UPDATE INSIDE: Nikon's newest camera, the D750, is our all time favorite DSLR camera ever. We own the D750 and D810 cameras and actually favor the D750 for video and wedding work because of its small size, articulating screen, fast focusing, and manageable 24mp full frame sensor (the D810 is a badass camera too). Today there is a crazy sale where you can a Nikon D750 Body on Ebay for only $1499! This deal is so good we just bought 4 new D750s for the Fstoppers studio.
This sale has happened before as reported by Nikon Rumors but at $1499 this is the lowest price this camera has ever been up for sale new. Now before everyone gets their panties in a wad, this camera does appear to be a gray market camera. What does that mean? Gray market cameras are cameras that are being sold in a region of the world they were not originally intended to be sold. This mean these cameras could be originally distributed for the Asian or European market but other than that every gray market camera is identical in every way to a camera being sold in a brick and mortar store in the US. There are two big differences and that has to do with the 1 year warranty and future repair work which I will explain below. Please read this before making a decision to purchase any gray market camera.
UPDATE MAY 4th: Today we received our 4 Nikon D750s we ordered last week. They all checked out perfectly and as expected are genuine Nikon products. The cameras do not have the "Black Dot" markings but when run through Nikon's D750 Service Advisory they all come back as models not affected by the early flair issue. The only thing that was unexpected was these D750 bodies are actually from the D750 24-120 Kit where the seller has removed the lens. In the end, everything went as planned and we are happy with saving over $2000 on 4 new camera bodies. If you have ordered this deal with no issue, feel free to leave your unboxing photo in the comments below as well.
What about the Warranty?
The warranty on gray market cameras causes the largest debate on whether gray market cameras are a great deal or a bad idea. These cameras do come with a 1 year warranty from the seller which covers you from any defects in the camera itself (manufacturer defects, not personal negligence). However, gray market cameras bought in the wrong distribution market do not come with Nikon's standard 1 year warranty. Is this a big deal? It depends if you wind up with a warrant issue within the first year of owning your camera. In my experience I have never witnessed a problem caused by manufacturing issues; the few times I've had to send in my camera/lens for repair it required a repair fee every time.
Here is what Nikon's website says about Gray Market cameras:
Does owning a "Gray Market" Nikon product mean I don't have a warranty?
No! All Nikon products come with a warranty by the manufacturer. The designated Nikon service center will always repair "in warranty" Nikon products and perform "out of warranty" repairs. If you own a Gray Market product it will need to be returned to the reseller or importer for service. Refer to your reseller or to the warranty cards included with the product for service contact information.
Keep in mind that Nikon's 1 year warranty is not transferrable between two buyers so if you ever buy a used camera you are buying into the exact same warranty situation as you would be if you bought a gray market camera to begin with: no warranty from Nikon themselves.
Will Nikon Repair a Gray Market Camera?
The argument about a Gray Market camera not having an authorized Nikon 1 year warranty is pretty mute to me because 99% of the time any issues you have with your camera will not be covered under that warranty to begin with or your problem might show up after the first 365 days of purchase. The million dollar question, or the $1499 question, is will Nikon service your gray market camera at all? According to their website the answer is no but that doesn't mean an authorized Nikon Service Center still won't repair your camera. In the past I've sent my lenses directly to Melville, NY for repair, but there are over 20 privately owned and authorized Nikon repair centers in the USA alone. So while Nikon might not service a camera bought on the gray market directly, you can still get your camera repaired through an authorized repair center in your region. After recently having to pay to replace a blown shutter on a 3 year old Nikon D800, I can tell you that the shutter repair price from Nikon is around $600. In my mind it's nice knowing I will have saved $500 on a gray market camera, and that savings can be used for a future repair that most likely will not be free if sent to the Nikon repair facility. Just food for thought.
One more thing to consider with this specific deal is that Nikon has publicly stated they will repair any Nikon D750 from any market if it has to do with the lens flair issue they addressed months ago. While it's not clear if this loophole in the gray market debate will cover you for any warranty work outside of the early model lens flair problem, it is good to know that Nikon sticks by their customers regardless of where they purchased their cameras.
So Is this A Good Deal?
The final question then becomes is this a good deal? Having just bought 4 of these cameras off of ebay my opinion is yes this is a good deal. The Ebay seller has an amazing seller rating with over 60,000 sales. Paypal, for better or worse, almost always sides with the buyer if something goes wrong. I also do not believe the US warranty is really that big of a safeguard for future repairs. Since the majority of camera repairs caused by use and user negligence are well over $400 even through Nikon's own service center, I can easily justify the $500 gray market savings as upfront money that could be used for a repair heaven forbid that happens. The only slight caveat is my repairs will now have to be sent to an authorized Nikon service center instead of directly to Nikon themselves. As an NPS member I can tell you I have nothing but great things to say about Nikon's service center (well except that $600 D800 shutter repair fee) but honestly I've never found myself in such a bind that I couldn't wait a few weeks for a repair to come back because I do have backup gear for such a situation.
