Team-BHP - Buying from AliExpress
Team-BHP

Team-BHP (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/)
-   Shifting gears (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/shifting-gears/)
-   -   Buying from AliExpress (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/shifting-gears/216733-buying-aliexpress.html)

Intend to have a repository of all information, do's & dont's, links, suggestions, seller preference, issues and everything else with regards to Ali Express, which shall help every member of the forum to chose the right products.

Most seasoned buyers from Ali Express can always help to post the best products, sellers and give suggestions.

It has a plethora of accessories, tools, DIY products, cleaning & waxing products etc. But more the choices more the worry if the one bought is the perfect choice or not.

To start with members who have already bought stuff from Ali Express can post the product reviews and for which car it was bought. Not to forget to give specific link so it helps members who have liked what they have seen and read in your posts.

I have bought a lot of items from Aliexpress. I am extremely satisfied with the quality of items, keeping in mind the prices.
I buy from stores on Aliexpress that have at least 4.7+ rating.

Keep in mind that you may get a bad/defective product. For higher value items the seller may aske you to return the defective piece and then send a replacement. Sometimes items are lost in transit. Payprotect function of Aliexpress works well in such cases.

I always get things by Registered Post or Small Packet Parcel Post. Aliexpress Standard Shipping also uses IndiaPost for delivery. I have not been charged customs on small value items. For costlier items I pay the customs charges at the Postoffice before taking delivery.

Couriers, like DHL etc, turn out to be very expensive as final customs is charged on courier charges also and levied irrespective of value.
In case you want things fast EMS Speedpost is better than the couriers.

Quote:

Originally Posted by sridhar-v (Post 4712294)
I have bought a lot of items from Aliexpress. I am extremely satisfied with the quality of items, keeping in mind the prices.

If you can post pics and specific links of few of the best products you have bought.

Quote:

Originally Posted by sridhar-v (Post 4712294)
Keep in mind that you may get a bad/defective product. For higher value items the seller may aske you to return the defective piece and then send a replacement. Sometimes items are lost in transit. Payprotect function of Aliexpress works well in such cases.

This is why we can all help get the best out of Ali Express using this thread as a reference. Many of us would get lured by the price and scope of products but then there are issues of defective ones, delivery time, refunds and replacements. Unlike Amazon and Flipkart which operate in our country, it is quicker and safer albeit the variety is quite less.

Quote:

Originally Posted by sridhar-v (Post 4712294)
I always get things by Registered Post or Small Packet Parcel Post. Aliexpress Standard Shipping also uses IndiaPost for delivery. I have not been charged customs on small value items. For costlier items I pay the customs charges at the Postoffice before taking delivery.

May be group ordering would help spread out the customs' cost and make it more value for money. Thank you for your inputs, definitely would help to keep in mind when ordering on Ali Express.

Quote:

Originally Posted by VWAllstar (Post 4712285)
Intend to have a repository of all information, do's & dont's, links, suggestions...

Most seasoned buyers from Ali Express can always help to post the best products, sellers and give suggestions.

Not to forget to give specific link so it helps members who have liked what they have seen and read in your posts.

I think this is a great idea. Reviews on Aliexpress are unreliable. Given the knowledge and wealth of experience available with TBHP members, this database would be very helpful.

A tie-up with Aliexpress may be in TBHP's future (hint: GTO :))

Mod Note: Thread moved to Shifting Gears. Thanks for sharing!

Please note that Team-BHP rules don't permit group buys or group orders, so please avoid discussing that.

I have bought lot of stuff from AliExpress but delivered to Germany. Some items I bought were stored in Warehouse of Europe. Mine collective cost of orders should be more than Rs. 2L

Things I bought
1. 3 xiaomi vacuum robots.
2. 3D printer
3. Lot of electronic circuitry, motors, tools, sensors.
4. Toys, Lego replicas specially for motors and remotes.
5. Drone for kids and spare parts

I find AliExpress is the biggest boon for electronic enthusiast and I appreciate how China facilitated small time inventors with abundant supply of things needed.

Only point is you need to have lot of patience for delivery. Things I bought are really good with excellent quality. My order has never gone bad and I have not raised a single ticket.

If I compare to Gearbest, which gave me lot of troubles, missed orders, no refunds. AliExpress is simply fantastic.

I have bought tonnes of stuff from AliX. Just ensure to use Aliexpress standard shipping method. If high value item is bought, use a DHL/Fedex if you don't mind costs and duties. All items were delivered which came using Aliexpress shipping but have lost 3 small items which i ordered using other cheaper methods which have no tracking.

Club Factory, Shein and AliExpress get a jolt as govt abolishes duty-free gifts.

https://entrackr.com/2019/12/club-fa...ty-free-gifts/

Quote:

Originally Posted by VWAllstar (Post 4712306)
If you can post pics and specific links of few of the best products you have bought.
Many of us would get lured by the price and scope of products but then there are issues of defective ones, delivery time, refunds and replacements.
May be group ordering would help spread out the customs' cost and make it more value for money.

I am extremely happy with the quality of the products i have ordered. One has to be realistic in expectations regarding life and actual performance.

Given the hardening customs stance Group purchase may not be a good idea. Trust me when I say that opting for ordinary post or regitered post works. Only issue is that for medium to large parcels one has to go tho the post office to pick it up. And one needs to have a good rapport with the postal staff.

