Hi all

I have decided to take the plunge and buy a Mavic. I'd like to know what the difference is between the two prices.

https://www.tomtop.com/dji-multicopter-1111/p-rm7139us.html

The above website shows that I can buy either a US plug or an EU plug. The price with the US Plug is $900 and the price with the EU plug is $1200.

What is the difference???

From what I can tell, both versions have a 'transformer'. My laptop which is American has a transformer and works fine in the UK. Do you think if I purchase the US plug version for $900 will it work in the UK?




Adrian

All plugs are 110/220. Look at the bottom of the charger it should say 100/240 V if it is then you will only need to buy and adapter for less than buck and you will save $300.00

Adrian, there are different versions in each market which shows where the warranty located. You may not get the local warranty if you purchased US version.

You are recommended to contact the seller to check the exact status.

My advice is to buy it from Amazon http://amzn.to/2usXPvf my regret was buying it from DJI unfortunately as I had a problem and it took 4 weeks to resolve, with amazon it would have been sorted within a day or two... saying that DJI did eventually help me out and solve it

I'd really recommend these guys https://www.heliguy.com/

They work out a little more but it's worth the reassurance you get in tech support etc.

Interesting website with some good prices.  However, I think there may be a couple of traps in there - in addition to the issue around warranties -  that could get you if you are not careful.

Am I right in assuming that you are in the UK?  If so, I note that the cheapest price in the link that you gave are for a US plus which will be shipped from the companies China warehouse.  They don't indicate that they cover the import duties and VAT for import into Europe in their prices - well they say they do but I think how they do this is by declaring a low value for the item in their shipping documentation and hoping that customs just go by that declaration!.  If so, and your shipment gets picked up a customs, you would be liable for an minimum additional 20% on the price to cover VAT.  As I say, they say they will declare a low value on the item to help avoid customs duties but if your package gets inspected by customers then you could be out of luck and have to pay to get you item.  You throw the dice and take your chance!

I do see that you can order the drone from their German warehouse for the higher prices of £885 with an EU plug.  I would assume in that case that all the duties and VAT are included.  Certainly if it is shipped from German then UK customs would not apply duties and VAT - at least for the next 2-4 years!

£885 is still a very good price compared to UK prices.  I think buying from their German warehouse would also mean you get an EU warranty.

A Mavic bought with an EU plug will work fine in the UK with an adapter.  So will a US plug for that matter.  

MDJ Posted at 2017-7-25 02:28
Interesting website with some good prices.  However, I think there may be a couple of traps in there - in addition to the issue around warranties -  that could get you if you are not careful.

Am I right in assuming that you are in the UK?  If so, I note that the cheapest price in the link that you gave are for a US plus which will be shipped from the companies China warehouse.  They don't indicate that they cover the import duties and VAT for import into Europe in their prices - well they say they do but I think how they do this is by declaring a low value for the item in their shipping documentation and hoping that customs just go by that declaration!.  If so, and your shipment gets picked up a customs, you would be liable for an minimum additional 20% on the price to cover VAT.  As I say, they say they will declare a low value on the item to help avoid customs duties but if your package gets inspected by customers then you could be out of luck and have to pay to get you item.  You throw the dice and take your chance!

Yes, I am from and living in the UK. When I tried to look at the Germany cost, it wouldn't let me (as if it was out of stock). Regarding the import tax, I think I would have a very strong case to return the item and get my money back. If they claim that the price includes import tax then they must stick by that.

Adrian_london Posted at 2017-7-25 05:20
Yes, I am from and living in the UK. When I tried to look at the Germany cost, it wouldn't let me (as if it was out of stock). Regarding the import tax, I think I would have a very strong case to return the item and get my money back. If they claim that the price includes import tax then they must stick by that.

