Bought a dash cam from Lazada but.....

[giddyup]

Bad advice.

No advise given, just a technical assessment. If you feel better with an overpriced brand product, it works for you. I'm happy with my China OEM cam. The whole world comes from China

I'm with MadMac. I can buy from a Chinese website or ebay going through only 1 reseller whose making small profit margins, and have it delivered duty-free (marked as a gift). On the Chinese site, you can clearly see the quantity discounts available, so you know the lowest price anyone is buying it for.

The same thing sold by a shop in Thailand has to pay import duties (30% on things like this) and VAT (7%), has to use floorspace for storage, has to pay for packing and delivery, has to pay for marketing/advertising, and has to make enough profit to feed all the mouths they have.

A classic example is some solar+LED step lights I bought recently, From Thai suppliers, prices range from 400-700 Baht/pc. From China the exact same thing (very easy to spot) cost me 92 Baht/pc delivered (no taxes). At that price difference, you can buy a few more units and service your own warranty plan, and still be way ahead

Just pay using PayPal so if what you receive isn't right / as described, you can get your money back.

You are confused on the arguments presented.

This isn't about buying the same thing from a Chinese website or a Thai supplier. No argument there.

It's about the premise that all dash cams are the same because most are made in China.

... and try getting your money back when it dies after a month.

[Goat Roper]

A bit expensive but I bought a Garmin GDR-35 and the rear camera GBC-30 and both works a treat. Night and day videos are sharp. As said earlier, you get what you pay for.

An old Chinese proverb, "Good no cheap, cheap no good"

Hi GR, where did you purchase your setup?

Sorry for being so slow. I bought it direct from ESRI in Bangkok. Nice folks to deal with. If you need I can provide you with all details.

[IMHO]

... and try getting your money back when it dies after a month.

Paypal give you 45 days to open a dispute. have done it a few times now, always ended in my favor. If buying off sites like dhgate, ebay, aliexpress, banggood etc, sellers are so sensitive to bad ratings they will always look after you if not happy. In my experience, the only time I've had to escalate using PayPal is when buying direct form the vendor website.

I make anywhere from 4 to 15 orders from CN/HK/TW each month, maybe 2 times a year I have a problem with delivery or the product. Maybe I'm just lucky though.

[giddyup]

... and try getting your money back when it dies after a month.

Paypal give you 45 days to open a dispute. have done it a few times now, always ended in my favor. If buying off sites like dhgate, ebay, aliexpress, banggood etc, sellers are so sensitive to bad ratings they will always look after you if not happy. In my experience, the only time I've had to escalate using PayPal is when buying direct form the vendor website.

I make anywhere from 4 to 15 orders from CN/HK/TW each month, maybe 2 times a year I have a problem with delivery or the product. Maybe I'm just lucky though.

Yes, you do get 45 days, but in my experience (and I've bought dozens of items from China) it takes the better part of a month for goods to arrive,and I've never had anything come in under 3 weeks, so that gives you a couple of weeks to see how reliable the product is before putting in a claim if it's faulty. Let's face it, there's a lot of cheap and shoddy goods coming out of China, things aren't always the bargain they seem. It hasn't stopped me buying from there, but I wouldn't expect to get long service out of a $30 dash cam.

[IMHO]

... and try getting your money back when it dies after a month.

Paypal give you 45 days to open a dispute. have done it a few times now, always ended in my favor. If buying off sites like dhgate, ebay, aliexpress, banggood etc, sellers are so sensitive to bad ratings they will always look after you if not happy. In my experience, the only time I've had to escalate using PayPal is when buying direct form the vendor website.

I make anywhere from 4 to 15 orders from CN/HK/TW each month, maybe 2 times a year I have a problem with delivery or the product. Maybe I'm just lucky though.

Yes, you do get 45 days, but in my experience (and I've bought dozens of items from China) it takes the better part of a month for goods to arrive,and I've never had anything come in under 3 weeks, so that gives you a couple of weeks to see how reliable the product is before putting in a claim if it's faulty. Let's face it, there's a lot of cheap and shoddy goods coming out of China, things aren't always the bargain they seem. It hasn't stopped me buying from there, but I wouldn't expect to get long service out of a $30 dash cam.

I order so much I keep a spreadsheet of order date, ship date, tracking # and received date

Looking at the past 6 months, average from China is 8 days, max is 14. HK is 8/10, TW is 6/8, USA is 13/17. Sounds like you get some customs delays, or bad sellers.

[MadMac]

Delivery from China takes usually ~ 2 weeks, if not over Christmas.

Regarding the quality of what you can expect, do online research and compare. I wrote that already. Without proper homework chances are high you'll be disappointed, and vice versa.

Again, if you feel happy with your branded product, it's perfectly fine. It may still have the exact same components and work exactly the same way, but it's peace of mind. I can understand that, also if it comes with a local warranty. If the latter is of any value.

No pun intended.

[giddyup]

... and try getting your money back when it dies after a month.

Paypal give you 45 days to open a dispute. have done it a few times now, always ended in my favor. If buying off sites like dhgate, ebay, aliexpress, banggood etc, sellers are so sensitive to bad ratings they will always look after you if not happy. In my experience, the only time I've had to escalate using PayPal is when buying direct form the vendor website.

I make anywhere from 4 to 15 orders from CN/HK/TW each month, maybe 2 times a year I have a problem with delivery or the product. Maybe I'm just lucky though.

