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I started posting this in the Bargain section "For D200 owner" thread but realised that I would be hijacking my 2nd thread for the evening more than I have hijacked in over a year of membership so rather than annoy Leigh again, I gave it a life of its own:

I'm trying real hard to be a D200 owner however we appear to be stranded in a country were the official Nikon distributor couldn't find their collective arses with two hands, a cut lunch and a compass, let alone manage to successfully import any product into said country

I want to do the "right" thing and buy my camera from the local company. You know, help support local industry, provide jobs for your fellow countrymen, etc, even though I have to pay a premium to do so. Of course my idealism did come with the benefit of local warranty. This is rapidly becoming a moot point as by the time Maxwell manage to provide stock a HK sourced camera could well be just about out of warranty..

When I first ordered the camera last October and placed a large deposit on the 3/11/05 I had the option of Maxwell or HK. Stupid me went with the Maxwell option. Never again will a dollar of mine help keep these bumbling fools in their Lidcombe palace. FFS, even given banding issues,striping issues, the damm thing turning purple and losing it's left nut, it could have been to HK and back 3 times and I could still have got "some" use out of it.

Here endeth my rant. And this is the cleaned up version

Condolences John, it must be frustrating

To add insult to injury, you posted it in the wrong place too.

However, on a more serious note...

Yes. Maxwell do need to have something done about them.

Nikon Asia really need to come back down here this year and find out why one of Nikon's fairly large markets is being left in the hands of such unqualified "professionals".

Nnnnsic wrote:To add insult to injury, you posted it in the wrong place too.

However, on a more serious note...

Yes. Maxwell do need to have something done about them.

Nikon Asia really need to come back down here this year and find out why one of Nikon's fairly large markets is being left in the hands of such unqualified "professionals".

On a world wide scale of NIKON users ..... me being one of those.....Australia is such a very small market........

hmmmmm.....I ordered my at the same time with Nikononbroadway, got it before Christmas as promised. Did not even have to put $$ down, just my name.

I know the feeling and share your frustrations

big pix wrote:On a world wide scale of NIKON users ..... me being one of those.....Australia is such a very small market........

It's just as small for Canon, but I don't seem to hear too much complaining for their distributor.

phillipb wrote:

big pix wrote:On a world wide scale of NIKON users ..... me being one of those.....Australia is such a very small market........

It's just as small for Canon, but I don't seem to hear too much complaining for their distributor.

Some companys just get it right ...... weather there market share is large or small...........

phillipb wrote:It's just as small for Canon, but I don't seem to hear too much complaining for their distributor.

I thought canon distributed for canon here? May be we need a nikon Australiasia to get better customer service and prices.

Canon Australia is owned by Canon - it’s about time Nikon canned Maxwell and operated as Nikon Australia

sirhc55 wrote:Canon Australia is owned by Canon - it’s about time Nikon canned Maxwell and operated as Nikon Australia

I will agree with chris......

sirhc55 wrote:Canon Australia is owned by Canon - it’s about time Nikon canned Maxwell and operated as Nikon Australia

Very well said Chris.

sirhc55 wrote:Canon Australia is owned by Canon - it’s about time Nikon canned Maxwell and operated as Nikon Australia

But who would we have to complain about then!

shutterbug wrote:hmmmmm.....I ordered my at the same time with Nikononbroadway, got it before Christmas as promised. Did not even have to put $$ down, just my name.

Is it actually a Maxwell camera, because a source has told me that NoB actually deal in grey.

Mal wrote:But who would we have to complain about then!

Sony?

Nnnnsic wrote:

Mal wrote:But who would we have to complain about then!

Sony?

I second that, sony!

Nnnnsic wrote:

Mal wrote:But who would we have to complain about then!

Sony?

Touché

Nnnnsic wrote:To add insult to injury, you posted it in the wrong place too.

