DSLR camera prices in Osaka (December 2014)

Hi all,

Me and my wife will spend the time around christmas and new year in Japan. I have plans of buying a new camera there, and am considering leaving our old camera at home, just taking a lens or two with us and buying the new camera on the very first day that we are in Japan. Naturally that would require knowing for sure that we can find the camera that we want for a price that we are ready to pay.

So, the question is, are there any websites where I could check the exact prices of camera stores in Osaka? Of course I am also interested to know the stores with the best prices. I have googled, but it seems to be difficult to find a site with prices. We will arrive at Kansai International on 20th December and stay in Tennoji area. The camera kit I am looking for is Canon EOS 6D + 24-105 f/4L.

Thanks for any advice!

You can price check on Kakaku, but note that those prices may not be available in stores. Alternatively, you could order off amazon.co.jp and have it delivered to your hotel.

http://kakaku.com/item/K0000418140/?lid=ksearch_kakakuitem_image

yllwsmrf, thank you very much for your answer. Actually, I have checked the prices at kakaku.com, and that is partly the reason why I am so interested in buying the camera. But the problem is that personally I have no idea how well the prices found at kakaku.com match the prices in stores. If they are the same or close, that would make the price quite tempting as I probably can have the VAT deducted (I am from Finland).

It can be pretty hit or miss, and you'll have to click through to each individual ad to get the details. The first Osaka one for example seems to offer it in store and has duty free. The same can not be said for every ad, and you'll need to follow up with them directly. This may be difficult if you don't speak Japanese.

Thanks again! Yes, Japanese is the problem here, as I practically don't understand a word of Japanese. But ok, I'll just have to spend an evening with google translator and try to uderstand something :)

And, of course, if anyone has something to add to this, I'd be glad to read your comments.

Hi,

I have previously bought at Camera Obayashi, located close by Umeda Station (behind Hilton) and got a fantastic deal on a Canon 300m 2.8II last January 1st..

Hope it is ok to post a link:

http://www.camera-no-ohbayashi.jp/shopbrand/001/002/X/page3/order/

Some of the staff speak basic english. If you can wait until end of the year for their sale the price is even better

Bring your passport along in order to save the VAT. They will deduct tax directly..

I will be back on December 30th in Osaka for a week and with the very weak yen my next Camera upgrade is a steal !

Happy shopping,

Michael

kakaku prices are always the lowest because they are online prices, even large retailers like bic camera/yodobashi won't match their own online prices. meaning you should be prepared to pay more. It doesn't hurt to ask though, see below for their online prices:

http://www.yodobashi.com/%E3%82%AD%E3%83%A4%E3%83%8E%E3%83%B3-CANON-EO...

http://www.biccamera.com/bicbic/jsp/w/catalog/detail.jsp?JAN_CODE=4960...

Besides taxreturn, I think BIC gives you another 5% off when you pay with Visacard.

As for leaving your camera home, my advice don't: you won't be able to shoot anything until you get back to your hotel and get that battery charged, before you are familiar with the camera (even if you're a canon shooter) you could have missed out on many shots.

Hello to fellow Finnish guy!

I have found Tokiwa Camera in Namba to be quite reasonable. And the staff is friendly too. I don't know much about their English ability though, as I always converse in Japanese with them.

The camera:
http://www.tokiwa-camera.co.jp/auto/shopping/auto5711.html

Tokiwa is a nice shop, but they don't carry much stock. If you're in the neighbourhood near Kuromon, it's worth visiting. Bic Camera is nearby too.

Hi,

Huge thanks to you all, you have given me very good tips. I will continue digging into the links you have given and try to find the best shop for my needs.

ありがとうございます

Hi again,

Just in case someone is wondering how this ended, I share it with you briefly. Obayashi camera's price was pretty good ( taxfree 212k when paying with credit card), but I wanted to check the prices in other stores too and finally I was 5 min too late in front of Obayashi's closed doors. I couldn't go there again as we left to Nagoya early next morning. But actually that was lucky for me, the first store that I asked in Nagoya sold the kit taxfree for 207k.
Now, in Takasaki Gunma,after approximately 1000 shots, I'm very happy with both the body and the lens.

Awesome! Glad it worked out.

And funny, I was just in Takasaki too.