# iPod Touch, iPad - Factory Direct and XS Cargo Discount Sales



## Lichen Software (Jul 23, 2004)

I am seeing iPod Touch at both locations for pretty good prices and this week there is an iPad special for Factory Direct.

I have an iPad on order from my local dealer and I am waiting for it to come in, so I am wondering where they are getting these. 

Are these guys buying Stateside and then selling for the currency difference?

Anyone had any experience?

Is there any warranty? And is it good in Canada?


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## Guest (May 4, 2011)

I would be leery personally. I have had some serious issues with factory direct in the past trying to get warranty on obviously DOA items. They also seem to sell a lot of grey market stuff as when I tried to get manufacturer warranty on items I bought form them the manufacturer flat out refused and told me I had to deal with them. 

The last time I bought anything substantial from them it was 6 hard drives that were on sale and 5 of them were DOA. It took me many months and a lot of hassle, phone calls, personal visits, and frank discussions with the store manager to get anything for them and at the end of the day all they would give me is store credit even though they were obviously DOA. I had to buy the replacement drive elsewhere as I needed them for a client on a short time frame. I also had to pay a $25 "bench fee" for them to test each hard drive (yes I had to pay them $125 to try and get warranty support from them). They never refunded the $125 either, but added that to my store credit at the end of it all.

They are not an authorized Apple reseller and all the iPads they show are listed as refurbished and only come with their own 90 day warranty (good luck with that).

All-in-all they sell a lot of low-priced junk and if/when products fail they often don't have replacements and try to pawn off other junk on you instead. I would avoid them like the plague personally. Can't add anything about XS cargo but again if they are not authorized resellers I'd stay away. Just my $0.02.


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## thedarkhorse (Jul 12, 2008)

Any electronic item I've got from XS Cargo has died within a couple months, they do offer extra warranties to cover this, but most their products are poor quality junk. If it's a decent item like an ipod it's a refurbished unit that's likely already been broken once(I don't think they get _official_ refurbs).


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## Guest (May 4, 2011)

thedarkhorse said:


> Any electronic item I've got from XS Cargo has died within a couple months, they do offer extra warranties to cover this, but most their products are poor quality junk. If it's a decent item like an ipod it's a refurbished unit that's likely already been broken once(I don't think they get _official_ refurbs).


Yep that's my concern too ... Apple wouldn't be selling them refurbs directly so the authenticity of where they come from would be in question in my mind.


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## Dr_AL (Apr 29, 2007)

If the iPads are the first generation, factory could have his bought them for cheap from a future shop or other large box store that wants to get rid of them.

For the right price I'd take a gamble but for the price I found online I'd just go for the iPad 2. 

Sent from my iPhone


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## greydoggie (Apr 21, 2009)

I wouldn't buy anything expensive from a store like Factory Direct. A lot of the stuff that they sell as refurbished looks like it's used. And when all you can get out of them is a store credit for something else it's not very good either because you're just going to end up with more junk.


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## Dr T (May 16, 2009)

My experience is similar to that of others. I have bought a few things at an XS Cargo outlet. Years back when they first opened, I bought some refurbished electronics that failed in a couple of weeks, by which time they had nothing comparable in stock to replace it with. I recently bought a couple of tripods there, because people keep borrowing my good ones and they don't come back. These XS Cargo tripods WERE cheap (inexpensive) and ARE cheap (poorly built), and this suits me because I don't expect to have them for very long.


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## fjnmusic (Oct 29, 2006)

Factory Direct and XS Cargo are like luxury stores if you're used to shopping at pawn shops.


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## John Clay (Jun 25, 2006)

fjnmusic said:


> Factory Direct and XS Cargo are like luxury stores if you're used to shopping at pawn shops.


A polished turd is still a turd.


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## fjnmusic (Oct 29, 2006)

John Clay said:


> A polished turd is still a turd.


Exactly. Usually one gets what one pays for.


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## a7mc (Dec 30, 2002)

FWIW... I have bought (attempted to buy?) 4 items from Factory direct and 3 items from XS Cargo in the past. Only one single product out of the 7 has worked. Every other item was DOA, or broke within a month.

A7


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## fjnmusic (Oct 29, 2006)

These outlets give the word "refurbished" a bad name.


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## Guest (May 5, 2011)

fjnmusic said:


> These outlets give the word "refurbished" a bad name.


