Amazon is the biggest store in the world, and a number of its products are gadgets. However, there are times when you should steer clear of this website.
Amazon offers shoppers a whole lot of reasons to shop on its platform: There are the perks of Amazon Prime, the promise of low prices, and the convenience of having such a huge range of products all in one place. There are plenty of deals on gadgets to be found on Amazon, both from big-name brands and from smaller manufacturers, but it can be easy to end up with a product that isn’t quite what you expected when you clicked « Buy Now. »
From knock-offs to older versions of big-name gadgets, there are plenty of reasons to be wary when purchasing gadgets from Amazon. Some types of tech on Amazon might even be worth avoiding altogether. However, if you can avoid being caught out by misleading products or unscrupulous sellers, you might well be able to bag yourself a bargain. Don’t let the platform’s drawbacks stop you from buying your next gadget on Amazon — just keep these five things in mind the next time you’re browsing the retailer’s range.Don’t be tricked by keywords in a product name
If you search on Amazon for a gadget from a major tech manufacturer, you’re likely to see a mix of that manufacturer’s products and knock-offs in the search results. Knock-off gadgets are deliberately designed to look like popular gadgets from big tech brands like Apple and Samsung, but they’re actually made by a completely different manufacturer with no affiliation to either company. Most of the time, these knock-offs are sold at significantly lower prices than the real gadget.
Distinctive-looking gadgets such as the Apple Watch are particularly popular targets for makers of these knock-offs, and they often feature keywords like « Apple » or « iPhone » in their product listing title in an attempt to trick buyers into thinking that they’re associated with the Cupertino-based manufacturer. Some even appear with the « Amazon’s Choice » or « Overall Pick » tags, but Amazon’s tag system is merely an algorithmic recommendation based on the platform’s sales data. It isn’t necessarily reflective of the actual quality or capabilities of a product, and shouldn’t be trusted as an expert endorsement when you’re shopping for gadgets.
Genuine products will clearly list their manufacturer in their product listing title, so it should be easy to spot at a glance. If you look at a gadget and you can’t immediately identify its manufacturer from the title — particularly if it seems cheaper than other products in the search results — then it’s usually worth steering clear of.Check whether the product is sold by a third-party seller
Third-party sellers are a key part of the Amazon ecosystem, but buying gadgets from them comes with some drawbacks.