Hmm, an interesting interpretation of the forum catagories created by your father, possibly with your input. When I post a new topic I always read through the catagory descriptions and try to match my post as closely as possible to the catagory description. Your decision to move this to Nerd Corner seems to suggest that you have decreed that my post is more likely to "send most people into a stupor" rather than be "related to using a DSLR camera" (or in my case non-usage).

This of course has the side effect of denying all non members and casual visitors from viewing this post. An unintended consequence I'm sure, and I can rest assured that this is just your sense of humour at work

johndec wrote:

Nnnnsic wrote:To add insult to injury, you posted it in the wrong place too.

Hmm, an interesting interpretation of the forum catagories created by your father, possibly with your input. When I post a new topic I always read through the catagory descriptions and try to match my post as closely as possible to the catagory description. Your decision to move this to Nerd Corner seems to suggest that you have decreed that my post is more likely to "send most people into a stupor" rather than be "related to using a DSLR camera" (or in my case non-usage).

This of course has the side effect of denying all non members and casual visitors from viewing this post. An unintended consequence I'm sure, and I can rest assured that this is just your sense of humour at work

and if so ....... just not on ........

Actually, I moved it here because it's a rant, and this is where we put rants.

But, if you'd prefer it to be a course of discussion about how evil Maxwell is as opposed to a rant about them, I'm more than happy to move it back.

i feel your frustration
I had to wait months to get my D2X from Maxwell
I also bothered Birdy about it quite a lot which soon after I realized was bad, as he couldn't do anything about.

If it's any consolation when birdy called up and said he had finally got it from Maxwell I was overjoyed and life just got better, the long wait was worth it.

I guess your in a different boat becuase you put a large deposit down and others have obtained the item more easily from other sources so yeah i feel your frustration.

Nnnnsic wrote:Actually, I moved it here because it's a rant, and this is where we put rants.

But, if you'd prefer it to be a course of discussion about how evil Maxwell is as opposed to a rant about them, I'm more than happy to move it back.

Yes it is a rant, but seeing as we dont have a Bitch & Whine section, I placed it where I thought it was most appropriate.

I've been here since nearly the beginning and have over 1000 posts yet I have never noticed that this sub-forum has become the defacto rant section. Perhaps it should be renamed?

Leigh, you have met me and read enough of my posts to know when I am being lighthearted/smartarse. Do you think this is one of those occasions?

Most importantly, I don't think Maxwell are evil, just incompetant. Please don't infer otherwise.

wendellt wrote:I also bothered Birdy about it quite a lot which soon after I realized was bad, as he couldn't do anything about.

Wendell, Birdy has been great, he was even on the phone to Maxwell on my behalf and the others on his list whilst he was on holidays. It has nothing to do with him. As you know he does more for us than we deserve.

John, you misunderstand me.

I didn't mean or infer that this was a whinging or bitchy rant.

Far from it.

And my use of evil isn't in most people's use of the word... I use it to replace things like "stupid" or "crappy" because it's just the way I am.

I merely put it in the Pedant corner because it's where we normally stick rants, whether they're light-hearted or not.

I meant no disrespect by it.

Thanks Leigh. I'm sorry too. I've had a shitty day and I suppose I had a need to vent my spleen. Seeing as how the missus and kids read the dark look on my face when I got home, they have stayed out of the line of fire So I decided to give Maxwell a spray... Stupid I know, but not entirely unjustified.

Any other day I would have thought moving my post was funny (as in I would have got your humourus reasons behind it).

Johndec is resuming normal transmissions..  PS: Yes I did notice that you moved it back

Wendell,
The first batch of D200 landed here in Australia before Xmas was not a large number of D200 which covers all the back-orders from Maxwell, Maxwell now still has a long queue back-order status in their book.

Some folks on this board received their D200 from other shops or thru other channels and I did receive few of them for difference customers, the stocks I received still not fullfill the demand from my own customers same as few orders on this board.

The folks who got their D200 are just lucky, stock of D200 is not easy to get now on Sydney, Mel, Bris, Adelaide + Perth's retail stores.
As mentioned on another thread: Maxwell receive no new shipment of D200 since Jan 1.

