Plastic "aluminium" Pi 4 Cases. ( If it bends like plastic ......)

harriusherbartio

Light ,bendy and "mouldy" Chinese Pi 4 cases!!

I saw one of these plastic PI 4 cases on Ebay . It looked plastic to me ( the moulding marks) . I queried it with the seller who just reiterated that it was aluminium - so I did not buy it.

Then I saw a similar Pi4 case on the Ali Express online platform. It was only about £3.00ish ( inc postage) so I thought I would risk it at that very low price .It arrived today and it is quite a nice PLASTIC PI 4 case .The clues that it is plastic are:- 1) It is very BENDY 2) It is too light for aluminium 3) It has the giveaway plastic MOULDING marks .If I want to get a refund would I have too submit photographic evidence (Why? (joke) I expect the photo weighs a bit less !!! Or it bends in the right way!!!! - ridiculous.). So I will not bother with a refund . But it has put me off buying anything (other than very cheap goods) on the Ali Express site.Maybe a £5.00 limit for me maybe? Language difficulties are probably a convenient excuse for this very poor level of customer service.But if it had been correctly described as a plastic case it would be worth the money I think.This makes it tough for UK manufacturers of goods like this .

Timmy

harriusherbartio wrote: »

But it has put me off buying anything (other than very cheap goods) on the Ali Express site.Maybe a £5.00 limit for me maybe?

99% of all the stuff I buy is from local retail shops. It's always a gamble to buy things when you cannot have a look or feel in advance. And shops like Ali or Amazon or Ebay are basically the same. And when I do order I always put a limit on the money I'd spend on it.

Oh, and even in local shops I can still buy stuff that is not what I wanted, but at least I can checked that more beforehand. :-O

But if it had been correctly described as a plastic case it would be worth the money I think.This makes it tough for UK manufacturers of goods like this .

Well, UK manufacturers' products are obviously more expensive, but at least you know they will more likely adhere to local regulations. Like that it won't contain toxic chemicals in your plastics. Or that it likely won't overheat if you put a Pi 4 in it. (I hear these things can become really hot.)

PS. It's easy to confirm if something is aluminum or plastic. See if it sticks to a magnet. :)

1024MAK

Timmy wrote: »

PS. It's easy to confirm if something is aluminum or plastic. See if it sticks to a magnet. :)

Good luck with that! Aluminium is not a ferrous metal, hence is not magnetic…

Mark

harriusherbartio

Thanks for the replies

It is as though the "command economy" ethos works at the retail level in China . Either that or they dont know what they are selling and are just copy and pasting the info they have .But it is a reminder that even platforms like Ebay can be selling essentially the same stuff, so an Ebay Seller from China is offering similar product it seems.

1024MAK

eBay and other online marketplaces are, to be frank, full of crap. Despite some of these sites offering some protection, it’s still a case of buyer beware…

Where there is some protection, if you are not sure from the description, ask the seller a question. Then if what they send you does not match the description in the listing and in the answer to your question, it makes your case stronger.

I mean, a £3 misdescribed case is bad enough, but fake Z80 chips, it’s just not right…

Mark

dm_boozefreek

Amazon has a metric fuck ton of janky knockoff crap on there these days. Packs of 5 PS2 controllers for $20, dodgy pre loaded knockoff games consoles, some of very questionable design that obviously infringe on several patents. Some that look like a PS2 but when you plug it in it’s preloaded with 600 NES games. Dodgy memory sticks, and SD cards you name it.

harriusherbartio

Yes and there is another thread about this kind of area (but with a wider remit):-

https://worldofspectrum.org/forums/discussion/53741/spectrum-stuff-online-buying-skills-are-real-skills-needed-for-low-cost-speccy-items#latest

Your Spec-chum

Another issue with these knock off products is the negative effects on the environment, as once there found useless by the consumer, they soon become landfill fodder. An example is those large pack of Kodak AA zinc batteries you see in poundland etc. Consumer thinks they are getting a bargain, 24 batteries for £3. But that 24 pack with have less capacity than a 4 pack of good alkaline batteries, and less waste.

Pobbit

I've never had issues getting refunds on AliExpress - occasionally the seller makes lowball counter offers that make the process take a bit longer, but AliExpress have always refunded in full for items that are broken, missing, or not as described.

harriusherbartio

Hi Pobbit

Yes I suppose I should have made the effort but it was only £3.00 . It is ir refund process I take issue with . They want a photo of a plastic case in order to start the refund process . Why ? The photo does not prove it is not aluminium .But even so I suppose I am being lazy or awkward or both!

harriusherbartio

Interesting