Want a Cheap Camera? Buy Refurbished!

Buying Refurbished

A lot of people want to save as much as they can when buying DSLR cameras or lenses and one of the best ways to do this is to buy from the official refurbished store of manufacturer that you want to buy from. I know that Canon has a refurbished store for its lenses and speedlights and a separate one for Canon camera bodies. Nikon has the same. The camera bodies are quite a bit cheaper than the brand new prices and can even go down to ridiculously cheap prices if you catch the store while they are one sale.

Examples

Here are two prime examples of how much money you can save if you buy from the official refurbished store of the manufacturer. As of writing this post, the Canon Rebel T3i goes for about $550 brand new, body only. The Canon refurbished store currently has them for $374! That's almost $200 dollars in savings! The Canon refurbished store also has the Canon 24-105mm F/4 L series lens for $781, which is normally prices around $1000 brand new. That's also $200 in saving!

What's the catch?

When it comes to photography equipment, you usually don't get the same type of warranty from refurbished products. The service you get will probably be similar, but the length of the warranty will be much shorter. In the case of the Canon refurbished store, you only get a 90 day warranty when you're purchasing refurbished items.

Is it really worth it?

If you're looking to save every penny that you can, refurbished is a good way to go. It ensures that the manufacturer check the item before selling it to you and you still get that warranty period after buying the item. If you want long term coverage for potentially damages to the lens, buying new might be a better investment. Nikon has an extra long warranty in the US, which is probably worth the cost of buying something new vs used. In the end of the day, you'll have to decided whether the cheaper price is worth the risk of having a shorter warranty period.