Yes, I'm trying to buy an [8 inch large flower is aspersed three-piece suit](https://www.faucetshop.ca/shower-heads/2561-8-inch-large-flower-is-aspersed-three-piece-suit.html), what have you got?
And because I hate it, I decided to go to my local store to buy a desk lamp instead and....they dont have any product on the shelf...even though the website said they did.
Yaaaaaaay that was totally worth the hour I spent driving there and back and the cost of that gas...
Sounds like they're the modern day equivalent of the early 2000s newegg.com before it turned into drop shipping BS
I've only used B&H for batteries before to make sure I got authentic eneloops, I'll check them out for other items too
When I resolved to stop buying anything from Amazon for the company where I worked (and personally) I used Newegg for everything and within a couple years the Newegg experience almost mirrored that of Amazon - a massive marketplace of unverifiable, overseas based companies with millions of knock off products, terrible customer service, etc... Thank goodness for B&H because they became my source for everything tech and stood by all of the products they sold.
It's good to see them getting some love here because they're among the last of the real ones for a wide variety of products unless you go direct from the manufacturer.
Bought a computer from Newegg and a year later a ram dimm failed. No biggy, it has a warranty. Contact crucial, they want proof of purchase, (fair,) and then point out that while “Newegg” is an authorized reseller, “random guy reselling on Newegg” is no different than buying it from the back of a trunk in a alleyway and it is quite possible they didn’t even make the dimm at all, (also fair…)
Bought a replacement dimm at Best Buy and haven’t shopped at Newegg since.
I understand why they don't, but companies should (be forced to) take responsibility for everything they sell.
Unless they're marketing only as a reseller site like eBay, a reasonable customer might think that NewEgg actually sold the product.
B&H has been around for a looooong time. One of the most trusted stores in NYC for photo equipment, etc… Their stock is definitely curated and their ratings/reviews are real.
I remember my parents piling the family into the station wagon to drive into the city to B&H to buy a film movie camera in, like, nineteen dickety seven.
No, they're still Jewish. 😂 Love B&H. Kudos to them for still being a quality independent retailer. There's so few of those. And basically none other than them for photo/video/comupter/network/etc.
I’ve bought at least a dozen cameras and tons of other equipment from them over the years, but I’ve never been to the store. Definitely on my list of places to visit if I’m ever up that way.
Yeah you literally have to go to a website or store that actually curates what they sell.
Amazon, Walmart (online), and now Etsy are just Alibaba resellers.
I had to dump B&H and Costco once I found the clear brand of the future, Buy N Large (BnL).
You should see the food and seating concepts they have. They even came out with a pool, but nobody noticed.
Go somewhere other than Amazon and Google to search. Find trusted and legit review sites and use them. Go directly to stores that do lighting and see what they carry.
Amazon and Google have been taken over with pay to rank high crap
reddit threads that are a few years old (before chatgpt was widespread) and any comments that were made within a few days of the original post and none that link to amazon
and thats about it, because the rest of the internet has been lost in the sea of low quality spam
Most current reddit posts are mostly fine too, just gotta sift through the garbage a little bit more.
I do also tend to watch the big tech reviewers on YouTube. Though I don't tend to trust them 100% either, due to potential conflicts of interest.
Also, any sites that do their own testing and publish the data are great. At least they're less likely to be lying than any random reviewers.
More sources are good though, and I tend to look at the Amazon reviews at the end, but mostly on the low end to see if there are any big qc issues that the reviewers missed.
For household goods I use NYT Wirecutter
For kitchen stuff I refer to ATK for everything from the best blender to the best brand of penne pasta.
For high end electronics I check rtings and tomsguide.
I third America’s Test Kitchen. I definitely check out ATK before any kitchen purchase. The only recommendation they have that I have ever disagreed with is kitchen sponges. They recommend O-Cedar sponges but I prefer Scrub Daddy.
Project farm for home goods, rtings for electronics already mentioned, other than that just buy everything in store where you can touch and feel it for quality. Stores are less likely to stock items that lead to a high rate of customer returns.
I never buy from Amazon now, ever. I DO use google, but I buy things from like...any other site. Amazon is a waste of time, nowadays I spend longer sifting through the flood of crap knockoffs filling the place than I would going through a few pages of DDG/Google/Ecosia search to get a specialized online shop.
But Amazon has *also* been taken over by the ability to get cheap Chinese goods fast. And plenty of them *are* legit. It's double-edged sword.
The problem I have is that it's a time-consuming project to buy practically anything. You've got to sit down and compare many companies selling apparently the same thing, but the listings are frequently poor so it takes research to work it out, plus account for often wildly different prices (and their histories via something like Keepa which can paint a very different picture), plus try to work out legitimacy of reviews, plus doing off-site research which is difficult when there's many brand names for the same - or not - thing, plus alternate places to buy them from. Then OH you come across a new variant or one that looks better but the price is lower and it starts over. Oh yeah plus you get cashback through third party sites or your bank to account for.
I really struggle to keep time spent choosing purchases reasonable and I've been thinking for a while that I genuinely need help coping with it. There's so much more information to account for now but it's usually information that matters. There's so much available, it never ends. I need help :(
That’s the point nobody wants to acknowledge. There is good quality affordable Chinese stuff on Amazon. You have to take just a little time to find it.
Honestly I've had regular Philips LEDs and never had one burn out. It's the real cheap ones that have significant issues.
While [Philips Ultra Definition ](https://youtu.be/XeR2uPPCA2k) are not the cheapest the extra $2 per bulb gets you a lot better product. Accurate colours, no flicker, excellent dimability.
And for the body get any lamp that takes regular bulbs. With LEDs something with a open design can extend lifespan. Although I've had great luck with Philips as I believe that the bulbs are filled with a special gas that conducts heat well.
I've had the cheapest Philips Led Bulbs for awhile now, maybe 3$/piece in my area. Hunted them on sales and bought the 3/5 packs trying to plan the replacements when the current ones go out.
It's been 5 years since the first bulb got mounted in my house, none went out (all the fixtures have them now). I have 8 fucking spares, I'm rooting for one to burn out so I can swallow the fact that I bought one too many spares.
I still have a first gen Phillips LED lightbulb from 2010 that is still kicking around… Terrible CRI, not super bright by modern standards, and has a noticeable flicker, but it can’t be denied that they designed it to be long lasting.
I have one from about 1990, in a brushed aluminum desk lamp I only use occasionally. Or rather, our 13 year-old kiddo has it. Flickers, rheostat switch, I'm not cleaning or changing a thing.
