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Why the hate on Amazon? I can understand why you may want to discourage shopping from Amazon in general but is there a reason why they are particularly bad for

Why the hate on Amazon? I can understand why you may want to discourage shopping from Amazon in general but is there a reason why they are particularly bad for electronics? As a hobbyist (with an EEE background) I seldom have an order that is large enough to make the mouser/digikey shipping costs palatable. If I need something quick (forgot a particular component) then Amazon often works great, although the 'free' shipping means everything is going to be at least $10. If you area business then Mouser etc are the place to go, but you'll also have a business account with friendlier credit and shipping terms. For hobbyists it is really difficult to beat Aliexpress. Long shipping times but you can order a whole slew of components and stock up on things you might want to try out in the future. Yes you have to pick through potential counterfeits and you may get the odd broken board/component but I'm not sure that is very different from mouser, digikey, spark fun etc?

boredprograming 5y ago
I've had bad experiences with counterfeit components on AliExpress. It's rare to get anything real and unused.
allo37 5y ago
I definitely think there's a significantly higher quality guarantee with Mouser, Digikey, SparkFun, etc. than there is with Amazon/ AliExpress. But hey, like you said for hobbyist use it might just be good enough and the cost savings can't be beat. As a beginner though, you might bang your head for hours over a non-functional circuit just because a cheapo component isn't doing what it should. Once you gain confidence it can be a bonus challenge to write a driver for some poorly documented knockoff component :p
- midnightclubbed 5y ago
  That's a good point. You definitely have to dig a little deeper on Aliexpress, my experience has been that AliExpress components/boards generally work fine but you have to dig for things like data sheets unless its a very standard part - which may be an extra friction point for a beginner.

boredprograming 5y ago

I've had bad experiences with counterfeit components on AliExpress. It's rare to get anything real and unused.

allo37 5y ago

I definitely think there's a significantly higher quality guarantee with Mouser, Digikey, SparkFun, etc. than there is with Amazon/ AliExpress. But hey, like you said for hobbyist use it might just be good enough and the cost savings can't be beat. As a beginner though, you might bang your head for hours over a non-functional circuit just because a cheapo component isn't doing what it should. Once you gain confidence it can be a bonus challenge to write a driver for some poorly documented knockoff component :p

midnightclubbed 5y ago
That's a good point. You definitely have to dig a little deeper on Aliexpress, my experience has been that AliExpress components/boards generally work fine but you have to dig for things like data sheets unless its a very standard part - which may be an extra friction point for a beginner.