Camera Shop: Click 'n' Snap - Penang Road, Georgetown

I recently needed to pick up a few bits and pieces for my camera and did a lot of research to try to find the best possible source. There are lots of places around in both the malls and on-street and prices are not too bad. I was however trying to find somewhere with a very good reputation and somewhere which I could use on a regular basis, as needs arise. Following the research I discovered the shop called Click 'n' Snap which is at Komtar on the ground floor, facing Penang Road. It seemed to be a popular place across the Malasyia photography forums, renowned for good prices and, more importantly, professional and good service.

I called there recently to pick up the items I was after and also checked the Tokina wide-angle 11-16 zoom lens, regarded highly in the field of 'third-party' lenses, as many of the places I had checked previously, especially in Gurney Plaza, were out of stock. Of all the places I did check in Gurney a shop called Lam Loong on the third floor seemed to have the best prices but no stock. There is a shop in the basement of Gurney too where the owner is very helpful. Back to Click 'n' Snap. The shop is easy enough to find as it is easy to see from the Penang Road and I dealt with a helpful guy called Micheal Ong (H/P +60 16 423 3179) and was pleased to find they had the lens in stock. After some negotiation I got the price down to RM 2,200 which is OK compared to UK price. I did establish though that paying by credit card would incur a 2% surcharge so would need to get cash.

When I left the shop I checked out another shop that was on the opposite side of the road. They ALSO had the lens and at the better price of RM 2,100 BUT, and it is a big but, you need to be careful about warranties. Some places are selling 'grey imports' which are not covered by full manufacturer warranties but instead are covered by a third party warranty often inserted along with the original warranty in the box. Micheal Ong advised that the way to check with Tokina lenses is whether the guarantee has a Tokina stamp "chop' together with the lens number on the guarantee and also ask. The Tokina warranty is two years but most grey imports will be just one year. Sure enough, this was the case with with the cheaper lens. 12 month warranty and no 'chop' on the Tokina guarantee.

As such I decided to go with Click 'n' Snap. I was going to pick up a filter for it there too but they only stocked Rodenstock from germany and, whilst they may be good filters, I considered RM 250 to be way over the top for a UV filter. So. I was quite pleased with Click 'n' Snap overall and will likely use it in respect of any further (hopefully limited!!!) photography needs. I'm not entirely sure I thought the service was THAT 'friendly' to be honest and that might well affect any decision I may make to return there in future. I like to do business with places where I actually feel happy to business and where you feel your custom is valued and I'm not sure I really felt that with Click 'n' Snap. I would not let that deter me from going there for an important buy though as the shop it seems has been there a long time and of course their stock is 'original', worth it for that peace of mind alone.