I tried Tobydeals and got stuffed around by them (couldn't source stock for 6 weeks).
Just refunded my order before being shipped from BuyBuyBox because they never replied to any emails and have read countless reviews saying they are horrible. Not sure when I'll even get a refund.
So I wanna know if buying a Oneplus 7T from AliExpress is wise, and has anyone done it? Any recommended sellers?
Thank you.
Where else is it possible to even get a Oneplus? Everyone said BuyBuyBox or Tobydeals and they're both Hong Kong.
No idea, eBay from local seller maybe? I wouldn't buy a Chinese phone, but answered your question.
Oneplus doesn't really exist in Australia so warranty really won't matter, would have to send back to HK to get fixed.
@NDxxx: ??? so dont comeback and post.
Anyone Know How To Get Cheap Postage To Hong Kong?, or
Seller Denies Getting My Return! or
Seller Refuses To Fix - Consumer Affairs Wont Help?
We arent talking about $2 items here
Considering it's still the Chinese new year holidays the sellers like BuyBuyBox will be unresponsive.
For OnePlus your only option really is the grey market sellers including Kogan. I ended up buying mine 2 years ago through BuyBuyBox's eBay store in a sale.
Everyone I spoke to said BuyBuyBox/Perfect Mission won't fix your phone under warranty and upwards of 50% have problems with their phone weeks after receiving or box is opened and rewrapped and passed off as new.
Well yeah you're buying from overseas so they really have no obligation of honouring your "warranty". That's the joys of getting a better deal with overseas sellers. There are plenty of other sellers though. Perhaps Gshopper?
As for AliExpress I wouldn't really recommend it due to the fact that they don't accept PayPal for Australians and thus no PP protection. The only real way you'll get decent support from Ali in a dispute process is being a Gold/Platinum/Diamond member.
50% seems somewhat hyperbolic. Checkout the OnePlus 7T whirlpool thread; plenty of people have ordered from buybuybox without any issues - infact I believe there has been only 1 person that has had problems with the screen being faulty upon arrival. But anywhere you order from is not going to necessarily offer you any sort of warranty (even if they say they do). This is a risk associated with buying grey market electronics.
Edit: also just noticed that OP hasn't actually received a refund from buybuybox. Note the current situation in China as well as Chinese New years is probably a reason for the delay. I ordered some items off AliExpress over 10 days ago that still haven't shipped
Try banggood or gearbest
https://www.ozbargain.com.au/deals/banggood.com
https://www.ozbargain.com.au/deals/gearbest.com
I have bought phones from Gearbest,they are ok.
free deadly virus with all Aliexpress orders…
Aliexpress "Buyer Protection" is a big hit or miss. Contacting support is a long and difficult process and "case specialists" who lie. https://i.imgur.com/zFkiQMa.png
I would rather buy a phone with local warranty. Less screwing around when it inevitably has issues. Saying that if the phone is very cheap (say $200 or less) than perhaps it’s worth the gamble.
There's no such thing as local warranty for OnePlus phones. OP; AliExpress isn't going to be any better than buybuybox. I've ordered my phones from buybuybox before without any issues (most recently the 7T). You have to understand that this is a risk of buying grey market phones (including OnePlus) - warranty is pretty much non existent.
In that case assuming the phone isn’t cheap I would buy a different model phone which is available locally. For an expensive item which can very easily have issues it’s not worth the risk.
"For an expensive item which can very easily have issues it’s not worth the risk."
I guess that's a very subjective statement. I beg to differ on the "very easily have issues part" and as a result I believe it is worth the risk (having bought many OnePlus phones without any issues for both myself and family members).
If you must buy a imported phone at least buy from a retailer that is local which must abide by ACL. Tobydeals and some others mentioned don’t give a shit about Aussie law, heck, they don’t even charge GST still after the low value gst goods came in after a year in place.
Kogan, Australian retailer, sells oneplus and aliexpress is at least big and trusted. I’d stick with them.
Ive bought 5 or 6 Xiaomi phones from AliExpress for myself and family in the last few years I have never had a problem, so I don't know about returns. I have no experience with Oneplus.
I bought 2 Sharp Aquos S3 phones from this deal. I wouldn't hesitate to buy from the seller again - Smartphones Store
There was an issue with the sim tray and they sorted it out for me. Phone came really well packed in bubble wrap box.
Bought my OnePlus 7T from BuyBuyBox on the 23rd of Jan and still has not shipped yet. Also sent them a note via their contact form and they haven't got back to me yet. Hoping they ship it soon…
The delay is because of the Chinese New Year.
Thanks. Wish they had their operational downtime on their website as many companies go back to work at different times so there is no current indication when they may ship it.
No, it's not wise. Grey market import with no AU warranty.