Yeah, shame you can't get the "Dubai" lamps in the EU. Still, LEDs are a great option - and really cheap! Obviously, if you have some CFLs lying around you can use them too - for all the nuance, they're miles ahead incandescent!
I've been using Philips Hue bulbs exclusively for over 10 years now. Not one of them has died yet. I was initially paying the premium to get into the smart home stuff (which I still love) but I'm glad to see that the bulbs are built to really last.
>LED bulbs that should last ten or twelve years last two years
Don't get me started on integrated-LED lights. Waste aside, I don't want to have to replace the entire fixture whenever the lights die.
I just picked up a bunch of 60W equivalent Edison style filament smart bulbs CREE brand. They cost me under $6 per bulb. I have them setup with the “follow the sun” mode so they change color temperature. The default I guess is meant for lights that stay on all day? Had to change them so late night starts later and dims them to 60% output and not quite so orange. Still with a little adjustment it’s quite nice and dirt cheap for smart bulbs.
I’ve had them two months now and a month in is when they show if they can’t survive fully enclosed domes (these say they are rated for this).
And these were purchased on Amazon.
I’m not looking forward to needing to replace my current living room lamps. My grandfather bought them near the end of the 90’s and they’re still good, if a little beat up. Sadly, I lost the house but still have a bunch of his mundane stuff still working beautifully.
My favorite being a plastic window fan I’ve disassembled and reassembled many times for cleanings from like at least 1999 or earlier. I’ve replaced it several times with current equivalents that look identical. At every price point. They all suck ass compared to this one, and I don’t understand why. It’s just chunk of plastic that’s been working well for over 25 years.
Companies like Anker don't stand a chance today. I buy Anker charging accessories almost exclusively because it's generally high quality gear that I can trust.
If I didn't already know the brand and saw it today, I'd assume it's just another Amazon QWERTY brand.
Anker is cheap knockoff Chinese company that got early great reviews and started investing in marketing their brand. They’ve been successful because of it but don’t confuse it for a legacy brand.
As far as another QWERTY brand, there was a great Rory Sutherland video explaining why they all have ridiculous names - because Amazon prioritizes trademarked company listings and it’s easier and faster for a Chinese company to trademark something ridiculous than a common weird or phrase that would take too long. They gamed the system on Amazon listings and why we all see those first.
I suppose ugreen was able to establish themselves to some degree. Only had good experiences in the past, even before they started aggressively advertising on YouTube.
I have no problem buying \*quality\* gear from a Chinese company, especially when the only options are buying Chinese gear from a Chinese company or buying Chinese gear from an American company. Either way the product is built in China, all I care about is that it works well.
With a considerable US headquarters, so you know they'll likely be around in 5 years whereas some Amazon products will link to a completely different item if you pull up you purchase history in a year
Cancel Amazon prime if you have it. Never go near Wish or Temu.
The modern American market is actually just one giant Chinese mall where they use disposable names and IDs to get around Amazon's vendor account restrictions.
Use actual retailers like B&H, Best Buy, etc. ignore marketplace listings that are third party stuff sold through the website.
Pretend 5 star user reviews do not exist. They are manipulated on virtually every platform to some extent now. Even more verbose ones are being faked now.
You are shoping on Amazon. Full stop.
Its all chinese no name crap. Sometimes a company name gets banned for something so that same factory just changes names.
Are you looking on Amazon? It's called enshittification. Amazon is a marketplace where most products are from third-party sellers looking for a quick buck, which also pays Amazon.
Unless you know which brand you're looking for, it's hard to find a reputable product. There may be filters for brands or premium line.
Absolutely. I noticed this happening a few years back, when it seemed like I had to take what ended up being hours finding furniture.
For the uninitiated. [Enshittification](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enshittification)
Problem is if you're shopping for name brands *on amazon* there is a high chance that the product you get won't be from the name brand but will be counterfeit. And Amazon absolutely does not give a shit.
I canceled my prime subscription when they put ads in the streaming service. I will not pay for ads period. I have started buying blu rays and copying them.
At $140 a year, all I ever got was Chinese knockoff junk and nothing ever got to me in two days. Lots of things stolen by drivers. I said fuck it and just buy stuff from Target if I need it immediately. Everything else I order direct.
I thought of it this way- at $60 a year, I get positive value from my Costco membership. For more than double that price, I was getting significantly less value, if any value at all, from prime. My favorite thing about cancelling it is that they didn’t even ask why. The hubris is astounding and Amazon will not be in retail in 15 years without a turnaround.
I saw a YouTube video recently that explained this. Something about companies needing/wanting a brand trademark to sell on Amazon. So they have to register the trademark in the US. It is easier and faster to get a trademark for BOPIUMEX than for a real word like JUNK MAKERS. And if the company/shop get kicked off of Amazon for poor quality, complaints or too many returns, the company just rebrands very swiftly with another nonsense name.
Okay, what is that though? Department stores? Amazon usually has the same stuff as department stores. A specific brand?
That’s the same research we already have to do
I don’t mind things being made in China - aside from the fact that American retailers order the cheapest possible short-cuts for their products rather than utilizing China’s top-of-the-line manufacturing capabilities that actually use materials and workmanship that far exceed that of the crap we place orders for, much of which they only produce *because* that’s what we request.
That is a good suggestion though. That’s what I’ll do next time. There’s probably going to be much less ‘junk’ to sort through with furniture stores, especially the more boutique ones. But I’ll still check Amazon while I’m there to see if they have it cheaper :P
I agree. If you look on several different brick and mortar store sights, there are one or two in-store options and about 75 other options they can order in for you from China.
Dawg, do you not have an IKEA, Bestbuy, Microcenter, Home depot, Staples, Target, Costco/Sam's Club, Furniture Mart, Mattress store, etc?
It ain't hard to find quality name brand items... You just aren't looking hard enough
IKEA used to be where you bought garbage furniture for your first apartment and now the fact that their 2x4 futon frame is made with actual wood makes them a standout furniture supplier.
I finally canceled my Amazon Prime membership after like a decade because of this shit. You can get the exact same junk on Temu, Aliexpress etc for like a third the price. If it's gonna be shit quality at least I'm not paying more than it's worth.
All you can do is buy a named brand or IKEA (e.g. Batteries). Read the reviews of those. Lookup reviews on YouTube that go in depth and are not a sponsored video. Preferably teardown video or extreme testing, ...
But I stick to Miele (n1 choice), Karcher, Bosch, Liebherr, Bose, Kenwood, Samsung (TV & Video), ...
PCs I make from scratch where every component is handpicked.
