300 to $3400 and I still feel good about it. There was a mistake on the order in that it was supposed to be delivered overnight but was shipped 2nd day airsaver. The invoice was correct from Mickkey's input but shipping was wrong and Mickey made up for the problem with grace and efficiency. Thanks Mickey and PhotoLoon"

"Would not purchase again from this merchant. It took two weeks to get the product and they advertise free shipping and then call you to charge you a handling fee and insurance of $30. Very deceptive."

"What a waste of time! I am BEGGING you. Do not do business with this company. Do not try to save few dollars like me and end up wasting all your time with this kind of companies. PLEASE! Ok,I placed a Canon XSi body only for $479 shipped free. Then I had to call to confirm all my credit card information was received by them since I had an international credit card that I used and I had to do this. So, I was talking to Bruce and he tells me "You know that we need to charge you $29 for handling and insurance"! I was shocked to hear this! You make me order at $479 yet, you tell me later on the phone that you need to charge me more. WOW! Then he transfers me to Thomas (manager) and he tries his best(!) to explain they have the right to charge this and I say I want to cancel my order and he finally agrees to cancel my order. DO NOT BUY FROM THESE GUYS! Please do not give your money to them."

"The excellent website with competitive pricing brought me to PhotoLoon sales department. The PhotoLoon web packages on the Sony Alpha 850 were more competitive than than the host of other websites I checked. The sales person was able to answer all my questions in a knowledgeable way given his direct experience with the camera. He explained some other package options with pricing options and reminded me about the 21 day satisfaction guarantee, always the mark of a reputable dealer in my mind. The sales representative was professional in manner and clearly communicated interest in serving a potential customer. When the time comes to replace batteries or purchase additional lenses or other camera equipment, PhotoLoon will be an excellent starting place.

Experience is now this.

Whomever put together your "package" of a DT lens and Sony alpha 850 did not know what they were doing. The DT lenses do not work with the full size image and as soon as any DT lens is connected to the alpha 850 engages only the APS-C option for image taking. As a new alpha buyer, I did not know this but your camera experts should have know. It has only after using my camera and trying to trouble shoot why the full image was not being engaged, and after reading the lens spec sheet and carefully reading the a850 user manual that I was able to identify this mismatch, confirmed yesterday at a local camera store.

The warning at the bottom of the a lenses sheet reads:

"DT lenses with APS-C are not guaranteed for use with Sony 900/850. The corners of the lens will be darkened and the camera will not meet the AE performance standards."

Further, page 21 of the a850 manual states:

Notes

• The shutter is not released if the lens is not attached, except when the mode dial is

set to M (page 53).

• Using a DT lens is not guaranteed because the corners of the field are darkened and

the camera does not meet the primary AE performance standard.

So, why would a knowledgeable camera vendor package a DT lens for a customer? I would hate to write this purchase experience up as a negative one. I would hate to write up the package as a a poor choice reflective of poor understanding of the new camera and lens requirements and of a poor understanding of the specs for each.

Being a new alpha user it has taken me this research to discover why this terrific camera when connected to the DT lens did not capture full image photography. Because this mismatch was done by Photoloon in their package, I'd like you to identify a comparable Sony lens to the DT focal length lens and exchange it for the one incorrectly packaged and sold to me. After buying a a850 full image sensor, I should have a lens that can use the full image sensor, the DT lens engages ONLY the APS-C season at some 11 mega pixels vice the 24 mega-pixels.

Photloon refuses to respond to this issue after three contacts. "