"I was looking to purchase a Canon SD200 digital camera. ElectricSam.com had the lowest price (including shipping) of anyone in all the "buy the camera here" listings at the end of the various SD200 reviews. PriceGrabber, Reseller Ratings and BizRate reviews of the retailer were generally favorable, although the reviews only went back a few months. The retailer website clearly stated that the camera came with US warranty, so that was one thing to not have to worry about.

Despite my mild trepidation in going "lowest cost", I ordered an SD200 late afternoon Wednesday (Thanksgiving Eve). The order confirmation email came immediately and said I had to call their 800 number to "verify and confirm the order", which I did. Expecting a hard sell, all I was politely asked was if I wanted any additional SD cards or an extra battery. I declined, and that was that. The camera was supposed to arrive the following Tuesday via the free FedEx Express shipping, but arrived on Friday afternoon, the day after Thanksgiving. Great service!

When opening the camera box, I carefully inspected the contents for any sign that the camera was not brand new. Everything inside was unopened and seemed in pristine, from-the-factory condition.

Unfortunately, the camera was DOA. It didn't power up on Saturday morning after installing the charged-overnight battery, so I called them Monday morning to request an exchange RMA. They requested I call Canon Technical Support to verify the camera was DOA. Spent about a minute navigating the 1-800 Canon phone tree and less than that to confirm DOA and receive a case number. I asked if they had the camera's serial number on record previously and they said they didn't, so it looked like the DOA was just one of those things. Called the Canon case number number back to ElectricSam and was told I would be called back later in the day with the RMA.

Didn't happen.

Called first thing Tuesday morning and was promptly given an RMA. They shipped a new kit to me the day after they received the dead one and again, it got here in one business day, much sooner than expected.

When opening the camera box, I again carefully inspected the contents for any sign that the camera was not brand new. As before, everything inside was unopened and appeared new, not someone else's reject.

Note: Their website says all calls for problems (no emails allowed) must be received within 48 hours of receipt of merchandise. The invoice included with the camera said to call within 24 hours. I don't know which is the "correct" amount of time; I just got lucky about calling the next business day because I received the camera on Friday.

Also, hold times when calling customer service were long -- at least five minutes and once was about twenty. Could have been the pre-Christmas jam up given they were the low-price guys, could have been just the way they do business. I just put the phone on "speaker" and went back to work so it was not overly annoying, but others may not be so forgiving.

I have no connection with ElectricSam other than being a satisfied first-time customer. Perhaps they do things differently there in Louisiana, but it sure was a pleasant experience compared to some of the low-cost places I've dealt with in New York and New Jersey."

"Ordered thursday night, I called them friday like the email they sent me said to do, I had listed the wrong name on the credit card, and they changed it for me. They tried to sell me a case and a memory card, they were very polite, but I declined and they didn't argue or get rude. I got an email, and later that day it shipped. I wasn't at home that tuesday when Fedex came, so I went and picked it up. Everything was included that was listed came with it from other more expensive sites like dell. Best store I found with free shipping, and fast at that."

"UNBELIEVABLE SERVICE. I ordered a Canon S-60 digital camera on 11-18-2004 at 4:52PM from Electric Sam in New Orleans, shipped regular ground, and received it on 11-19-2004 at 1:00PM in Greensboro, NC. Thats less than 24 hours!
Don Moore"

"This company recommend accessories for a camera purchase. Then when the accessory does not fit the camera that they also sell, they argue with the customer, charge fees to replace it, but send back the same part.

Customer service is hard to reach and fails to perform service.

Added note: After reading online ratings, the owner contacted me and made the order right. I am now satisfied with the products but he needs to have better control over employees."

"bad experience- very rude, very unprofessional, will put you on hold for 20 minutes... buyer, beware!
just canceled my order with them
"

"I had a very bad experience with this store. I made an order on 09/19/2004 for a digital camera. They emailed me 2 days after placing my order saying I provided the wrong security code to the Amex card and they could not process the order. I called them back and gave them the correct number and was told the order would be processed and shipped out the following day. On October 5th the order is still “processing” on the website and after calling them it still had not been shipped. I’m very frustrated since I was under the impression the order was coming in any day now. I call the following day, October 5th, keep in mind this is 3 weeks after the original order date to cancel the order ASAP because I’m tired of waiting and I’m going to go and buy it at BestBuy. The manger at electricsam.com tells me if I cancel they will charge me 15% fee. I ask her why? To which she says because your order was shipped with FedEx. I say fine what is my tracking number, after a few minutes she says it is boxed up and ready to be picked up by FedEx but has not yet been picked up. I tell her I demand my confirmation # and she says I will get it before 5 pm in my e-mail. At 6pm there is no confirmation # and order still shows processing on the website. Finally 2 days later I get a confirmation # from them but it doesn’t even show up yet because FedEx has yet to scan it, meaning the manager lied to me in our previous conversation to try to rip me off for 15%. 4 weeks after my initial order I get the camera I wanted and my order still says “processing” on their website! Horrible customer service, they are a bunch of liars and cheats. I strongly discourage anyone from ordering from this place. I can’t even imagine what would happen if you had a problem such as broken or defected merchandise from these crooks. "