This strategy served me well as all my appliances and devices easily are >10 years without issues. Except TV, <2.5y, but the last one LG lasted 15 years with heavy use.
Rule nr1: Stay away from Amazon. They only stand for the shitification of products.
This is what's happening:
[https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/11/style/amazon-trademark-copyright.html](https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/11/style/amazon-trademark-copyright.html)
TLDR: it's an Amazon thing. Go buy somewhere else.
We're (USA) being flooded by cheap Chinese shiit. I was just talking about this with my kid, teen. She buys some of her clothes online at some cheap Chinese site. I have to buy a prepaid card I'm so nervous out ordering from em. And we're Americans. We don't want a simple drinking cup made in America maybe lasting you a while, we want 30 options and loads of cups, disposable too, cause who gives a fuuck a right, I don't gotta wash dishes. I'm gonna die soon. Screw my kids and grandkids. And America. Let's only make it look good til the next election cycle, who needs long term investments in infrastructure and roads like driving down a highway in Japan or taking the metro makes you're embarrassed to even consider we got issues. Cause we got big missiles, shiny planes we spend billions on and never used, and soldiers stationed literally everywhere. Ok I'm done. Bad day on the train.
They really don't have much reason to close, or do shady shit. They make money off transactions just like big card companies do.
Only thing is they aren't borrowing or lending money so the risk of default on consumers debt isn't there. So aside from breach, lawsuit, poor direction by upper management. It should be around to stay.
I fully get your frustration that it's gotten to this point but I have good news.
We're getting infrastructure upgrades all over, thanks to a bill passed two years ago that's starting to show results. Amtrak is getting funded, rail corridors are being expanded, and most of that defense budget is spent here (and isn't exclusively weapons spending either).
Things have been bad for a long time but we gotta pay attention to the good happening for it to continue.
https://www.brookings.edu/articles/at-its-two-year-anniversary-the-bipartisan-infrastructure-law-continues-to-rebuild-all-of-america/
https://www.whitehouse.gov/invest/
NYC is already seeing some of those funds in changes underway now to upgrade a bridge, replace one, and road changes for more efficient transit. It's working.
The amount of money Amtrak & local transit agencies are getting is minuscule compared to what it would take to operate (not even *build*, we have the tracks for real service but we don't have the equipment, trained people, or operating funds for it) real regional & intercity service like the rest of the world. We radically underfund public services, a bucket of money is nice but we're still way in the hole.
And your defense of war spending is just bullshit. The fact that our tax dollars are going to building bombs domestically that are then shipped out to blow up Palestinian children doesn't make it better. We could & should be spending that same money to build infrastructure and provide human services that would make our lives better instead of making lives around the world worse.
For example, $10 billion recently went to a handful of major improvement projects on the NEC and then two weeks later Biden sent $14 billion to Israel to further aid and abet the genocide they are conducting. That money should all be spent on infrastructure & human services, whether here or abroad, not putting the majority of it towards war crimes overseas that could blow up into a regional war.
Not a fan of the "cheap Chinese shit" refrain. It's the world's factory and will make anything to any price point.
But finding good stuff is friggin daunting in an age of endless suppliers and zero reliability in online product reviews. Maybe Consumer Reports is worth a subscription? I pretty much put my trust in brands at Costco due to their return policy and the work required to process returns on a gazillion pieces of crap.
I rarely ever buy things from Amazon. Saves some hassle of digging through big piles of trash.
I'll just shop at a reputable (web)store, that way I'm sure I don't get sent e-waste, unless I willingly choose to buy e-waste.
I've actually stopped buying stuff from Amazon because of this. Luckily where I am the big electronics stores are pretty decent and while you do pay a bit extra compared to Amazon it's worth it to:
A. get a reputable brand that actually exists and makes decent quality products
B. Actually be able to check the specs of the thing I'm buying on the packaging rather than guessing from the photoshopped images and random spec listing on Amazon.
C. Not give more money to Amazon
Because your budget is in the no name junk category... You don't get both, either you get reputable quality or you get affordable. Substantially raise your budget and you will be back into the known names.
Check out the lamps from Zafferano
There are plenty of cheap Chinese knock offs but I believe the real ones are made in Italy.
Not cheap but still affordable. I’ve seen these in really nice restaurants often used for outdoor tables. Can’t speak to their longevity but they seem well made. I think they are around $100-$200
It doesn't help that basically every online seller has completely abandoned describing the product - why is it that Target can't put in one small paragraph that tells you what's in the daggum box in the midst of the "reviews" and "other customer's also bought" boxes.
That was my experience recently. Oh this one has a 5 star average.... wait from only 14 reviews that were all posted 9 days ago. Literally found the exact identical product under 5 or 6 different stores and the 1 star reviews were always that the product stopped working the second or third time they used it. I was completely unable to find any brand I recognized as a "real" retailer.
I was trying to buy a quality power brick but I couldn’t make heads or tails out of which one is good or crappy with them all having a bunch of random names like cumgood. Ended up just going with anker as they atleast have a reputation.
this is nothing to do with bilf but since Amazon is now full of Chinese crap I'm ordering the same crap for a fraction of the price directly from aliexpress
What specifically are you looking for? I see a lot of comments are about Lamps?
May I recommend Anglepoise or Artemide as a starting point? They are incredibly well designed and well built and have been around for decades so won’t go out of fashion.
I NEVER buy those kind of products online unless I'm doing directly from manufacturer's directly. I don't know in your country, but in Spain quality producs have about the same or less price than the chinese crap you find in Amazon, so I avoid buying there.
For kitchen small appliances I generally stick with two brands: Ninja and Kitchenaid. I've had a coffeemaker since probably 2017 or 2018 (think I got it from Sams so don't remember specifics) and a Foodi pressure cooker that replaced my Instant pot that died after the 1 year, I believe since 2020. So now most all of my other things I get are from them. Also have a stand mixer from kitchenaid and those are durable and multipurpose.
Ninja is the sister brand to Shark so I tend to look for Shark's products as well in the vaccume and air purifier world.
If you’re starting your search for quality electronics on Amazon or eBay, that’s the source of your frustration. Amazon has built an environment that encourages white labeling at scale, which creates these bulk crap devices. There are a ton of great consumer electronics companies that exist, but you won’t find them on Amazon without specifically looking for them.
Look at brands sold by national retailers that have generous return policies. These national retailers won’t let their buyers fill their stores with crap that doesn’t work or is of terrible quality, for the most part. Buyers take risks that don’t always pay off, but they do their due diligence when searching for stuff. Good quality in one product has a much higher likelihood of good quality in other products in the same brand.
