Is Amazon giving refurbished tablets to customers who paid for new ones?

[Andy_D]

I posted recently to a thread started by someone who wanted to know how he could prevent Amazon from knowing his reading habits or from obtaining other personal data from his use of his tablet. He was roundly criticized by several posters to this forum for being a worry-wart and "if he had nothing to hide" being unduly concerned about anyone knowing his personal habits. I also posted to a different thread about the 6th gen. 8" Fire that I was considering buying.

My comments here connect the dots from the two threads.

I did buy the 8" tablet from Best Buy on sale for $70. When I unboxed it, everything looked normal except for the USB cable. It was not tightly wound with a tie. Instead, it looked like it had been unprofessionally bunched up and shoved into the space it was meant to occupy in the package . I worried a little that, because of the USB cable, that this might be a refurbished unit that I'd been reading in this forum that Amazon sends as replacements for returned units under warranty. After watching the YouTube video described below, I am *really* wondering if I was sold a refurbished device.

The YouTube video I watched was one of those unboxing videos (of the 7" Fire tablet). The unboxer began his video by showing the sealed package that he then tore open. After removing the tablet, he turned it on. He then noticed something unusual. It did not ask him to register it.

It was ALREADY REGISTERED TO SOMEONE ELSE!!! He announced the name of the person to whom it was registered (which he shouldn't have done).

He went to the app store on the device and found that he could buy anything he wanted using the previous owner's account. He could have bought hundreds of dollars of apps, videos, or games, or possibly even merchnadise at Amazon.com and charged it to the tablet's previous owner. (He either didn't complete the test purchase or cancelled it and then deregistered the tablet and registered it in his own name.)

This provides ample evidence that Amazon can be shockingly careless with one's personal information and confirms the Mobileread poster "worry-wart's" privacy concerns after he took quite a bit of heat from others in this forum for being "paranoid."

The other issue is that the YouTube unboxer was sent a used unit even though he said he had purchased a new one. How often is this going on? Now I am really wondering if the sloppy packaging of the USB cable is a clue to my having been given a refurbished tablet. I have bought dozens of things that came with supplied cords or cables over many, many years, and I've never seen one that wasn't compactly tied together.

Do you think I got a refurbished unit, and if so, should I exchange it for another one?

The YouTube video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uPI-mUVse9c

[deltop]

If you bought it from Best Buy and not Amazon direct and it seems like it's been packaged back up isn't that most likely due to Best Buy selling you one of their own returned units? In which case you should take it up with them.

Regarding the YouTube video if you buy direct from Amazon they come pre-registered on your account, so isn't that more likely just to have been a packing/shipping error?

[Andy_D]

Originally Posted by deltop

If you bought it from Best Buy and not Amazon direct and it seems like it's been packaged back up isn't that most likely due to Best Buy selling you one of their own returned units? In which case you should take it up with them.

The nature of the unusual package - it's not a box but a soft-sided pouch-like container - made me think it had to be Amazon's doing. In order to open the pouch one needs to tear and remove a half inch wide strip running across the width of the pouch. It can't be resealed. This means that Best Buy would have to have a supply of these empty pouches. Is that possible? I don't know.

Originally Posted by deltop

Regarding the YouTube video if you buy direct from Amazon they come pre-registered on your account, so isn't that more likely just to have been a packing/shipping error?

I didn't know that Amazon pre-registers its devices when you order direct from them. That would cast at least some doubt on its being a returned device, however the video unboxer has made 100's of these videos and he definitely was of the opinion he'd received a used device which at least hints at his having bought it from a non-Amazon dealer.

In any event, that doesn't absolve Amazon of a major security lapse in its handling of critical customer data.

[Barbara1955]

I was Promised a New Fire 10... just got told I will be getting a REFRIB

Originally Posted by Andy_D

I posted recently to a thread started by someone who wanted to know how he could prevent Amazon from knowing his reading habits or from obtaining other personal data from his use of his tablet. He was roundly criticized by several posters to this forum for being a worry-wart and "if he had nothing to hide" being unduly concerned about anyone knowing his personal habits. I also posted to a different thread about the 6th gen. 8" Fire that I was considering buying.

My comments here connect the dots from the two threads.

I did buy the 8" tablet from Best Buy on sale for $70. When I unboxed it, everything looked normal except for the USB cable. It was not tightly wound with a tie. Instead, it looked like it had been unprofessionally bunched up and shoved into the space it was meant to occupy in the package . I worried a little that, because of the USB cable, that this might be a refurbished unit that I'd been reading in this forum that Amazon sends as replacements for returned units under warranty. After watching the YouTube video described below, I am *really* wondering if I was sold a refurbished device.

The YouTube video I watched was one of those unboxing videos (of the 7" Fire tablet). The unboxer began his video by showing the sealed package that he then tore open. After removing the tablet, he turned it on. He then noticed something unusual. It did not ask him to register it.