I'd love to hear some of your experiences with gray market cameras (not just Nikon but any brand). If you are in the market for a new Nikon D750 camera and do no not mind the slight risk that comes with a non US distributed model, then this ebay deal is not to be missed. If you prefer buying from an authorized Nikon dealer and want a US verified camera, BH Photo currently has the Nikon D750 with a instant $300 rebate making it $1996. Even at this price, I still believe this is the best deal on one of the most powerful DSLRs Nikon has ever produced.
Decisions decisions
Also I just noticed Nikon itself has it on sale for $1,999
http://www.nikonusa.com/en/Nikon-Products/Product/dslr-cameras/D750.html
$2k is a good price but it's hard to spend an extra $500 for a warranty
Fair enough, just showing that NIkon has it for the same price as the B&H deal mentioned above
Yep, the Nikon deal is an instant rebate offered through all authorized dealers. There is a chance the D750 will permanently become $2k soon but in a few weeks/month it will be back up to $2299
We just ordered a few more from B&H last week. We too own a few d800s and a d810, but prefer the d750 for wedding work (especially when we are making videos). Really my only complaint is the shutter-speed max of 1/4000s, which is rarely a problem, but nice to shoot 1.4 in bright sun without an nd filter every once in a while.
Really? Encouraging grey market imports? That's a scummy thing to do. When a less-savvy reader takes your advice and ends up with a major unresolvable warranty issue, are YOU going to make it up to them?
This kind of price-grubbing is what drove Photoflex out of business, which was much lamented on your site. Now you're contributing.
The site quality has been going down for some time, but this is the final nail in the coffin. It's been real. Closing my account, unliking the FB page, and finding a better source for my photo content.
LOL, and who pissed in your coffee today? Peace! You'll be missed!
You throw the dice and you take your chances dude. Your choice whether you want to jump on a gray market deal or not. I thought Patrick did a good job of pointing out the pros and cons of the situation.
Ha yeah I don't know what his problem was with this post. What put Photoflex out of business wasn't people buying gray market but rather people making the exact same product for cheaper. I respect Nikon's decision not to repair gray market cameras and that is a risk you have to take if you jump on this deal. For me personally, I have never had to really send in anything for repairs so the warranty isn't a big deal to me if I can save $2000 upgrading all our cameras.
What I'm really curious about is how are these cameras cheaper simply because they are from another region? I was just in Hong Kong, Singapore, New Zealand, and Germany and Nikon D750s were not any cheaper there once you do the conversion rate. Does anyone know why a camera brought overseas is discounted to begin with?
It's not a knock off camera. It's the same exact camera from the same company without a warranty. I buy stuff all the time without a warranty and sometimes I have to pay to fix it. Why is that such a big deal? If you want the warranty then don't buy this. Why in the world are you mad about giving people that option? Even BH sells grey market gear.
I'm inclined to agree with you 110%, as per my comment below. I can't imagine anyone at Melville being happy about a major portal like fstoppers publicly promoting the sale of discounted grey market merchandise, probably stolen off a boat somewhere, all to save a quick buck. Bad business, and more importantly, bad press.
I jumped on this deal too and anxiously waiting for it. Agree with the post 100%.
Anyone recieved theirs already?
Our buddy just got his. It came in a kit box without the lens. The camera was new with Japanese set as the language. He changed the language and then checked the serial and it seems totally legit.
Thanks for the reply. Mine is scheduled on may 5th. No change in status for 2 days now. Oh well. Just excited to have this camera in my hands. :)
does the serial numbers from camera and the box match? I really wanna buy this camera with this amazing price.
Why do people even want articulated screens? Whenever a camera has that "feature" I just skip it.
For video and getting angles you could not get by not having one.
The hdmi port is there for a reason. Articulated screens are easily broken off and besides they just look cheap.
This one is solid..Trust me..The hinge is built like a tank...Nikon did something great with the D750..To each his own..
I used to be just like you. I thought it was only for cheap cameras. But then I started to shoot video and I became reliant on the screen to get interesting angles. Then I started using the screen to take still images. Now I don't want to go back.
Lee, isn't focusing slow-as-molasses when done through LiveView? Or does this new LCD allow for lightning fast focusing when shooting stills?
For one reason, not everyone shoots stationary subjects, nor has 2 seconds of focus-time to spare beween shots.
I'd be interested to know if these D750s come with the black dot
http://petapixel.com/2015/01/20/nikon-issues-official-service-advisory-d...
I'll let you know in about 4 days
The serial number I received was not on the recall list and did not have a black dot. Had a wedding this weekend with no issues. Solid deal.
Cool, thanks for the update Jerrit!
but a question no one have ask, is this a batch of the defective D750????? mine I just got it when I was filming video the shutter got stock nothing will fix it until I press alot of buttons at ones lol. but good luck to everyone if this are the real deal because its an amazing camera.
