Nikon Lens Question

[djejrejk]

I am shopping around for Nikon lenses recently and noticed that many sellers such as bh photo and Adorama sell USA and "gray market" or "imported" Lenses. Most are 10-30$ price difference,.. is it worth it?

What is your experience buying these imported lenses?

My first instinct is to pay the extra 20$, but those small savings could easily turn into another lens.

 

[TWLreal]

Quoted from The Digital Picture.

http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Canon-Lenses/Gray-Market.aspx

Replace Canon with Nikon.

When shopping for your Canon lenses, you will likely run into 2 versions of the same lens. One will be the "USA" model and the other will be denoted as "Gray/Grey Market", "Imported" or "Direct Import".

What is the difference?

The "USA" Canon lenses are imported to the US by Canon USA. "USA" Canon lenses' warranties are supported by any Canon service facility worldwide. They are also eligible for Canon lens rebates - these rebates usually require the USA warranty card found in the Canon USA lens box.

The "Gray/Grey Market", "Imported" or "Direct Import" Canon lenses are directly imported by the retailer or their import agent. They are not covered by the manufacturer's warranty. At least they "say" they are not covered. Word on the street is that Canon covers gray market lenses under their standard warranty if an invoice from an authorized dealer can be produced. This mirrors my experience as well.

Most reputable retailers will provide their own same-as-manufacturer's warranty on "Gray/Grey Market", "Imported" or "Direct Import" Canon lenses. Instead of sending the lens to Canon, you send it to the retailer.

What physical difference is there between USA and Gray Market Canon Lenses?

Usually none - in fact, I haven't found any differences yet. These Canon lenses are made in same factory using the same parts and are identical in the finished product form. Reputable retailers would make any differences clear.

The attractive difference in a Gray Market Canon lens is price. The imported version is nearly always cheaper - sometimes even cheaper than with the rebates offered on the USA versions.

So which should you buy? I'll let that decision up to you, but will say that I have far more than one copy of the "Gray/Grey Market", "Imported" or "Direct Import" Canon lenses.

In the end it's all up to you but when I'm about to drop a few hundred dollars or even a thousand on a lens, the small premium for a "genuine" product is worth the peace of mind to me.

 

[ChrisA]

The above is true. The difference is only in who warentes the lens.

But that difference goes away after one year because after that no one warentes the lens, So all differences vanish after the first year.

OK not quite true. There is a certain class of "photographer" who is really more into equipment than taking pictures. They are the ones with cases of lenses and bodies and not one spec of dust or small rub mark on anything. They are esentially collectors. These people place value on the cardboard box and not filled in paper work and yes if the lens is "USA" or not. so, a "USA" lens would have a greater re-sale value but maybe only by the amount extra you paid for it. If you are the kind of person who buys and sells, having the USA version and the USA box will make the lens more sellable later.

 

[ChrisA]

In the end it's all up to you but when I'm about to drop a few hundred dollars or even a thousand on a lens, the small premium for a "genuine" product is worth the peace of mind to me.

I have in-laws in Japan. So if I go there and buy a "made in Japan" Nikon Lens in Japan it is somehow not a "genuine" product?

The imports or "gray" lenses are identical to what are sold in Japan. In fact that is where the "grey" lens may have come from. Some big New York shop like B&H buys 100 lenses from some big shop in Japan because it can buy them cheaper in Tokyo then from is local distributer. With the US dolar so low I doubt this happens much any more

 

[TWLreal]

There's a reason genuine is between quotes.

 

[Westside guy]

The above is true. The difference is only in who warentes the lens.

But that difference goes away after one year because after that no one warentes the lens, So all differences vanish after the first year.

This isn't always true. I've got some Nikon USA lenses that came with an additional 4 year warranty on them. In that circumstance, I think paying the extra bucks makes a lot of sense.

 

[bobt]

This isn't always true. I've got some Nikon USA lenses that came with an additional 4 year warranty on them. In that circumstance, I think paying the extra bucks makes a lot of sense.

Not to mention having the warranty work done by Nikon USA and not a store. If there was a big price difference I'd consider grey market, but I just don't think the tiny savings are worth it.