"These guys were wonderful!!! I tried to buy a digital camera from DigitallyDiscovered because of the low price and after 2 weeks of waiting for the camera before I just canceled the order completely. Then I looked on this website and compared prices and stores and found this website. I ordered my camera on a Thursday and received it by the next monday. After dealing with such a horrible store before hand, these guys were super nice and didn't try to sell me anything that I didn't want. They took no for an answer and just wanted to let me know that certain features of the camera would need upgrading. I would definitly buy from this store again in a heartbeat.Thank you Electric Sam!!!!"

"The process was easy, I ordered on the website which included the shipping cost and tax before asking for payment information. I did have to call to confirm the order and got the usual sales pitch for accessories, but it was not high pressure and the person was very curteous and polite. My order was shipped as promised and arrived in excellent condition and on time. Over all, I am very pleased, bought the goods at a very good price and got it in perfect condition very quickly."

"I ordered a Canon Optura 40 via the phone. I knew if I used the online order they would only call to "confirm". The saleman was polite and tried to sell me some additionaly items which I declined. He was not pushy, just doing his job.

I placed the order on Tuesday morning and had the camera on Thursday using the cheapest shipping they offer.

I would recommend them only if you already know what you want and will not have to return (15% restocking fee). But their price was excellent, ten dollars cheaper than the next reputable dealer."

"I ordered a camera fro Electric Sam. Order was quickly processed and I received the camera promptly. But the camera had a problem. Called the support number, got put on hold. After a half hour called back, got put on hold. Tried for 3 days. All I get is hold. Wrote an e-mail got no response. If you are thinking about ordering from them try the 800 support number first. After a while on hold you may decide to go elsewhere."

"Extremely quick processing time. I place my order on 06/30 and got the 3-6 business day shipping. I thought I would have my order by 07/07. I got my order today!! (07/02) Great Price too! No pressure to buy expensive add-ons and no hassle!"

"Order was confirmed on a Tuesday and item was listed as in-stock on website. As of Friday, the order had not been shipped. Numerous attempts to contact ElectricSam by mail and phone failed. Their automated voice system would hang up on me, and they did not respond to my e-mail request for order status. I then e-mailed them again to request a cancellation.

Update June-15. They shipped the order and charged my card anyway. Customer service said, "Sorry, our phone lines were 'crossed up'" and to take the consequences of refusing the package. TERRIBLE VENDOR! MY GOOD ADVICE WOULD BE TO BUY ELSEWHERE IF YOU WANT YOUR PRODUCT SHIPPED ON TIME AND DO NOT WANT TO BE CHARGED FOR CANCELLED ORDERS."

"These guys are incredible. I ordered 3 cameras from them, 2 Canon PowerShot S500 and 1 Digital Rebel, as two grandchildren were about to be born. Along with a great price, shipping was estimated at 7-10 days. Low and behold the cameras were in my hands 2 days later with absolutely no problems. I definitely recommend these guys to anyone shopping the net."

"Purchased KM Dimage Z2, after viewing their rating at pricegrabber. They charged me for Ground Shipping. Told to expect delivery in 7 business days. My LUCKY day, arrived in 2 days!!
Besides that unexpected bonus, their site, prices and customer service were excellent."

"The 5th. Placed order and provided billing and shipping information. Sales person noted that the product was in stock and would ship the next day, and explained that I was required to pay for 2nd day air shipping because I live in Hawaii.

The 13th. Order had not arrived, and no contact from company so I called to find out what happened. Billing person explained that the payment was not processed because of a mix-up between the billing and shipping addresses. The billing person assured me that payment information had been corrected and that the order would certainly ship on the 14th, and also that she had elevated the delivery method to overnight air.

The 18th. I had not received a tracking number or the order. I called customer service again, and found that the order had not shipped because it was backordered.

The 19th. Recd FedeX tracking number, but it was invalid. Called customer support, who gave me another invalid tracking number.

The 20th. Billing person noted that I was charged on the 17th. Price of camera now $30 less than when I made the purchase. Owner not willing to renegotiate price or waive overnight shipping fees. Still no product, so I cancelled order. Owner returned call offereing to send me a free battery for my trouble. No dice. BBB complaint filed.
"