That said, I’m very happy with my bathroom light I got on Amazon from the well thought out brand name SOLFART. Totally not kidding. It’s great and my only regret is not having a nice shiny label for guests to laugh at when in the bathroom.
More junk than Amazon. It would take a shit load of time to sift through the trash in hopes of finding the one item that is worth it. That is a waste of time, especially on a “buy it for life” thread. He is looking for a quality item
I wouldn’t exactly call lights consumer electronics. Plus there are no consumer electronics that are buy for life. Not how technology works unfortunately.
*not how technology works anymore because of society.*
FTFY. I just shot a roll of slide film on my 1979 Pentax ME Super, and will project them with a 1980s (IIRC) Kodak Carousel slide projector. If I'm really feeling fancy I might listen to some music on my 90s pioneer bookshelf speakers on my 1991 Technics SA-GX505 stereo receiver while I do it.
There are plenty of consumer electronics made today that are high quality - much higher quality than any of the items you list. There was also plenty of junk made in the past. It's the good stuff that tends to be held on to and last - which greatly skews the perception of the quality of the average product during that period.
Just because they didn't specifically say "digital technology" you felt the need to absolutely thrust yourself in with "ACKCHUALLY MY ANALOG STUFF WORKS GREAT" huh?
Just bought 30 dewenwils receptacles. On the 2nd one the screw stripped out. Turning with a hand screwdriver. Returned the 30 to Amazon the next day. Shape up or ship out.
yeah buying anything electrical from amazon that isn't shipped directly from the trusted brand manufacturer is just asking for a fire hazard...
and im not sure how fulfilled by amazon works but im skeptical of that as well, because im sure there are some scammers who buy the authentic product and then return a counterfeit and i doubt amazon checks before shipping out the counterfeit to other customers
Ooh, look at mister moneybag here with his ul listed critical infrastructure. Why don’t you get off your high horse and have a nice house bonfire like the rest of us
A portable study light is pretty niche, honestly. The biggest problem is that something like that is probably an LED and LED lights will dim over time. So you need something with a replaceable light bulb. Which... idk sounds like you want a lamp or a flashlight? But lamps aren't portable, and flashlights aren't lamps.
May I ask how you keep running into situations where you need to study in a dark environment away from home so often? Maybe there's a good option other than a "study light"?
You don't trust the 20 identical desk lamps by companies with names like RENMI and LUCK1, whos ratings somehow range from 1.3 to 4.7?
But... Desk Lamp for Home,Office,Reading,Adjustable Eye-Caring Desk Light with Clamp,Swing Arm Lamp, 3 Color Modes,10 Brightness Levels Table Lamps with Memory Function, USB Charging Port, Sensitive Control, 30/60 Minutes Auto-Off Timer, Eye-Caring
The design is very human
Love that guy
Tony is everyone’s homie.
"Eye-caring" lol
Twice.
Two times.
Most people have two eyes though.
Most people have more eyes than the average.
Arrrr matey - easy now
Arghh cap'n' we've got one.. and it has two eyes captain.. what sort of foul beast is this?
I mean, it didn’t say “eyes caring”.
Yes, I'm trying to buy an [8 inch large flower is aspersed three-piece suit](https://www.faucetshop.ca/shower-heads/2561-8-inch-large-flower-is-aspersed-three-piece-suit.html), what have you got?
You weren't kidding. Interesting, has a .ca domain - Canada - but the description looks like a translation
Screamin’ deal on a $227 showerhead though! Must be quality, to cost that much! 😂
Don't forget the screenshots of all their Chinese certifications, which mean absolutely nothing to us.
2024 Model
The worst part is that one of those companies makes 75 percent of the table lamps on earth, and you can’t tell which without extensive digging.
That's Medea with microwaves
Movies and microwaves! That woman is truly special
I only trust brands like Sorny and Magnetvox.
Told my kids about Casino watched and Sonny cassette players in the 80s!
[удалено]
I used to have a pair of Abidas.
You can't fool me! I know a genuine Panaphonics when I see one.
But if you like to watch your tv and I mean really watch it, you want the carnivale.
And because I hate it, I decided to go to my local store to buy a desk lamp instead and....they dont have any product on the shelf...even though the website said they did. Yaaaaaaay that was totally worth the hour I spent driving there and back and the cost of that gas...
I would buy from a company called RENMI or LUCK1. It’s Qeusbidbwoseubd and Wijwqqiebekpao that I truly avoid.
Yes, those funky qzxtzzzaaygh named companies are hard to get behind, for sure.
Happy fun time lucky rainbow lamp. 🤡
I buy 90% of stuff at Costco and electronics from B&H Photo or direct from the manufacturer
I started with B&H for photo equipment, but they’re great for a lot of tech as well as excellent refurbished and used stuff for good prices.
Sounds like they're the modern day equivalent of the early 2000s newegg.com before it turned into drop shipping BS I've only used B&H for batteries before to make sure I got authentic eneloops, I'll check them out for other items too
When I resolved to stop buying anything from Amazon for the company where I worked (and personally) I used Newegg for everything and within a couple years the Newegg experience almost mirrored that of Amazon - a massive marketplace of unverifiable, overseas based companies with millions of knock off products, terrible customer service, etc... Thank goodness for B&H because they became my source for everything tech and stood by all of the products they sold. It's good to see them getting some love here because they're among the last of the real ones for a wide variety of products unless you go direct from the manufacturer.
Bought a computer from Newegg and a year later a ram dimm failed. No biggy, it has a warranty. Contact crucial, they want proof of purchase, (fair,) and then point out that while “Newegg” is an authorized reseller, “random guy reselling on Newegg” is no different than buying it from the back of a trunk in a alleyway and it is quite possible they didn’t even make the dimm at all, (also fair…) Bought a replacement dimm at Best Buy and haven’t shopped at Newegg since.
I understand why they don't, but companies should (be forced to) take responsibility for everything they sell. Unless they're marketing only as a reseller site like eBay, a reasonable customer might think that NewEgg actually sold the product.
B&H has been around for a looooong time. One of the most trusted stores in NYC for photo equipment, etc… Their stock is definitely curated and their ratings/reviews are real.
I remember my parents piling the family into the station wagon to drive into the city to B&H to buy a film movie camera in, like, nineteen dickety seven.
Ha! What a cool memory to have! That place is a trip. Such a great resource and so uniquely New York.
I miss old Newegg
I own a company with an A/V component and I use b&h for almost everything. They’re totally legit
Thank you
I second B&H, I had a great experience with them when I couldn’t find a decent vendor for my laptop that I wanted
Do they let you use their website on Saturdays yet?
