Why do Nikon bother producing 'non-printable' manuals??

On Mon, 18 Aug 2008 13:05:34 +0100, Chris H
wrote:

In message , nospam
writes
In article , SMS
wrote:

Nikon U.S. is too great for anyone to understand. Just don't buy any
Nikon equipment while traveling outside the U.S. and expect to get any
support from Nikon U.S., even non-warranty service at your own expense.

that's false.

if you buy a nikon product in a country where it was officially
imported, nikon will repair it, either under warranty or out of
warranty. you will need proof (ideally a receipt with a serial number)
to show that it is not grey market goods.

if you buy something in a country where it was *not* officially
imported, i.e., grey market, then all bets are off. nikon will
probably not repair it (although there are numerous reports that they
may turn a blind eye), but no guarantees. you've circumvented the
official channels and are on your own.

So what if I live in country A , buy officially imported Nikon equipment
and then 6-9 months later move to live in country B.

Will Nikon in Country B support the equipment I bought though the
official country A channels whilst resident in country A?

To even understand your question one must know if Nikon's distributing
channels are the same in other countries. In the US, Nikon products
are officially brought in by Nikon USA and subsequent warranty work is
provided by Nikon USA.

Is there a Nikon UK, a Nikon Canada, a Nikon SA, Nikon Australia, etc?
If this type of distribution network is used world-wide, do the other
authorized Nikon distribution networks have the same Draconian
policies as Nikon USA?

The US is a large market for Nikon, and Nikon (Japan) has set up a
distribution system in the US that relieves them of dealing with
multiple entities. Nikon USA has set their own policies. Without
knowing if there are other Nikon (specific country) organizations, and
without knowing if those organizations have the same policies, your
question is unanswerable.

Residents of other countries, and who own Nikon equipment, should be
able to tell us if the system is as difficult to work with there as it
is in the US.


--
Tony Cooper - Orlando, Florida

In message , tony cooper
writes
On Mon, 18 Aug 2008 13:05:34 +0100, Chris H
wrote:

In message , nospam
writes
In article , SMS
wrote:

Nikon U.S. is too great for anyone to understand. Just don't buy any
Nikon equipment while traveling outside the U.S. and expect to get any
support from Nikon U.S., even non-warranty service at your own expense.

that's false.

if you buy a nikon product in a country where it was officially
imported, nikon will repair it, either under warranty or out of
warranty. you will need proof (ideally a receipt with a serial number)
to show that it is not grey market goods.

if you buy something in a country where it was *not* officially
imported, i.e., grey market, then all bets are off. nikon will
probably not repair it (although there are numerous reports that they
may turn a blind eye), but no guarantees. you've circumvented the
official channels and are on your own.

So what if I live in country A , buy officially imported Nikon equipment
and then 6-9 months later move to live in country B.

Will Nikon in Country B support the equipment I bought though the
official country A channels whilst resident in country A?

without knowing if those organizations have the same policies, your
question is unanswerable.

Then why answer?

Leave it to those with a little more experience of the world.


--
\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
\/\/\/\/\ Chris Hills Staffs England /\/\/\/\/
\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

Chris H wrote:

Will Nikon in Country B support the equipment I bought though the
official country A channels whilst resident in country A?

It's possible, but not guaranteed.

You definitely have no warranty, as they cover only equipment imported
by them). Some people claim that they may bend the rules for equipment
purchased by non-U.S. residents, though there is no evidence one way or
another.

They may think you're trying to circumvent their system by generating
fake receipts to try to prove that you bought it while a resident of
another country, or by claiming you bought the items while traveling.
Perhaps a foreign passport that matches the country of origin on the
receipt, along with proof that you were in that country on the date of
purchase (airline tickets, stamps in your passport, hotel receipts, etc.).

The intent of their policy is certainly understandable, they want people
to buy equipment that Nikon U.S.A. imports. They don't want people to
have any support option, paid or unpaid, with products bought outside
Nikon U.S.A.. Unfortunately, these policies end up hurting the parent
company (and perhaps Nikon U.S.A. as well) since their main competitor
has a history of supporting products no matter where they were
purchased. If Canon has products that meet your needs equally well,
Canon's worldwide support is a definite advantage.

In message , SMS
writes
Chris H wrote:

Will Nikon in Country B support the equipment I bought though the
official country A channels whilst resident in country A?

It's possible, but not guaranteed.

