Should Dino Direct still have an AVOID label?

You can see the archived poll results on the Wayback Machine:

https://web.archive.org/web/20221220093741/https://budgetlightforum.com/t/-/72557

I'm saying No because just about everyone here seems to be using them. And despite a few problems, they are doing a pretty good job in my opinion. And they have done pretty well in solving some serious problems.

They are dishonest and run you around in circles while 3 different people tell you 3 different things and even 1 person cant keep their own story straight.

I did get a refund on my order that never showed up but that was after a PayPal dispute.

I would still advise people to avoid them and voted "Yes" but I would buy from them again if they had a deal I couldn't pass up.

I have received 3 out of 4 orders from them.

If they told the truth I am sure the rating wouldn't be to avoid it at all.

All of my orders went well. You have to know your stuff when ordering from them though.

They did fine by me in the past.

Cannot vote for others allthough I take their experiences at face value. Maybe that is why I have been pleasantly surprised.

May change my opinion if they dont do good on last couple of buys though. (Still in the pipeline)

I've received 4 orders from them, for a total of 12 flashlights.

One smudge on a lens in the first order.

A confusing exchange of e-mails on the 3rd order which didn't affect the shipping time, price, or product. It did cause me to worry, but I received a perfect SWM V60C @ nearly the best price I've seen.

A split shipping on the 4th order with the last flashlights geting to California exactly 30 days from order date. The Dongril is less than impressive, but with discounts was only $8. It was a fill in for a discounted order.

All the products I've gotten from DD have, with the exception of the Dongril, been as discribed with an average delivery time of 3 1/2 weeks.

I may have been lucky, and I will not order from DD in the future without extensive research and the information given to me by the OUTSTANDING BLF MEMBERS, but I now continual watch for DD specials and discounts.

I voted no.

I have placed a lot of orders from Dinodirect. Everyone of them are good. For some items with problems(wrong item sent, wrong mode) DD have resolved them for me very satisfactorily.

Other than the same jinky shipping times typical from China they have been above average. Received a leaking TF flame, received a replacement via one online chat. Ordered two of the Chibi heads up super combo 502b $5.35 deals. One had a dead battery. Got online chat. Three Weeks later got a complete combo (bat,chrgr,502b)!

I've placed many orders recently (one still pending) including >$100 purchase (yikes!)

All arrived safe and as advertised.

I've "chatted" with them a few times too, and all my issues were resolved quickly.

I know others have been less than pleased, but I'd vote thumbs up from my personal experience.

Their customer service chat is first rate. They seem to be online all the time, they are quick, very friendly, can solve problems very quickly, and offer to send you a transcript of the whole thing.

I say yes and put them under observation.

the games they play with prices and descriptions & are about as bad as you can get , typical run around customer service if things go bad. << so i have heard

having said that i have gotten 4 very nice lights from them at ridiculous prices , shipping was fast for CH/HK 2.5weeks avg. if i recall. honestly i dont care about shipping i buy from DX so i am used to the wait

they are by no means my first stop but a second tier at this point - check prices there if i am looking for something.

they also need to loose that buyer beware culture - no disrespect to anyone but i think its a culture thing. other retailers MF, SFS certainly have adopted a higher level of CS and are my first stops...

I have ordered products from just about all of the vendors I've heard about on this forum . Most of the orders came through just fine . The few orders that were MIA , or DOA or incomplete in some way were all eventually made right .

I believe that if you can politely plead your case ( which can be difficult when you are frustrated ) and provide whatever proof the supplier needs to validate your purchase or problem , in my experience , they will do what it takes to help .

For me , polite and persistent emails have done the trick .

Maybe I've just been lucky .

So my vote is either avoid all of the budget suppliers , or understand that some errors will occur and be ready to deal with it .

This post will self destruct in 5 ...4...3...

Hi friend,thanks for your great support ,and also thanks for your information.If your order meet problem,please let me know,and also you can add a tracking number or contact our cs,they will help you confirm,anything I can do for you ,please feel free contact me.Wink

I had more than ten orders from them since the Black Friday sales and I can say all of them went very good, received spotless items, all in good working condition. Only one order was out of stock. I was informed timely and my full payment was refunded in that day after asking me if I would like to have it refunded/changed or for a gift card. I first thought this was a trick, and those prices were just unreal. But later i ordered the same light for lower and received it really fast.
I wouldn’t avoid them. But really must check the prices before ordering. A regular $32 Fenix E21 can have a $80 tag from time to time :slight_smile: then drop to $32 and become $27 after discounts.

Where is that doggie dump picture? lol

I agree. The prices change sometimes with no sense. But you can be lucky and buy something to a very good price!!

I like DinoDirect. They aren't perfect, but they have made right on the two problem orders that I experienced. Their shipping is pretty quick (except during Chinese New Year). Their prices are all over the place, but they have good sales from time to time. Personally, I won't avoid DinoDirect, so I say remove the AVOID label and give it to DealExtreme.

Voted yes (they should still have an avoid label) because of their relentless shilling on reseller ratings dot com. (Was going on up to a couple of weeks ago -- maybe still... I cnba to go check.)

I voted NO, remove, but I would keep an eye on them. The things I hate are all the fake reviews, especially on resellerratings.com. I also don't like the wild price fluctuations.

I do like the fact that we have Summer, a big asset, in my opinion. I also like the fact they have 'live chat' that works! Not like DX's live chat, which is about as much use as a dick flavoured Chupa Chup!

I did have terrible trouble with them on my first order Klarus P2a. But mainly thanks to the help of Summer, We got it sorted. Also my last 4 orders have shipped same day! I can't complain at that. I have however not received anything yet, but that's not their fault they are due any time.

So I say Remove and if we were short of AVOID labels, I would definitely pin it on DX.

Marc.

Edited to make Kreisler look stupid. Thanks mate! I did vote no by the way.