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Philips seems to like to play the change the dollar sign for a pound sign trick. I thought only North American companies played that game!
Although this is not a UK seller, they do ship worldwide and they are very quick about it. They also have the best prices I've been able to find on the net and in local brick and mortar stores.
You can get an RFX9600 from B&H Audio Video in New York City for USD $349.95. That is insanely better than GBP 331!!! Even after shipping and any duty that you may pay.
Altough the unit is 110v, it uses an external DC power adapter so the unit itself is somewhat generic between countries. I believe you can use a standard plug converter to gender bend the North American pins to those bolt size prongs that the UK uses for electrics.
You can hide almost anything until you have to put the drywall up!
It will probably cost you around £380 after paying shipping, import tax and 3% custom duties. Foe a few more £'s you can get it in the UK, and have a full warranty, etc. The exchange rate at the moment doesn't save you more than £70-100, so it might not worth the effort.
Although I'm not up to date with UK duties: In general computer equipment is exempt from duty. Check with your local customs office to be sure. Also make sure to tell the clerk you order from to properly identify the equipment in the waybill: I got stung for $20 CDN in import duties because an RFX9600 was improperly identified as an amplifier (go figure!). It is a networking device by nature and construction!!
I'd be very happy to save 70 to 100 pounds! That's 140 to 200 Canadian Dollars which would keep me in beer for a couple of months!
Regarding warranty: Yes you've gone and bought an item from another country and yes your warranty would be less than valid. Thus if warranty is a concern or if you are nervous about buying on-line: Don't! But the RFX is all solid state circuitry and its not made in China! Unless the shipping box gets whacked to death; the unit should be fine. Also check the sellers return policy: B&H are very good about dealing with / addressing anything DOA (Dead on Arrival) or BOA (Beaten to Death by Fedex on Arrival).
You can hide almost anything until you have to put the drywall up!
Importing from the USA doesn't really make sense at the current exchange rate of around £1 = $1.50.
Many American companies like to use Fedex or UPS, whose charges are outrageous - maybe $50. US Postal Service is just as good, and much cheaper. There's VAT (sales tax) to pay at 15% on the total price, including shipping. Possibly import duty at around 3% as well.
There's also the carrier's "handling charge" of £8 to £15, which they charge for collecting the VAT from you and passing it to the Tax Man.
If you pay by credit card, there'll also be a commission fee for paying in dollars. This is normally hidden by the card provider offering a worse exchange rate that the quoted rates - another 2% or so.
It could end up costing £330 - same as the UK price.
I've bought many items from the USA, and it was worth doing when Sterling was around $1.90, the seller used USPS, and was OK with declaring the item as a gift worth less than £36.
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