You definitely have no warranty, as they cover only equipment imported
by them). Some people claim that they may bend the rules for equipment
purchased by non-U.S. residents, though there is no evidence one way or
another.

They may think you're trying to circumvent their system by generating
fake receipts to try to prove that you bought it while a resident of
another country, or by claiming you bought the items while traveling.
Perhaps a foreign passport that matches the country of origin on the
receipt, along with proof that you were in that country on the date of
purchase (airline tickets, stamps in your passport, hotel receipts, etc.).

I was thinking of domiciled in country A and then moving to Country B
for work ie 6 months + not buying whilst on holiday.

However I would like to think that if I was travelling in the US with my
less that 12 month old Nikons I could get support and service from the
local Nikon offices.

The intent of their policy is certainly understandable, they want
people to buy equipment that Nikon U.S.A. imports. They don't want
people to have any support option, paid or unpaid, with products bought
outside Nikon U.S.A.. Unfortunately, these policies end up hurting the
parent company

I think it does.

(and perhaps Nikon U.S.A. as well) since their main competitor has a
history of supporting products no matter where they were purchased. If
Canon has products that meet your needs equally well, Canon's worldwide
support is a definite advantage.

Quite. Canon have a global approach.

As it is I have a 2 year Nikon (UK) guarantee.

The problem is that I bought it the kit from Calumet. Who get it direct
from the main Nikon European distribution point. So sometimes the kit
has a Nikon Netherlands guarantee form in the box instead of the UK
ones. Nikon UK have registered the numbers though.

--
\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
\/\/\/\/\ Chris Hills Staffs England /\/\/\/\/
\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

In article , SMS
wrote:

Chris H wrote:

Will Nikon in Country B support the equipment I bought though the
official country A channels whilst resident in country A?

It's possible, but not guaranteed.

You definitely have no warranty,

he absolutely does have a warranty, assuming it was legally purchased
from a seller who imported it through official channels.

for instance, if a usa resident flies to london and buys a nikon d3 and
flies back to the united states, he carries a worldwide nikon warranty.
nikon usa will look at it and say 'this is a united kingdom camera' and
the customer will say 'yes it is, i bought it from jessops a month ago,
here's the receipt.'

as they cover only equipment imported
by them).

right. they won't cover grey market goods. they *will* cover goods
that are properly imported and sold.

Some people claim that they may bend the rules for equipment
purchased by non-U.S. residents, though there is no evidence one way or
another.

no, some people claim that nikon has turned a blind eye to grey market
goods on occasion. no doubt that has happened, but it is the
exception, not the rule.

They may think you're trying to circumvent their system by generating
fake receipts to try to prove that you bought it while a resident of
another country, or by claiming you bought the items while traveling.
Perhaps a foreign passport that matches the country of origin on the
receipt, along with proof that you were in that country on the date of
purchase (airline tickets, stamps in your passport, hotel receipts, etc.).

all it takes is a valid receipt, ideally with a serial number, to prove
it was legally purchased. there is no circumventing anything.

The intent of their policy is certainly understandable, they want people
to buy equipment that Nikon U.S.A. imports. They don't want people to
have any support option, paid or unpaid, with products bought outside
Nikon U.S.A.. Unfortunately, these policies end up hurting the parent
company (and perhaps Nikon U.S.A. as well) since their main competitor
has a history of supporting products no matter where they were
purchased. If Canon has products that meet your needs equally well,
Canon's worldwide support is a definite advantage.

nikon's worldwide support is fine, assuming one actually understands
how it works.

"Chris H" wrote in message
...
In message , tony cooper
writes
On Mon, 18 Aug 2008 13:05:34 +0100, Chris H
wrote:

In message , nospam
writes
In article , SMS
wrote:

Nikon U.S. is too great for anyone to understand. Just don't buy any
Nikon equipment while traveling outside the U.S. and expect to get any
support from Nikon U.S., even non-warranty service at your own expense.

that's false.

if you buy a nikon product in a country where it was officially
imported, nikon will repair it, either under warranty or out of
warranty. you will need proof (ideally a receipt with a serial number)
to show that it is not grey market goods.

if you buy something in a country where it was *not* officially
imported, i.e., grey market, then all bets are off. nikon will
probably not repair it (although there are numerous reports that they
may turn a blind eye), but no guarantees. you've circumvented the
official channels and are on your own.

