BEST BUY RUINED OUR HONEYNOON
My Wife and I recently purchased a Canon SD940IS Camera as well as a KODAK 8GB SDHC Memory Card -2pack from BEST BUY (10/10/09 Contract ID 940-091010-008351) after having received the advice of one of the sales associates at the BEST BUY (Coventry Road, Ottawa -store 940).
We detailed that we were going to India on our honeymoon and needed a reliable camera and memory cards as this would be a ONCE in a lifetime trip. We said that we planned on being there for a month and required a camera with good zoom, light weight and memory cards that would handle a large amount of pictures.
Based on these requirements the associate recommended the above stated camera and memory cards.
So we purchased them.
We left for India and travelled through Germany on our way. During our one month honeymoon we took countless pictures of the sights we have long waited to see (Taj Mahal, The Red Fort of Agra, an elephant trek, we slept in a tent in the middle of the dessert after having rode camels for hours to get there, we hiked for hours to get to a secluded waterfall, friends, temples, sunsets, beaches amongst other things).
Only to find 2 days before the end of our trip that we could no longer view our photos on the camera. We had viewed them in the past without issue and were surprised that we could no longer do so. We removed the memory card and replaced it with a second in the 2 pack of Kodak *GB cards we purchased and continued on. The new photos seemed fine and we were able to retrieve pictures from the second card.
We returned home and connected the camera to our PC and attempted to view the pictures from the first card... but it would still not read the card. We brought the card to Henry's Photography in Ottawa (10th line location) and asked what the issue was.
We were told that it was the wrong class memory card for the camera..
The card sold to us was too low standard for the HD camera we purchased and often it would in turn cause corruption of the memory card. (card is a class 2 and should have been much higher).. Something the sales associate failed to mention!!!
We paid to have the photos recovered from the card but Henry's was only able to retrieve 200 of the 600 pictures we had taken.
WE LOST ALL PICTURES of Taj Mahal, our dessert trek, the Red Fort of Agra etc...
Why?
Because the staff at Best Buy misdirected us. We would have gladly paid any price for a memory card that would have assured the safety of these pictures (as clearly described to the associate when we detailed our needs).
My wife and I have lost precious memories, memories we captured with the camera and card we purchased (from Best Buy/Kodak). Memories we will never see again. We saved and accumulated time off from our careers knowing that we would most likely NEVER be able to do this again.
NOW WE ARE LEFT WITH NOTHING.
$3000.00 in airline tickets, $5000.00 in accommodations and excursions and $441.79 for camera, advice and memory cards that ruined it all.
We are beyond upset, heart broken and devastated!!!
We have lost $8000.00 and most importantly all the pictures of the one of the kind, beautiful, magical places we visited, the friends we met along the way, the celebrations we were invited to and attended. They are all lost.
The entire record of our honeymoon has been erased based on incompetent staff.
We have contacted Best Buy, who original e-mail response was that it was OUR fault, we should have checked that before we left on our trip.
We sought their proffessional advice, yet it is OUR fault.
The VP of Best Buy sent us an e-mail (after over 100 of mine being sent) saying they would look into it.
No result
No compensation.
What we have lost is priceless.
We feel robbed, cheated and mislead. We entrusted our digital camera/memory card needs to the "professional" sales associate at Best Buy.
We went well out of our way to ensure something like this would NOT happen. We took every precaution necessary and beyond. And because of Best Buy all pictures are lost. Gone.
Regards;
Mark and Kathleen Bond
2439 Autumn Hill Crescent,
Ottawa, Ontario
K1B 4M6
613-301-2096
C.C:
Better Business Ottawa
700 Industrial Avenue
Ottawa, Ontario
CanWest News Service (Ottawa Citizen: Tech-Biz; Personal Tech);
Ottawa Sun (Technology Report);
GoldHawk Fights back at Global Television;
CTV television TechNow Television Show
Consumer Reports Canada
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