Nikon or Mack Warranty?

hark

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With today's price drop on the D750, at some point I will buy one. In the past I've only bought the Nikon extended warranty.

Which type of extended warranty do most people here buy? And why? Nikon vs. Mack.
 

Horoscope Fish

Senior Member
For me it's Square Trade because in my experience with Nikon their warranty is about a joke.

Buy grey market, save a ton of money, get a third-party warranty, STILL save a ton of money AND have a warranty that's worth something with turn around times measured in days, not aeons.

....
 

BackdoorArts

Senior Member
I don't. Not even on refurbs. If I did then I would have already spent more across the bodies I have than it would cost to replace any one of them.

That said, if I were out in the field and in the wild more then I'd consider whichever one covers the inevitable tipping of a tripod off the rocks and into the rushing stream. I don't think Nikon's will do that.
 

rocketman122

Senior Member
There's adorama warranty as well. But for every gear i buy its the mack vip diamond. If it falls to the floor by accident or gets spills on (beach) its covered. Costs around $160 or so. I work hard with my gear so its a must for me for peace of mind. Most hardly shoot more than a few easy thousand clicks a year and might not need it. But the way i see it, the price is around $50 a year for coverage and it obly takes one slip. A gust of wind to push the tripod over. I soubd like a walking ad for mack but they replaced the shutter on a D3 D3S D4 which would cost well over $400.
Most dont need it though.

There were cases were nijon blamed impact damage and the owner was charged. Not many ever have to have repair done. The majority dont. For me its a must as it gets used a lot.
 
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hark

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I've read the comments so far and completely understand where everyone is coming from. Here's a question that hopefully can be answered: if the camera winds up with an AF issue or some type of problem that needs calibration or a slight adjustment, will extended warranties from other companies cover those types of repairs/adjustments?
 

Krs_2007

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I've read the comments so far and completely understand where everyone is coming from. Here's a question that hopefully can be answered: if the camera winds up with an AF issue or some type of problem that needs calibration or a slight adjustment, will extended warranties from other companies cover those types of repairs/adjustments?

Hark, Its suppose to cover everything, but you would have to read the fine print. You can look Mack's on their website, they have a lot of plans.

As far as do they pay off, I would say my experience may be above average. I will and do buy them for certain things depending on the cost of the plan. Example with this plan for my D600 the benefit was free cleanings anytime I wanted them for 3 years, not bad.
 

hark

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Hark, Its suppose to cover everything, but you would have to read the fine print. You can look Mack's on their website, they have a lot of plans.

As far as do they pay off, I would say my experience may be above average. I will and do buy them for certain things depending on the cost of the plan. Example with this plan for my D600 the benefit was free cleanings anytime I wanted them for 3 years, not bad.

Thanks for the info, Kevin. When I sent my D600 in for the oil spot issue, I asked Nikon to check the AF as it was off. The AF calibration was covered under the manufacturer warranty and was fine afterwards. I'll read the fine print on the Mack warranties to determine which might suit my needs best. :)
 

Krs_2007

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Thanks for the info, Kevin. When I sent my D600 in for the oil spot issue, I asked Nikon to check the AF as it was off. The AF calibration was covered under the manufacturer warranty and was fine afterwards. I'll read the fine print on the Mack warranties to determine which might suit my needs best. :)

Oh, and to add to the reason why I purchased it with the D600 was because of the oil issues. I did hear the new ones didn't have it but I didn't want to chance it so i bought it. For the most I just weigh the cost of the warranty versus the product being purchased. I will be looking into insurance because its not limited like these warranties in length of coverage.
 

Bob Rules

Senior Member
For me it's Square Trade because in my experience with Nikon their warranty is about a joke.

Buy grey market, save a ton of money, get a third-party warranty, STILL save a ton of money AND have a warranty that's worth something with turn around times measured in days, not aeons.

....
I was considering a grey market lens. What is the downside?
 

rocketman122

Senior Member
I've read the comments so far and completely understand where everyone is coming from. Here's a question that hopefully can be answered: if the camera winds up with an AF issue or some type of problem that needs calibration or a slight adjustment, will extended warranties from other companies cover those types of repairs/adjustments?


I live overseas so take it with a grain of salt. nikon here is incompetent and ripoff artists supreme. mack said you first try to get repair through them. if they wont honor it then you go to the authorized mack repair place. ironic though that the mack authorized repair lab (not owned by mack but they authorize repair and pay them for it) is the best in the country here and they actually do repair for nikon here because they are so incompetent. heavier repairs are sent out to nikon japan. this is repairs that require specialized equipment. when my 28-70 AFS gave up, no one here was going to repair it. because they dont have the proper equipment. thats why I sent it to NRC in taiwan. they wanted to charge me an arm and a leg. it was not under warranty, obviously

getting abck to your question, yes they will repair it. the VIP diamond level is if it has impact damage. example, falls from your hand, falls over, falls in the sea, gets dinged. meaning, physical and technical problems.
they repaired the shutters under the regular warranty but I now only buy the VIP diamond because its a small price to pay for that peace of mind that if the camera falls, im covered. the gear costs $2000 so whats $160 extra. thats why I ONLY buy grey market. never used nikon USA warranty when I lived in the US though but from what I see CS quality can be great and just as much crap.
 

hark

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Oh, and to add to the reason why I purchased it with the D600 was because of the oil issues. I did hear the new ones didn't have it but I didn't want to chance it so i bought it. For the most I just weigh the cost of the warranty versus the product being purchased. I will be looking into insurance because its not limited like these warranties in length of coverage.

Both insurance and warranty perhaps? Or just take Nikon's 12-month warranty and insurance? Hmm...more to think about.