No, they're still Jewish. 😂 Love B&H. Kudos to them for still being a quality independent retailer. There's so few of those. And basically none other than them for photo/video/comupter/network/etc.
If you ever get a chance to visit B&H in person it’s a wonderland of cameras and tech.
I’ve bought at least a dozen cameras and tons of other equipment from them over the years, but I’ve never been to the store. Definitely on my list of places to visit if I’m ever up that way.
Microcenter is good for electronics if you're close to one as well.
B&H?
bhphotovideo.com They started out as a photography based retail business and have incorporated other electronics over the years.
Yeah you literally have to go to a website or store that actually curates what they sell. Amazon, Walmart (online), and now Etsy are just Alibaba resellers.
Even if the Costco stuff ends up being the same rebranded garbage, if it fails 6 months later it's not an issue to return.
Costco is the way. Best return policy ever.
I had to dump B&H and Costco once I found the clear brand of the future, Buy N Large (BnL). You should see the food and seating concepts they have. They even came out with a pool, but nobody noticed.
What is b&h
[https://www.bhphotovideo.com/](https://www.bhphotovideo.com/)
Their credit card that covers sales tax has been huge for me since I live in a 10.5% area. Saved me a bunch on a MacBook pro and cameras for the house
Go somewhere other than Amazon and Google to search. Find trusted and legit review sites and use them. Go directly to stores that do lighting and see what they carry. Amazon and Google have been taken over with pay to rank high crap
Please share these “trusted and legit” review sites
Rtings is really solid for what they cover. Fantastic testing methodologies.
rtings is my go to for headphones. Full frequency charts that even non-audiophiles can appreciate if they know the basics.
reddit threads that are a few years old (before chatgpt was widespread) and any comments that were made within a few days of the original post and none that link to amazon and thats about it, because the rest of the internet has been lost in the sea of low quality spam
Most current reddit posts are mostly fine too, just gotta sift through the garbage a little bit more. I do also tend to watch the big tech reviewers on YouTube. Though I don't tend to trust them 100% either, due to potential conflicts of interest. Also, any sites that do their own testing and publish the data are great. At least they're less likely to be lying than any random reviewers. More sources are good though, and I tend to look at the Amazon reviews at the end, but mostly on the low end to see if there are any big qc issues that the reviewers missed.
Which? Consumer Reports
For household goods I use NYT Wirecutter For kitchen stuff I refer to ATK for everything from the best blender to the best brand of penne pasta. For high end electronics I check rtings and tomsguide.
Wirecutter used to be great, a few years ago it sadly succumbed to the money as well.
It is called enshittification :(
I second America's Test Kitchen. They are my go to for kitchen stuff and they've never done me wrong.
I third America’s Test Kitchen. I definitely check out ATK before any kitchen purchase. The only recommendation they have that I have ever disagreed with is kitchen sponges. They recommend O-Cedar sponges but I prefer Scrub Daddy.
Atk?
America’s Test Kitchen
Rtings is pretty good for the stuff they review (mainly monitors/TVs/headphones)
Project farm for home goods, rtings for electronics already mentioned, other than that just buy everything in store where you can touch and feel it for quality. Stores are less likely to stock items that lead to a high rate of customer returns.
Project farm is one of my favorite YouTube channels
I never buy from Amazon now, ever. I DO use google, but I buy things from like...any other site. Amazon is a waste of time, nowadays I spend longer sifting through the flood of crap knockoffs filling the place than I would going through a few pages of DDG/Google/Ecosia search to get a specialized online shop.
But Amazon has *also* been taken over by the ability to get cheap Chinese goods fast. And plenty of them *are* legit. It's double-edged sword. The problem I have is that it's a time-consuming project to buy practically anything. You've got to sit down and compare many companies selling apparently the same thing, but the listings are frequently poor so it takes research to work it out, plus account for often wildly different prices (and their histories via something like Keepa which can paint a very different picture), plus try to work out legitimacy of reviews, plus doing off-site research which is difficult when there's many brand names for the same - or not - thing, plus alternate places to buy them from. Then OH you come across a new variant or one that looks better but the price is lower and it starts over. Oh yeah plus you get cashback through third party sites or your bank to account for. I really struggle to keep time spent choosing purchases reasonable and I've been thinking for a while that I genuinely need help coping with it. There's so much more information to account for now but it's usually information that matters. There's so much available, it never ends. I need help :(
That’s the point nobody wants to acknowledge. There is good quality affordable Chinese stuff on Amazon. You have to take just a little time to find it.
TOZO earbuds. Clear sound, easy to use, and extremely durable, but also cheap so if you lose them it's not really a big deal.
Trying to buy a good floor lamp. Chinese knock offs, LED bulbs that should last ten or twelve years last two years. Fake Amazon reviews.
IKEA for the lamp body, and then get one of those [Philips LED bulbs that don't burn out.](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=klaJqofCsu4)
Honestly I've had regular Philips LEDs and never had one burn out. It's the real cheap ones that have significant issues. While [Philips Ultra Definition ](https://youtu.be/XeR2uPPCA2k) are not the cheapest the extra $2 per bulb gets you a lot better product. Accurate colours, no flicker, excellent dimability. And for the body get any lamp that takes regular bulbs. With LEDs something with a open design can extend lifespan. Although I've had great luck with Philips as I believe that the bulbs are filled with a special gas that conducts heat well.
I've had the cheapest Philips Led Bulbs for awhile now, maybe 3$/piece in my area. Hunted them on sales and bought the 3/5 packs trying to plan the replacements when the current ones go out. It's been 5 years since the first bulb got mounted in my house, none went out (all the fixtures have them now). I have 8 fucking spares, I'm rooting for one to burn out so I can swallow the fact that I bought one too many spares.
I still have a first gen Phillips LED lightbulb from 2010 that is still kicking around… Terrible CRI, not super bright by modern standards, and has a noticeable flicker, but it can’t be denied that they designed it to be long lasting.
I have one from about 1990, in a brushed aluminum desk lamp I only use occasionally. Or rather, our 13 year-old kiddo has it. Flickers, rheostat switch, I'm not cleaning or changing a thing.
I wish there was a Hue version of that. I can't believe how many $15+ bulbs I have lost in the last decade.
IKEA for everything. Period. Their bulbs work great, I love their WiFi ecosystem that works well with HomeKit and the prices are quite reasonable.
Hell, I own lots of old cast iron, but my big Ikea Cast Iron is used more than any other.
