Grey imports vs Australian stock: is the cheaper phone, camera or console worth it?

Search for almost any phone, camera or console and you'll find it a few hundred dollars cheaper from a seller you've never heard of. Often that's a grey import: a genuine product bought overseas and sold in Australia outside the manufacturer's official Australian channel.

Grey imports aren't fake and they aren't illegal. But they're cheaper for reasons, and those reasons can cost you later.

Why grey imports are cheaper

Manufacturers set different prices in different countries. A seller can buy stock where it's cheapest, ship it here, and still undercut Australian retailers. Some also avoid costs an official importer carries, like local support, compliance and warranty service.

What you can lose

• The manufacturer's warranty. Many brands only honour their warranty on products sold through their Australian channel. A grey-import phone or camera may have to go back overseas for repair, at your cost and risk, or not be covered at all.
• Network compatibility (phones). Phones made for other markets can miss some of the 4G and 5G frequency bands Australian networks use, which can mean weaker coverage, especially in regional areas, or no access to some features.
• The right plug and charger. Products for other markets may ship with a foreign plug, sometimes with an adaptor stuck on.
• Software and services. Some features, languages, apps or warranty-linked services depend on the region the product was made for.
• Easy returns. If the seller is overseas or online-only, sending something back is harder, even though your consumer guarantees may still apply.

How to spot a grey import

• The price is far below every major Australian store's.
• The listing says "international version", "global version", "imported", or names another country's model code.
• The warranty is the seller's own ("12-month store warranty") rather than the manufacturer's Australian warranty.
• Delivery takes a week or more, or ships from overseas.
• The seller is a marketplace account rather than an established Australian retailer.

How we handle them

Compare Empire compares Australian retailers selling local stock. We leave out grey imports, refurbished and carrier-locked listings, so the cheapest price on a page is for the product an Australian store would sell you, with its normal warranty. That sometimes means our "cheapest" price is a little higher than a marketplace listing. That's deliberate.

When a grey import can make sense

If you understand the trade-offs, a grey import can still be reasonable for products where warranty matters less and compatibility isn't an issue, such as some accessories or lenses, and when the saving is large. For a phone you'll rely on every day, or a camera body you'd need repaired, the official Australian product is usually the safer buy.

Find the real Australian price

Every product page here shows the price at each Australian store, in stock today, with the price history. Start with phones, cameras or consoles, and read your warranty rights in Australia before paying for an extended warranty.