BH Photo + M11

[setuporg]

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I love my local dealer but I’m seriously considering BH Photo for M11 as they have a 30 day return policy that can actually be needed if the thing doesn’t grow on you.  (Having their old payboo card that eliminates the sales tax, that ends up near $1K, also helps.). What kind of experience have folks had dealing with BH Photo buying and returning/replacing Leicas?  What about the wait, given their popularity?

[jdlaing]

4 minutes ago, setuporg said:

I love my local dealer but I’m seriously considering BH Photo for M11 as they have a 30 day return policy that can actually be needed if the thing doesn’t grow on you.  (Having their old payboo card that eliminates the sales tax, that ends up near $1K, also helps.). What kind of experience have folks had dealing with BH Photo buying and returning/replacing Leicas?  What about the wait, given their popularity?

Payboo won’t work anymore. It’s been cancelled.

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The Leica Q3 is available for pre-order at B&H Photo Video and Adorama

[SrMi]

17 minutes ago, setuporg said:

I love my local dealer but I’m seriously considering BH Photo for M11 as they have a 30 day return policy that can actually be needed if the thing doesn’t grow on you.  (Having their old payboo card that eliminates the sales tax, that ends up near $1K, also helps.). What kind of experience have folks had dealing with BH Photo buying and returning/replacing Leicas?  What about the wait, given their popularity?

Return policy works though I used it only for replacing or returning non-working items (decentered or damaged lenses). There are reports that returned items are being resold as new, but Leica has the outer grey box sealed with a sticker. That should be intact. I get new items much earlier via my dealer or directly from Leica.

Edited January 19, 2022 by SrMi

[ymc226]

11 minutes ago, jdlaing said:

Payboo won’t work anymore. It’s been cancelled.

B&H are working with another bank partner to continue with Payboo (no name change in card) but hopefully there won't be much downtime between the old bank and new bank.  I don't have any personal experience with hard to get camera and lenses with B&H except being placed on a waitlist for some hard to get Leica lenses on introduction but never got notification that they were ever available.  They receive so many orders given their great reputation (I have only had great experiences) that I fear the few units that trickle in from Leica is no where near enough to supply their customers.

[Ba Erv]

15 minutes ago, jdlaing said:

Payboo won’t work anymore. It’s been cancelled.

I literally just put a lens in my cart at B&H and it showed the Payboo no tax promotion.

[Yarosuav]

It’s a stellar shop, and their return policies are very user friendly. However - since it’s the most popular photo retailer in the country (if not the world) the wait time for an M11 is going to be long, as I’m sure their wait list is ridiculously deep already. 

[Crem]

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The "New Payboo" card launched today. The old Payboo card's last day was yesterday. You can sign up for the new one today and checkout like normal.

[ymc226]

5 minutes ago, Ba Erv said:

I literally just put a lens in my cart at B&H and it showed the Payboo no tax promotion.

That is strange;  I just reviewed the email from Synchrony bank stating that as of 11:59PM January 17, one can no longer use Payboo as a payment method.  A separate email from B&H directly did state that the Payboo card program was being continued but with a separate banking partner.

[setuporg]

22 minutes ago, jdlaing said:

Payboo won’t work anymore. It’s been cancelled.

The old payboo worked till 1/17 so I placed an order just in case on 1/13.  Today it was replaced by a new payboo which gave me a credit limit 3 times less than I enjoyed with the old one, not enough for M11.  

9 minutes ago, ymc226 said:

I don't have any personal experience with hard to get camera and lenses with B&H except being placed on a waitlist for some hard to get Leica lenses on introduction but never got notification that they were ever available.  They receive so many orders given their great reputation (I have only had great experiences) that I fear the few units that trickle in from Leica is no where near enough to supply their customers.

Which is a good anti-GAS medicine.:)

[Crem]

4 minutes ago, setuporg said:

The old payboo worked till 1/17 so I placed an order just in case on 1/13.  Today it was replaced by a new payboo which gave me a credit limit 3 times less than I enjoyed with the old one, not enough for M11.  

Which is a good anti-GAS medicine.:)

You lucky guy! Only a 3x decrease. They gave me a 5x decrease! I can't complain too much. I'm sure we can both resolve this with a few emails. I think the $800 savings on a M11 is much better than whatever my hourly rate is to send out these emails 😆

[Ba Erv]

Frankly, I never use that payment method with B&H anyway.  All my Leica gear comes from Leica Store Miami (no tax) or I snag the VAT refund from an EU dealer when I’m there.

[91ststudios]

I’ve spent way too much money with B&H over the years on Leica, R3D, etc. Never had a bad experience. I’ve also traded a lot of gear in with them and they’ve always given fair prices. However, since the pandemic began, they have had so many issues with stock. Even at the superstore, there is so much less you can buy in person. This worries me because the preorder could take a long time. Even just buying a Sony A7SIII has been on backorder for months or an Apple M1 Max computer. For me, I had in store credit, so I had to preorder with them, but they gave no indication about when it would ship. If you do go this route, I’d recommend putting your name down at a Leica store as well just in case they get one quicker. 

