4 ms·

What kinds of things are you buying where counterfeits are a problem? Genuinely intrigued.

• SeanDav 9y ago
  Charging devices.
  • acuozzo 9y ago
    Are those charging devices both shipped and sold by Amazon?
• pp19dd 9y ago
  Everything. Just like the root poster, I am disgusted by clusters of knockoffs and increasingly more weary of seeing them. Just about anything common you run across on Amazon is probably not original (is there such a thing as an uncommon product these days?) The worst part is that I can't get myself to trust any reviews - good or bad - which was my go-to for feeling assured about a purchase. A knockoff competitor may review or pay reviewers to ding someone else's version of the product, and boost their own, and they've created a scorched earth of uncertainty from this seller ecosystem. For example, if you look up can openers, you'll see a bunch of ones that look exactly alike but are labeled as different brands. They contain slightly altered stock photos, but almost certainly all are stemming from the same original product. Mixed reviews give you cautions for some products, but not for others that are identical. Does it stay sharp, or doesn't it? Does it fail after 10 uses, or doesn't it? Does it work with lipped cans or doesn't it? If you look carefully, you can probably guess in which order a product imitation was born in, based on the progressively more distorted JPEGs of the cover photo. Look for a wire brush and you'll see same photo of the same product, "manufactured" by different companies. Senkary, Sucool, Tekton, eBoot, ABN, and a few dozen seemingly randomized names. I think I don't care about wire brush manufacturing consistency as long as it doesn't arrive wrapped in 1/4 lb of plastic and foam, and dripping with machine oil (I chuckled when I got it). On the other hand, I do care whether a sprinkler head I get is actually pressure regulated and calibrated to 30 PSI, that the variable arc nozzle is built to spec and won't decompose in sunlight and clog rest of the irrigation system, and I do care whether a phone charger might burn my house down. Unless I order those three products directly from the known manufacturer, I won't trust that it's genuine.
  • EADGBE 9y ago
    Sounds like you know exactly which kind of sprinkler head you need, but not a wire brush. After seeing some other replies, I think we use Amazon differently.
  • acuozzo 9y ago
    > Everything. The solution is to purchase products shipped and sold by Amazon. Avoid third party sellers unless you either know the seller well or if the seller is the manufacturer of the product.
• DamnYuppie 9y ago
  A few that I have experienced recently that have really turned me off of Amazon. - Charging cables, iOS and Android. - Memory cards, were supposed to be san disk but obviously were fake and didn't work well. - GoPro batteries. I am pretty much 100% skeptical of anything I buy on Amazon now, which is why I have drastically cut back my purchasing from them. Like most who are posting here I mostly go to Walmart and Costco or look for local retailers for my needs.
• partiallypro 9y ago
  Colognes, shoes, and watches, in my experience. I don't care much if a charging cable is a knock off, I usually buy a reputable cheap brand...but if I'm buying a cologne, or shoes they sure as hell better be legit.