I live overseas so take it with a grain of salt. nikon here is incompetent and ripoff artists supreme. mack said you first try to get repair through them. if they wont honor it then you go to the authorized mack repair place. ironic though that the mack authorized repair lab (not owned by mack but they authorize repair and pay them for it) is the best in the country here and they actually do repair for nikon here because they are so incompetent. heavier repairs are sent out to nikon japan. this is repairs that require specialized equipment. when my 28-70 AFS gave up, no one here was going to repair it. because they dont have the proper equipment. thats why I sent it to NRC in taiwan. they wanted to charge me an arm and a leg. it was not under warranty, obviously

getting abck to your question, yes they will repair it. the VIP diamond level is if it has impact damage. example, falls from your hand, falls over, falls in the sea, gets dinged. meaning, physical and technical problems.
they repaired the shutters under the regular warranty but I now only buy the VIP diamond because its a small price to pay for that peace of mind that if the camera falls, im covered. the gear costs $2000 so whats $160 extra. thats why I ONLY buy grey market. never used nikon USA warranty when I lived in the US though but from what I see CS quality can be great and just as much crap.

Thanks for this, rocketman122. :)
 

hark

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I was considering a grey market lens. What is the downside?

There have been comments here on the forum that Nikon US won't touch a grey market item and that it would need to be sent overseas for repair or warranty work; however, my suggestion would be to ask Nikon directly if they service grey market items or not and know the answer for sure before purchasing. Or you could go with a warranty by another company.
 

SteveH

Senior Member
I don't use extended warranties, but I do like to make sure that my gear is insured including accidental damage, as for me at least, that is far more likely to be an issue!
 

Horoscope Fish

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I was considering a grey market lens. What is the downside?
The alleged downside is that Nikon will refuse repair any grey market item; not just under warranty, they won't touch grey market items period. Which is fine by me because Nikon loves to wave the magic wand of "Impact Damage" at everything that comes across their desk anyway. Of course you don't know this until they already have your camera so, most likely, you wind up footing the bill for the shipping (both ways) and the repair because most of just want our damn camera fixed so we can get on with life. I know how Nikon's "customer service" works from having been the department manager of the Visual Arts department at a college for 15 years now. We have a pretty nice photography program here and I get to deal with customer service reps from a lot of different companies on a regular basis. I've never dealt with Mack warranties personally, so I have no opinion of them. I have dealt with Square Trade and my experiences have been nothing but excellent. From what I can tell, both Square Trade and Mack cover things like accidental drops, spills and stuff like that. Nikon does not.
.....
 

cbay

Senior Member
The alleged downside is that Nikon will refuse repair any grey market item; not just under warranty, they won't touch grey market items period. Which is fine by me because Nikon loves to wave the magic wand of "Impact Damage" at everything that comes across their desk anyway. Of course you don't know this until they already have your camera so, most likely, you wind up footing the bill for the shipping (both ways) and the repair because most of just want our damn camera fixed so we can get on with life. I know how Nikon's "customer service" works from having been the department manager of the Visual Arts department at a college for 15 years now. We have a pretty nice photography program here and I get to deal with customer service reps from a lot of different companies on a regular basis. I've never dealt with Mack warranties personally, so I have no opinion of them. I have dealt with Square Trade and my experiences have been nothing but excellent. From what I can tell, both Square Trade and Mack cover things like accidental drops, spills and stuff like that. Nikon does not.
.....

You make a pretty compelling argument for going a different route on service/warranty; considering your experience dealing with issues on a regular basis.
I've always been afraid of grey market and figured that Nikon would be the best service you could get for any problems with a camera or lens. And figured with modern technology there may not be anyone else with the expertise to fix the equipment.
Definitely going to have to do some more research on this. There is a BIG difference in price on grey market cameras.
 

Horoscope Fish

Senior Member
Definitely going to have to do some more research on this. There is a BIG difference in price on grey market cameras.
I very much encourage you, and everyone else for that matter, to do your/thier own research on Mack and Square Trade warranty services.

I never ask anyone to take my word on things like this.

....
 

rocketman122

Senior Member
I was considering a grey market lens. What is the downside?

it comes in grey finish only. not in black hahaha. you get warranty through the store/vendor/company you bought it from. not nikon. you dont send it in to nikon. you send it back to where you purchased it from. if you bought from ebay (like cameta) then you send it back to their store. usually they only have a 1 year warranty. I havent purchased a new lens in a long time. but if I lived in the US I would probably buy USA AND mack/squaretrade warranty because I work with the gear and if it falls, Its going to be quite an invoice. it only takes one time and I also change lenses so often that it can happen. but since I live overseas I dont buy legit because its only 3 years (5 in the US) and buying greay is cheaper and with that savings Ill put it towards the VIP diamond which is an all risk type.


I very much encourage you, and everyone else for that matter, to do your/thier own research on Mack and Square Trade warranty services.

I never ask anyone to take my word on things like this.....

thats exactly my mindset. check for yourself. Ive bought grey since years back. I was always afraid to buy grey. my first grey was an SB28 flash. never had an issue. bought it from adorama and in fact on the phone he said to me dont buy USA, those flashes never need repair and if it might we got you covered so I saved a whole $30!! haha.

nikon scares people to not buy grey. they make sure to let you know that grey is evil and should not be bought. all Im going to say is this...if adorama or BH sell grey, they stand behind their gear. they are THE go to guys for gear. a lot of nikon PR reps who go around on the net and purposely scare people to not buy grey. dont buy grey. youll get no support. no not true. anything you need software or tech support they will supply. you wont get repair service. true. you wont get through nikon but youll get repair through BH/adorama and theyre such huge stores, they dont have 1 lab they work with, they have 10. and lets not forget nikon wait times.

but like HF said, check for yourself.
 
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