Fucking counterfeit memory cards

[Xan]

So I recently bought a PSP and I decided getting a big memory stick would be a good idea. So I go to ebay searching for deals on memory sticks. That would be mistake #1. Mistake #2 would be buying from a seller in China. Mistake #3 would be not realizing that $13.99 for a 4GB Memory Stick would be a "too good to be true" situation.

I already reported it to PayPal and left negative feedback to the seller.

Fuck that stupid Chinese conman and fuck me for for falling for it.

[Tristan]

No no... tell you what, I'll buy it off of you.

I have a Bank Check made out for $5000, so if you can just cash that for me, and send me $4500 of it, you can keep the other $500 to pay for the memory card and your time and trouble! How's that sound?

I would meet in person, but I... uh... work for the UN, and am busy in Australia right now.

--DR TRISTAN ESQ FOR THE PRESIDENT

[sailor]

So I recently bought a PSP and I decided getting a big memory stick would be a good idea. So I go to ebay searching for deals on memory sticks. That would be mistake #1. Mistake #2 would be buying from a seller in China. Mistake #3 would be not realizing that $13.99 for a 4GB Memory Stick would be a "too good to be true" situation.

I already reported it to PayPal and left negative feedback to the seller.

Fuck that stupid Chinese conman and fuck me for for falling for it. This situation happened some years ago with pendrives. You could get a 4 GB pendrive for an incredibly low price. I got one. Inserted it in my computer and it was recognised as 4 GB. Copied a small file and worked fine. But when I tried to copy a large file it didn't work. After much messing around I found a utility which allowed a "low level formatting" and it turned out the real capacity was 64 KB. It seems they just somehow write the header so that it reports whatever capacity they want. As I say, This is extremely common all over China.

Having said that, many sellers are not part of the scam and are being scammed themselves. They are just as ignorant as you are. I have seen several cases on ebay of sellers who were all distraught when a whole bunch of buyers turned angrily on them but they had sold the pendrives in good faith.

My advice is to take it up with the seller first. Demand restitution. An honest seller will certainly make you whole again even if they lose. After all it was them who were taken in. They should go after their own supplier. If the seller does not reintegrate you then is the time to complain to ebay. But not before.

[Ale]

Very timely thread!

Last night my GF gave me a 4Gb thumbdrive and I haven't tested it yet.


Testing.


Ayup!... 4Gb and it was only 8 bucks. But whether is an authentic Kingston drive or not I don't know. Package and drive look good quality.


Sorry Xan

[Darryl Lict]

I only buy Kingston or Crucial (or a highly rated manufacturer at NewEgg) memory and it hasn't let me down yet. I just think of it in terms of how much cheaper it is now than it was a year ago, and it doesn't bother me if some fly by night company is selling it for 40% less. The hassle is not worth it.

[Uvula Donor]

Check your local GameStop/Electronics Boutique/EB Games for good deals on Sony memory. I got a 4 gig Pro Duo there for $15. Yes, it was used, but all used memory at EB is wiped and tested before being resold.

[Dante]

Good heavens, do people still buy things from China on ebay? I've got a grand total of three transactions under my belt (bought two things and sold one), and even I know that China = bad.

Still sucks though.

[Dead Badger]

Ayup!... 4Gb and it was only 8 bucks. But whether is an authentic Kingston drive or not I don't know. Package and drive look good quality.Just FYI, capacity isn't the only thing that can be dodgy. A lot of the really cheap sticks use memory that isn't rated for more than a few tens of write cycles (i.e. stuff that would normally be used as read-only memory on something much cheaper). So while the capacity may be correct, they die after only a few copying sessions. Hopefully that's not the case with yours, obviously, I'd just be careful sticking any precious data on it for a while...

[sailor]

Good heavens, do people still buy things from China on ebay? I've got a grand total of three transactions under my belt (bought two things and sold one), and even I know that China = bad.

Still sucks though.That is a totally unfair statement. I have a long history on ebay and have bought quite a few things in China and never been scammed. I would rather buy from someone with good feedback in China than from someone with bad feedback in America. Feedback counts more than location. There are plenty of honest and reliable sellers in China. And quite a few scumbags in America. IF you use reasonable precautions you can avoid the bad ones where ever they are.

[Xan]

Here's more information on the subject: http://reviews.ebay.ca/FAKE-Sony-Memory-Stick-Pro-Duo-MagicGate-Cards-Exposed_W0QQugidZ10000000001236041

The seller contacted me and says he'll give me a refund if I take back my negative feedback. Like I'm going to do that.