Even in HKG and US market, D200 are not quite as normal stock on the shelf of resellers and this is a normal status when new product released.

Apart from the above, few wellknown issues with the D200, I'm sure Nikon does not want to keep shipping out the not completely sastisfaction products and they also do not want to do another recall as the D70 BGLOD.

The first batch of D200 could be their stock for testers, same as IT hard & sofware, I dealt with Taiwan in the past, the Gigabyte or Asus mobos first came to Australia with ton of faults, the end users are their testers, they did use our resources to study or R&D for their products, we reported the faults, they fixed, then another report, again new firmware etc... That's the way how manufacturers doing and handling their businesses today. Pls. don't expect any new product when it first released was all perfectly.

I tried to do my best to service this community, but I have to rely on the local supplies, if people choose to go with grey import stock, then it's also depend on the overseas suppliers as well.

Finally, I wish I have a factory of building the D200 in my backyard

shutterbug
Are you sure you got an Australian warrenty with that D200? Could you please check your paperwork that came with the camera and let me know?

Good onya, Birdie. You certainly are trying as best as you can and its out of your hands. I'm also waiting on a D200 but I'd rather Nikon sort out any glitches before the next lot arrive. Man, is it going to be worth it when the camera finally arrives!

Cheers

Michael

phillipb wrote:

big pix wrote:On a world wide scale of NIKON users ..... me being one of those.....Australia is such a very small market........

It's just as small for Canon, but I don't seem to hear too much complaining for their distributor.

Actually I was speaking to a guy at a fairly large department store a few weeks ago and he said Canon was a bit of a nightmare with sales and service. Perhaps its just that chain of store's?

A couple of observations if I may ....


First of all, I'm the last person to be sticking up for Maxwell: the sooner that they get rid of their archaic pricing regime, and can be dragged, kicking and screaming, into the 20th century (let's move slowly here) the better.

But as has been pointed out, Australia is but a pinprick on the arse of the world insofar as it pertains to market share. My guess is that product is being shipped - by Nikon Japan - to the markets that matter (US, HK, EU) before Maxwell gets to get its hands on the dregs, and then gets their chances to overcharge us for the (lack of) privilege.

So John, perhaps it's not entirely Maswell's fault this time, although I do agree with the general thrust of your comments.

Vince, as has been pointed out, NOB are bringing in their own grey stock, and I would be checking very carefully that you do, in fact, have genuine Maxwell stock. I'm not for a moment suggesting that that's a bad thing, but I am suggesting that you may not be fully aware of what you've purchased.

And if that is suggestive that NOB have been less than frank with you in terms of what they've sold you, then perhaps they need to be questioned much more deeply when people consider purchasing from them.

Which leads me back to the question of why anybody would even bother considering a purchase other than from Birdy. Great service, dedication, knowledge, the best prices, always ....

And given a potential problem with your camera, and it's grey, consider that Maxwell only send stuff to their (contracted, not in-house) repairer twice weekly. How much quicker is that then couriering your camera back to, say, HK ? I would contend that there is little difference overall.

Matt. K wrote:shutterbug
Are you sure you got an Australian warrenty with that D200? Could you please check your paperwork that came with the camera and let me know?

Yes, it is maxwell stock

Shutterbug
Thanks. That's good.

Correct me if I am wrong Shutterbug but I believe you said in another post that Nikononbroadway received 60 D200’s?

