When shopping at Sim Lim Square, here are some tips.
1) Know what you want to buy. Best if you do your research in
retail outlets first, check out the internet on official website of
the manufacturers.
2) Know the full retail price of the products. Here are some
tips...
digicam you usually can only get 10-15% cheaper in Sim Lim. Someone
offering you any lower than that, be suspicious.
e.g. Retail for $290 A430... the best you can get is around $265
(WITH Canon promotional items).
3) You can't get huge discounts on Compact digicam under $500.
Retailers themselves have little to earn on. Hence that why certain
stores try to con you into buying their "warranty", "batteries".
Bottomline is, you can get cheaper price for the same thing SLS but
don't expect prices to be 30% or more lower.
4) Boxes of these cameras will usually put what items you will
receive in the box. So you CHECK the items you are receiving with
the items listed on the box.
CHECK you receive ORIGINAL batteries, adaptors, len caps, straps,
etc.
5) Before buying, look in newspapers to see if there is any
promotional items included.
6) Buy from ACCREDITED dealers. Go to official manufacturer
websites to find out who official dealers are in SLS.
7) CHECK and RECHECK stamp on warranty cards.
a) Check that the warranty card is issued by the Singapore arm of
the manufacturer (Canon Singapore Pte Ltd, Nikon Singapore Pte Ltd,
etc etc)
b) CHECK that the warranty is UNSTAMPED by the dealer before you
buy. If they are stamped by another dealer other than the shop you
are buying from, it means the dealer is not an official agent and
bought its supply from another shop in SLS.
c) Look clearly on the warranty card, CHECK there is no stamps like
"REDEEMED" or "CLAIMED". This is to make sure that the promotional
items are not claimed by the shop before you buy it.
d) Make sure when they stamp the warranty card, it is their shop's
name. The manufacturer only issues warranty cards to shops who are
their agents.
Do not rush into
buying. Go to the "reputable" shops in SLS. Even in reputable shops
in SLS you should be wary there are salesmen who will act
independantly of the shops.
9) I reiterate, do your research into what you want to buy. Don't
let the SLS ppl tell you what you should buy.
