Has anyone purchased from 42nd Street Photo?

[Major Nikon]

5. They used to have a pretty shoddy reputation

I really don't know about today as I just don't keep up on the photography forums much anymore. However, longevity of business is really not a good measure for reputable camera shops. Especially in the NYC area, there's been shops that have been ripping people off for decades and they get away with it because much of their business comes from tourists and other assorted new buyers who have yet to be ripped off by them or just don't know they have been ripped off until they try to get warranty service on their grey market camera and realize Nikon USA will tell them to go fly a kite. Or they call you up AFTER they have your credit card number and tell you they are out of the product you just ordered, but they have a 3rd party product that is "just as good" and keep you on the phone for 30 minutes working the hard sell before they accept your cancellation.

It's really hard to beat the prices at B&H and Adorama, both of which have top notch reputations among shutterbugs. If someone is beating them significantly, then there's probably a reason which you may not like. This is especially true of new Nikon and Canon products as the manufacturers pretty much set the prices for their dealers. If they aren't beating them significantly, then the reputation of the two aforementioned retailers are worth the difference. Cameta isn't bad either. Ritz/Wolf are fine, but their prices tend to be a bit higher. All of these places have solid return policies if you aren't satisfied. I will never deal with Abe's of Maine, or 42nd Street based on personal experience and reputation. I'm not real fond of Beach Camera either.