It was ALREADY REGISTERED TO SOMEONE ELSE!!! He announced the name of the person to whom it was registered (which he shouldn't have done).

He went to the app store on the device and found that he could buy anything he wanted using the previous owner's account. He could have bought hundreds of dollars of apps, videos, or games, or possibly even merchnadise at Amazon.com and charged it to the tablet's previous owner. (He either didn't complete the test purchase or cancelled it and then deregistered the tablet and registered it in his own name.)

This provides ample evidence that Amazon can be shockingly careless with one's personal information and confirms the Mobileread poster "worry-wart's" privacy concerns after he took quite a bit of heat from others in this forum for being "paranoid."

The other issue is that the YouTube unboxer was sent a used unit even though he said he had purchased a new one. How often is this going on? Now I am really wondering if the sloppy packaging of the USB cable is a clue to my having been given a refurbished tablet. I have bought dozens of things that came with supplied cords or cables over many, many years, and I've never seen one that wasn't compactly tied together.

Do you think I got a refurbished unit, and if so, should I exchange it for another one?

The YouTube video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uPI-mUVse9c

Seriously? You haven't figured out by now that Best Buy places returned items on their shelves and sells them as new items? They have been doing that for as long as I can remember. Back in the old days I would buy a supposedly brand new cordless phone from them, go home, unbox it and turn it on, then find the address book full of names and numbers. Clearly not a new item. But my point is don't trust the Big Box retail jerks at all. You did not buy this item directly from Amazon, you bought it from Best Buy. Even when buying from Amazon you have to be careful to make sure you are dealing with Amazon and not a third party retailer selling through Amazon. I've gotten non-Amazon products in the past with pieces missing that were sold as brand new but had clearly been opened, but even though I purchased on Amazon.com from a 3rd party retailer Amazon made them replace the item without questions. In your case, the ripoff was all Best Buy and you must deal with them alone. Don't blame Amazon for Best Buy actions.

As far as privacy goes, if you have an internet connection and that connection is provided by a company, I guarantee that company could easily trace your surfing habits if they wanted to or if a court order summoned it. There is no privacy guarantee when surfing the internet. Plenty of companies, governments, and individuals can track you. You have more to be worried about in those entities than you do with a company like Amazon. Chances are you are a total nobody to all those entities and they could care less about you, so you can chill out unless you are browsing things that might catch their attention, or you are a VIP, or you have a lot of money. Just be sensible and stay away from certain websites, use good passwords and change them often, and be vigilant.

[Andy_D]

Originally Posted by jswinden

Seriously? You haven't figured out by now that Best Buy places returned items on their shelves and sells them as new items?

Nope!

But now I know. Thanks! This is troubling news. I've only bought maybe 10 things from Best Buy in my life and never suspected what I was sold wasn't new. I thought big box stores were constrained by consumer protection laws (at least here in California) and only sold returned items as "open box specials." Aren't they risking a class action consumer lawsuit and an ensuing huge PR problem if this is their standard method of operation? But I'm not saying I don't believe you. I do.

I knew my proper recourse, regardless of who repackaged the tablet as new, was to go back to Best Buy, not Amazon. In your opinion, is it worth the effort to get a replacement if the tablet appears perfect or to just let it go? What are the chances that the replacement would be another refurb but with the USB cable properly wound?

Is what you've described the general practice of all or most big box stores or is Best Buy especially infamous for this deception?

[Cinisajoy]

Originally Posted by Katie1

I was Promised a New Fire 10... just got told I will be getting a REFRIB

Who promised and is this an exchange?
I hope you took down the person's name that promised you that.

[Cinisajoy]

Originally Posted by Andy_D

Nope!

But now I know. Thanks! This is troubling news. I've only bought maybe 10 things from Best Buy in my life and never suspected what I was sold wasn't new. I thought big box stores were constrained by consumer protection laws (at least here in California) and only sold returned items as "open box specials." Aren't they risking a class action consumer lawsuit and an ensuing huge PR problem if this is their standard method of operation? But I'm not saying I don't believe you. I do.

I knew my proper recourse, regardless of who repackaged the tablet as new, was to go back to Best Buy, not Amazon. In your opinion, is it worth the effort to get a replacement if the tablet appears perfect or to just let it go? What are the chances that the replacement would be another refurb but with the USB cable properly wound?

Is what you've described the general practice of all or most big box stores or is Best Buy especially infamous for this deception?

Best Buy is infamous for it but I think that the other two BIG box stores do the same thing.

In about a week, I would be vigilant about buying any items (especially housewares and tools) from Walmart.

I agree with Cinisajoy, most of the big boxes do this. They are not supposed to do it, but they do. Just be careful. I always look for the packaging tape to see if it is intact. Not all items have a tape seal, but if it does check it to make sure it hasn't been tampered with. Although the big box stores will do things like this on their own, be aware that I've seen customers take things out of new item boxes without permission. Perhaps they lost a cable or something, and rather than order a replacement they just grab one from a box on the shelves. Not cool, but they do it. Fry's is the worst I've seen for items that have been opened and messed with. But Fry's doesn't police their store so people can get away with almost anything therein.

