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Old 11-25-2017, 08:22 PM   #1
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Ethics of Selling Review Units
I wonder about the ethics of selling review models which were presumably received free of charge...

Quote:
The Good e-Reader Store is open for business and it is suitable for all of your e-paper devices and tablet needs. We have dozens of products from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, Pocketbook, Tolino and a myriad of others. You can checkout our shop today and pay for items with credit card or PAYPAL. All of the items are at our shipping warehouse and tend to be dispatched within a few days of the order being placed.

All of the products available in our store are review units that we receive from vendors all over the world. They are in perfect condition and have only been used for our unboxing and review videos on our YouTube channel. Instead of them collecting dust in our film studio we decided to just discount them and make them available for our loyal readers. We have been promoting digital reading since 2007 and this is our way of giving back to the community.

The proceeds of the store allow Good e-Reader to maintain the high level of journalistic integrity

https://goodereader.com/blog/electro...-now-available
Giving them away as part of a promotional campaign, I could perhaps understand. But selling them for profit?

I wonder what those who donated them would think...
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Old 11-25-2017, 08:47 PM   #2
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I wonder about the ethics of selling review models which were presumably received free of charge...



Giving them away as part of a promotional campaign, I could perhaps understand. But selling them for profit?

I wonder what those who donated them would think...
I would say buyer beware looking at who is doing this.

If you believe those were donated, do you want to buy some beach property in west Texas?
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Old 11-25-2017, 10:15 PM   #3
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How would you like to buy this test model?

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ZaiUm-ascU4
(Drop test)
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Old 11-25-2017, 11:35 PM   #4
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How would you like to buy this test model?

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ZaiUm-ascU4
(Drop test)
Sure, when Mother's Day is in August.
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Old 11-26-2017, 01:26 AM   #5
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The proceeds of the store allow Good e-Reader to maintain the high level of journalistic integrity
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Old 11-26-2017, 01:43 AM   #6
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I'm too lazy to compare prices, but their offers do look rather expensive for used merchandise, don't they?
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Old 11-26-2017, 02:06 AM   #7
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What is also interesting is that if you go straight to their store, there is no notification whatsoever that they are selling test units. If you don't catch the blogpost quoted above you will have no idea what you are buying. I wonder how legal that procedure is.
Last edited by doubleshuffle; 11-26-2017 at 04:05 AM.
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Old 11-26-2017, 07:00 AM   #8
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Originally Posted by doubleshuffle View Post
What is also interesting is that if you go straight to their store, there is no notification whatsoever that they are selling test units. If you don't catch the blogpost quoted above you will have no idea what you are buying. I wonder how legal that procedure is.

Snarky, shady, black-market, dishonest, scam, dodgy.

Please feel free - ANYONE! - to add to this list.
Last edited by Dr. Drib; 11-26-2017 at 08:22 AM.
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Old 11-26-2017, 07:15 AM   #9
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I'm too lazy to compare prices, but their offers do look rather expensive for used merchandise, don't they?
That was my reaction. Used merchandise, with no guarantee or recourse that I can see. I can't imagine why someone would buy at those prices.
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Old 11-26-2017, 08:12 AM   #10
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What is also interesting is that if you go straight to their store, there is no notification whatsoever that they are selling test units. If you don't catch the blogpost quoted above you will have no idea what you are buying. I wonder how legal that procedure is.
I don't think there is necessarily anything wrong with someone selling review units, unless they are given them on the premise they won't be sold on for profit (I don't think retailers put any conditions on review products they send to people?).

However, selling them without labelling them as used review/test units seems very dodgy. Here in the UK The Trades Descriptions Act states that goods have to be described accurately, not sure if there is anything similar in the US?

It's just yet another in the long list of reasons to not look at that website unless you really, really have no choice!
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Old 11-26-2017, 08:58 AM   #11
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The 7” Fire with 8gb is more on their site than new from from Amazon. I placed that Fire in my cart, just for grins and giggles, to see what disclaimers they would give.

SUBTOTAL $39.99
SHIPPING Flat rate: $39.00

TOTAL $78.99

Yowzer. Look at that shipping cost.
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Old 11-26-2017, 09:14 AM   #12
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When i did reviews, I usually* either kept the review units or gave them away. My preferred recipients were teachers in impoverished schools, but it was sometimes hard to find them.

*Well, I did sell one Dasung monitor I got for free, but I had also bought one myself so it balances out.
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Old 11-26-2017, 09:24 AM   #13
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Oh, here's something you should know about free review units: they belong to the company, not the reviewer.

Many companies will actually send a return label with the unit, making it clear they want it back. Some will even have you sign an agreement specifying the unit has to be returned before they will ship it.

I returned most of loaner Kindles I got from Amazon (I'm using the one or two I kept) and all Nook hardware lent to me.

This is why i don't think I can sell it.
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Old 11-26-2017, 09:42 AM   #14
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Originally Posted by Deskisamess View Post
The 7” Fire with 8gb is more on their site than new from from Amazon. I placed that Fire in my cart, just for grins and giggles, to see what disclaimers they would give.

SUBTOTAL $39.99
SHIPPING Flat rate: $39.00

TOTAL $78.99

Yowzer. Look at that shipping cost.
That is priceless.

More seriously, it makes you wonder what in heck is going on? He can't possibly expect to sell any of those units with that shipping cost. Doesn't he know, or he is playing another game that's not obvious to me?
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Old 11-26-2017, 09:48 AM   #15
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If you believe those were donated, do you want to buy some beach property in west Texas?
Yes, "donated" was a poor choice of words. Should have simply said "provided" instead which neither connotes that they were freely given, nor simply lent.
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