There goes my Canon endorsement

My friend Girlie Rodis and I bonded over a Canon G7 camera during a trip to Hong Kong in 2007.
Since then we've kept each other up-to-date with gadgets we love.
Between Girlie and I, I can't tell you how many people have bought Canon cameras due to our recommendations.
Here are just some of the Canons I've owned and loved (kulang pa ito):

I used this one until I discovered the less bulky S90:

This one I recently sold to a Twitter follower:

This is my current camera:

This one's kind of useless. HP Photosmart Premium does the job better:



I will probably be a Canon user all my life.
However, I would recommend you buy your Canons from Amazon.com because they are much cheaper.
Check out the price difference:



Choose the best price from Amazon (some offer free shipping within the United States), then have them shipped to the Philippines via Johnny Air Cargo.
This is how I've bought most of my gadgets, except the G9, which I bought in Malaysia.
Shipping via Johnny Air will cost you more or less PHP 1,500 for a small camera, will take about two weeks or less, without the hassle of customs charges.
Another thing, it is a pain in the ass to get one's camera fixed here, so I have them fixed in Singapore—cheaper and faster.
As for replacement batteries, they are impossible to find here. I just called Canon Philippines' customer care and their call center guy could only offer a canned spiel telling me to call Canon resellers to find out if they are in stock.
When I told him I have already called 20 stores listed in their website to no avail, he suggested I visit the stores in person—WTH??
In other words, he had no idea how to help me and he didn't care that much.
I just feel bad that such a great product/brand couldn't offer better customer care. I give up.