Buying a Petrel 2 from Amazon.com

[skidoctor]

Since Amazon will not allow me to write anything negative about them in their product reviews i am going to post my experience in buying a Petrel 2 through Amazon.com here on this board. First of all if you consider buying a Petrel 2 through Amazon be prepared for the possibility they will actually ship you a Petrel 1 in a box labeled as a Petrel 2. This actually happened to me twice as both the 1st and 2nd order was actually a Petrel 1 in a box labeled as a Petrel 2. The very first thing you need to do (and if you have previously ordered one) is to check the hardware Rev number must be greater than 2.4.0! The first clue I should have had was the box in both cases was beaten up as it had perhaps been shipped to more than one customer. I suspect that Amazon was just cycling it back around until it stuck with some poor smuck who did not know better. Of course Amazon makes it almost impossible to speak to anyone or actually contact the the seller which in this case was Dip & Dive but somehow I was able to talk to my new buddy in India (Amazon Rep) who assured me I would get the correct replacement. Needless to say the 2nd computer was also a Petrel 1 shipped in a beaten up box that also looked like it had been cycled through more than one customer. During this process I posted a negative feedback to the vendor which was Dip&Dive and they contacted me through the filtered Amazon email. After speaking with them and pointing out I now had two Petrel 1's shipped to me they shipped me over night a real Petrel 2 in a new box. If Amazon actually had let me deal with Dip&Dive directly this would have been a much less painful experience but one I wanted to share in case there are others who may have actually received a Petrel 1 from Amazon vice a Petrel 2. Dip&Dive clearly wanted to make this right and i would give Amazon no stars on this experience and Dip&Dive five stars.

 

[tridacna]

Just go leave Dip 'n Dive a one star rating and explain why you think that they are a sleazeball vendor. Not so hard. (What is hard is understanding why you would buy from D'D in the first place).

 

[PhillyDave]

This is why you don't buy dive gear from Amazon. Shop one of the many dive center's stores in the country. Or you can call your LDS and pay for it over the phone. Or you can be a big boy and actually goto the shop.

Did you learn a lesson?

 

[kwinter]

Amazon is nothing by a fulfillment center. Blaming them is only one step above blaming UPS for delivering a crappy computer. The fault lies with the seller.

 

[rhwestfall]

Interesting enough, D&D has its own (non-Amazon) web store, as well as brick-and-mortar (disclosure - they are my LDS). The internet side is a separate company though.... with that equipment not necessarily available for over-the-counter purchase....

https://dipndive.com/

 

[kr2y5]

My experiences with Amazon have been exactly the opposite... For example, when I bought a GoPro that turned out to be defective, after a few rounds of trying new memory cards, GoPro finally offered to do a warranty repair and replacement, if only I can send them a video documenting the problem, within 10 business days. Fair enough... but, I just called Amazon. They immediately shipped me a replacement overnight, I was holding it in my hands the next day in the morning while chewing through my bowl of cereal, and before I even had a chance to think about sending the defective one back. Very consistent experience with them for many years. Of all the places I dealt with, Amazon makes by far the least amount of fuss about issuing you a replacement, makes it the most painless, and they generally offer a refund, without you having to beg for it. I never got a used or beaten item from Amazon directly. Was your item shipped and sold by Amazon, or by a third-party seller? Do you believe it was covered by Amazon's terms of service, or by the seller's? If the latter, you can't expect the same quality of service, and moreover, you should be aware of the fact that third-party sellers on Amazon are known for sometimes selling knock-offs...

 

[RickyF]

I also have nothing but great experiences with Amazon.

 

[Father]

Amazon is nothing by a fulfillment center. Blaming them is only one step above blaming UPS for delivering a crappy computer. The fault lies with the seller.

This.
If I buy something that's actually from Amazon anymore I'm surprised. I will usually filter my searches to be direct from Amazon.com. I don't know what the process is to be a vendor that is "fulfilled" by Amazon, but I'm guessing pretty much any dirtbag can do it.

It's pretty hit or miss any more.
And I would agree...
don't buy dive gear from Amazon.com. DRIS and I think Leisure Pro will price match against any site, including Amazon.