Attention camera buyers! I was reminded again of this post's title/well known saying when I finally went to purchase the camcorder I had been waiting to buy for months. When I saw the demo of the new Canon Vixia HF S100 at CES, it was love at first sight and I knew I had to have one.  Being the wise, non-impulsive shopper that I am, I had monitored the web for the best deals and was amazed to find this $1200 camera available for $519!

I checked the store’s ratings ("5 stars") and quickly placed my order. Two days later I received an urgent phone call notifying me that I had to verify my order before they could ship the camcorder. I called back and confirmed my shipping address after which I was told that I needed to purchase batteries and a battery charger. Trusting that I am, I told them to add one battery to order and asked for the price of the charger. $299! Then I asked about the price of the battery. $199 for 6 hours and $299 for 9 hours! Now I know why the camera was so cheap. (Other sites sold these same items for $39-$49.)

I politely told them that I only wanted the camera and nothing else. The sales rep was extremely rude and quickly hung up the phone. An hour later I received an email stating that they were very sorry to inform me that they had run out of stock on the camcorder and would not be able to ship my order. Big surprise! So I called back and asked when they thought they would receive their next shipment. The response was: “Sometime next year.” I knew it was too good to be true. So my friends, this was my experience with Camera Giants. Needless to say, I would not recommend them. For all you camera buffs out there... happy shopping and be careful out there.

Click here for a good resource to review potential resellers before you buy.