Chet,
It depends.
There are a number of items that come in from HK and the savings can be massive when compared with the retail price you'll see in the stores on Elizabeth St. Approaching 50% in some cases, and delivered to your door.
You do need to be aware of a couple of things though, and we make no bones about these.
You always need to make an allowance for GST in calculating your total costs. Always. GST is something that is entirely out of our contraol, and may be imposed by the government at the point of importation. That said, very few items seem to get picked these days, and most of our members buying goods recently have not been hit with this impost.
The goods are coming from HK, so you need to know from whom you're purchasing. With eBay, this is sometimes a bit of a lottery, and risks abound.
Do you feel lucky, pubk? 
We deal with Poon, whom we count as a personal friend, and who is a member here. We have had probably thousands of shipments from Poon now, with not even one complaint.
Because the stock is coming from HK, manufacturers' Australian warranties may not apply. This is especially true in the case of camera bodies, but often an aftermarket warranty can be purchased for little extra cost. Thus, if you save something like Au$800 on the body cost, then spend $50 or $100 on an aftermarket warranty, you still end up getting the same body for a significant saving.
It's up to you to decide if the savings are worthwhile, and of course it's up to you to decide from whom you purchase. Purchasing through the forum's resources helps to defray the costs of running the forums, however, and that might (or might not) be something that you wish to take into account.
Please see the
FAQ regarding how you gain access to our bargains section, and please too bear in mind that our most important crtieria is community involvement: it's the quality of what you do, rather than the quantity.
Posted: Thu Aug 31, 2006 3:11 pm
How would I find out who has bought from him without access to the bargains section?
