Taobao Tube feedback wanted

[AllanK]

While what I have seen about them seems good, I would like to get feedback from people who have used Taobao Tube. Did you get your items? If they were unable to get your items did you get a refund? Etc.


Thanks

Allan

[betta]

I have used Taobaotube service. I placed the first order and they're fast in processing and kept you informed of the status, also per e-mail. The seller on taobao couldn't deliver the item after the given time, so I decided to cancel the order. As a replacement I ordered other item and they processed it very fast that the total processing time was less than a week.

Also, taobaotube gave a very good shipping price. This is very important because if you order something fragile, you need to have the shortest time possible for the shipment.

Some other taobao proxies actually "played" with this shipping price.
Basically a chinese colleague said that the china EMS price available in english site does not reflect the real price a taobao proxy pays. Furthermore you'll most likely not find the real ems shipping price on the parcel.
So, most other proxies earn twice, once in the commision and more in the shipping.
My personal experience with taobaotube showed that they're honest with the shipping quote and excellent with the service.

[AllanK]

I have used Taobaotube service. I placed the first order and they're fast in processing and kept you informed of the status, also per e-mail. The seller on taobao couldn't deliver the item after the given time, so I decided to cancel the order. As a replacement I ordered other item and they processed it very fast that the total processing time was less than a week.

Also, taobaotube gave a very good shipping price. This is very important because if you order something fragile, you need to have the shortest time possible for the shipment.

Some other taobao proxies actually "played" with this shipping price.
Basically a chinese colleague said that the china EMS price available in english site does not reflect the real price a taobao proxy pays. Furthermore you'll most likely not find the real ems shipping price on the parcel.
So, most other proxies earn twice, once in the commision and more in the shipping.
My personal experience with taobaotube showed that they're honest with the shipping quote and excellent with the service.

Well, I have put in an order with Taobaotube.com. I bought 4 inexpensive teapots. One was going for $180 on Ebay. I figure my total cost should be about $100 including shipping for that teapot. I will know in about three to four weeks if they are as good as you say.

[betta]

Please let me know also about your experience, because I am planning to order more.
Have you tried other taobao proxies?

[AllanK]

Please let me know also about your experience, because I am planning to order more.
Have you tried other taobao proxies?

I have two small orders in with Taobao Focus. one of two pieces of Puerh and the other of two $15 Tea Canisters almost impossible to find here or on Ebay. I am a little nervous that the tea canisters will arrive broken but they are cheap about $50 total for the canisters. They specifically stated they were not responsible if they break and I have heard large tea canisters sometimes break in transit.

I am hoping for an update soon. They periodically have updates to your order on the website. They seem to be having difficulty getting the tea. I will have first hand experience which is better in three weeks and will update this in time. The Taobao Focus website seems better. Taobao Tube seems easier to reach via email. Taobao Focus has live chat between 10am and 10pm China time.

[wyardley]

I am trying out Taobao Tube, since I've had such poor experiences with other proxies. I'll post back here after I've used them a couple of times.

[AllanK]

I am trying out Taobao Tube, since I've had such poor experiences with other proxies. I'll post back here after I've used them a couple of times.

So far Taobao Tube is excellent. They have already got half of my order. I know because they sent me photos of them still in boxes. And photos of them out of the packing that were not photos available on the internet. So far so good.

They have also been honest about what they could successfully pack, they were nervous about a large 35cm Yixing container I wanted so I didn't order it. They think they can pack a 25cm Yixing container so I will order it if this shipment goes well.

They have given me more in two days than Taobao Focus has in the 12 days my first order was put in there. To be fair to Taobao Focus though, it was the Chinese New Year Holiday.

[wyardley]

What's up with all the spam posts on their "forum", though? Are they just lazy about moderation? Is their forum software out of date? Or are they actually letting people use their forum for SEO purposes?

[betta]

They have already got half of my order. I know because they sent me photos of them still in boxes. And photos of them out of the packing that were not photos available on the internet. So far so good.

I don't understand the way you ordered through them. In my case, I searched by myself the item I wanted and asked them to buy, inspect, pack and send it to me.
This way I have my own degree of freedom to compare between various shops.

[wyardley]

They have already got half of my order. I know because they sent me photos of them still in boxes. And photos of them out of the packing that were not photos available on the internet. So far so good.

I don't understand the way you ordered through them. In my case, I searched by myself the item I wanted and asked them to buy, inspect, pack and send it to me.

I think he just meant that they sent a picture of the item after it arrived from the seller, which is pretty much standard for any of these services.

[AllanK]

They have already got half of my order. I know because they sent me photos of them still in boxes. And photos of them out of the packing that were not photos available on the internet. So far so good.

I don't understand the way you ordered through them. In my case, I searched by myself the item I wanted and asked them to buy, inspect, pack and send it to me.

