How To Buy Phones From China As Safely As Possible
What You Need to know about how to buy Chinese brands phones so you can be as safe as possible when purchasing.

In part one we covered the earliest purchasing opportunity and part two will cover the latest purchasing opportunity chronologically. This is the type of purchase we recommend because it offers the most protection.
We are talking about domestic purchases, purchases made from someone in your own country. Domestic shipping is usually the fastest shipping form of shipping from the time of purchase to the arrival of your Android. 

Part 1 Here In Case You Missed It

Why Choose Domestic Shipping?
Tried Tested And Warranted  
Domestic stockists tend to wait until an Android has been tested over a reasonable period before stocking up. Think about it from a seller's perspective would you risk stocking up on an Android with a high defect rate and risk having to take returns and fulfil warranties or would you wait around a year until the Android you want to stock up on has been trialled for at least longer than your warranty period of typically six months to a year. Some domestic stockists sell newly-released Chinese Androids but keep in mind the best they usually offer is a 30-day money-back return policy which is not necessarily enough time for problems to arise in my opinion.

Domestic stockists who offer warranties lasting 6 months or more have far more invested in the reliability of their products.
Domestically shipped Chinese Android phones are usually more expensive than direct purchases from China but as discussed earlier the increase in buyer protection justifies that cost. If you do have to use your warrant to return the phone the cost of shipping domestically is much cheaper than shipping to China and a safer option.

Stocks In Reserve
The world of manufacturing moves quickly and with electronics even faster still. Because of the speed of purchase, a lot of times Android phones from small Chinese brands are quickly discontinued they often make only as many as they can sell within a few months. Domestic stockists sometimes will have never used Chinese Androids that are no longer being manufactured.

Hybrid Shipping
Shipsgoods is trialling a hybrid shipping option. We already ship from different locations across the world but recently we decided to start selling actual Chinese Android phones with a plan to ship from China and domestically. What this means is that we can ship Chinese Android phones to you and offer a domestic return address so you shoulder much less risk.
Hybrid shipping example coupon code

What If A Domestic Return Address Is not an option?
We know that buying domestic Chinese Android phones is not always possible for everyone there may be no domestic shipping for the brand or model you may want so in this next part we will cover overall tips for the purchase of Chinese Android phones. The goal is to make it as likely as possible you will get it right the first time with no problems.

FOTA
FOTA Also known as OTA stands for Firmware over the air or over the air. Not all Chinese Androids will have this which is understandable if the phone is being sold for under £150. Chinese Androids excel at value for money which we covered more of in part one but for them to ask them to be cheaper than larger brands and offer OTA on an Android for under £150 is asking a lot. However, on any Android you want to last OTA is a must it means that the brand is committed to the Android long after purchase. They will send you updates and fix all kinds of bugs, without OTA any firmware defect that may arise or come with your phone is more than likely permanent. Make sure when purchasing an Android over £150 it has OTA. FOTA updates can fix and improve obvious software and also hardware problems if they are related, like camera performance.


Look For Long Warranties And Long Time Reviews 
I'd been meaning to write this for a while and when a potential customer inquired about purchasing a wireless charger for a Chinese phone she had bought because the charging port was faulty It expedited my writing part one. She also disclosed that coincidently this was the second time she had had this problem with the first time being from a domestic brand that began exhibiting the same charging port fault shortly after the six-month warranty had ended. The part was also made in China but don't let that be your fear everything is made or made in part in china. 
So anyway before purchasing no matter who from when it comes to phones make sure the warranty lasts as long as possible electronics have high defect rates it's not like furniture, there are so many parts that some part is bound to break eventually, so get the longest warranty possible and maybe even insurance if possible. 

We talked about presales and flash sales in part one but purchasing a little later from China although not as cheap is still a great deal. If you wait until hands-on reviews are written and recorded and problems and solutions are out you have a much greater chance of avoiding Androids that are defective, likely to defect quickly or have problems without resolutions. If a product is made to last only as long as its warranty a review made by a long-time user of an android phone like 6 months after purchase is more likely to expose flaws than one made soon after purchase. Going back to Fota problems are often fixed when early purchasers complain, you may not even run into the problem at all if you wait.


Protect Your Screen It's Worth The Cost
We sell not only screen protectors but also screen replacements so we know the cost of purchasing a screen replacement and having to pay someone to fix it if you can't do it yourself. Ocassionnaly we have had extra low prices on screen replacements and they go quickly. 

Warning
The price of screen protectors is very stable however we cannot say the same about screen replacements for Chinese phones. Sometimes Chinese manufacturers increase the price of producing a product and more often than that they simply stop making them, that can happen with screen replacements. When manufacturers increase the price the price goes up and when they stop making them the price goes up because the sellers who have them in stock increase the price because it's not like the consumer has any other options. We have literally had to increase the price of Screen replacements we once sold from £29.99 to £79.99 so don't take cheap replacements for granted, and prevent damage to the best of your ability.

Choose A Phone With Gorilla Glass
When some part of your phone breaks you have to debate the cost of fixing it against the cost of getting something new or maybe nothing at all. Corning Gorilla Glass is a type of glass that is resistant to scratches and smashing, if the Android has gorilla glass it's a major major plus and yes many small Chinese brands do offer models with gorilla glass. However, Gorilla Glass screens will add to the phones overall price upfront but I think the protection justifies the cost.

Screen Protector
Before purchase find out if your model comes with a screen protector installed or not if not buy a screen protector we sell them for around £5 and they will save you so much hassle and money if not just hassle by protecting your screen.

Case
Cases are the most popular phone accessory, they are another way to protect your phone screen and the whole phone against damage.

Sign Up To Our Mailing list And Receive Deals On Android Phones And Coupons For Accessories

Often we offer price discounts on Android phones and accessories. When you sign up for our mailing list and engage with our content you have the chance to win prizes like free credit and Android-compatible products.

Also, we create content like this that will help you make better purchases by informing you about brands and their products, mainly Chinese Brands you won't get info on anywhere else. 

Sign Up To Our Mailing List Here