Could it really be this cheap?

[KeeFy]

Grey market lenses do not have international warranty anymore as of Aug 2010.

Go with a grey market body and buy the mack diamond warranty. It covers international repairs for 3 years and back to the original service center. The price comes close to buying at the best price locally and you get 2 extra years of warranty by Canon/Nikon etc.

[I @ M]

Grey market lenses do not have international warranty anymore as of Aug 2010.

I think that neither Nikon or Canon ever offered any warranty on lenses that were bought from non authorised dealers to start with so I am rather puzzled by what exactly happened in Aug 2010.

[KeeFy]

I think that neither Nikon or Canon ever offered any warranty on lenses that were bought from non authorised dealers to start with so I am rather puzzled by what exactly happened in Aug 2010.

Sorry, I meant Canon grey market lenses. Canon lenses came with international warranty previously so even if you bought grey market lenses, they would be covered under warranty.

Many dealers (and i suspect canon australia would have) must have complained because people buy cheaply from overseas and still enjoy warranty locally. People still do buy grey market lenses and just because the savings is so significant. If i were to buy a 70-200 f2.8 mk2 in Australia vs Singapore/USA. I would be out of the pocket by almost 400 bucks. I'll still buy "grey".

[I @ M]

Keefy, would you care to explain to me exactly what you understand a "grey market" lens to be please.

[KeeFy]

Grey market basically means anything not covered by the local agent. IE: A shop can sell a canon lens locally but still be a grey lens as it was not purcahsed from the distributor, it was imported from another country. The other situation is when a purchaser buys it from overseas and regardless if it's warranted or not, it was not from local distributors.

I beleive that to be the term used internationally as from what i understand, it's used that way in America, UK and Singapore. Is it different here?

[KeeFy]

Grey market basically means anything not distributed by the local agent

Sorry. wrong phrasing.

[I @ M]

Keefy, as I understand it in relation to photographic products any item that is imported into Australia by a retailer outside of the normal distribution channel ( factory - Australian distributor - Australian authorised retailer ) is considered a grey or parallel import.

If you or I as an example purchase a photographic item ( camera, lens or genuine accessory part ) it is not regarded as a grey item, it is purely a purchase made by ourselves from an overseas retailer and does not pass through the hands of the "grey market" retailer in Australia.

Both Nikon and Canon ( Australia ) make it fairly clear in their warranty terms and conditions that they will not be liable for any warranty repairs required to fix a problem with a DSLR body that was not purchased from an authorised Australian dealer. Both companies offer an "international warranty" on their web sites for lenses etc. The wording in their terms and conditions on what exactly the warranty covers are somewhat less clear to me. They seem to suggest that lenses and accessories that are imported into Australia and not sold through an authorised Australian dealer will not be covered by warranty however it seems less clear whether the will offer an international warranty on items imported by you or I directly into Australia ( or purchased overseas while we were on holidays ) from a factory authorised dealer.

On the face of it from their web sites the whole matter is rather a grey area.

[KeeFy]

Anyway, the short version. Lenses is only warrantied in the country of purchase now by default bar warranty addons. Canon used to be international, but as of Aug 2010 it no longer is. Unless you pick up a version that comes with the green warranty card and that is really old stock.

I still feel that grey would mean non local distributor stocks regardless of if you purchased it overseas yourself or you got them to ship it to you. It still is considered parallel importing = "grey". Another reason why people call it grey is due to the fact that it draws a clear line for the non local origin and that there will be no local warranty by default. Simple and clear and that's how most people i know understand it to be.

And a quick google shows that distributors follow that as well.
http://www.nikon.com.au/pagearticle....=65-52b9b66212
"The warranty card doesn't state "Nikon Australia""

That should be clear as day. Look at other big distributors like B&H, Adorama, Canon australia, Sigma distributor, etc.

[I @ M]

That is the funny thing about the way that both Canon and Nikon word their warranty provisions on their respective web sites ( today ) as in the examples below.