A few consignments have gotten lost in transit. On raising a dispute I got a full refund.
An elcheapo(around 3K) dashcam, which I had ordered, turned out to be defective. Normally for such a low value i would have just chucked it in the trash. But I decided to see how the replacement process works. After a online chat I sent it back to the seller. For this one has to go to the main post office, show them the item, pack it in front of them and then get it registered as a parcel. Postage was some Rs.170. The seller received it in due course and despatched a replacement. That consignment got lost somewhere in Istanbul(Turkey post). I just gave up. it was not destined for me to have that particular model of dashcam.

My experience is that it take between 20-40 days for the item to reach after despatch. For registered post items one can track the progress online. Invariably the items get stuck in Kolkatta transit. Quite a few times i have raised a complaint on the IndiaPost portal and the items have been tracked down in a few days.
Chinapost items transit through Kolkatta. Normally Aliexpress Standard shipping and Singapore Post transit through Singapore and reaches Mumbai.
In all cases customs clearance for my items has been done at Mumbai. The postal department takes care of everything. Duty, if charged, is to be paid in cash at the post office.
I had a couple of consigments coming in by DHL. One needs to furnish ID documents online and pay the customs, in cash, on delivery.

I am posting some links to give you an idea of the items i ordered. Please note that most of the items are no longer available or newer models have been introduced.

My very first order :-
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/3231...27424c4dCViNFG
came by speedpost

My very first electronics item:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/3232...27424c4dCViNFG
I got it for around Rs. 3500. Excellent value for money. Excellent sound quality. After 4 years I have now upgraded this to a 2 din Blaupunkt. But this unit is now doing duty in a tempo.

Car battery charger:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1844...27424c4dCViNFG

Shirt:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/3264...27424c4dtPXZZo

Croccodile clips:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/8576...27424c4dtPXZZo

H11 Led bulb:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/3272...27424c4dXSO2Cx

Battery charger:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/3281...27424c4dXSO2Cx

Pith helmet:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1464...27424c4dsTczgL

Flashlight:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/3282...27424c4dsTczgL

Fog projectors (for a friend):
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/3268...27424c4dhqhOXx

Dashcam for a friend:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/3288...27424c4dhqhOXx

HID ballast:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/3288...27424c4dhqhOXx

Camber adjustment bolt:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/3274...27424c4dhqhOXx

This is just a selection from over 100 items i have ordered in 4 years.
Lowest value was Rs. 40. Highest was Rs. 20k(incl customs).

The main advantage is getting odd items that are other wise almost impossible to get here. Like the car battery charger or the camber adjustment bolts.

Go forth and search. Best of luck.

Just to put another perspective, I have placed two orders of small items on AliExpress and both were lost. My delivery address was of Bangalore.

Quote:

Originally Posted by shobhit.shri (Post 4714706)
Just to put another perspective, I have placed two orders of small items on AliExpress and both were lost. My delivery address was of Bangalore.

Did you get a refund? And more so is it safe to pay using credit cards on the site? If any fraud happens then it would definitely be difficult to track.

Haven't bought many items from AliX, mostly of value less than Rs.1K each. Some of my orders got lost. I thought this was unique to me but going by previous threads this is common so I feel reassured.

For two items ordered by my wife (footwear & garments) the sellers were very upfront. One said he would rather not ship as the quality was not upto the mark. The other had some issue with the fabric. Both refunded the money. However a word of caution, I was not refunded the extra shipping amount. Though a small amount, it was a sore point for me. I now only order items with free shipping.

Items take a really long time to come. In the era of Amazon Prime this can be quite maddening. I have ordered a few graphic T-shirts. Since the Chinese care two hoots about IPR you can get branded merchandise at a fraction of the official price. The fabric & print quality is passable nothing great. Decorative items like tin posters of movies - Indiana Jones, Star Wars, Godfather were of reasonable quality.

I am quite happy with the Camera accessory items, I bought like lens caps, flash hot-shoe protector (with spirit level), neoprene case for camera & lenses. I am hesitant to order anything more expensive. I would rather pay more and be assured of some redress if anything goes wrong.

I had ordered the Yi Smart Dashcam from AliExpress recently.

Please keep in mind sellers at AliExpress still declare the value of $20 and mark the package as a "gift". This poses a problem at Customs due to the crackdown on gift orders from Chinese Websites. (Learnt this the hard way)

Chennai Customs ended up using the value of the product as seen on Amazon (which was twice the price I paid) and adding the 42% customs, the final cost ended up being equal to what I would've paid if I had bought the dashcam from India.

I know I could send the dashcam for re-evaluation (AliExpress provides a screenshot of the product page of the time you buy the product), but nobody answered Chennai Customs' phone and since there were no email addresses or point of contacts that could help me out — I finally ended up paying the entire custom duty.

(The dashcam was sent from China to Singapore and then from Singapore to MAA using Singapore and India Post)

I have bought lot of small but useful items at cheaper prices from Ali Express. The costliest item I have bought till date is the Viofo A119 V2 dashcam. I haven't been charged customs on any items till date. I was really enjoying the experience.

Then one day, I received an empty package with the item missing. It was delivered by India Post and received by our building security guard. I could never ascertain where the item got missed, although I did inform the seller about it. He offered to send me another piece at half the cost. But I had already become sceptical of the whole process, since there are so many parties involved in the delivery chain, anyone anywhere could empty out the item from the package which is almost impossible to pinpoint. Since then I have always avoided Ali Express for items costing more than ₹1000

I have recently ordered 8-9 low value products (less than Rs.500) and just 1 has reached me, no clue where the others are after 60 days. Seller just extends the buyer protection period. This was the normal free shipping with no tracking. I guess its better to opt for paid shipping but again that will escalate the cost.
Quality wise they are satisfactory.


All times are GMT +5.5. The time now is 14:50.