I googled two cameras and found this site with considerably lower prices than anyone else. They were also listed in LowPriceDigital.com with over 2100 reviews by customers. I should have been suspicious when I noticed that all the reviews were written by plain-vanilla first names and all had ecstatic glowing praise of 86th. The 86th site also had several very impressive looking 'certified' seals of approval.
We ordered online and the next day received an email to phone 'Steve' to confirm our order. After jokes and friendly banter, he asked why I hadn't ordered memory cards, saying the cameras wouldn't work without them. I told him that 1) I didn't think that was true, and 2) their cards were way overpriced. He said that cheaper cards would 'break' the cameras and that the cameras would only be able to take 4 or 5 pictures without them. I half believed him, not knowing the truth, but said that the addional $150 he wanted was out of our budget.
He then said he understood, and he would throw in camera cases and free shipping (for the cases only) for only ~$160. I said no and he continued in this way, getting more and more annoyed and pushy. When we hung up after a final 'no', a minute later I received an email saying that the cameras were out of stock and it would be 4 to 5 weeks.
I called 'Steve' back and told him that I though their practices were unfair, that neither he nor the site had said they had no cameras until I refused to buy the overpriced memory cards and that I wanted him to honor the deal we had made. He said, "you got it, have a nice day" and hung up.A minute later another email from 86th, saying the order had been cancelled.
I went to LowPriceDigital.Com, registered to do a review, and wrote this story about 86th. My review has not shown up on the list of the 2100 glowing reviews of 86th. I can only conclude that the reviews were bogus as well.
Don
Knoxville, Tennessee
U.S.A.