Nikon quite clearly class lenses as "conventional equipment" and their terms say nothing about it having to be an Australian dealer ---

When you purchase any new Nikon Conventional Equipment you automatically receive a Nikon International Warranty for the repair or replacement of your Conventional Equipment in the event of any manufacturing defects for one FULL YEAR from the date of purchase, upon the conditions set out below. -----

Full T&C at http://www.nikon.com.au/pagearticle....307-9afaa3803e

Canon still offer an international warranty according to their T&C but it is a little unclear to me as to whether it applies to lenses being repaired here that are purchased overseas or lenses that are purchased in Australia being repaired overseas while you are travelling. ----

Canon offers an international warranty on non-digital Canon compact cameras, non-digital Canon SLR camera bodies, Canon lenses for all SLR cameras, Canon Speedlites and Canon photographic accessories only. If travelling overseas, the Customer may receive warranty service for those Products on these terms from members of the Canon Camera International Service Network. A list of those members is enclosed with the Product. The Customer must present this warranty card and the original proof of purchase to receive warranty service. -----

Full T&C at http://www.canon.com.au/en-AU/Suppor...Warranty-Terms

B&H and Adorama are American based retailers, not distributors. Canon Aus; Nikon Aus; and CR Kennedy are Australian based distributors. Nikon and Canon import items from parent companies, they on sell to retailers in Australia ( & NZ I think ) and CR Kennedy represent a few brands and are very clear about what applies warranty wise for Sigma lenses.

[rjmorgan]

Yea Keefy is right, no matter where/how you bought it if the product has not been originally invoiced by Canon/Nikon/etc in Australia, it is Grey. I wasn't aware of the change with 'grey' lenses no longer being warranted, that's interesting and something I'll have to read up on.

On the Gold Coast we have a local retailer that sells Grey stock, I know a guy who bought a 'Canon EF 28-300mm F3.5-5.6L IS USM' and did save some money, however on closer inspection after he bought it, he noticed that -

a) Serial numbers were scrubbed off both the box and the lens, and
b) the filter thread had been cross threaded and a filter could no longer be screwed on

Luckily he was quite persistent and after a number of quite heated discussions on the phone and in store, he managed to get his money back - they certainly didn't want to...You really do have to wonder what you're getting, where its coming from and sometimes, whether its worth it.

I have bought grey before, but it was a $300 video camera (a couple of years ago) and I did save a few dollars and had no problems. But just wouldnt risk it with SLR gear...

As for the original question - 'Could this 18-135mm really be this cheap'...... The cost price in Aus is roughly $600-$620 inc... So if it is this cheap, where are they sourcing the product??? I really can't see Canon in any part of the world selling it that much cheaper then Canon Australia.... ???? One thing to keep in mind the old addage - if something seems to good to be true, it probably is.

It is plausible that they split a kit - but typically (and please correct me if I'm wrong because I haven't come across this particular kit before), when a body is 'kitted' with a single lens such as the 18-135 it is boxed together, meaning that if they sold off the body seperately how are they packaging these things??

Also, their pricing on the website doesn't make sense....

If you buy the 7D body only - AU$1,465.00
18 - 135 mm lens only - AU$279

Meaning together - AU$1,744

However they have the kit for sale at MORE money - AU$1,759

I know its not alot more, but still.....doesnt really make a lot of sense.

Its a tough decision, because the amount of money you stand to save is considerable, but on the flipside, its a lot of money to lose if it isnt genuine or something wrong with it, etc and then of course you're back at square one.

I wish you the best of luck!

[KeeFy]

http://www.dwidigitalcameras.com.au/...idProduct=2367

These guys usually are reliable on their products and pricing. Just that my opinion is to get the mack warranty with the gear so that you can get it fixed at the local agent. Their RMA service is bad to the core and i suspect that will be the case with any grey products with any other company as well. It's like a car dealership, once you've paid, game over. :P

Cue the mack warranty. It's really pretty good. The only additional hassle is that you need to go through 1 more step of notifying mack about the warranty claim.

Another warning is that people have been caught for items more than $1k and end up paying taxes as well as the companies underdeclare. As most of these companies have been redflagged, sometimes the items do not arrive on time regardless of the real price as they are stuck in customs.

So weigh your options wisely.