This is an amazing number of cameras considering the rarity of the D200 prior to Christmas and that other dealers received units that could be counted on one hand

i would like to add sometimes Maxwell are very kind
i brought my camera in last week to get cleaned, they did it for free for some reason and i asked them for new genuine covers for the pc remote and flash sync cord sockets on the d2x which get easily lost, they gave them to me for $4.95 each it was a pleasant experience, well done Maxwell

in terms of supply and demand logistics i still feel the same

It seems, Wendell, that the concensus, unfortunately, is that anecdotes such as yours tend to be the exception rather than the rule. I have my own experience with my F90X and finally ended up dealing with John Swainston. The problem was resolved but through no lack of effort and much pushing on my part. Certainly a very good illustration of the possible consequences of a virtual monopoly in business
cheers
marco

sirhc55 wrote:Correct me if I am wrong Shutterbug but I believe you said in another post that Nikononbroadway received 60 D200’s?

that would have been a big chunk of the first shipment as there was only 200 units ....

james m wrote:

sirhc55 wrote:Correct me if I am wrong Shutterbug but I believe you said in another post that Nikononbroadway received 60 D200’s?

that would have been a big chunk of the first shipment as there was only 200 units ....

60 units for Nikon Broadway & 30 units for ECS as someone stated!
Well, 200 units and 2 dealers took nearly 50% of Maxwell stock.
The rest of 110 units for the whole Australia & NZ resellers
Something we should learn.

Teds in Melbourne had D200s in stock last week. Not sure about this week.
Alex

Just to let people know that NOB do sell legit Maxwell stock.
I bought my 18-200 vr lens from them and the warranty is Maxwell stamped.
I mentioned this grey stock rumour to Maxwell about a month ago and they were very surprised and told me that NOB are a legit distributer.
Also to confirm, when I purchased the 18-200 vr they had already sold 60 d200`s and 18 of the new lenses.
They are a major supplier to large business and the NSW government.
It`s a shame how bad rumours spread.

terminator wrote:It`s a shame how bad rumours spread.

They maybe a legit Nikon dealer but they do sell grey imports and Maxwell's do know about it ....

james m wrote:

terminator wrote:It`s a shame how bad rumours spread.

They maybe a legit Nikon dealer but they do sell grey imports and Maxwell's do know about it ....

I agree

terminator wrote:Just to let people know that NOB do sell legit Maxwell stock.

Nobody has said otherwise.

But they also sell grey imports; one of our members was bitten when he sent a camera purchased there to Maxwell's for warranty work, and they bounced it saying that the camera was grey.

It`s a shame how bad rumours spread.

This is not a rumour.

Birdy also sells grey stock and Maxwell stock. The diufference is that with Birdy you always know what you're getting. This does not seem to be the case with NOB, judging by the way our member was treated.

Who can stop or prohibited Nikon's resellers selling grey Nikon's products?
And grey stock of Nikon have been selling all over the world under some high reputation Nikon's resellers. No rules or conditions have been set.

End of the day all monies of buying or selling Nikon's grey stocks go back to Nikon's bank account.

Birddog114 wrote:End of the day all monies of buying or selling Nikon's grey stocks go back to Nikon's bank account.

Exactly.

And I can't see Nikon JP complaining.

The only ones who might would be Maxwell's, and to be perfectly frank, the sooner that they drag themselves into the modern ages, or the sooner than Nikon JP gets smart and gives them the flick, the better off we all shall be.

I'm spending about $13,000 all up on new gear, don't have the minimum number of posts yet to qualify getting off birdie. But that's OK, maybe next time.

My anger spilled over because given the chance I would have gladly spent every cent here in Australia. Instead I have lenses x 4, SB600 x 2 and D200 x 2 coming from overseas and a heap of subsidiary stuff, filters, batteries etc.

Here is my email to Maxwell, sent on January 14. It was a tad aggressive which I regret now, but at the time I remember I was so angry at them I toned it down quite a bit. And did I mention I have not received a reply...

----- Original Message -----
From: Peterston
To: Monique Meadows - Maxwell
Sent: Saturday, January 14, 2006 3:21 AM
Subject: Re: D200 and other Nikon Pricing


Hello Monique,

These people in Australia have sold 32 Nikon D200 cameras as of today's date. I have been tracking their ebay listings and the purchases that are recorded. Here is a link to one of them.....

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/NEW-Nikon-D200-D ... dZViewItem

And I've purchased two D200 DSLR's from them myself. If there is a warrantee issue it stays in the air for a few hours longer back to Nikon USA, no big deal.