[Barbara1955]

Originally Posted by Cinisajoy

Who promised and is this an exchange?
I hope you took down the person's name that promised you that.

I have the Transcript form the person on Amazon Chat. I called when they notified me my replacement was coming. When I checked the order it was a Refrib. I called and the person told me that was ALL I was going to get from Amazon! I explained to the person what I was promised she told me Replacements are ALWAYS Refribs! No matter if the New is Broke out of box or later in the warranty. Told her sounds to me Amazon is pulling the same bull B&N did!

[Cinisajoy]

Originally Posted by Katie1

I have the Transcript form the person on Amazon Chat. I called when they notified me my replacement was coming. When I checked the order it was a Refrib. I called and the person told me that was ALL I was going to get from Amazon! I explained to the person what I was promised she told me Replacements are ALWAYS Refribs! No matter if the New is Broke out of box or later in the warranty. Told her sounds to me Amazon is pulling the same bull B&N did!

Well then email Jeff a copy of the chat transcript so he can either fix the problem or fire the liar.
You can bet that if an employee promised me new and I got refurb, I wouldn't be complaining on a public forum, I would be getting ahold of someone that could do something.
And if it wasn't resolved to my satisfaction, I wouldn't give them another dime ever.
But yet, you say the company is pulling bull, but you still spend money there.
You are still supporting him. I hope Jeff enjoys the cup of coffee you bought him.

Please tell me since everything you have bought from Amazon and Best Buy have not worked for you, why do you keep giving them money?
As I recall, you told the forum once that you didn't have the money to pay your bills, yet the second you get a credit card, you buy toys instead of food. I worry about you.
Just return the Fire and get your money back.

[Andy_D]

Originally Posted by jswinden

Just be careful. I always look for the packaging tape to see if it is intact. Not all items have a tape seal, but if it does check it to make sure it hasn't been tampered with.

As I wrote above, the "box" that the cheap Fires come in is not a real box. It's more like an envelope. To open it, you have to tear off a strip of the package. The package *was* sealed. The strip was intact. What does that mean?

The point being that the envelope couldn't possibly be fixed to look like it had never been opened. So I guess in this case it's impossible to be careful if Best Buy has been given a supply of empty, unused envelopes by Amazon in order to assist in the deception. This sounds improbable, but from what you're saying, it must be what they're doing.

If you were to take the Fire back to Best Buy, would you tell them about the sloppy winding of the USB cord and that you'd been given a used tablet and ask for a replacement, or would you return it and then later buy a new one?

[Cinisajoy]

Originally Posted by Andy_D

As I wrote above, the "box" that the cheap Fires come in is not a real box. It's more like an envelope. To open it, you have to tear off a strip of the package. The package *was* sealed. The strip was intact. What does that mean?

The point being that the envelope couldn't possibly be fixed to look like it had never been opened. So I guess in this case it's impossible to be careful if Best Buy has been given a supply of empty, unused envelopes by Amazon in order to assist in the deception. This sounds improbable, but from what you're saying, it must be what they're doing.

If you were to take the Fire back to Best Buy, would you tell them about the sloppy winding of the USB cord and that you'd been given a used tablet and ask for a replacement, or would you return it and then later buy a new one?

I would be having a long talk with the manager.
I would be getting my money back and probably not buy electronics from that store again.

Oh I did call our local Best Buy to say thank you for saving us $200 on a surround sound. He did not take it as a compliment when I told him we went elsewhere because the blue shirts would rather talk to each other than wait on customers.

[Andy_D]

Originally Posted by Cinisajoy

I would be having a long talk with the manager.
I would be getting my money back and probably not buy electronics from that store again.

Oh I did call our local Best Buy to say thank you for saving us $200 on a surround sound. He did not take it as a compliment when I told him we went elsewhere because the blue shirts would rather talk to each other than wait on customers.

Yes, I realize you are not a BB fan, but what does the virtual impossibility of BB reusing a Fire package mean (as described in my last post) with respect to who did what and how in this case? If BB sold me one of their returned tablets, how did they manage to put it in a sealed single use package?

1. Amazon gives or sells BB a supply of empty, new packages.
2. It really was Amazon that sent to BB a refurb item.
3. BB manufactures its own single use packages for the Fires.
4. I don't know, and I don't care. I just hate BB. ; )
5. Other

You probably just got a sloppily prepared device package, and that is Amazon's fault since it was sealed. Perhaps the guy was hungover that day, or just in a crappy mood at work. I would notify Amazon, but chances are this was a new device but was just packaged by a bad employee or bad robot. It doesn't hurt to point it out to Amazon. In this case BB probably won't have a clue as to what to do and will likely give you the run around. Amazon likely will give you the run around too, but you never know. Sometimes they will give the buyer credit on future purchases.