Amazon D800 Delivery Estimate — Mistake?

Amazon sent out Delivery Estimate emails for Nikon D800 orders with delivery dates of January 2013! The emails list ship date of December 31, 2012. The messages were sent to many customers who placed pre-orders for the Nikon D800 on Amazon, many of the customers report placing their orders just minutes or hours after the pre order was open.

This appears to be a mistake and hopefully Amazon will correct the error before customers unwittingly cancel their orders.

UPDATE: Amazon explains that the 2013 delivery estimate is not accurate. Since they do not have an ETA from their supplier, the date in their system is a placeholder.

“Our latest information indicates that ‘Nikon D800E 36.3 MP CMOS FX-Format Digital SLR Camera (Body Only)’ hasn’t been released yet, and we don’t know the expected release date. The 2013 date listed on our website is displayed as a placeholder until our suppliers are able to provide us with a specific release date. Once we know the release date, we’ll add that information to our website.”

Apparently the placeholder date triggered an email with the incorrect delivery estimate to be sent to everyone who pre-ordered the D800 on Amazon.

If you inquire with Amazon customer service about the delay you may be offered a free shipping upgrade or other benefit. Customer service associates are generally not aware of the specific release information or dates beyond what their system says and they may continue to quote the January delivery estimate until their system is updated. The following is an example of one response:

It appears that this release has been delayed. We do not have any information on the updated release date at this time. Hence, this is the reason the estimated delivery date for your order [number removed] is stated between January 4, 2013 and January 8, 2013.

I want to make sure your order gets to you faster once we have stock. To help make up for the delay, I’ve upgraded the shipping method to One-Day shipping at no charge. The new estimate for delivery is January 2, 2013 .

Although the shipping method is faster, it’ll still take some time to get the Nikon digital camera. As soon as we receive more stock, we’ll ship your order and send you an e-mail to let you know.

The response is basically a form letter with the order and product information inserted automatically. Nikon has made no indication that there is any delay with the D800 release and we believe the Nikon D800 will be released on schedule in late March.

Amazon 800 Delivery Estimate

UPDATE 2: Amazon has updated the estimated date in their system to March 2012, but it is not immediately visible on existing orders. To see the updated delivery estimate: go under your orders, click on change shipping speed and select any choice (including the same shipping method already selected) and the estimated delivery date should be updated to March 2012.

Check your Amazon Order Status: Amazon Order Summary

Contact Amazon: Amazon Customer Serivce

6 thoughts on “Amazon D800 Delivery Estimate — Mistake?

  1. I got one of their January 2013 delivery date emails, and when I enquired about it, I received the following from Amazon:

    “Hello again from Amazon.com. Our latest information indicates that “Nikon D800E 36.3 MP CMOS FX-Format Digital SLR Camera (Body Only)” hasn’t been released yet, and we don’t know the expected release date. The 2013 date listed on our website is displayed as a placeholder until our suppliers are able to provide us with a specific release date. Once we know the release date, we’ll add that information to our website.”

    I’ll wait a while before canceling.

    • Thanks for the update. That explanation makes sense, since it appears everyone received the same estimate.

  2. What a fiasco. I didn’t sleep last night after getting the email. Then I spent all day talking with customer service and responding to canned unresponsive boilerplate. Hopefully this gets worked out… Amazon is usually the best but DAMN it’s been a rough day!

  3. Anyone who orders a brand new camera of this type on the first day of pre-order from Amazon deserves all they get.

    Those in the know (ie most serious professionals) know that the cameras are currently running Beta firmware that is not due to be fixed until the end of march. IT will then be on back order with the Nikon Professional Dealers (Ie not Amazon) for the next 6 months. Then in Q4 it should be out to the rest.

  4. I didn’t make the first round of pre-orders on Amazon. instead I made the second round about a week ago. well into March. However my estimated delivery time is still March 21st. I wonder if that accurate at all Or should I realistically expect my camera in April or May?

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