Yeah, shame you can't get the "Dubai" lamps in the EU. Still, LEDs are a great option - and really cheap! Obviously, if you have some CFLs lying around you can use them too - for all the nuance, they're miles ahead incandescent!
I've been using Philips Hue bulbs exclusively for over 10 years now. Not one of them has died yet. I was initially paying the premium to get into the smart home stuff (which I still love) but I'm glad to see that the bulbs are built to really last.
Got a lamp from home depot that did the same. Everything sucks now
>LED bulbs that should last ten or twelve years last two years Don't get me started on integrated-LED lights. Waste aside, I don't want to have to replace the entire fixture whenever the lights die.
I just picked up a bunch of 60W equivalent Edison style filament smart bulbs CREE brand. They cost me under $6 per bulb. I have them setup with the “follow the sun” mode so they change color temperature. The default I guess is meant for lights that stay on all day? Had to change them so late night starts later and dims them to 60% output and not quite so orange. Still with a little adjustment it’s quite nice and dirt cheap for smart bulbs. I’ve had them two months now and a month in is when they show if they can’t survive fully enclosed domes (these say they are rated for this). And these were purchased on Amazon.
These sound interesting. Got a link?
Don’t buy CREE. Those are among the LEDs that claim to last >10 years that burn out after 1.
Good time to wean yourself off of Amazon. Their entire marketplace is full of total shit.
I’m not looking forward to needing to replace my current living room lamps. My grandfather bought them near the end of the 90’s and they’re still good, if a little beat up. Sadly, I lost the house but still have a bunch of his mundane stuff still working beautifully. My favorite being a plastic window fan I’ve disassembled and reassembled many times for cleanings from like at least 1999 or earlier. I’ve replaced it several times with current equivalents that look identical. At every price point. They all suck ass compared to this one, and I don’t understand why. It’s just chunk of plastic that’s been working well for over 25 years.
Companies like Anker don't stand a chance today. I buy Anker charging accessories almost exclusively because it's generally high quality gear that I can trust. If I didn't already know the brand and saw it today, I'd assume it's just another Amazon QWERTY brand.
I used to think this but now half the Anker products I get (that are definitely genuine) have connectivity problems or just plain arrive DOA.
Lately that’s been true for me too
I’m glad it’s not just me, quality has definitely taken a dive as of late.
Anker is cheap knockoff Chinese company that got early great reviews and started investing in marketing their brand. They’ve been successful because of it but don’t confuse it for a legacy brand. As far as another QWERTY brand, there was a great Rory Sutherland video explaining why they all have ridiculous names - because Amazon prioritizes trademarked company listings and it’s easier and faster for a Chinese company to trademark something ridiculous than a common weird or phrase that would take too long. They gamed the system on Amazon listings and why we all see those first.
That's the irony about Anker And that's an insightful comment in the 2nd para. - any links though to back that up?
[Why Amazon Products Have Those Weird Names](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4UrqlMfwUC4)
I suppose ugreen was able to establish themselves to some degree. Only had good experiences in the past, even before they started aggressively advertising on YouTube.
Anker products have to be replaced regularly by me now. They used to last.
Anker also Chinese company.
I have no problem buying \*quality\* gear from a Chinese company, especially when the only options are buying Chinese gear from a Chinese company or buying Chinese gear from an American company. Either way the product is built in China, all I care about is that it works well.
With a considerable US headquarters, so you know they'll likely be around in 5 years whereas some Amazon products will link to a completely different item if you pull up you purchase history in a year
Cancel Amazon prime if you have it. Never go near Wish or Temu. The modern American market is actually just one giant Chinese mall where they use disposable names and IDs to get around Amazon's vendor account restrictions. Use actual retailers like B&H, Best Buy, etc. ignore marketplace listings that are third party stuff sold through the website. Pretend 5 star user reviews do not exist. They are manipulated on virtually every platform to some extent now. Even more verbose ones are being faked now.
This.
You are shoping on Amazon. Full stop. Its all chinese no name crap. Sometimes a company name gets banned for something so that same factory just changes names.
Are you looking on Amazon? It's called enshittification. Amazon is a marketplace where most products are from third-party sellers looking for a quick buck, which also pays Amazon. Unless you know which brand you're looking for, it's hard to find a reputable product. There may be filters for brands or premium line.
Absolutely. I noticed this happening a few years back, when it seemed like I had to take what ended up being hours finding furniture. For the uninitiated. [Enshittification](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enshittification)
Problem is if you're shopping for name brands *on amazon* there is a high chance that the product you get won't be from the name brand but will be counterfeit. And Amazon absolutely does not give a shit.
Stop shopping on Amazon. You'll be better off.
I canceled my prime subscription when they put ads in the streaming service. I will not pay for ads period. I have started buying blu rays and copying them. At $140 a year, all I ever got was Chinese knockoff junk and nothing ever got to me in two days. Lots of things stolen by drivers. I said fuck it and just buy stuff from Target if I need it immediately. Everything else I order direct. I thought of it this way- at $60 a year, I get positive value from my Costco membership. For more than double that price, I was getting significantly less value, if any value at all, from prime. My favorite thing about cancelling it is that they didn’t even ask why. The hubris is astounding and Amazon will not be in retail in 15 years without a turnaround.
I've never heard it laid out like this but it makes total sense. Probably gonna cancel prime now 👍
I saw a YouTube video recently that explained this. Something about companies needing/wanting a brand trademark to sell on Amazon. So they have to register the trademark in the US. It is easier and faster to get a trademark for BOPIUMEX than for a real word like JUNK MAKERS. And if the company/shop get kicked off of Amazon for poor quality, complaints or too many returns, the company just rebrands very swiftly with another nonsense name.
How Amazon broke the US patent office. https://youtu.be/_Bq-6GeRhys?si=jwWpWWgRymwtMGdd
That’s the one! Thank you, internet stranger!
Stop using Amazon and move upmarket and you’ll have better luck, it will cost though…..
What’s “upmarket”?
Not much, what's upmarket with you?
I was starting to think no one was gonna ask XD Nm, dawg
Holy shit! You got that fucker so good!
“Things that cost more / things that aren’t bottom-of-the-barrel cheap crap”
Okay, what is that though? Department stores? Amazon usually has the same stuff as department stores. A specific brand? That’s the same research we already have to do
Target, Costco, B&H Photo, IKEA, Best Buy, ...
There's lots of furniture stores and retailers that have their own products that aren't listed on Amazon. They still are made in China though.