[Xan]

Here's more information on the subject: http://reviews.ebay.ca/FAKE-Sony-Memory-Stick-Pro-Duo-MagicGate-Cards-Exposed_W0QQugidZ10000000001236041

The seller contacted me and says he'll give me a refund if I take back my negative feedback. Like I'm going to do that.

Also, the seller has another feedback from another buyer of a similar product saying that theirs was a fake as well.

[mks57]

I recently bought a real Kingston 4GB drive for $8. It works fine. Sometimes manufacturers have to clear out excess inventory and they would rather sell at a small loss today rather than sell at an even bigger loss next month.

There are some vendors in China that are professional criminals. They remark CPUs, counterfeit other companies' products, sell chips that failed testing as good chips, produce motherboards with BIOS software that lies about what was installed on the motherboard, and anything else that will make a quick buck.

[Dante]

That is a totally unfair statement. I have a long history on ebay and have bought quite a few things in China and never been scammed. I would rather buy from someone with good feedback in China than from someone with bad feedback in America. Feedback counts more than location. There are plenty of honest and reliable sellers in China. And quite a few scumbags in America. IF you use reasonable precautions you can avoid the bad ones where ever they are.Oh, I'll always trust feedback over location, but all things being equal, I'll buy from Asia last.

[Mindfield]

There are a few things I won't buy from eBay for this very reason:

- Memory cards (particularly Sandisk, Kingston, Lexar)
- Thumb drives
- Gillette razors

the exception (for flash memory) is if it's either someone I've dealt with before or someone who's just selling one they've owned but don't sell them regularly, and the latter only if they have good feedback. I will never, ever buy razor cartridges off eBay.

Incidentally, 4GB for $14 isn't a good price -- at least not around here. I can get them around that price locally, or 8GB SDHC Class 6 for about $35. (Yeah, that's SD, but Sony MS around here only adds about a $5 premium.)

[sailor]

Also, the seller has another feedback from another buyer of a similar product saying that theirs was a fake as well. If it is not an honest mistake but rather it is a scam then eBay should cancel the account and throw the book at him. Why don't they do it?

[DudleyGarrett]

Jeez, why does it have to be a CHINESE conman, you fucking racist?

[mks57]

If it is not an honest mistake but rather it is a scam then eBay should cancel the account and throw the book at him. Why don't they do it?

It would cost money and they don't care. I've dealt with some of these people. When you point out that they are selling fraudulent goods, they deny it or blame their supplier. And next week, they are still selling the same crap.

[Gangster Octopus]

I once bought a "too-good-to-be-true" MP3 player on eBay. I got it and the english instructions were pretty much inscrutible (as opposed to the Chinese instructions, which if I read Chinese might have been perfectly scrutable) and the thing was a piece of junk.

[sailor]

Jeez, why does it have to be a CHINESE conman, you fucking racist? I don't know that it HAS to be but it seems that, in fact, he IS Chinese.

What's YOUR problem?

[neuroman]

Buying any kind of memory product online, even from a reputable seller, is asking for trouble imho. I only buy memory from brick and mortar stores, in case it needs to be returned, which is often enough.

[DudleyGarrett]

I don't know that it HAS to be but it seems that, in fact, he IS Chinese.

What's YOUR problem?

I don't see why his being Chinese is relevant.

[beowulff]

Just FYI, capacity isn't the only thing that can be dodgy. A lot of the really cheap sticks use memory that isn't rated for more than a few tens of write cycles (i.e. stuff that would normally be used as read-only memory on something much cheaper). So while the capacity may be correct, they die after only a few copying sessions. Hopefully that's not the case with yours, obviously, I'd just be careful sticking any precious data on it for a while...

I know that this is the pit, but... cite?

[pulykamell]

I recently bought a real Kingston 4GB drive for $8. It works fine. Sometimes manufacturers have to clear out excess inventory and they would rather sell at a small loss today rather than sell at an even bigger loss next month.


Yep. I just purchased three 4GB Sandisk Extreme III Compact Flash cards from B&H for $64 including shipping. Sandisk has a rebate for $60 (via a Visa Check Card) if you buy three 4GB Extreme IIIs from any qualified retailer (of which B&H is one). So, basically, free flash cards.