What batch were defective? I've heard about the lens flair issue on the first D750 run (I have one of these and have never seen it in my own photos btw) but nothing about a shutter freezing up. If they are infact from the run that had the flair issue, Nikon will repair all of those regardless of what market they are from.
I just ordered one as well. Hoping i won't be receiving a box of rocks...
The deal is real. I got mine no issues.
Yep, we just got ours too and everything went as planned. Good find Jerrit!
Look at the quantity sold! Currently, the seller has sold 685 of these?!!!
on screen menu is in english
i'm trying to click today instead of 810 :)
It came in Japanese originally but I changed it to English
Hello everybody,
Just got mine today too with the same box as Patrick. My number starts with the number 8. Entered the number in NIkon site and it is says "unaffected". It's all good and now playing with it. Glad i took the plunge.
I would like to clarify one thing. Nikon, as a policy, will not repair and will not authorize the repair of grey market cameras. Even if you send your grey market D750 to an authorized repair center and not to Nikon, they have to supply the SN to Nikon in order to get the parts for repair - and upon checking the SN, Nikon will not give the parts to the repair center if the SN comes back as grey market. Now, if you happen to be on good terms with the repair center, maybe they will fudge a valid SN for you, but that is unlikely for most people.
So in reality, if you need any repairs done on your grey market Nikon, you are screwed.
Hey Anthony! Do you know this from experience? I only ask because it never seems to be a clear cut answer. Personally, I've had a grey market lens repaired by Nikon; not for free, as it wasn't under warranty, but there was no issue in having it repaired. YMMV perhaps?
All the more reason to buy from authorized retailers. Why stiff the very people that design and manufacture the very gear you earn a living with? Bad business, any way you try to justify it.
Not to be that guy, but "moot" not "mute" in the fourth paragraph from the bottom. Now I need to go check out this deal! Thanks for the info and heads up.
Interesting comment you make there about the camera being actually part of the kit including the 24-120 f/4 lens - there is deal by the same seller for the same lens for $584 USD.
Funny you posted this because I just decided to bite the bullet and saw that seller on eBay. I took the plunge, knowing it was grey market, and should have my unit this week. I'm even more excited now having this extra bit of everyone's input and thoughts on the sale. Yay!
I never go for any of this grey market stuff. I can understand how a beginner needs to save money with a major camera purchase, even if it means gambling on the authenticity of the product, and questionable (if any) return/exchange policy with an unknown eBay seller, should something go wrong. For all I know this batch of cameras was stolen off a truck somewhere and is now being liquidated, quick. Why would a legitimate business value solid product designed for its market, a good relationship with the manufacturer (Nikon, in this case), product support and repair (Nikon NPS), and flat-out honesty - all over saving a fraction of a fraction of a dollar of its annual gross billings?
As Hans mentions below, Grey Market cameras aren't stolen but rather simply sold in a different market. BH is the most reputable seller in the world and they too sell GM cameras and lenses. I don't know if Nikon loves this but obviously they put up with it. Personally I've only had 1 item that was a counterfeit (a nikon grip that was boxed as a nikon product) but faking an entire camera seems near impossible especially when the serial numbers all check out.
As for ebay, they are notoriously known for settling disputes favoring the buyer and this seller has an absolutely stellar rating. Buying any piece of electronics is kind of a gamble but in this case it seems totally worth it when you are saving 30% or more on the item. Since most photographers do not make $100ks of dollars a year I don't think it's safe to say fractions of a fraction of a dollar...we just saved $2000 real dollars with our order.
It seems like a lot of people are assuming that Grey Market automatically equals stolen. That couldn't be further from the truth. Some legitimate retailers simply choose to go overseas to get product at a discount from a wholesaler and pass the savings on to their end user here in the US. The decision to chance a new camera without an "official" warranty is the Users. Most of the legit retailers provide 1 year warranties of their own for the products. It's a risk, to be sure, but one some people are comfortable making. Same with used products, although I dare say the risk is far greater buying used high dollar equipment. Here's a link to B&H's Grey Market info page. Might clear up a few things: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/find/HelpCenter/USGrey.jsp
Mine just arrived and it's everything I'd hoped for. I checked the D750 Service Advisory and my camera is not affected. I too was surprised to see that it came in a kit box with the lens removed, but I assume they are selling the lens separately to mitigate the $1499 sale price. I love my D800, but I really love the lighter weight of the D750. Thanks for sharing this deal!
Hi Frank, does the serial numbers from camera and the box match? I really wanna buy this camera with this amazing price.
After reading this post I have purchaced a D750 the D7100 is now on ebay. the D750 has changed everything for the better. the price in the UK is £1799 if you hunt about £1199 is what I paid.....Happy days
I ordered mine on the 6th of July. Just got notification today that it has shipped. Fingers crossed. My decision to go for the deal was greatly influenced by the comments on this article.
Wow, is this deal still going on?
Yes it is. Though it increased to $1,539 after I bought mine. They sold over 970 so far!
Fingers still crossed though. Fedex says it will arrive on Wednesday