Money Saving Tip for OD students!

[dmd2b2008]

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Although I am a dental student, my wife is a practicing Optometrist so I am familiar with your field 🙂. I was surfing on ebay last night and there was a listing for some Optometry equipment. I personally purchased my dental equipment used on Ebay and couldnt be happier -- I saved quite a bit of money and got a great deal. Just thought Id pass the tip along since I know every penny helps when you are racking up the student loan debt! Trust me, check out the used equipment, via ebay, other such sites, or a family friend you know that may be looking to upgrade -- you will save yourself a ton. Best wishes, Richard

 

[EyeBaller]

Although I am a dental student, my wife is a practicing Optometrist so I am familiar with your field 🙂. I was surfing on ebay last night and there was a listing for some Optometry equipment. I personally purchased my dental equipment used on Ebay and couldnt be happier -- I saved quite a bit of money and got a great deal. Just thought Id pass the tip along since I know every penny helps when you are racking up the student loan debt! Trust me, check out the used equipment, via ebay, other such sites, or a family friend you know that may be looking to upgrade -- you will save yourself a ton. Best wishes, Richard

eBay can be a good source of equipment... but the discounts students receive on equipment while in school can be pretty significant and so make sure you look into buying through the school. This way you not only get new equipment but they also fix/replace parts for free while you're in school. Sometimes, that alone can be worth a few extra $$$.

 

[prettygreeneyes]

This way you not only get new equipment but they also fix/replace parts for free while you're in school. Sometimes, that alone can be worth a few extra $$$.

Ditto on this. Unless you are saving some MAJOR cash, having the warranty (and the peace of mind that accompanies it) makes purchasing through the school the better option!

 

[eyebwoi]

Everyone keeps saying optometry equipment purchased from the school is much cheaper. As I will be buying equipment in a week and have looked around, it doesn't seem to be that much cheaper. At least not the huge discounts I keep hearing about from the OSA! The equipment (especially trial lens set) seems to be very expensive.

Our school wants us to buy the first year bundle from pioneer international. Is there really a big difference in trial lens sets between different manufacturers? I have come across some that are almost half the price of the trial lens set by pioneer international.

I understand the warranties if purchased from the school would be very convenient.

Any views on this from current optometry students?
Any feedback/advice would be helpful.

 

[prettygreeneyes]

Everyone keeps saying optometry equipment purchased from the school is much cheaper. As I will be buying equipment in a week and have looked around, it doesn't seem to be that much cheaper. At least not the huge discounts I keep hearing about from the OSA! The equipment (especially trial lens set) seems to be very expensive.

Our school wants us to buy the first year bundle from pioneer international. Is there really a big difference in trial lens sets between different manufacturers? I have come across some that are almost half the price of the trial lens set by pioneer international.

I understand the warranties if purchased from the school would be very convenient.

Any views on this from current optometry students?
Any feedback/advice would be helpful.

I don't necessarily agree that buying equipment from the school is always cheaper, but, the last thing I would want to do is save $100-200 or so on a $1000 purchase, and have the equipment break down on me. Suppose I couldn't get it replaced through the seller... I essentially would have to spend double to replace it. There is enough stress in school, and you don't need to add anymore.

As far as trial lens kits, I did go with the one through Pioneer. Whether it's quality was far superior, I don't know. I did hear stories from a few upper classman who decided to go with significantly cheaper kits, only to find the rings hold each lens started rusting, and the glass started falling out.

Whoever you decided to purchase through, just make sure you research your decision and that you are comfortable with the deal. I love all of my equipment, and I very happy with the money I spent and the brands I chose. That's what matters in the end!

On a side note, can any practicing doc who has purchased some of the same equipment out of school that they did in school comment on the student discounts (if any?) I was under the impression that you save some serious coin over the "real world" prices. That's why 4th years always seem to be coming to our equipment fairs one last time to stock up!

 

[r_salis]

The one type of purchase I was able to compare apples-to-apples were the prices on my diagnostic lenses (78, 90, etc.) -- I don't remember the exact prices, but the price for the *same* Volk lens through school was about 20%-ish cheaper than the price through commercial sources when I checked around. That's not to say you couldn't find a deal elsewhere, but that's what I found at the time.

 

[eyebwoi]

I don't necessarily agree that buying equipment from the school is always cheaper, but, the last thing I would want to do is save $100-200 or so on a $1000 purchase, and have the equipment break down on me. Suppose I couldn't get it replaced through the seller... I essentially would have to spend double to replace it. There is enough stress in school, and you don't need to add anymore.

As far as trial lens kits, I did go with the one through Pioneer. Whether it's quality was far superior, I don't know. I did hear stories from a few upper classman who decided to go with significantly cheaper kits, only to find the rings hold each lens started rusting, and the glass started falling out.

Whoever you decided to purchase through, just make sure you research your decision and that you are comfortable with the deal. I love all of my equipment, and I very happy with the money I spent and the brands I chose. That's what matters in the end!

On a side note, can any practicing doc who has purchased some of the same equipment out of school that they did in school comment on the student discounts (if any?) I was under the impression that you save some serious coin over the "real world" prices. That's why 4th years always seem to be coming to our equipment fairs one last time to stock up!

Thanks for your post.
I think I will also buy everything through pioneer, in the bundle that was suggested. I don't want to chop and change equipment, at least not the first lot.
Out of curiosity, which other companies are there that we can buy from?
Also, to answer your last question, the optometrist I work with says the savings on equipment in school are significant when compared to buying it out of school after graduating.

 

[IndianaOD]

Ditto on this. Unless you are saving some MAJOR cash, having the warranty (and the peace of mind that accompanies it) makes purchasing through the school the better option!

Can't agree more. My direct-o and BIO crapped out on me in school. Both were replaced under warranty. That alone saved me a bunch of money.