Yes, you do get 45 days, but in my experience (and I've bought dozens of items from China) it takes the better part of a month for goods to arrive,and I've never had anything come in under 3 weeks, so that gives you a couple of weeks to see how reliable the product is before putting in a claim if it's faulty. Let's face it, there's a lot of cheap and shoddy goods coming out of China, things aren't always the bargain they seem. It hasn't stopped me buying from there, but I wouldn't expect to get long service out of a $30 dash cam.

I order so much I keep a spreadsheet of order date, ship date, tracking # and received date

Looking at the past 6 months, average from China is 8 days, max is 14. HK is 8/10, TW is 6/8, USA is 13/17. Sounds like you get some customs delays, or bad sellers.

I'm waiting on two items at the moment, a power supply converter, paid for on the 13th last month, and a watch strap, paid for on the 24th last month. I have never had any item from China in 8 days. Ever.

[giddyup]

Delivery from China takes usually ~ 2 weeks, if not over Christmas.

Regarding the quality of what you can expect, do online research and compare. I wrote that already. Without proper homework chances are high you'll be disappointed, and vice versa.

Again, if you feel happy with your branded product, it's perfectly fine. It may still have the exact same components and work exactly the same way, but it's peace of mind. I can understand that, also if it comes with a local warranty. If the latter is of any value.

No pun intended.

It's also the convenience of getting your item in a couple of days, if buying from someone like Lazada, and being able to return it and get a refund or replacement in the same time if it's not up to scratch. IMO that's worth paying a bit more.

[IMHO]

I'm waiting on two items at the moment, a power supply converter, paid for on the 13th last month, and a watch strap, paid for on the 24th last month. I have never had any item from China in 8 days. Ever.

We're getting way off topic now, but I wonder where the delay is? Did you specify EMS? if so, the tracking# should indicate where the delay is. If not, maybe they are using some super-cheap back-loading style of shipping? (I once had a China vendor send to me using DeutschePost, and packing in garbage bags! - that took 17 days - off my seller list). Maybe customs delays because you have a farang name?

[selftaopath]

Delivery from China takes usually ~ 2 weeks, if not over Christmas.

Regarding the quality of what you can expect, do online research and compare. I wrote that already. Without proper homework chances are high you'll be disappointed, and vice versa.

Again, if you feel happy with your branded product, it's perfectly fine. It may still have the exact same components and work exactly the same way, but it's peace of mind. I can understand that, also if it comes with a local warranty. If the latter is of any value.

No pun intended.

It's also the convenience of getting your item in a couple of days, if buying from someone like Lazada, and being able to return it and get a refund or replacement in the same time if it's not up to scratch. IMO that's worth paying a bit more.

Thanks to all that have mentioned Lazada. I'm "in the dark" a/b online shopping. Any info on this is greatly appreciated. I went to Lazada and found no "English" language available. The google translate seems a bit confused re: shipping etc. I loved buying from eBay but have been to "skeptical" a/b using it from Land of Scams. I couldn't even get a holiday greeting card delivered to me while in BKK. And in Kaengkhro they sent mail back (from a rented mail box) b/c they didn't "know me." ?????????

[giddyup]

Delivery from China takes usually ~ 2 weeks, if not over Christmas.

Regarding the quality of what you can expect, do online research and compare. I wrote that already. Without proper homework chances are high you'll be disappointed, and vice versa.

Again, if you feel happy with your branded product, it's perfectly fine. It may still have the exact same components and work exactly the same way, but it's peace of mind. I can understand that, also if it comes with a local warranty. If the latter is of any value.

No pun intended.

It's also the convenience of getting your item in a couple of days, if buying from someone like Lazada, and being able to return it and get a refund or replacement in the same time if it's not up to scratch. IMO that's worth paying a bit more.

Thanks to all that have mentioned Lazada. I'm "in the dark" a/b online shopping. Any info on this is greatly appreciated. I went to Lazada and found no "English" language available. The google translate seems a bit confused re: shipping etc. I loved buying from eBay but have been to "skeptical" a/b using it from Land of Scams. I couldn't even get a holiday greeting card delivered to me while in BKK. And in Kaengkhro they sent mail back (from a rented mail box) b/c they didn't "know me." ?????????

When I go to the Lazada site Google automatically translates the page. Lazada offers a COD option when you buy and their delivery charges are very low. You do have to register first which is just a formality.

[selftaopath]

Delivery from China takes usually ~ 2 weeks, if not over Christmas.

Regarding the quality of what you can expect, do online research and compare. I wrote that already. Without proper homework chances are high you'll be disappointed, and vice versa.

Again, if you feel happy with your branded product, it's perfectly fine. It may still have the exact same components and work exactly the same way, but it's peace of mind. I can understand that, also if it comes with a local warranty. If the latter is of any value.

No pun intended.

It's also the convenience of getting your item in a couple of days, if buying from someone like Lazada, and being able to return it and get a refund or replacement in the same time if it's not up to scratch. IMO that's worth paying a bit more.

Thanks to all that have mentioned Lazada. I'm "in the dark" a/b online shopping. Any info on this is greatly appreciated. I went to Lazada and found no "English" language available. The google translate seems a bit confused re: shipping etc. I loved buying from eBay but have been to "skeptical" a/b using it from Land of Scams. I couldn't even get a holiday greeting card delivered to me while in BKK. And in Kaengkhro they sent mail back (from a rented mail box) b/c they didn't "know me." ?????????

When I go to the Lazada site Google automatically translates the page. Lazada offers a COD option when you buy and their delivery charges are very low. You do have to register first which is just a formality.

Thank you. I now have an account. I'm browsing and suspect soon I'll place my first order. Glad you told me they have COD. That might be what I'll do until/if I become more confident in funds transfer. lol Guess my/ and other X pats' experiences leave me a bit skeptical. lol

Cheers,

Keoki