[M Journey]

I was tempted to order from B&H to save on taxes (about $1400 for the body and lens kit I have).  I signed up to be notified when the 35 apo was available.  This was on September 16.  On September 28 I put my name on the waitlist at almost all the Leica stores in the US for the 35m apo and the m11.  On December 16, the DC Leica store emailed me and told me they had a 35 apo for me.  I checked the SF store (preferring to buy from my local Leica Store in case I needed to exchange it for some reason) and after a little back and forth they had a 35 apo for me as well.  The SF Leica store also sold me a used m10-p as a loaner and allowed me to trade it back for full purchase for the m11 when they had one for me.  They said they wanted to help me get into the M ecosystem.  I had the m10-l for a month.  Renting it for a day is almost a hundred bucks, so having a m body for a month to learn and get familiar with prior to getting the m11 was a big deal for me.  On January 13th, I picked up a new silver m11, the second m11 sold from the SF Leica store.  If B&H would have had either for me earlier, I would have purchased from them.  But when my turn was up at another store, I didn't want to take the chance of waiting for B&H to have it in stock for me.

BH still sends me an email each month telling me that the 35m apo is out of stock...I think that getting the 35 apo and a silver m11 on launch day is well worth the taxes I paid as it may be 6 moths to a year+ before I would be able to get the m11 and/or 35m apo from B&H.  There is a value in being able to use this kit for 6 months to a year earlier and I put a premium on getting things when they are first launched (If I had to wait a year, I would just get into the mode of waiting for the next release instead).

I bought my Nikon z kit and 7 lenses form B%H and Adorama, so I have no issue ordering from them.  Of course most of this was back when they didn't charge taxes at all.  They seem to be just as quick to get Nikons and Canons as anyone else.  It seems with Leica, the Leica stores are getting stock before other dealers.    Now the SF Leica store is automatically putting me on the list for any new Leica releases.  The only thing I am interested in buying in the next 4-5 years would be a new 50mm lens with a .3 mfd and maybe trading my m11 for a reporter version if the cost to switch isn't too much.  It's nice to know that I have a good chance of getting these items on day 1 due to having built a relationship with my local store.  I also like the idea that I am helping local shops survive, especially during the pandemic (I'm a saint for buying a Leica lol).

I'm only saying this to share my experience.  I don't mind people who shop at B&H as I am looking there for some accessories and other needs (they're stock is larger than local stores).  I would follow the suggestion from many others and if you really want a Leica product, get yourself on as many lists as possible that don't require a deposit.  Some waitlists are much larger than others. B&H probably has the longest one of them all, especially since many people go shop there first to save on taxes.  Some forum members have been waiting since launch for their 35m apo.  It's a sweet lens and sacrificing a little loyalty to get one is the move in my book.  Some members are also quoting a 6 month wait for the m11 from their local dealer.

By the way, the bokeh using the 35 apo at .3 mfd is way better than a f/2 has any business being.  I guess maybe most lenses focused at this distance has fantastic bokeh, it's just awesome to be able to do it on a M.  If you are on the fence about the lens and have the means to get it go ahead and pull the trigger.  It will likely take months to get one which is plenty of time to think through the purchase and raise the funds.  If you wait until you are ready to buy before getting on a waiting list for the lens you will be sorry.

[jakontil]

4 hours ago, setuporg said:

I love my local dealer but I’m seriously considering BH Photo for M11 as they have a 30 day return policy that can actually be needed if the thing doesn’t grow on you.  (Having their old payboo card that eliminates the sales tax, that ends up near $1K, also helps.). What kind of experience have folks had dealing with BH Photo buying and returning/replacing Leicas?  What about the wait, given their popularity?

I wont have doubt dealing with them though i reside overseas, great service so far… good luck with your purchase 

grab silver dont forget 😂😂😂

[setuporg]

1 hour ago, jakontil said:

grab silver dont forget

All of my color Ms are!  (Except for the Edition 60 which is steel.  And even one Monochrom.:)

I handled both and was unimpressed with the weight difference.  It’s a 100g shot of vodka.

Edited January 19, 2022 by setuporg

[MrFriendly]

What happens to the returned cameras?  Do they go back to the factory to be repackaged?  Or does the dealer repackage and sell them as new?

[jakontil]

48 minutes ago, setuporg said:

All of my color Ms are!  (Except for the Edition 60 which is steel.  And even one Monochrom.:)

I handled both and was unimpressed with the weight difference.  It’s a 100g shot of vodka.

The m60 was a stainless steel not ordinary steel, best lux fle too

[setuporg]

21 minutes ago, jakontil said:

The m60 was a stainless steel not ordinary steel, best lux fle too

Indeed.  What inspired me to get into Leica (but found one only after M10.).  They call it "Steelylux".

[Yarosuav]

6 hours ago, MrFriendly said:

What happens to the returned cameras?  Do they go back to the factory to be repackaged?  Or does the dealer repackage and sell them as new?

I believe if there’s nothing wrong with the camera, B&H will repackage and sell as new (which makes sense - it’s still a new camera). They are the largest authorized retailer for most photography brands, so they know how to inspect and repackage to OEM’s specs. 

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Hallo,

Look here: Interesting Leica gear

[Ba Erv]

4 hours ago, Yarosuav said:

I believe if there’s nothing wrong with the camera, B&H will repackage and sell as new (which makes sense - it’s still a new camera). They are the largest authorized retailer for most photography brands, so they know how to inspect and repackage to OEM’s specs. 

So, you don’t mind paying full price for a random demo.