Toronto Camera Dealers

[Marty Hamrick]

I've used B and H in the past, but now I'm across the border in Canada and if I bought in the States, I would get nailed with paying duty on the merchandise. First time I came up here and brought my laptop, I didn't have a case for it and I carried it in it's box and was given a little bit of grief from the border guards. I would like to know what the equivalent or better of B and H is in Toronto.

[Guest]

Vistek, is considered to be the B&H of Canada.

 

Check pricing though, Vistek can be very expensive.

 

R,

[Kar Wai Ng]

Most things photographic or electronic have no duty when crossing the border, but GST/PST or HST taxes are added on (as you would when buying something locally here in Canada).

 

There's no equal to anything like B&H in Canada, but Vistek is probably the closest equivalent store catering to photo/video professionals. There's also Henry's, which is a little bit more consumer-oriented, though they carry most the same gear. I personally like Downtown Camera as well.

 

One trick that can save a bit of money is buying out of province, but still in Canada. That way only GST is assessed, not PST, so you only pay one tax. The Camera Store in Calgary and Simon's Cameras in Montreal are two places I've ordered from in the past. Though now that Ontario has the HST, it might have changed...I think we pay HST on out of province purchases now.

 

A good place to compare camera prices is photoprice.ca. It ranks a lot of photo stores for the most popular cameras in terms of the end price to the Canadian buyer; it factors in shipping, exchange rate, and one or two taxes depending on whether the store is in your province, out of province, or in the US. It's a handy reference.

Edited November 8, 2010 by Kar Wai Ng

[Jim Hyslop]

I've used Vistek (www.vistek.ca), 496 Queen St. East; and The Source Shop (www.sourceshop.ca), 119 Jefferson Ave. There's also The DV Shop at 2967 Dundas St. West, but I've never actually been there so I can't say what they're like.

 

--

Jim

[Jay Stewart]

for more of a specialty shop, try: http://www.imagegearinc.com/. Mikes the best, although his site needs a little updating.