Sticker Horror

Whenever I'm in London, I get sticker shock. Everything is much more expensive than stateside, and I can't figure how most Brits can cope. Here in the United Kingdom, prices of electronics, including digital and film cameras, have always been higher than in the United States. This explains why hordes of British tourists travel to the United States (principally to New York) and buy armloads of such items to bring back. I normally shuttle between London and New York about 6-7 times a year, and I'm amazed at the price differential between the two countries. This is currently exacerbated due to the weakness (caused by the comparative low interest rate, and by oil-exporting nations increasing their Euro holdings) of the dollar against most currencies, but mostly against the Sterling pound.

United States shoppers have a much better deal. Here's a brief comparison between US and UK street prices on selected items...All prices are expressed in US$, and I've used the prevailing exchange rate of $2 to the Sterling pound. Remember that the UK levies a whopping 17.5% value added tax on all goods.

Canon EOS 350D: US:$510 UK: $800
Canon EOS 400D: US:$675 UK: $900
Canon EOS 30D: US:$1120 UK: $1300
Canon EOS 5D: US:$2800 UK: $3300
Canon EOS 1Ds II: US:$7000 UK: $8800