The problem is if they advertised what that stuff really is they wouldn't sell anything. "Broken" and "DOA" and "May Partially Work" and "May Work for a While" just don't have the same ring as refurbished


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## fellfromtree (May 18, 2005)

Bought lots of stuff from Factory Direct and Xcargo, no problems. Great place to buy batteries. But I would weigh buying anything valuable- calculated risk.
A bunch of assorted hard drives/externals, no problems. Bought my refurb cordless phone, no problem. Bunch of memory cards much cheaper than anywhere else, no problems. If you're talking about the Barrie store, and comparing to what's in the flyer- it's just a pipe dream anyway. Good luck actually getting any of the good stuff you see in the flyer. Even if you check the online stock availability.... right, just sold the last one minutes before you got there. If you're going to to do the XC and FD rounds in Barrie, throw in a stop at the Radio Shack warehouse on your way up- you get a full 'no questions' return policy on almost everything. Sometimes they actually have something you're looking for.


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## Lichen Software (Jul 23, 2004)

fellfromtree said:


> Bought lots of stuff from Factory Direct and Xcargo, no problems. Great place to buy batteries. But I would weigh buying anything valuable- calculated risk.
> A bunch of assorted hard drives/externals, no problems. Bought my refurb cordless phone, no problem. Bunch of memory cards much cheaper than anywhere else, no problems. If you're talking about the Barrie store, and comparing to what's in the flyer- it's just a pipe dream anyway. Good luck actually getting any of the good stuff you see in the flyer. Even if you check the online stock availability.... right, just sold the last one minutes before you got there. If you're going to to do the XC and FD rounds in Barrie, throw in a stop at the Radio Shack warehouse on your way up- you get a full 'no questions' return policy on almost everything. Sometimes they actually have something you're looking for.


I have actually had good luck at both here in Barrie. When I went shopping the specials, they were there. But I am like you, I was buying fairly low value and non bubiness critical goods. I go a lot of things for my vintage Macs there, cheap routers, switches, $3.99 laptop bag, etc.

I have already ordered in the iPad from my Mac dealer here. ETA is Monday, but deliveries have been spotty. 

I was looking at the iPod Touches. The prices seemed really good at both places. I was hoping someone had already purchsed one, had it die and found out how warranties were or were not honoured by the vendor or by apple.

Since RadioShack became The Source, I really have not purchased that much. I used to use RadioShack a lot when I was up north. The local dealer was good. Now it seems to be a lot of consumer goods for the most part. They do have PRAM batteries, but they are at least twice the price of other battery places here.


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## Guest (May 7, 2011)

I've purchased a lot of smaller, non big-ticket type items from them and yes they sometimes work as expected 

They pretty clearly state the warranty on their site (at least the factory direct one). 90 days from FD and none from the manufacturer. As I said the problem is in 90 days I'd be very surprised if they had any stock left on these (and when you get a replacement it doesn't come with a full 90 days, they typically have wording that states it comes with the remainder of the original 90 day warranty, or 10 days, whichever is greater).

I stand by my statement that I wouldn't trust buying one there but that said not all of the units are destined for failure ... but for the ones that do ... good luck with that.


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## alexmrb (Dec 18, 2011)

I would only buy an iPad from Factory Direct or XS Cargo if I were stranded on an island with no Best Buy, Factory Direct, Walmart, The Source, or Apple stores, and only a Factory Direct or XS Cargo was available.


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## John Clay (Jun 25, 2006)

alexmrb said:


> I would only buy an iPad from Factory Direct or XS Cargo if I were stranded on an island with no Best Buy, Factory Direct, Walmart, The Source, or Apple stores, and only a Factory Direct or XS Cargo was available.


If Factory Direct and XS Cargo were the only options, I'd just go without.


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## Jason H (Feb 1, 2004)

alexmrb said:


> I would only buy an iPad from Factory Direct or XS Cargo if I were stranded on an island with no Best Buy, Factory Direct, Walmart, The Source, or Apple stores, and only a Factory Direct or XS Cargo was available.


You would only buy an iPad from factory direct if you were on an island with no factory direct? 
Oh and welcome to Ehmac.

Anyway. I'm curious where they are getting these from.

I almost got an unlocked 3gs from them before I splurged on my iPhone 4. I saw the 3gs in store and it had a sticker on it warning never to restore the iPhone from iTunes as it would default to its regular carrier and wouldn't be unlocked anymore.


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## alexmrb (Dec 18, 2011)

Thanks for the welcome. Factorydirect and XS Cargo probably get their items from users who trade in products, or they could just pull them off of Apple for practically free if they're old :lmao:


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## alexmrb (Dec 18, 2011)

Jason H said:


> You would only buy an iPad from factory direct if you were on an island with no factory direct?
> Oh and welcome to Ehmac.
> 
> Anyway. I'm curious where they are getting these from.
> ...


Well, maybe they take the returned (Puked and sneezed on,) items that don't work anymore from Walmart or other big box stores, wipe them with wet naps, and corner you with warranty.

Well done FD, your charitable work is astounding :clap:

P.S- Someone I know bought an Aptiva from Factory Direct, and it broke. Showed a blank screen, and of course, it was a little after 90 days :lmao:


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