Half-of-what-you've-come-to-expect.com
Written: Sep 06 '01 (Updated Sep 06 '01)
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The Bottom Line
If you don't mind waiting a month or longer for these morons to get their act together and actually ship your item, then give them a try.
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| Full Review |
Ever wanted to just buy that great item on eBay right away because if you don't, you'll never see that deal again?! Well, here's where Half.com come in- it handles those interested in immediately selling/buying an item with a reduced price to it.
Well, this sounded like a wonderful idea- especially since it was created and maintained by some of those guys @ eBay. However, all is not what it seems- it's not quite the same quality service that eBay offers.
HALF... of what???
While I must say, I've found some great items and some great prices... they weren't nessesarily found together. Most sellers want more than half- almost what you'd pay for a new item! While this should be set by the seller, it should be up to Half.com to set a limit depending on the condition of the item.
PAYMENT
Excellent! Online payment through a credit/debit card! Not so fast- in fact, slow yourself down to a screaching hault! Verification of your card takes a very long time. Most companies will have verified it within a day or two. My purchases took several days- just to verify, nevermind actually packaging and shipping the thing. If one made a similar purchase on eBay, payment is made when the seller recieves your payment- with the exception on personal checks- there is no waiting to verify!
SHIPMENT
This is usually written in stone by the seller. I thought I might be able to talk the seller into using a fast er service through the same courier, but alas, no fast and easy communication could be made to the seller like on eBay. Most everyone on Half.com insists upon MediaMail- this has got to be last class, because my orders took for ever!!! If I could've just talked to the seller, I'm sure he wouldn't mind shipping it Priority Mail as long as I paid the difference. I would have had it as late as 3 days after the sale- not 2-4 weeks after!!!
There is no guaranteed time of arrival of your item- NOT EVEN A GOOD BALLPARK FIGURE! The best estimate Half.com had to offer was anywhere up to 4 weeks!
SELLERS
These guys are sloooooow compared with those that sell on eBay! Most eBay-ers will ship the next day after receiving payment! I had one guy take several days! Was he on vacation??? I'm sorry, but if you're gonna sell your item, I want it as soon as possible!
I had bought some books for school- big mistake! While I did save a bit, it took way too long to get them. I took the time it'd take into effect(about two weeks) but by the time these morons finally verified the payment, classes had already started. I wish I could've canceled the order, but there is no option to do that!!!! Arg!!! At that point, I would have loved to have cancelled and bought them NEW- at least I'd have my books!
Communication skills are absolutely non-existant. You need communication! This was a strong feature of eBay- being able to communicate with your buyer/seller. I received no communication whatsoever from any of the 10 individuals I conducted business with. As much as I wanted to, I couldn't- there was no visible means to do this.
CONCLUSION
I wish I hadn't bothered with this company- it's a waste of time. It's frustrating not knowing when your item will arrive or what to expect in general. Not being able to communicate with your buyer/seller is also very frustrating- how else are you supposed to work out any details?
While this system may work for some people, the service pales in comparison to eBay. I was very dissapointed at this fact.
I suppose if you don't mind waiting a month or longer for these morons to get their act together and actually ship your item, then give them a try.
Recommended:
No
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About the Author
Location: tha 'noth ; )
Reviews written: 41
Trusted by: 8 members
About Me: Mobomofo has a great knowledge of electronic components. So great, he thought to share it!
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