WiseTronics?

[fumehood]

Does anyone have any experience dealing w/ Wisetronics? www.wisetronics.com They have the best deal I have found on a Canon Digital Rebel XT and 70-200 f/2.8.

Thanks

[PhotoMan999]

After hours of trying to get past busy signals, which can be understood because of the holiday season, I was harassed to buy 3 more products to go with my order, "Are you sure, sir? Do you know what you are buying? This battery would extend usage...etc." Then I was told "Ok, it will arrive in two weeks." This is after it took 3 days to process the order and I had chosen 3 day shipping. I then ask him to cancel the order and he asked "Have you seen our camera kits online?" "Yes I saw the kits" "That's funny, they're not online, next time be honest" "WHAT?! Come on, just cancel it."

So, needless to say, I am NOT a fan of WiseTronics. There far better discount shops out there.

[KatPause]

I recently tried to order a camera through wisetronics.com and had a bad experience with them as well. The advertised prices they have are great, but when it comes time to confirm the order (which you have to do by calling them) they will expect you to buy hundreds of dollars more worth of accessories or warranties for your camera. When you say no, Zach (in my case) tries to tell you that you must have these products or the camera won't be any good. He then offers to supply these things to you at a lower cost, because you are a first time buyer. After explaining that all I wanted was the camera, and that I need it mailed out today, he proceeded to tell me that they no longer have any in stock. As a matter of fact, the last one was just sold to someone else needing overnight shipping. He did however, politely, offer to sell me the same camera, with a longer life battery, for a higher price.:mad2: And if I didn't want that, he said that the camera with a 20 minute battery life would be available in a few days. Needless to say, I cancelled the order and went to another camera store. If you want a good deal on a camera, pay a slightly higher price for better quality service and no pressure sales/hassle.

[Serafin]

This is a old post but I just thought I should respond to this. Ive been looking at different cameras for a while reading endless reviews and decided on the Canon G7. Which when my wife gets home is going to kill me for what I just spent. Because I told her I was getting Canon A710is. Anyways I find the company this company Wisetronics selling it for 390 I believe. So I cant believe the price and order it on line at 6 a.m. Later I call to confirm my order and he asks for my order number. I didnt have that info on me and I told him I just wanted to confirm my order and a question about shipping I might want to move it up to a faster time, cant you use my address or credit card? " Sir if you read what it says on the internet it clearly states shipped out in 1 to 2 days." And I say whats with the attitude I just was thinking about moving it up to 2 day air and it actually says on 2 day air you try to ship out the same day!" "Sir there is no attitude and without the order number I cant help you."
So I tell him I will call back. I call back and get a different person this time. I give hime the info he needs and he says your order is confirmed. "But sir would you like a battery and charger with that order for 150.00." "And 7 to 10 day shipping will be 28 dollars." "I said your selling me a camera without a battery and charger." "I said your site is very misleading and the shipping is says its less on your site." "Well that includes insurance."
I canceled the order. Very impolite people who talk down to you and mislead you. So I went to a online store that I have good things about and decided to buy from Foto Connection. If I would have just gotten the regular delivery it would have been just under 500 dollars for the American version G7. But I wanted it fast so I paid a little extra. And it comes with a free cleaning kit. Not sure whats included with that. Probably could have found it for a little less. But I learned a lesson that good customer service is worth it. All that time I wasted doing the order online and calling that company to try and confirm my order could have been spent with my family. This will be my second digital camera. Ive had the coolpix s1 for almost a year and it been a okay camera with decent pics. I wanted something a little more serious but yet still kind of compact. And my wife likes using the coolpix.

[kaws]

Lose wisetronics number......they need to be investigated by the attorney general of NY.
they are misleading and out and out lie.
They asked me if I planned on suing them.....and I never ordered anything from them.
spread the word......
Don't think they ever have a camera....in stock....and the several fellas I spoke with .....had very little knowledge.
As soon as I told them that I had all my accessories as this would be my 10th digital camera purchase.....I was told that I wouldn't have the camera I wanted until after the holiday.
I firmly believe that all the positive comments on their site are fraudulent.

[baconhogger]

BEWARE OF THIS MERCHANT!!!

DO NOT DEAL WITH THEM!!! THESE ARE CON ARTISTS.

Like the other people who have responded below I had an awful experience with these guys. First when I called to order a Canon A640 they tried to hardsell me the battery pack for some outrageous price and wanting to put the whole package together for me. When I told them I'm only interested in the camera, they told me to just order it from their site, which I did. They sent me a couple of days later asking me to call their customer service. When I called another questionable character (who was supposedly a sales manager) told me they were sold out and I would have to wait for 3 weeks. I told him to cancel my order. The conversation went from bad to worse as he told me while he will cancel my order he would still charge my credit card. Not only that, he will use my credit card information to shop for his wife and kids. From my interactions with them, I would not be surprised if he will do just that.

