Buying From AliExpress

Mike K

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I find trying to buy cameras from anyone/store, from/in, AliExpress to be a genuine pain in the ass. Has anyone else having trouble with it? any alternatives?
 

zero-degrees

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I've not had to many issues the several purchases I've made. Look at feedback and time on AE, this will tell you a lot. The one time I did have a problem the seller offered compensation to make things right, which I was happy with.
 

Mike K

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I've not had to many issues the several purchases I've made. Look at feedback and time on AE, this will tell you a lot. The one time I did have a problem the seller offered compensation to make things right, which I was happy with.
You did better than me I can't even get my order placed!
 

hmjgriffon

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cybermech

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My first Ali order I had no problem placing an order, other than the cc company pegging it as a possible fraudulent transaction immediately. Once I said it wasn't, no issue placing the order. My 2nd order got put on hold until I was verified. Took over a week for them to process it and verify me. By that time, the items I ordered were out of stock. 3rd order, no issues. Still waiting on it to ship though. Amazon it sure isn't!
 

cybermech

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2 orders on Ali with Andy, 1 not. No issues with Andy and PayPal (2 orders), one of them quite substantial.
 

spencnor

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I find trying to buy cameras from anyone/store, from/in, AliExpress to be a genuine pain in the ass. Has anyone else having trouble with it? any alternatives
The Aliexpress payment process is painful. I made a recent small purchase and communicated with the seller to pay directly via PayPal. This, of course, takes a leap of faith, because the transaction is circumventing AliExpress. Since my purchase was not for a great amount, I took a chance and it worked out. I'm not so sure I would do this with a large purchase though.

BTW, this is what some of us are doing with Andy with the Dahua cams by paying via PayPal. Of course, Andy has proved to be an upstanding guy.
 

hmjgriffon

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The Aliexpress payment process is painful. I made a recent small purchase and communicated with the seller to pay directly via PayPal. This, of course, takes a leap of faith, because the transaction is circumventing AliExpress. Since my purchase was not for a great amount, I took a chance and it worked out. I'm not so sure I would do this with a large purchase though.

BTW, this is what some of us are doing with Andy with the Dahua cams by paying via PayPal. Of course, Andy has proved to be an upstanding guy.
you think paypal is riskier than aliexpress?
 

cybermech

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Yes. Not worried about a cc # being stolen there. Seems to happen about once a year here in the US. Just check your cc info online regularly (for here). Again, not worried about Ali.
 

cybermech

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I have to wonder what's up. The extension on the buyer protection I requested previously was going to expire on 4/1. Got an email from Ali this morning that said the seller extended the protection an additional 20 days (through 4/21).
 

tigerwillow1

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After reading recommendations I bought a couple of cameras from Jimbu Security on Ali. I paid extra for DHL shipping and had them about a week and a half after placing the order. I ordered 6mm cameras and assume it's something they don't keep in stock. The only stressful part was that I got a "shipped" email with tracking number 2 days after placing the order, but they didn't actually ship for about a week. An inquiry message to Jimbu got a reasonably fast response. I agree using Ali can be a pain. My order went through this time using the 2nd credit card that I tried. Jimbu's offerings have some overlap with Andy's, but there are a lot of things that one has and the other doesn't.
 

Mike K

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I wonder a lot about Ali. I have tried to buy cameras from 2 different suppliers, and have tried each with two different CCs. All i get are messages that they are waiting for me to make my payment. I message the store owners and they can't help.
 

cybermech

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I wonder a lot about Ali. I have tried to buy cameras from 2 different suppliers, and have tried each with two different CCs. All i get are messages that they are waiting for me to make my payment. I message the store owners and they can't help.
Check to see if your cc company is blocking it. The first payment I did hung up on the payment page, and there was an email about possible fraud in my inbox almost instantly. Checked off that it was my transaction and tried again and it went through. One other thing, make sure you're using Visa or MasterCard.

Did you ever get the notification that you needed to be verified? If so, once you submit info, it takes at least 7 days to finish the process.

One other thing, make sure you know what your cc terms are. My Visa card has no fees, but my MasterCard charges a foreign transaction fee.
 

Mike K

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Check to see if your cc company is blocking it. The first payment I did hung up on the payment page, and there was an email about possible fraud in my inbox almost instantly. Checked off that it was my transaction and tried again and it went through. One other thing, make sure you're using Visa or MasterCard.

Did you ever get the notification that you needed to be verified? If so, once you submit info, it takes at least 7 days to finish the process.

One other thing, make sure you know what your cc terms are. My Visa card has no fees, but my MasterCard charges a foreign transaction fee.
My CCs are visa and master card. I will check with the banks that issued the cards to see if they have attached any fees or have any other reasons that the cards wont work in other countries. Thanks for the suggestions.
 
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