# [Guide] Buying from Amazon



## Jont828 (Feb 15, 2014)

Hey! I’m pretty new here and I’ve been strolling through some forum threads to familiarize myself with what’s going on here, and I’ve heard a lot of bad rep on Amazon because of counterfeit cubes. I’m hoping I can clarify that issue. I’ve been buying from Amazon for the past 9 years, and I haven’t had any problems. Chances are problems with counterfeits and defects are from third party sellers that aren’t affiliated with Amazon. The only reliable sellers on Amazon are its fulfilled sellers and Amazon itself. 

Fulfilled sellers are sellers who have paid Amazon to send in their products so that Amazon will store, pack, and ship them. Products from fulfilled sellers also count toward the $35 on an order needed to get “Free Super Saver Shipping,” which is free shipping by Amazon and will take about 1 week. Buying products fulfilled by Amazon also means that you can get customer support from them in case anything goes wrong (i.e. defect, counterfeit, etc). Also, if there are problems with your product, Amazon will often send a replacement or offer a refund as compensation to avoid bad rep and/or lawsuits. Here’s a picture about what I’m talking about.







In short, just buy from fulfilled sellers on Amazon and you should be fine. Also, the “% positive” rating of each seller can also be an indication of which sellers to stay away from.

One might argue that Amazon's fulfillment policy is open to anyone who wishes to pay for it. Well, Amazon does have a very strict policy against counterfeiting and selling fake products. Here's the link to the actual page.



Amazon.com said:


> Amazon Anti-Counterfeiting Policy
> 
> *Customers trust that they can always buy with confidence on Amazon.com. Products offered for sale on Amazon.com must be authentic. The sale of counterfeit products, including any products that have been illegally replicated, reproduced, or manufactured, is strictly prohibited.*
> 
> ...


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## SnipeCube (Feb 15, 2014)

I don't think this is always the case. Any scammer can still use amazon to fulfill there items. It's called FBA. They are not going to know the difference between a Shengshou cube and a Dayan cube. This is not a valid way to purchase cubes. Your best bet is to purchase from amazon companies that specifically sell cubes/toys.


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## Jont828 (Feb 15, 2014)

I'm not saying that it's 100% foolproof. I'm saying that in the event that you do get a fake/defect you can get customer support from Amazon because of their fulfillment. Also, the % positive rating is a good indication of a seller's quality.


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## ZamHalen (Feb 15, 2014)

What would be better is to make a list of reputable amazon sellers. i.e. Magic Puzzle Cube, Speedcubing Store, etc. Though these are also independent shops as well.


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## kcl (Feb 15, 2014)

I will vouch for speedcubing store and the speedsolving puzzle shop. And magic puzzle cube. I have bought cubes from all of them and never had a single issue. Speedcubing store has absolutely incredible service. My skewb had an issue when I received it, they sent me a new one, no questions asked.


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## brian724080 (Feb 15, 2014)

kclejeune said:


> I will vouch for speedcubing store and the speedsolving puzzle shop. And magic puzzle cube. I have bought cubes from all of them and never had a single issue. Speedcubing store has absolutely incredible service. My skewb had an issue when I received it, they sent me a new one, no questions asked.



Even the seemingly unreliable Chinese stores like lightake or hknowstore are excellent. Hknowstore has great customer service too, there was a mistake in stickering (had two yellow faces), and they sent me two sets of replacement stickers.


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## Jont828 (Feb 15, 2014)

I personally like Amazon because I never have to pay shipping by buying from FBA sellers and because they're about a few dollars cheaper than other cubing stores. I guess it's find if you know who to buy from. And BTW as mentioned in another thread, they have a strict anti-counterfeit policy.


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## newtonbase (Feb 15, 2014)

Through Amazon I have bought black Zhanchis from VeeCome(UK) twice and a stickerless Zhanchi from Opolo Tech. Genuine products with quick and free delivery. They were cheaper than dedicated stores too.


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## AFatTick (Feb 23, 2014)

I've been buying from Amazon a lot, I haven't gotten gotten a bad cube yet, other that the terrible stickering job on some.
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## cygorx (Feb 24, 2014)

Wow, thanks. I actually never noticed the Amazon fulfillment system; this should help in my future purchase of cubes.


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## pipkiksass (Feb 24, 2014)

Jont828 said:


> I'm not saying that it's 100% foolproof. I'm saying that in the event that you do get a fake/defect you can get customer support from Amazon because of their fulfillment. Also, the % positive rating is a good indication of a seller's quality.



You can always get customer support from Amazon, regardless of who fulfilled the order.

As another poster has already said, goods being held in the Amazon fulfilment centre is no guarantee that the goods are genuine. I could start a store tomorrow, post a Chilong as a Zhanchi, send Amazon my stock, and they'd happily fulfil the orders for me.

Personally, despite having bought cubes from Amazon in the past, I'd only use it as a last resort. Amazon don't know a Zhanchi from a Rubik's brand, especially if someone goes to the trouble of repackaging the cube and popping a Dayan sticker on it.

The only thing buyer reviews and ratings guarantee is that nobody has noticed the fraudsters yet. My bogus shop could sell 1000 Chilongs to customers who didn't know better. They'd all receive their cubes quickly from the fulfilment centre and post positive reviews.

Seriously - stick with Amazon if you wish, but make sure you have the facts straight if advising other cubers to use them.


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## BoBoGuy (Feb 24, 2014)

However, sometimes people do claim that cubes are one brand when they're really not. I once bought a 4x4 that was supposed to be Shengshou and then it turned out to be lanlan.


