Being shafted by ebay sellers and other online sellers

[stui magpie]

[Morrigu]

^ Yep I’d rather go without than buy anything from China!

[Jezza]

[eddiesmith]

Its very hard, when it comes to Ebay I won't buy anything from overseas unless its something specific to that country like USA or UK items. A lot of times I'll pay more if its in Victoria than interstate just hoping to get it quicker!

Also learning if the price is a lot lower than elsewhere, there must be a reason so don't bother.

Also I'm staying away from Amazon, every time I look for something it just seems dodgy. In saying that I used to buy stuff through the UK Amazon, but I think we've been blocked!

[think positive]

ditto jezza, Stu and Morrigu!
up until this all happened, i occasionally bought on Aliexpress, however, not any more. most of the things i bought were ok, some were exceptional, but i am a member of an ali facebook group so i would check recommendations. I bought dresses for photoshoots, a couple were meh, some were great, and 3 are drop dead gorgeous. now im sticking to buying 2nd hand bridesmaids or flower girl dresses and tutus from oz!! although i probably have enough now! i recently got 4 ladies designer dresses from the states, all in as new condition, 1 with tags, dirt cheap and they are stunning! 1 was the wrong size, they paid to ship it back, which cost more than the dress! i bought a macro lens from ebay, it wouldnt focus, the seller was great, got all the money back, and she paid to ship it.

you just have to be careful. i always pay paypal which as a seller i hated, but as a buyer its worth the piece of mind. made the odd mistake but mostly good experiences. i dont get the drama with gumtree of marketplace, i only buy things i pick up and pay when i do, so if its crap you walk away!

i always read feedback, and i always leave it!

and i love amazon! i have a couple of shop i buy from in the states, although i havent for a while, post is too much. but i ship to a place in Oregon called Comgateway, and they onship, as some places wont sell to Australia. never had a problem super fast post. When we were flying out og yellowstone we had some time to kill and i spotted my favourite online store, Sierra trading company, i was so excited, hubby got heaps, i got 1 tiny thing!

i buy a lot of camera gear from B&H in new york, their service is second to none and they have brilliant sales! Got a dream carbon fibre tripod, for a third of what you pay here, including post, arrived in 4 days flat. and i mean a dream! its magnificent! and its my go to for camera bags, best quality, for a lot less.

buying in oz is so expensive! i did buy a good tripod on sale here, its called a three legged thing! i got it for Europe last year and its the bomb! made in England! (i happened to see the carbon fibre one on sale just before christmas, thanks santa, dont really need 2, but its handy!)

one thing for sure, its worth paying extra for express post and tracking. I bought a new phone today, only $10 extra for express and tracking. cheap piece of mind!

[think positive]

[David]

The GST pretty much killed Amazon for me (which I used to use pretty regularly to buy DVDs). The Australian version has a very poor range and what's there is generally too expensive, so I don't bother. Otherwise, I still use eBay from time to time. Tried something a bit different a few weeks ago and ordered some DVDs from Barnes and Noble (which doesn't ship to Australia) when they were having a 50% off sale, and then used the ShopMate service from Australia Post to get them here. It's definitely not cheap – the postage alone cost me $50+ – but was still cheaper in total than it would have been going through an eBay seller.

[Woods Of Ypres]

Amazon Australia is crap. too expensive

Used to love Amazon USA, had bought heaps of quality stuff but not anymore. These are the reasons I don't bother anymore

1. AUD to USD not great
2. GST added to every order
3. Increased shipping rates
4. Items previously bought no longer ship to Australia

On a separate note, anyone know any clothing brands that make quality gear?
I used to get Carhartt & Timberland shipped from USA, now their stuff is made in China its garbage.

[think positive]

i just bought some Sandisk USBs on the aussie amazon, free post! says by the 26th!

[think positive]

[eddiesmith]

Not share if this was a scam or not, but the nephews smashed the iPad, again, and as I can't take it to our usual repairer as they are well outside the 5ks, we were looking into other local options.

One we found wanted payment upfront before doing the repairs, which was a bit of a concern as they were operating out of a house and usually you get the screen fixed then pay. But they'd have payment and your unlocked iPad. Shared concerns with them and they said fine, don't bother!

Sometimes its good to be a bit wary.

[think positive]

Yeah that’s a hell no! Where about are you? The guy I go to has another office near Dandenong or Springvale

[stui magpie]

For mine, nephews go without an ipad for a month or so.

[Tannin]

The guy has to buy expensive parts and hope that you are good for them, otherwise he gets stuck with them. Where the cost of the parts are a substantial fraction of the value of the item (is is the case here), it is a high risk transaction. If he doesn't like the look of you, yep, of course he will want a deposit. Spend enough years repairing stuff and you get a pretty effective radar for troublesome customers and learn how to duck the bad jobs. It's a survival skill.

PS: there is absolutely no reason not to use your usual bloke. There is this new service these days called the "Post Office". Try it.

[think positive]

thats a fair point, but ipads are not cheap, so youd be sure they would collect it!

oh and Eddie buy one of those diamond finish glass covers for it!

my USBs from Amazon arrived yesterday, an absolute bargain! free post because i bought a few, ordered sun arrived wednesday, in genuine packaging.

Meanwhile i paid express for my phone, hopefully it will be here tomorrow! this week i also bought a clothes rack for under the stairs, and 2 days later a cube thing and some odds and ends all from Kmart. tracking shows the clothes rack, free post is on its way - from WA! meanwhile the cube thing etc should be here tomorrow or by tuesday!

it took 3 weeks to get a ski mask thing from the other side of Melbourne, which i reckon means they actually dropship. Me and junior ordered a stack of stuff from the Athletica sale, yesterday, should be here Monday, $9 post! my first order from them was a 2 weeks ago, and the stuff arrived in 5 days. and guys, if you have a lady that wears gym gear, get her a pair of these pants, they are the most comfortable, most flattering things ive ever bought!

officeworks are back to 1 day delivery, although im waiting on one thing. between the three of us girls the postie should count as family!!