Well, no. Mint comes from coin collecting. It means just like
it came from the mint with no signs of wear what so ever, even
the little rough edges from the stamping press are not worn.
For cameras it means that is is like new but the packaging and
papers are missing.
Like new should mean the same thing, but often means it is very
slightly warn, like a demo but preowned.
New in box, a misnomer if there ever was one, means like new or
mint with all the original papers etc. The difference is the
packaging, being in the box, especially old stuff where the
packaging itself is valuable, makes it worth more to a
collector. I can't imagine why a user would care.
New means just that. Never sold, has everything that it came
from the factory with, no one else has owned it before you buy
it. Note: even gray market stuff does not qualify as new
because the manufacturers warranty is curtailed and usually the
store bought it from another dealer rather than the distributor.
Excellent, very good, good, etc. run the gamut from used to
junky looking. Plus or minus applies to these.
To a collector these are all cosmetic terms. Working or not is
another consideration.
So why the sarcasm? If we all do not use the terms the same way
they become meaningless. How can you tell what you are buying
if mint means a few scratches to one seller, and to another that
it still works, rather than what you would expect it to.
Believe me a serious collector that paid mint prices for a
scratched camera would be very angry, and so would I.
--Tom
John Francis wrote:
> Isn't "New In Box" regarded as Mint+ ?
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