I don’t mind things being made in China - aside from the fact that American retailers order the cheapest possible short-cuts for their products rather than utilizing China’s top-of-the-line manufacturing capabilities that actually use materials and workmanship that far exceed that of the crap we place orders for, much of which they only produce *because* that’s what we request. That is a good suggestion though. That’s what I’ll do next time. There’s probably going to be much less ‘junk’ to sort through with furniture stores, especially the more boutique ones. But I’ll still check Amazon while I’m there to see if they have it cheaper :P
I agree. If you look on several different brick and mortar store sights, there are one or two in-store options and about 75 other options they can order in for you from China.
Dawg, do you not have an IKEA, Bestbuy, Microcenter, Home depot, Staples, Target, Costco/Sam's Club, Furniture Mart, Mattress store, etc? It ain't hard to find quality name brand items... You just aren't looking hard enough
IKEA used to be where you bought garbage furniture for your first apartment and now the fact that their 2x4 futon frame is made with actual wood makes them a standout furniture supplier.
Aint got no microcenter here T_T I miss Frys
TIL target is high end quality
Nobody said high end. But they do carry stuff that's a step up from Walmart and a couple steps up from Amazon.
I finally canceled my Amazon Prime membership after like a decade because of this shit. You can get the exact same junk on Temu, Aliexpress etc for like a third the price. If it's gonna be shit quality at least I'm not paying more than it's worth.
Same. Fake reviews and more often than not, fake products. The golden age of Amazon is long behind us.
Funnilly though sometimes its cheaper to buy on amazon especially the bigger and heavier items, aliexpress is becoming more expensive lately.
Yeah I canceled mine as well, it’s just not worth it and I don’t want to give them money annually to validate this crappy business model.
All you can do is buy a named brand or IKEA (e.g. Batteries). Read the reviews of those. Lookup reviews on YouTube that go in depth and are not a sponsored video. Preferably teardown video or extreme testing, ... But I stick to Miele (n1 choice), Karcher, Bosch, Liebherr, Bose, Kenwood, Samsung (TV & Video), ... PCs I make from scratch where every component is handpicked. This strategy served me well as all my appliances and devices easily are >10 years without issues. Except TV, <2.5y, but the last one LG lasted 15 years with heavy use. Rule nr1: Stay away from Amazon. They only stand for the shitification of products.
Don't buy electronics you care about off of Amazon. Or skincare. Notorious for counterfeits and those are two things you don't want counterfeits.
This is what's happening: [https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/11/style/amazon-trademark-copyright.html](https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/11/style/amazon-trademark-copyright.html) TLDR: it's an Amazon thing. Go buy somewhere else.
We're (USA) being flooded by cheap Chinese shiit. I was just talking about this with my kid, teen. She buys some of her clothes online at some cheap Chinese site. I have to buy a prepaid card I'm so nervous out ordering from em. And we're Americans. We don't want a simple drinking cup made in America maybe lasting you a while, we want 30 options and loads of cups, disposable too, cause who gives a fuuck a right, I don't gotta wash dishes. I'm gonna die soon. Screw my kids and grandkids. And America. Let's only make it look good til the next election cycle, who needs long term investments in infrastructure and roads like driving down a highway in Japan or taking the metro makes you're embarrassed to even consider we got issues. Cause we got big missiles, shiny planes we spend billions on and never used, and soldiers stationed literally everywhere. Ok I'm done. Bad day on the train.
Privacy.com
I will unironically and without prompt shill for Privacy.com until the day they close or do shady shit
They really don't have much reason to close, or do shady shit. They make money off transactions just like big card companies do. Only thing is they aren't borrowing or lending money so the risk of default on consumers debt isn't there. So aside from breach, lawsuit, poor direction by upper management. It should be around to stay.
I fully get your frustration that it's gotten to this point but I have good news. We're getting infrastructure upgrades all over, thanks to a bill passed two years ago that's starting to show results. Amtrak is getting funded, rail corridors are being expanded, and most of that defense budget is spent here (and isn't exclusively weapons spending either). Things have been bad for a long time but we gotta pay attention to the good happening for it to continue. https://www.brookings.edu/articles/at-its-two-year-anniversary-the-bipartisan-infrastructure-law-continues-to-rebuild-all-of-america/ https://www.whitehouse.gov/invest/
NYC is already seeing some of those funds in changes underway now to upgrade a bridge, replace one, and road changes for more efficient transit. It's working.
The amount of money Amtrak & local transit agencies are getting is minuscule compared to what it would take to operate (not even *build*, we have the tracks for real service but we don't have the equipment, trained people, or operating funds for it) real regional & intercity service like the rest of the world. We radically underfund public services, a bucket of money is nice but we're still way in the hole. And your defense of war spending is just bullshit. The fact that our tax dollars are going to building bombs domestically that are then shipped out to blow up Palestinian children doesn't make it better. We could & should be spending that same money to build infrastructure and provide human services that would make our lives better instead of making lives around the world worse. For example, $10 billion recently went to a handful of major improvement projects on the NEC and then two weeks later Biden sent $14 billion to Israel to further aid and abet the genocide they are conducting. That money should all be spent on infrastructure & human services, whether here or abroad, not putting the majority of it towards war crimes overseas that could blow up into a regional war.
Unless (like me) you live in one of those idiotic states who actively rejects federal funds, climate change, and basically science.
Not a fan of the "cheap Chinese shit" refrain. It's the world's factory and will make anything to any price point. But finding good stuff is friggin daunting in an age of endless suppliers and zero reliability in online product reviews. Maybe Consumer Reports is worth a subscription? I pretty much put my trust in brands at Costco due to their return policy and the work required to process returns on a gazillion pieces of crap.
So funny to read these idiotic comments from WE THE AMERICANS🤣🤣🤣🤣 the most decadent society on this planet in all ways.
I've stopped buy most things from Amazon unless I don't care.
“I know a genuine Magnetbox, Phanaphonics and Sorny when I see one.” —Homer J Simpson
Sometimes it’s worth it to get off Amazon, do some research and get something from an established brand..
Get off Amazon and shop at Home Depot or Lowe’s or Costco
I rarely ever buy things from Amazon. Saves some hassle of digging through big piles of trash. I'll just shop at a reputable (web)store, that way I'm sure I don't get sent e-waste, unless I willingly choose to buy e-waste.
I've actually stopped buying stuff from Amazon because of this. Luckily where I am the big electronics stores are pretty decent and while you do pay a bit extra compared to Amazon it's worth it to: A. get a reputable brand that actually exists and makes decent quality products B. Actually be able to check the specs of the thing I'm buying on the packaging rather than guessing from the photoshopped images and random spec listing on Amazon. C. Not give more money to Amazon
This is basically only an issue on Amazon right?
