Tech for Less

Full review
After many weeks of searching for the discontinued Nikon D50 (DSLR) camera, I finally found it at Tech for Less for a very reasonable price. It was in fact the lowest I've seen since the beginning of my search.

I called customer service to see if it really was available. Richard (a sales rep) spoke to me. I asked him about the definition of refurbished items vs open box items. He said open box will come with all accessories as if you were to buy it brand new and refurbished items will come with only key accessories. He said there might be a missing strap or lens cap in a refurbished DSLR. There was almost no waiting on the phone. He was very polite and there was no hard sale. It was very comfortable taking to him.

I ordered through Amazon.com because I had a $50 certificate. Half an hour later, I received a confirmation from Amazon.com. I didn't see the availability for this item decrease in Tech for Less's website. (yes, you can see item's availability real time.) I then called customer service again to make sure my order went through. I was told it was pending. Again, customer service was very patient and polite. The next day I received a shipping notice.

Four days later, my camera arrived. It was in such a great shape, I couldn't believe it! If I didn't know better, I would almost think it is brand new! It came with the original box. Everything was sealed. Package had lots of padding. It came with the camera, the kit lense, all the accessories (two CDs, battery, battery charger, lens cap, strap, eye piece, manual, quick start sheets, and warranty cards). The only thing missing was the manual in English. It was shipped with a Spanish version of the manual. No big deal, I can install it using the supplied CD. I ordered a refurbished item expecting to come with missing straps, lens caps and eye piece. They were all there, I was so pleased!

I looked at the camera actuation to see how many times the shutter has been released. I couldn't believe my eyes. It was 3, lower the number the less it was used. Normally for a refurbished camera, I would expect hundreds even a thousand. Mine was 3, and that's only because I took 2 pictures. So really, it was used once before I got it. I searched online and there was no way to alter this number, so I think it is accurate.

I am extremely happy with Tech for Less. I am surprised I never heard of them before. This was my first order, and I am pretty sure it won't be my last!