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## Jont828 (Feb 24, 2014)

pipkiksass said:


> You can always get customer support from Amazon, regardless of who fulfilled the order.
> 
> As another poster has already said, goods being held in the Amazon fulfilment centre is no guarantee that the goods are genuine. I could start a store tomorrow, post a Chilong as a Zhanchi, send Amazon my stock, and they'd happily fulfil the orders for me.
> 
> ...



I'm not sure if you noticed, but Amazon does have a very strict counterfeit/fake product policy. 



> Customers trust that they can always buy with confidence on Amazon.com. Products offered for sale on Amazon.com must be authentic. The sale of counterfeit products, including any products that have been illegally replicated, reproduced, or manufactured, is strictly prohibited.
> 
> We take product authenticity very seriously. It is each seller’s responsibility to source and sell only authentic products. If you sell counterfeit goods, we may immediately suspend or terminate your selling privileges and destroy inventory in our fulfillment centers without reimbursement. In addition, if we determine that a seller account has been used to engage in fraud or other illegal activity, remittances and payments may be withheld or forfeited. The sale of counterfeit goods can also lead to legal action by rights holders and civil and criminal penalties.
> 
> We are constantly innovating on behalf of our customers and working with manufacturers, content owners, vendors, and sellers to improve the ways we detect and prevent counterfeit products from reaching our marketplace. We work hard on this issue every day because we know that our customers trust that they are buying authentic products when they shop on Amazon.com. This is why we stand behind the products sold on our site with our A-to-z Guarantee. We also encourage anyone who has a product authenticity concern to notify us, and we will investigate it thoroughly and take any appropriate actions.



Here's the link to the actual page.


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## pipkiksass (Feb 24, 2014)

Jont828 said:


> I'm not sure if you noticed, but Amazon does have a very strict counterfeit/fake product policy.



:FP

Yes, I quoted it in two posts last week.

Please re-read my post.


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## Jont828 (Mar 28, 2014)

Still, you could look at the seller's reviews. I'm generally skeptical about private, small online stores since I've had bad experiences with them in the past. Also, Amazon is cheaper and generally reliable.


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## pipkiksass (Mar 28, 2014)

Jont828 said:


> Still, you could look at the seller's reviews. I'm generally skeptical about private, small online stores since I've had bad experiences with them in the past. Also, Amazon is cheaper and generally reliable.



Amazon is not cheaper than any of the online cube stores, and definitely not more reliable.

Also, seller reviews are reviews of the seller, not the product, and generally submitted by non-cubers who can't tell a €3 cube from a €30 cube.


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## Jont828 (Mar 28, 2014)

The prices aren't much lower, but it's the free shipping that I like about Amazon. 

Dayan Zhanchi Stickerless:
Amazon: 12.59
Cubicle: 14.50 + 4.95 Shipping

Maru CX3:
Amazon: 14.98
Cubicle: 15.00 + 4.95 Shipping

Fangshi Shuangren V2:
Amazon: 14.98
Cubicle: 15.00 + 4.95 Shipping

Moyu Weilong:
Amazon: 12.59
Cubicle: 14.00 + 4.95 Shipping

My point isn't that you shouldn't buy from small online stores, but it's that Amazon is also another option and isn't as bad as most cubers tend to think.


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## pipkiksass (Mar 28, 2014)

Jont828 said:


> The prices aren't much lower, but it's the free shipping that I like about Amazon...



You've chosen to quote prices from the most expensive online store, though. For example, you can pick up a Weilong from Fasttech for $8.81, that's significantly cheaper than Amazon, and with equally free shipping.

If I want to get things quickly, I buy from The Cubicle (or UKCubeStore); if I want things cheap, I buy from ZCube, Lightake, Fastech or HKNowStore. 

Why do I use The Cubicle rather than Amazon? Because there is no way (despite what you or anyone else might say) to know that a cube you are buying from Amazon is definitely the cube you want until you get it. From The Cubicle, you know you're buying from cubers (and pay extra for the privilege). 

I've heard about plenty of people getting scammed on Amazon, but I've never heard of a single person being scammed by any of the stores mentioned above. 

I don't think Amazon is a bad option, per se, but I would never buy a cube from Amazon, or recommend anyone else to.


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## CuberAtCanada (Mar 28, 2014)

I have also ordered from Amazon, and they are not trustworthy. I bought a Zhanchi, and it took a month to deliver, which is terrible, because I paid for shipping. Also, it was not in the original packaging, and the torpedoes were missing. That was my first, and last time I ordered from them. Read this, and figure the rest out.


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## Soren333 (Mar 28, 2014)

For the record, I've ordered a Zhanchi and Guhong V2 from amazon before and it was fine. It just depends on who the seller is.


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## pipkiksass (Mar 28, 2014)

Soren333 said:


> For the record, I've ordered a Zhanchi and Guhong V2 from amazon before and it was fine. It just depends on who the seller is.



Agreed, but there's no reliable way of telling if the seller is any good. I know TheCubicle is a good seller, coz asmallkitten and acoolguy. 

I've ordered from Amazon in the past, but the prices aren't great and there's a risk that simply doesn't exist when buying from a cube store.


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## Jont828 (Mar 29, 2014)

pipkiksass said:


> You've chosen to quote prices from the most expensive online store, though. For example, you can pick up a Weilong from Fasttech for $8.81, that's significantly cheaper than Amazon, and with equally free shipping.
> 
> If I want to get things quickly, I buy from The Cubicle (or UKCubeStore); if I want things cheap, I buy from ZCube, Lightake, Fastech or HKNowStore.
> 
> ...



Hmm...I'll have to look into the sites you mentioned.


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