I ended up ordering my camera through AMAZON.COM. At least I would have a peace of mind that i'm dealing with a professional organization.

If you have had bad experience with WiseTronics ... PLEASE ALERT OTHERS!!! I wish I had read this forum thread before I dealt with them.

[cfoxPHO]

WARNING ABOUT WISETRONICS!

Wisetronics seemed to have the lowest price on the Canon G7 I ordered online. I then got an email saying that I needed to "call to confirm my order". Some guy named "Stevie" proceeded to bloat my order with what turned out be extremely low quality, overpriced accessories. The accessory lenses that "Stevie" so enthusiastically recommended are of very poor optical quality, essentially worthless. The wide angle lens actually arrived dirty with damaged threads. The camera arrived with the language set to Japanese, making it very difficult to get it working, and the paper manual is a cheap photocopy! Wisetronics' return policy makes it extremely difficult to return defective merchandise, it's all or nothing, and they charge a ridiculous 20% "restocking fee". This is an abusive, totally unethical company and I will never do any business with them again.

[Michael Quito]

THE WORST! DO NOT BUY FROM THIS VENDOR. I am a frequent internet buyer and I have never run across a scam like Wisetronics. They did a massive bait-and-switch, made it extremely difficult to obtain the Sony HD Camcorder I ordered, and would only shop it after adding additional items that doubled the price of the camcorder. The accessories they insist on including with the camera were charged at prices that were 5 times more than their legitimate prices, adding nearly $500 to the order for junk. Then they refused to clarify or provide me with a receipt, saying it was with the order, but in the order they removed the original camcorder with the original sales price and put them together as a package" with a single package price so hide the individual markups. I could not cancel the order and when it did arrive it did not even have the items that were in the "package" - most importantly an extended life lithium battery that was charged at $200 - meaning they charged for items they didn't even ship. Then comes trying to get an item returned, as Customer Service does not answer - at this point after 5 days, they have not answered or returned a single inquiry though I made many by email and by phone - in effect just ignoring all efforts to receive a refund. This is simply THE WORST scam joint I have ever run across on the Internet. Now I must report them for fraud and overcharges.

[deardorff]

Like all the rest DON'T BUY FROM WISETRONICS.COM they are a bait-and-switch ripoff!

[ggrreegg]

Bait and Switch!!!!! Big Time BAD Site!!!!

Do not Trust Wisetronics for 1 second.

[pstalas]

I just joined this site as a result of dealing with WiseTronics. I ordered a
Panasonic DMC FZ50 .When I would not add to my order I to was e mailed a 2 week wait blah blah. These are lying liars. Steer clear of them.
When I asked if the camera was in stock they answered "yes" ,I responded with a simple
"why did I get this e mail?".They promptly hung up the phone.

[laness]

First time I have felt the urge to join a group to review a company but Wisetronics has provided the movtivation. My wife warned me that I should be careful about who I purchased from and suggested that ones with really great prices were very likely to use bait and switch tactics. Wisetronics has taken it to a new level. When they started ratcheting up my order, from $1,200 to $2,400, I said I needed to cancel my order and go do more investigation into cameras as I couldn't afford the $2,400. The fast talker then offered to send me two cameras free. We went back and forth for 10 minutes of me canceling my order and him pleading for me to just put it on hold. Never ever do business with these folks.

[camera_pro]

Do NOT shop there. Be warned. I bought a camera, got it in good time, but it was not as advertised.

They were as RUDE as could be and it looks like they will sock me for 20% restocking fee. The customer service agent was horrible. There is no way I will make this expensive mistake again by shopping there in the future.

Be warned!!

[tuckerbiker]

I wish I had read this board before I ordered...but I managed to get out of it in the nick of time. I got the same run around as all of you....trying to sell me batteries...etc. But I went ahead and ordered (even though I had a bad feeling). Then I read this site...DAMN!!.The only thing I could think of to do was shut my credit card down before Wisetronics.com had a chance to charge it. I simply told my card company I had lost my card...they shut it down and guaranteed me no charges would be made using that number. WHEW, near miss. Serves me right for not doing more research. BTW, when I wouldn't purchase any different batteries or other "junk" from Wisetronics.com they got very short with me...quickly muttered something about the camera being factory reconditioned with no warranty and then pretty much hung up on me. VERY BAD PEOPLE... STAY CLEAR OF WISETRONICS.COM!!!!

PS I bought the same camera through Amazon for only 80.00 more plus free shipping.

