After spending a few days in Czech Republic, I immediately wanted to test the Czech postal service, namely, to order something from Chinese online stores.
In general, I'm a real shopping fan, especially on platforms like ebay, aliexpress and others, because the savings are substantial.
For example, a simple iPhone case in Russia will cost from 1000 rubles, but actually the same one, but directly from manufacturers in China - from 100 to 300, and there's no difference in quality.
The main problem is delivery time (in Russia I had to wait at least a month, and on average, in Moscow, I received my packages in 50 days) and rarely, but occurring defects.
Recently, many foreign sellers stopped sending goods to Russia, because, for example, on ebay the seller is obliged to send the goods again if the buyer doesn't receive it within 45-50 days (which in Russia is rather the minimum time). So, I needed to choose what exactly to order to Czech Republic for a test :)
The decision came quickly - I needed a phone, because my first Android phone (acer liquid metal) was already working poorly, and I just wanted something new. So, I'll describe all my steps for buying a phone in an online store and comment on each of them.
1) Clearly think through which phone we need. Think through the necessary functions, search and compare options, prices, brands.
I'll speak for myself - I was looking for a phone with these characteristics:
- 2 SIM cards (after all, we're in Czech Republic - in addition to the Russian SIM card for banks, etc., we have a Czech SIM card for calling home and around the country)
- strong body and tempered glass (from my experience I understood that plastic wears out, and it's unpleasant, and a phone is a thing for everyday use, and you don't want to look after such things)
- powerful battery (again, after a year of using a phone with Android OS, I didn't like charging it every day, constantly trying to save energy)
I also needed standard functions, such as: GPS, Wi-fi, 3g, memory cards and others. In addition, I was looking for a phone with a bright screen, because I was tired of walking the streets and peering into the phone looking for the information I needed.
I searched and compared phones on Yandex Market, because it was easiest to do it in Russian.
In September 2013, only a couple of models met my requirements, and all of them were from Chinese (unknown to our ears) manufacturers. Having completed this step, we move to the next:
2. Choose 2-3 models we like and compare them.
And read detailed reviews, learn in advance the pros and cons of our future equipment.
Personally, after searching, I was satisfied with two models: Jiayu g3s and Jiayu g4. Strangely enough, well-known brands didn't have suitable models at all, and only in October something similar began to appear, but already with a price of around 30,000 rubles.
As in the first step, I compared both models in the market and found a couple of reviews there. They should also be looked for on 4pda.ru and youtube.
In the end, we should choose exactly what we need, and, just in case, keep a backup option.
We move to the next step:
3. Choose the store, seller, finally choose the purchase, prepare mentally for shopping in an online store.
So, I settled on the Jiayu G3S model. It cost less (within $200 including delivery), was smaller in size (a 5-inch screen was too big for me), and also, after reading several reviews, I understood that this model is much more stable than others, less chance of getting a defect.
The phone was finally chosen, which means we need to look for a seller. Here it's worth noting - we definitely need a minimum knowledge of English, both for reading product information and for communicating with sellers.
On aliexpress (analog of ebay) we register and start looking for the phone. Having found the right model, we see that we have enough options - what to choose from?
The simplest way is to sort sellers by rating. Check what I highlighted in yellow and correct according to logic.
Another important note: study the customs laws of your country. This is important. For example, in Czech Republic, you need to pay VAT of 20% of the product cost if its price is between 22-150 euros. If more than 150 - you need to pay duty as well, up to 10% of the cost.
Having chosen a couple of sellers we like, try to get used to the idea that you will soon buy a product in a way you haven't bought before. Looking ahead, you'll most likely like it :) We move to the next step, there's very little left:
4. Communicate with the seller. Ask for gifts. Pay for and order the product.
Well, there's very little left, but don't relax, now will be the most important actions. We need to write to the seller we like about our desire to buy a phone. We write anything - we need to find contact with the person.
Don't hesitate to ask for gifts, for example - cases, styluses, memory cards - in general, small things. Also, you can ask the seller to send photo proof that the phone is in stock and ready to ship. Personally, I asked my seller to remove all programs in Chinese, and also check the device for any defects.
This is necessary so that if you receive a defective product, there's something to write to both the seller and the conflict resolution service. Remember that you're paying money, and there's a review system on the site. Read about the seller and write yourself - any negative reviews negatively affect sales, so a good seller will do everything to make you satisfied with the purchase.
In the end, if common ground was found - you make the purchase. I won't describe this process, it's intuitively clear anyway.
You just need to enter your address, choose the delivery method and pay for the product with a bank card. Check if your card can be used to pay on the internet, if not - connect this service at the bank - it'll come in handy 1000 times.
I chose DHL delivery (it cost me $18), agreed on all the details with the seller and started waiting for delivery. Don't forget that the address in Czech Republic is slightly different from ours, accordingly, I, living in a dorm, indicated its address and my name, without indicating the room. The total price of my order - about $170 for the phone and about $20 for delivery, which in total can be rounded to 200 - cheap, right? So, we move to the most pleasant step, the last one:
5. Waiting for the product, receiving and checking.
3 days after making the payment, the seller went to the post office and sent my phone. Strange and long, but then I didn't know that there was a big holiday in China, the whole country wasn't working. Well, nothing terrible, he apologized for the delay and wrote me a message, attaching a number so I could track where my package is.
It was night, and I went to study, worrying a little. Imagine my surprise when, coming home, I realized that the phone was already in Europe, namely - in Germany, which is very close! Then I didn't quite understand how DHL would work with me.
The next day there was a call, but I couldn't answer - I was at registration at the foreigners police in Kutná Hora. Coming home I noticed that a delivery attempt was made, but I wasn't home. Very strange that only one call was made. And besides that, I barely speak Czech.
Well, nothing terrible, I wrote to the global support service, an English-speaking girl called me back and explained everything. The next day after school, around 2 PM, the courier called and said he'd arrive in 5 minutes at the dorm. I needed to bring 222 crowns with me (this is that same VAT that DHL paid for me. How exactly this amount came out - I think will remain a mystery).
And in 15 minutes (for Czechs 5 minutes is longer 😀) a van arrived at the dorm, they gave me the package, I signed and went home to unpack and check.
This is the box that was waiting for me. Not crumpled, beautiful :)
We open it and first of all we see that documents are on top - the contents are described, its cost, as well as transportation rules, because the phone battery is flammable, you need to be careful with it during transportation. Such things. By the way, the seller indicated that the phone cost $60, not $160. Apparently to pay less tax. Hard to say exactly why. Doesn't matter anymore.
And here, a beautiful box awaits us, in which the phone itself lies. We open it and ...
This is already a topic for the next note :) Thanks everyone for reading, and happy internet shopping! Drawing conclusions - it's easy, cheap and pleasant. Here I received a mobile phone in 3 days, could have been 2. For interest, you can send a letter by express mail within Russia - and even that will arrive slower.