I emailed you long ago suggesting Maxwell had a unique opportunity with this D200 camera to get your pricing comparable with what is available in the U.S and other locations. The volume of sales you could have secured would have been very substantial. But for some reason you didn't listen.

Make no mistake Maxwell's unreasonable retail pricing on Nikon gear is solely responsible for the flood of new online merchants selling Nikon product in Australia and the phenomenal success they are all enjoying. Through your ridiculous pricing you've created this yourselves.

There is and has always been a solution - don't be so greedy and start establishing retail pricing that gives retailers the ability to at least be remotely competitive. But you won't and thus you continually drive consumers overseas. You have abandoned the Australian consumer and have turned Nikon into a very unattractive brand for all photographic retailers in this country to be dealing in.

Be warned, there is a strong ground swelling of demand from consumers and even from some retailers here in this country for Nikon to approve another distributor here in Australia to serve the Australian market properly. You only have to visit a handful of photographic forums on the net to read the deteriorating confidence we all have in how Nikon is being marketed here in Australia. But again, this is of your doing. Sad but totally true. I mean even the quality of your website is an embarrassment to the brand. How long will Nikon stand idle?

Peter Peterston

Jumbuck

Peter,

With respect, there's a couple of points that your note to Maxwell's doesn't really cover.

First of all, the ebay sale that you refer to is for an order only, with no realistic guarantee of a delivery. Sure, they make some statements regarding delivery, but so too do all other salepeople, as do our political leaders.

And they all have a similar air of believability to them: zero!

And then, what of GST? Who is paying for that?.

While I fully agree with your sentiments regarding Maxwell - and I'd suggest a follow-up later this week - I'm just a tad concerned that you're not taking full account of all of the issues regarding grey imports.

Yes agreed. This is a risk there which seems to be getting bigger with every passing day. The waiting is killing me and I am getting concerned.

The $2,399 AU price for these D200's is inclusive of GST and the units ship from Brisbane, no doubt after they have imported them themselves.

I've paid by credit card and being a credit card purchase if there is non delivery I can follow the dispute process with Visa directly which, if non delivery can be proved to their satisfaction, will result in a full charge back to my card.

Its a violation of the Visa merchant contract and consumer laws for any merchant to charge someone's credit card and not supply the product purchased. Every credit card holder is protected from financial loss when such fraudulent things happen - even though it may take many weeks for the matter to be resolved.

But I do take your point. My other purchases were with reputable stores in the U.S. and I've received almost everything now without problem, in fact the service has been quite outstanding.

I'm not too concerned about what is termed "grey" items. As long as I know the address of the appropriate Nikon service center to send to if warranty issues arise. I don't really care where I have to address the package to. I always get this info in writing first before purchasing anything. Its funny but I'd actually feel more comfortable sending to Nikon in Japan if there is a warranty issue rather than have some Maxwell person touch it, but this is a personal thing.

The point is of course why do I have to do this. Why can't I buy here in Australia without having to pay insanely inflated prices. Just on the 17-55 lense alone I reckon I've saved close to $700AU against the Maxwell RRP. This is utterly absurd, what I saved on that one alone bought me 2 x SB600's!!

Jumbuck

Why are you writing to Maxwell? I would have thought it would have more impact writing to Nikon Japan - they must have a dealer relations manager there

I wrote to Maxwell just to let off some steam I guess because its very frustrating at times.

You make a good point though. Maybe I will draft a letter to Japan, although I don't think it would make the slightest difference.

Jumbuck

Jumbuck,
I read few of your posts on DPR since Nov 05, re # D200 and Maxwell thru Fletcher

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read. ... e=15887788

Same as few more posts and threads after the above.

Your rants is just perhaps to off load your bad feeling and temper, but will it helps to other? NO.

As mentioned early: Nikon's bank account is the final rest of all your spending your money with Nikon gears, regardless where were you buying off.