There are a few others, like Home Depot (online) or Newegg. Places using their platform to become drop shippers for anything.
Two words: Consumer Reports.
Your local library might even have a subscription to the online version!
I've started just going to stores again. Amazon was super helpful, now it's all drop shipped bullshit.
ITT: people who need to log off Amazon.
Because your budget is in the no name junk category... You don't get both, either you get reputable quality or you get affordable. Substantially raise your budget and you will be back into the known names.
"fast, cheap, or good: pick two" still applies
Check out the lamps from Zafferano There are plenty of cheap Chinese knock offs but I believe the real ones are made in Italy. Not cheap but still affordable. I’ve seen these in really nice restaurants often used for outdoor tables. Can’t speak to their longevity but they seem well made. I think they are around $100-$200
It doesn't help that basically every online seller has completely abandoned describing the product - why is it that Target can't put in one small paragraph that tells you what's in the daggum box in the midst of the "reviews" and "other customer's also bought" boxes.
I wish there was a filter to hide all of the no name generic brands from the marketplaces.
That was my experience recently. Oh this one has a 5 star average.... wait from only 14 reviews that were all posted 9 days ago. Literally found the exact identical product under 5 or 6 different stores and the 1 star reviews were always that the product stopped working the second or third time they used it. I was completely unable to find any brand I recognized as a "real" retailer.
I was trying to buy a quality power brick but I couldn’t make heads or tails out of which one is good or crappy with them all having a bunch of random names like cumgood. Ended up just going with anker as they atleast have a reputation.
It's much easier out in the physical world instead of Amazon
Bluntly buy it from either Ikea or Costco. Find a good retailer with a decent return policy and let them do the work for you.
this is nothing to do with bilf but since Amazon is now full of Chinese crap I'm ordering the same crap for a fraction of the price directly from aliexpress
IKEA and Costco are good places to start. For a desk lamp look into Ottlite.
What specifically are you looking for? I see a lot of comments are about Lamps? May I recommend Anglepoise or Artemide as a starting point? They are incredibly well designed and well built and have been around for decades so won’t go out of fashion.
Commercial grade electronics do exists like commercial TVs made to run 24h/7 in airports, HP Z series desktops or Panasonic toughbooks, etc
I NEVER buy those kind of products online unless I'm doing directly from manufacturer's directly. I don't know in your country, but in Spain quality producs have about the same or less price than the chinese crap you find in Amazon, so I avoid buying there.
Check out Philips hue. Pricy but amazing engineering for lights.
Ha this is my exact thought when trying to find something on amazon. Random brand names everywhere
Ottlight
For kitchen small appliances I generally stick with two brands: Ninja and Kitchenaid. I've had a coffeemaker since probably 2017 or 2018 (think I got it from Sams so don't remember specifics) and a Foodi pressure cooker that replaced my Instant pot that died after the 1 year, I believe since 2020. So now most all of my other things I get are from them. Also have a stand mixer from kitchenaid and those are durable and multipurpose. Ninja is the sister brand to Shark so I tend to look for Shark's products as well in the vaccume and air purifier world.
Worth getting a subscription to consumer reports. I’ve been extremely happy with their recommendations from cars to appliances to insurance to phones.
Get off Amazon/Temu/Wish. That will cut down your research by 70%.
If you’re starting your search for quality electronics on Amazon or eBay, that’s the source of your frustration. Amazon has built an environment that encourages white labeling at scale, which creates these bulk crap devices. There are a ton of great consumer electronics companies that exist, but you won’t find them on Amazon without specifically looking for them. Look at brands sold by national retailers that have generous return policies. These national retailers won’t let their buyers fill their stores with crap that doesn’t work or is of terrible quality, for the most part. Buyers take risks that don’t always pay off, but they do their due diligence when searching for stuff. Good quality in one product has a much higher likelihood of good quality in other products in the same brand. That said, I’m very happy with my bathroom light I got on Amazon from the well thought out brand name SOLFART. Totally not kidding. It’s great and my only regret is not having a nice shiny label for guests to laugh at when in the bathroom.
Check out a thrift store. Salvation Army or goodwill
More junk than Amazon. It would take a shit load of time to sift through the trash in hopes of finding the one item that is worth it. That is a waste of time, especially on a “buy it for life” thread. He is looking for a quality item
I wouldn’t exactly call lights consumer electronics. Plus there are no consumer electronics that are buy for life. Not how technology works unfortunately.
I have a telephone, stereo, and assortment of lamps in my home right now that are all 50+ years old and working perfectly
*not how technology works anymore because of society.* FTFY. I just shot a roll of slide film on my 1979 Pentax ME Super, and will project them with a 1980s (IIRC) Kodak Carousel slide projector. If I'm really feeling fancy I might listen to some music on my 90s pioneer bookshelf speakers on my 1991 Technics SA-GX505 stereo receiver while I do it.
There are plenty of consumer electronics made today that are high quality - much higher quality than any of the items you list. There was also plenty of junk made in the past. It's the good stuff that tends to be held on to and last - which greatly skews the perception of the quality of the average product during that period.
Just because they didn't specifically say "digital technology" you felt the need to absolutely thrust yourself in with "ACKCHUALLY MY ANALOG STUFF WORKS GREAT" huh?
Just bought 30 dewenwils receptacles. On the 2nd one the screw stripped out. Turning with a hand screwdriver. Returned the 30 to Amazon the next day. Shape up or ship out.
I can't imagine buying Amazon knockoff electrical infrastructure equipment. Shudder to think where you'd source brake calipers from.
yeah buying anything electrical from amazon that isn't shipped directly from the trusted brand manufacturer is just asking for a fire hazard... and im not sure how fulfilled by amazon works but im skeptical of that as well, because im sure there are some scammers who buy the authentic product and then return a counterfeit and i doubt amazon checks before shipping out the counterfeit to other customers
Ooh, look at mister moneybag here with his ul listed critical infrastructure. Why don’t you get off your high horse and have a nice house bonfire like the rest of us
You should not be buying receptacles that aren’t UL listed to begin with.
A portable study light is pretty niche, honestly. The biggest problem is that something like that is probably an LED and LED lights will dim over time. So you need something with a replaceable light bulb. Which... idk sounds like you want a lamp or a flashlight? But lamps aren't portable, and flashlights aren't lamps. May I ask how you keep running into situations where you need to study in a dark environment away from home so often? Maybe there's a good option other than a "study light"?