So what if I live in country A , buy officially imported Nikon equipment
and then 6-9 months later move to live in country B.

Will Nikon in Country B support the equipment I bought though the
official country A channels whilst resident in country A?

without knowing if those organizations have the same policies, your
question is unanswerable.

Then why answer?

....

To stop readers from jumping to unwarranted conclusions.

If instead of tony posting, some smart-arse had claimed that any
Nikon warranty applied worldwide there's quite possibly someone who
might take that at face value. And then when he realised it
was wrong he may come to believe that UseNet was a total waste
of time.

....

Leave it to those with a little more experience of the world.

....

So how many posters on this NewsGroup are likely to be familiar
with the warranty conditions as apply to Nikon equipment in say
more than five different countries, never mind Worldwide ?

You must be confident that there are quite a few, as otherwise
you wouldn't be suggesting that readers wait for them to post,
would you ?


michael adams

....







--
\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
\/\/\/\/\ Chris Hills Staffs England /\/\/\/\/
\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

Chris H wrote:

I was thinking of domiciled in country A and then moving to Country B
for work ie 6 months + not buying whilst on holiday.

You might convince them to perform service on such equipment. The thing
is that all of this is an incredible hassle. You need to ensure that you
carry around all your receipts with you even just to get repairs that
are out of warranty.

Really, it would be sufficient for Nikon U.S.A. to tell customers that:

1) Gray market equipment has no warranty.

2) Equipment bought outside the U.S. requires both a receipt from the
vendor, and that the product be registered with Nikon in the country
where it was purchased, in order to obtain warranty service.

Nikon really needs to read the riot act to Nikon U.S.. OTOH, maybe it's
much ado about nothing. Outside of forums like this, few purchasers have
any idea about what's going on. Certainly the attitude of Nikon U.S.
would tip the scale in favor of purchasing Canon products, if everything
else was equal (which it rarely is).

In article , SMS
wrote:

Chris H wrote:

I was thinking of domiciled in country A and then moving to Country B
for work ie 6 months + not buying whilst on holiday.

You might convince them to perform service on such equipment. The thing
is that all of this is an incredible hassle. You need to ensure that you
carry around all your receipts with you even just to get repairs that
are out of warranty.

it's hardly a hassle to carry a receipt when travelling to a different
country? just about every company will want proof of purchase for
warranty repairs, even if it's in the *same* country. and carrying a
receipt can also help if customs thinks you are trying to smuggle
stuff.

Really, it would be sufficient for Nikon U.S.A. to tell customers that:

1) Gray market equipment has no warranty.

2) Equipment bought outside the U.S. requires both a receipt from the
vendor, and that the product be registered with Nikon in the country
where it was purchased, in order to obtain warranty service.

that's basically how it works, except that registration is not required
for the standard warranty. if the customer sends in the card within
the appropriate time period (ten days, if i recall), they get an
*extended* 5 year warranty at no cost, for merely sending in the card.


in some cases, sending in the card isn't required either. for instance,
if the lens was introduced less than five years ago, there *can't* be
any copies that are older, and nikon will probably repair it (although
it's not wise to *rely* on this).

Nikon really needs to read the riot act to Nikon U.S.. OTOH, maybe it's
much ado about nothing.

considering it works the way you describe, it is much ado about nothing.

Outside of forums like this, few purchasers have
any idea about what's going on. Certainly the attitude of Nikon U.S.
would tip the scale in favor of purchasing Canon products, if everything
else was equal (which it rarely is).

it appears that few here have any idea what's going on.

On Mon, 18 Aug 2008 17:10:10 +0100, Chris H
wrote:

I was thinking of domiciled in country A and then moving to Country B
for work ie 6 months + not buying whilst on holiday.

However I would like to think that if I was travelling in the US with my
less that 12 month old Nikons I could get support and service from the
local Nikon offices.


This happens to you a lot? You travel and your cameras break down?

When in the UK, there are "local Nikon offices" scattered around the
country that you pop into?


--
Tony Cooper - Orlando, Florida

tony cooper wrote:
On Mon, 18 Aug 2008 17:10:10 +0100, Chris H
wrote:

I was thinking of domiciled in country A and then moving to Country B
for work ie 6 months + not buying whilst on holiday.

However I would like to think that if I was travelling in the US with my
less that 12 month old Nikons I could get support and service from the
local Nikon offices.


This happens to you a lot? You travel and your cameras break down?

It only has to happen once.