I've done a bit of further looking at their website and, although they claim in some of their answers to questions that they pay the duty and taxes, they don't actually as can be seen here:

https://www.tomtop.com/help/tax-customs-duties.html

Instead, as I suspected, they use the "call the item a gift or claim a low value for the item" and hope that it slips through customers.  Given the volume that flows through customs you might get lucky and avoid VAT and duties butI wouldn't count on it.  

The best bet on their website appears to be to hope that you can order from their German warehouse.  They seems to indicate they have stock there at the moment at a cost of £885.  Not bad compared to the UK but I wouldn't risk any of the China warehouse options even though the prices are lower.  They would be much closer to UK prices if you have to pay the VAT and duty and you won't have a European warranty.

MDJ Posted at 2017-7-25 05:45
I've done a bit of further looking at their website and, although they claim in some of their answers to questions that they pay the duty and taxes, they don't actually as can be seen here:

https://www.tomtop.com/help/tax-customs-duties.html

The maths looks like if you buy it from China and get stopped then you'll pay roughly the same as buying it from Germany. Does that make sense?

I can also recommend the guys at www.heliguy.com.  Based in the north east of England and were very helpful when I got my drone

Adrian_london Posted at 2017-7-25 13:52
The maths looks like if you buy it from China and get stopped then you'll pay roughly the same as buying it from Germany. Does that make sense?

I calculate it as slightly more - approx £904 versus £885 from Germany.

I base that on the fact that if your shipment from China got picked up at customs and they didn't believe that your shipment was a gift or of a value as low as the amont stated on the documentation then you could be liable for VAT and duty.  VAT is obviously 20% and the duty would be a minimumof 2.5% - I think.  Based on that, if the documentation showed that you paid £738 for the drone then you'd be liable for £148 in VAT and £19 in duty.

However, you might get lucky and your shipment just sales through and you save a lot of money.  In addition if they state a low value on the documentation and customs bvelieve that then you may pay VAT and duty based on that price which would be less than the amonts above.  In truth, I don;t know how sophisticated HMRC are.  If they are smart enough to know what a Mavic is and they suss that that is what is in the package they may go by the UK wholesale prices to use as the base for the VAT and duty - whatever they are.

So it seems to me, if you want to buy from these guys your options are:

1) Buy from the american plug from the China warehouse - you could pay as low as £738 if you get lucky!  eg. not picked up at customs.
2) Buy the american plug from the China warehouse - if yoou get picked up at customs you could pay as much as £904 - more if the duty is higher but I think it is correct at 2.5%.  Depending on what they put as the value on the pacjage you could end up paying anything between £738 and $950.  
3) Buy the EU plug from the German warehouse - you'll pay £885 plus £7 shipping.  Plus you should get an EU warranty which you won't get with the other two.  

It's probably worth pointing out that all of these prices are cheaper than what you will pay in the UK.  he goin price in the UK seems to be about £1098 at the moment.

Let us know what you do and your experience as I'm certainly interested to see how it goes.

Adrian_london Posted at 2017-7-25 13:52
The maths looks like if you buy it from China and get stopped then you'll pay roughly the same as buying it from Germany. Does that make sense?

Hi Adrian,

I went through a lot of the same searching when I decided to buy mine. But when you consider what might go wrong and what can go wrong I decided that for the sake of any money you MIGHT save, nothing gives you the security of having walked into or ordered online off a local supplier. You have much more rights.

DJI Susan has already pointed out that possible warranty pitfalls etc of purchasing from a different region. I believe (maybe she can confirm) that will have issues if you decide to buy the DJI Refresh?

Sometimes, not always, but sometimes it just makes more sense to pay more and buy local.

Just to keep you up to date, my drone is arriving on Monday (11-08-2017). I will let you know what happens regarding duty and VAT etc. **BUT** what I can tell you now is that it has actually come from Holland. Strange I know but there you are. As far as I'm aware, I should not have to pay any import/VAT on it if it's coming from the EU.

I'll let you all know how much I paid in total once everything is done and dusted