I think he just meant that they sent a picture of the item after it arrived from the seller, which is pretty much standard for any of these services.

Yes they sent me a series of photos. Theirs was ordered last but arrived first. Half of my order from Taobao Focus has arrived, my two tea canisters. Provided they get to me intact, the total price for each canister will be about $46 after an expensive shipping fee.

Taobao Tube estimated their shipping fee before I made first payment, and as reported on this site, it is much better than Taobao Focus. If they(Taobao FOcus) package the two, large Yixing Tea Canisters well and they arrive intact I will still be happy with the purchase. You cannot get these here or on Ebay. A response from Scott at Yunnan Sourcing as to why he does not sell such large containers (large enough to hold a broken 357g cake) was that they break 50% of the time so I am praying.

I personally wonder why they can ship large items domestically without problem but have a problem with international shipping. There are vastly more tea canisters available on Taobao than on Ebay.

I will evaluate the packing skills of both Taobao Focus and Taobao Tube and be happy to report back here in two to three weeks, less if I am lucky.

[AllanK]

They have already got half of my order. I know because they sent me photos of them still in boxes. And photos of them out of the packing that were not photos available on the internet. So far so good.

I don't understand the way you ordered through them. In my case, I searched by myself the item I wanted and asked them to buy, inspect, pack and send it to me.

I think he just meant that they sent a picture of the item after it arrived from the seller, which is pretty much standard for any of these services.

Yes they sent me a series of photos. Theirs was ordered last but arrived first. Half of my order from Taobao Focus has arrived, my two tea canisters. Provided they get to me intact, the total price for each canister will be about $46 after an expensive shipping fee.

Taobao Tube estimated their shipping fee before I made first payment, and as reported on this site, it is much better than Taobao Focus. If they(Taobao FOcus) package the two, large Yixing Tea Canisters well and they arrive intact I will still be happy with the purchase. You cannot get these here or on Ebay. A response from Scott at Yunnan Sourcing as to why he does not sell such large containers (large enough to hold a broken 357g cake) was that they break 50% of the time so I am praying.

I personally wonder why they can ship large items domestically without problem but have a problem with international shipping. There are vastly more tea canisters available on Taobao than on Ebay.

I will evaluate the packing skills of both Taobao Focus and Taobao Tube and be happy to report back here in two to three weeks, less if I am lucky.

While Taobao Tube seems to have better service than Taobao Focus, their shipping fees worked out to almost as high as Taobao Focus, not quite as cheap as they estimated. I do not know about the speed of shipping.

One half of my Taobao Focus order has shipped and I expect my Taobao Tube order to ship today or tomorrow.

[betta]

I thought you guys asked them to look for item rather than looking by yourself. Allan, Will, i hope you'll receive the item intact. I'm looking around in taobao for some shiwan figures.

[AllanK]

I thought you guys asked them to look for item rather than looking by yourself. Allan, Will, i hope you'll receive the item intact. I'm looking around in taobao for some shiwan figures.

No, in both cases you choose the items yourself. With Taobao Focus you search through their system and select using their system. With Taobao Tube you search Taobao itself and then email the link to the woman who handles all that.

The big drawback to Taobao is the buyer takes all the risk. With the tea canisters it was worth it because I cannot get them otherwise. With the teapots it was worth it because I am saving a nice chunk of money. I paid about $160 for four Yixing teapots that would have cost me $260 on Ebay if they were available. With the tea I did not end up saving much. Once I make final payment I am guessing I save about $10.

[AllanK]

I thought you guys asked them to look for item rather than looking by yourself. Allan, Will, i hope you'll receive the item intact. I'm looking around in taobao for some shiwan figures.

No, in both cases you choose the items yourself. With Taobao Focus you search through their system and select using their system. With Taobao Tube you search Taobao itself and then email the link to the woman who handles all that.

The big drawback to Taobao is the buyer takes all the risk. With the tea canisters it was worth it because I cannot get them otherwise. With the teapots it was worth it because I am saving a nice chunk of money. I paid about $160 for four Yixing teapots that would have cost me $260 on Ebay if they were available. With the tea I did not end up saving much. Once I make final payment I am guessing I save about $10.

Well, the Taobao Focus tea canisters arrived and each in one piece. The packaging was good, but not spectacular. They would not have survived much mishandling. In short, I would not risk the same order again unless they packaged them better. They were well packed but not as good as the best I have encountered. They needed more padding but it turned out to be sufficient. Their shipping, on the other hand was incredibly good. It took just five days to get to me, probably a record. I would not hesitate to order from Taobao Focus again, just not something as large and fragile as the tea canisters. I got lucky.

The Taobao Tube package has not yet arrived but they are smaller teapots, less likely to break.