[Dead Badger]

I know that this is the pit, but... cite?

http://www.mways.co.uk/rom_use_only_usb_key.html

Amd those weren't even knockoffs (although Goodmans is hardly a premier brand). They just used ROM-rated chips for thumb drives.

Edit: and just to clarify, when I say "a lot of the really cheap sticks" I mean suspiciously cheap - I'm not talking about the majority of value brands or anything.

[Xan]

I don't see why his being Chinese is relevant.

It's relevant because that's where it came from. If he had been a British conman it would have been "limey motherfucker"

[Xan]

It would cost money and they don't care. I've dealt with some of these people. When you point out that they are selling fraudulent goods, they deny it or blame their supplier. And next week, they are still selling the same crap.

The site I linked to says that ebay won't do anything unless the copyright owners (In this case Sony) ask them to or unless law enforcement asks them to.

[L. G. Butts, Ph.D.]

I don't see why his being Chinese is relevant.Because that is where he bought it from? Hell the guy may be an American ex-pat who lives in China. His description has nothing to do with race.

[sailor]

The site I linked to says that ebay won't do anything unless the copyright owners (In this case Sony) ask them to or unless law enforcement asks them to. That really sucks and I hope eBay get hit with a class action lawsuit from defrauded customers. It is really unacceptable.

If you paid with credit card you may still have recourse?

[hajario]

I don't see why his being Chinese is relevant.

Because he was in China, you Virginian dipshit. China, the country, has very little recourse if you get scammed by someone who lives there regardless of their race.

[Xan]

That really sucks and I hope eBay get hit with a class action lawsuit from defrauded customers. It is really unacceptable.

If you paid with credit card you may still have recourse?

I'm pretty sure I'm going to get my money back. I think paypal will refund my money even if the seller won't.

I'm considering what would happen if I went to the authorities with this. It's not about the money anymore, it's about the principle of the matter.

[Uvula Donor]

Jeez, why does it have to be a CHINESE conman, you fucking racist?

I dunno, maybe because he bought it from someone in CHINA, you oversensitive crybaby cunt.

[sailor]

I'm pretty sure I'm going to get my money back. I think paypal will refund my money even if the seller won't.

I'm considering what would happen if I went to the authorities with this. It's not about the money anymore, it's about the principle of the matter. I totally agree. Well, I guess if Paypal and ebay refund your money then they aren't making money off the deal but I still think they should not allow this to happen.

[Hanna]

I fell for this too, except the seller was in California. Fake Sony memory sticks are rampant on eBay (I did not realize that when I bid), but after I got it my suspicions were aroused by the packaging.

The auctions stated it was for a 'generic' stick (and I wrongly assumed generic was anything that was not a Sony-branded stick, and I'd had good luck with other brands in the past) and it came stamped 'Sony'.

Umm, why would they sell a Sony brand stick so cheaply (IIRC, a 2 GB stick was going for $50 at the time, I paid $20)? Because it was fake. It failed within 3 days and I lost a bunch of pictures from my digital camera.

Luckily the seller refunded my money, but she denied it was fake. However, there are plenty of guides online on how to spot a fake MS, and this one was fake.

[Stan Shmenge]

Jerry Pournelle is reporting that big box stores are also selling bogus sticks.

http://www.jerrypournelle.com/mail/2008/Q4/mail546.html

[neutron star]

I don't see why his being Chinese is relevant.
Because the U.S. isn't globally known for for counterfeiting every product known to man - electronics in particular. China is.

Hmm. Now I'm starting to wonder about this 4GB "Kingston" SDHC card that I got from Hong Kong-based dealextreme last week, especially since, based on comments on the site, it wouldn't be the first time that they've sold fraudulent goods.

[DudleyGarrett]

OK, Xan, Eyer8, hajario, and Uvula Donor, you're on notice. Any more outbursts like that, and you're getting a one-way ticket out of the Offenderati club.

[sailor]

OK, Xan, Eyer8, hajario, and Uvula Donor, you're on notice. Any more outbursts like that, and you're getting a one-way ticket out of the Offenderati club. What about me? Why am I being left out?

[DudleyGarrett]

What about me? Why am I being left out?

You too, squid!

[Xan]

One thing I need to mention is that the packing on fake memory sticks looks legit. The counterfeiters have done an excellent job copying official packaging. If I had seen it in the store I would have bought it and not thought anything of it.

[sailor]

Tha packing of my "sony" pendrive was perfect . The only problem is that sony did not make pendrives in such shape. But it all looked perfect.