[aztecjoes]

Like others in this forum, I wish I had read these reviews before ordering from WiseTronics. I've alerted the credit card company that this is a contested order and have asked WiseTronics for a return merchandise number. The product has yet to arrive. I plan to send the point-and-shoot camera back unopened by sign-receipt mail.

Is there more I can do?

Have any consumer agencies been alerted?

[wasabispice]

Wisetronics SUCKS!!!! Excuse the language but I have had the WORST experience with this company. I ordered a CANON SD750 from them and they sent me the wrong camera. That's just the beginning....they promised to send my camera before I left for my road trip and it did not arrive on the date they had told me it would. They offered me free gifts for the inconvenience....I received an opened lens cleaner (who needs a lens cleaner for a digital camera?) and a RUSTY memory-card downloader that I DO NOT intend to put into my computer. I have spoken to atleast 5 different 'managers'. One of these managers did not believe me when I told him I had ordered a different camera and proceeded to get the individual on the phone that I purchased the camera from to confirm the mistake. Luckily, I wrote down the name of the individual I ordered the camera from. I have called numerous times during 'business hours' only to find noone at the customer service office. On the customer service recording it says to leave a message but there is no messaging service...the phone just cuts off after the recorded message is played. So.....DON'T BUY FROM WISETRONICS. WORST COMPANY EVER.

[Chuckb]

The list gets longer. These guys are crooks. Lucky for us, we got our credit card on a three way call, and they still tried to charge us $3OO MORE. DISCOVER card caught it and contacted us. We had it in dispute before we even got the junk they sent us. It is all going back. Most of it is cheap China copies.
Check out the NYBBB and you will find a lot of people have been cheated by this guy.Check out the owners name, and you will see why.I am also filing a complaint with the FBI Internet Fraud, and all other web sights like this one. DO NOT BUY FROM Wisetronics.

[halbertn@bellsouth.net]

Ditto with all the other reviews. Thought I was getting a good price on a camera but ended up spending almost 3 times the camera price on accessories that were 10 times what they wre worth when I was forced to call them to verify my order.. (I didn't know this until later). When camera arrived, it was in an open box, the flash did not work and the manual was missing. You can't get anyone on the line to give you instructions on mailing their lousy camera back and then your 7 days return policy runs out. Spent the money to mail the camera back anyway, only to have them refuse to accept the package twice and camera was sent back to me. I am in the process of dealing with my credit card company to reverse the charges. Also filed a complaint with the BBB of New York. :mad2:

[pstein@telus.net]

I, too, want to mention my poor experience ordering a camera from this outfit. The advertised cost of the camera was wonderful but after all the fast talking was done regarding a long-life battery and filters, and warranties, and a "fast" memory card, I was going to be paying out four times what the camera's advertised cost was originally. After the financial dust settled and I had time to actually think about what I had done, which took me 15 minutes, I called back to cancel the order. The customer service fellow assured me that everything I purchased as part of "the package" was necessary and, because I was a first time buyer, he would reduce the price by $50. and throw in a camera case. I agreed to this but the next day had more misgivings so I called back determined to cancel the entire order and shop elsewhere. Now, however, I was told that I could not cancel the order as it had been processed immediately after my initial call and everything would have to be returned after it arrived and would be subject to a re-stocking fee. In addition, I would lose the cost of the shipping as this was not refundable.
So the package arrived and I found that I was stuck with a set of no-name filters (for $199.00) that could only fit using a barrel adapter. Plus, I ended up with a SLOW memory card and an extra battery that does not indicate it is a long-life battery.And, to add insult to injury, I never got the $50 rebate either.
My advice - STAY AWAY FROM THIS VENDOR.

[ron99]

Ordered a Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ18K from their site. They had the lowest price
($363.95 with shipping) of anyone I found at the time and they were rated highly. Got the email to call them to “confirm” my order. That was the first bad sign. Called and talked to a guy who said the battery was only good for 20 minutes, did I need an sd card, etc. He wasn’t pushy but said the order would go out in a week or two. Should have known something was up then. Why would it go out in a week or two if they had it in stock (like their site said)? He also made the comment that it was a good camera and they had one in the back room that they used. After a couple of weeks I called back and was told that the camera was on backorder and it would be a couple of weeks. Two weeks later I called and was told they were having trouble getting it from their supplier and that it would be four to six weeks before they could get it. Today I read the comments on this site and decided to call and cancel the order. I told Jennifer at WiseTronics that I didn’t think I would ever get the camera and would like to cancel the order. She said she would. Called my credit card company and they will contest it if they try to send the charge through. Ordered the camera from another company and called them first to make sure they had the camera on hand. Will not do business with this company ever again.