Anyone ever bought anything from istoreonline before?

[somebody]

I'm not sure whether this is the correct place to post this thread but anyways.

I'm looking to build a new PC and I'm trying to find the components that I'm after at the cheapest possible prices. I've come across i-store-online (http://www.i-store-online.com/). Has anyone ever bought from this place before? If so, are they any good?

[g8ina]

USA based global company, never heard of them, remember cheapest is NOT always best.

Id go for a company with a well known name and good reputation. Scan for example....

Caveat Emptor.

[somebody]

USA based global company, never heard of them, remember cheapest is NOT always best.

Id go for a company with a well known name and good reputation. Scan for example....

Caveat Emptor.

You are probably right, but I'm a sucker for ordering from the cheapest place. It seems like that no one has used this site before.. which is a bit worrying though!

[Output]

You are probably right, but I'm a sucker for ordering from the cheapest place. It seems like that no one has used this site before.. which is a bit worrying though!

It likely wouldn't be the cheapest place if the goods are sent from a location that means you have to pay additional fees due to import taxes & VAT etc. (this is of course assuming that you are in the UK, and that they aren't in the EU).

[jim]

They allege that they ship from MK, so that shouldn't be a problem. But I still wouldn't touch them with a bargepole.

[g8ina]

MK you say ?? HK more likely

[Saracen]

You are probably right, but I'm a sucker for ordering from the cheapest place. It seems like that no one has used this site before.. which is a bit worrying though!

I understand the temptation, but the danger is that if the item (s) show up broken, or not at all, or the wrong item is delivered, or perhaps worst of all, it packs up after 3 months, 8 months, 15 months, you are FAR better protected if the supplier is based in, and subject to, UK (or at least, EU) consumer protection legislation.

And of course, comments above about VAT, import duty, customs clearance fees, etc, are all quite right.

I know NOTHING about this particular site, including where it is based, or what legal jurisdictions or extra charges may apply, but I advise you to consider two questions :-

1) If a cheaper price up-front appeals, how about the possibility that it ends up a lot more expensive over a year or two?

2) How, if at all, do you value your time, and the hassle, or sorting out problems if something goes wrong?

I bought my last TV, for instance, from John Lewis. Why, when web-based box-shifters are cheaper?

Well, first, a free five year guarantee. Second, if it goes wrong I stick it in the car and can be back at the store in 15 minutes, not boxing it up, and messing about with courier collections and deliveries. Third, past experience with JL suggests customer service, in the event of problems, is generally first-rate.

And fourth, the very nature of cheap online stores is that they're easy to start, and easy to fold up, too. There is a concern that they might be here today, gone tomorrow. And if they are, good luck getting problems resolved.

So, if a given store is cheap, ask yourself why? There are some genuine reasons, but also, it may be lack of customer service. What it almost certainly isn't for a no-name place is that they're buying in quantities large enough to get price breaks the big boys get.

Just remember, low price and good value are not necessarily the same thing. After that, your money, your choice .... and risk.

[wasabi]

Depends a bit. In the past couple of years I've started buying a fair bit of low end electrical stuff direct from the Far East via ebay or Amazon. Would probably risk it up to bout £20, especially when I've got paypal/Amazon protection.

For anything major wouldn't risk it for reasons given by others - I won't even buy things from Scotland any more on ebay after a crook wouldn't honour warranty. I discovered if I wanted to go to small claims I'd have to go to Scotland as under Scots Law.

[TheDutyPaid]

Doing a Google search for "i-store-online.com" there are a lot of unhappy people waiting for their stuff. The site is registered in Thailand.

[somebody]

I understand the temptation, but the danger is that if the item (s) show up broken, or not at all, or the wrong item is delivered, or perhaps worst of all, it packs up after 3 months, 8 months, 15 months, you are FAR better protected if the supplier is based in, and subject to, UK (or at least, EU) consumer protection legislation.

And of course, comments above about VAT, import duty, customs clearance fees, etc, are all quite right.

I know NOTHING about this particular site, including where it is based, or what legal jurisdictions or extra charges may apply, but I advise you to consider two questions :-

1) If a cheaper price up-front appeals, how about the possibility that it ends up a lot more expensive over a year or two?

2) How, if at all, do you value your time, and the hassle, or sorting out problems if something goes wrong?

I bought my last TV, for instance, from John Lewis. Why, when web-based box-shifters are cheaper?

Well, first, a free five year guarantee. Second, if it goes wrong I stick it in the car and can be back at the store in 15 minutes, not boxing it up, and messing about with courier collections and deliveries. Third, past experience with JL suggests customer service, in the event of problems, is generally first-rate.

And fourth, the very nature of cheap online stores is that they're easy to start, and easy to fold up, too. There is a concern that they might be here today, gone tomorrow. And if they are, good luck getting problems resolved.

So, if a given store is cheap, ask yourself why? There are some genuine reasons, but also, it may be lack of customer service. What it almost certainly isn't for a no-name place is that they're buying in quantities large enough to get price breaks the big boys get.

Just remember, low price and good value are not necessarily the same thing. After that, your money, your choice .... and risk.

Thanks for the wise words. I have decided not to bother really, when you put it like that, it's not worth the hassle.

[somebody]

Doing a Google search for "i-store-online.com" there are a lot of unhappy people waiting for their stuff. The site is registered in Thailand.

Yeah I have been trawling through the internet and the feedback doesn't seem to be too good. I'm gonna pass this up and buying my computer parts from Amazon/Scan/Overclockers i think.

[tonyf11]

Well I have just received a Samsung Sound bar via istore on line .com Yes it took a month to arrive its price was a good 20% less than anywhere else.
I did get worried after such a long time, but they are legit and I feel I have to advise members that it is safe to do business with them.
The units did arrive with European plugs but they are sending UK adaptors

[peterb]

Well I have just received a Samsung Sound bar via istore on line .com Yes it took a month to arrive its price was a good 20% less than anywhere else.
I did get worried after such a long time, but they are legit and I feel I have to advise members that it is safe to do business with them.
The units did arrive with European plugs but they are sending UK adaptors

I'm glad your experience was good (although waiting for a month seems a long time).

However, I'm sure members here will weigh up the risks, including lack of consumer protection, when considering purchases from overseas sites, particularly where the reputation and feedback might not be favourable.

[sambo2711]

Not me, but a friend ordered some RAM from istoreonline... It took ages (over a month) to arrive, their tracking system failed to update, and my friend had a lot of trouble with communication with them. If I were you, it's probably best to fork out a bit extra and opt for a more reliable service.

[MJKIRKBY]

Do not touch this company with a barge pole, it is a complete scam. If you have already and paid through paypal put in a claim before 45 days are up or you will lose your money, i ordered a samsung tablet, it took that long to go through the proccessing stage that by the time i realised i was not going to get it the 45 days were up with paypal and i could not make a claim. Needless to say 5 months later i have not received the product, not received the promised refund & i am £201 worse off. The company are not responding to my emails now & my account with them has expired so i can no longer even send them emails now again do not order anything from this scam artist

[MJKIRKBY]

Sorry to say that I ordered a tablet in October, haven't received the tablet and have not had a refund, now the company have disabled my account so I cannot email them anymore, which was pointless anyway as they had stopped responding to my emails. I lost £201