Recommended vendors

[hockeyshark91]

Originally Posted by Partyslammer

Speaking of Amazon Japan, has anyone recently had issues with Credit Cards being rejected due to the CC company seeing the transaction as "suspicious?" I have never had such a problem in the 8+ years I've been using Amazon overseas and this week, I got an email that an order couldn't be processed due to my CC being rejected. Called the bank which had flagged the transaction and got them to ok it, but it still wouldn't go through. Tried another CC, same thing. Tried my Paypal CC, same thing.

Is there a way to pay directly via Paypal or better yet, use my (US) Amazon Prime Store Card for Amazon.jp?

I've been trying to place an order all weekend with same results. I've ordered once or twice from them before with same results, but after tweaking my payment info, I was able to submit my order. No such luck this time. Quite aggravating.

[Nielsb90]

I could use some help - I cannot figure where to apply coupons at kimchidvd? Went all the way to the PayPal screen but didn't see anything?

[Vintrus]

Can someone recommend any good sites that stock Novamedia other than ordering from them directly the shipping costs a little pricey?

[Necron102]

Originally Posted by Vintrus

Can someone recommend any good sites that stock Novamedia other than ordering from them directly the shipping costs a little pricey?

I think https://kimchidvd.com/en/index.kimchi is what you might be looking for. Just looking to place an order there and it saves a few bucks over Nova (not too much though)

My question for anyone here that has ordered from them.

They offer a bunch of different options for the shipping and I have no idea what is best (never ordered internationally before) so if anyone has any insights I would appreciate it :-)
These are what they have:

Send Original invoice

Mark as "MERCHANDISE" and Write Value USD On shipping label & invoice

Mark as as "MERCHANDISE" and Write Value USD On shipping label & original invoice

Mark as "GIFT" and Write Value USD On shipping label & invoice

Mark as "GIFT" and Write Value USD On shipping label & original invoice

[logboy]

Originally Posted by Necron102

I think https://kimchidvd.com/en/index.kimchi is what you might be looking for. Just looking to place an order there and it saves a few bucks over Nova (not too much though)

My question for anyone here that has ordered from them.

They offer a bunch of different options for the shipping and I have no idea what is best (never ordered internationally before) so if anyone has any insights I would appreciate it :-)
These are what they have:

Send Original invoice

Mark as "MERCHANDISE" and Write Value USD On shipping label & invoice

Mark as as "MERCHANDISE" and Write Value USD On shipping label & original invoice

Mark as "GIFT" and Write Value USD On shipping label & invoice

Mark as "GIFT" and Write Value USD On shipping label & original invoice

they changed their website last week, so the checkout is now slightly different. you could do this process before, but how useful it is depends on where you live and the import duty limit - gift or merchandise offer different levels of value before duty kicks in / level of inspection of parcels you'd expect, as 'original invoice' being included and seen during any inspection (rare, not impossible) gives away false declaration on the front of a parcel, would lead to duty being charged after actual value proof is requested by customs.

i'm in the UK, would normally expect people here to know £15 is the value limit before duty kicks in. 'gift' doesn't wash most of the time if you're sending from a business rather than an individual who might be sending a present internationally; it has the higher level of allowance before duty. i would use 'merchandise' and not have an original invoice included. opt for a value in $ that's easily below the equivalent in £. import duty here is minimal, but VAT is 20%, and the post office charge £8 to collect it : adds up, can be avoided, is known about as an issue for buyers by a great deal of sellers internationally.

nobody can entirely advise on how you should handle international purchases, but i would say don't be scared, but be cautious - always - and you'll be perfectly okay.

[Necron102]

Originally Posted by logboy

they changed their website last week, so the checkout is now slightly different. you could do this process before, but how useful it is depends on where you live and the import duty limit - gift or merchandise offer different levels of value before duty kicks in / level of inspection of parcels you'd expect, as 'original invoice' being included and seen during any inspection (rare, not impossible) gives away false declaration on the front of a parcel, would lead to duty being charged after actual value proof is requested by customs.

i'm in the UK, would normally expect people here to know £15 is the value limit before duty kicks in. 'gift' doesn't wash most of the time if you're sending from a business rather than an individual who might be sending a present internationally; it has the higher level of allowance before duty. i would use 'merchandise' and not have an original invoice included. opt for a value in $ that's easily below the equivalent in £. import duty here is minimal, but VAT is 20%, and the post office charge £8 to collect it : adds up, can be avoided, is known about as an issue for buyers by a great deal of sellers internationally.

nobody can entirely advise on how you should handle international purchases, but i would say don't be scared, but be cautious - always - and you'll be perfectly okay.

Interesting, thanks for the info. I'm in the US so I'll have to do some research. I guess it is nice they give you the options since every country is probably different.

[Magyalmar]

Is dddhouse dead or just down ? I've been trying to load the website for a few days now and every time I get the same disclaimer : ""Could not connect : Too many connections".

[Fabs]

Glad someone else is getting that same issue. No idea, what's happening.

[elite]

Originally Posted by Magyalmar

Is dddhouse dead or just down ? I've been trying to load the website for a few days now and every time I get the same disclaimer : ""Could not connect : Too many connections".

I had that issue yesterday but did manage to get in later on but the problem is back today. I'd assume it's just some technical issue.

Edit:

It's up again.

[svenge]

Same thing happened to me, it's annoying as hell as I got a lot of good deals from Amazon JP marketplace sellers in the past.

Having to use a proxy like Tenso ruins the entire concept for me as paying for shipping twice (once from AMZ to Tenso, then Tenso to me) plus the additional fees kills any semblance of a reasonable final price.

[Naiera]

Originally Posted by svenge

Having to use a proxy like Tenso ruins the entire concept for me as paying for shipping twice (once from AMZ to Tenso, then Tenso to me) plus the additional fees kills any semblance of a reasonable final price.

350 yen kills any semblance of a reasonable price? That's like $3.

Of course, Tenso has the appeal of letting me adjust item prices so that I get no customs interference.

[witchmania]

I'm based in the UK and looking to order an item from either YesAsia or KimchiDVD - I've never used either previously.

Can anyone recommend one over the other? Have any UK boarders had customs charges from either company - I realise KimchiDVD lets you specify the customs declaration yourself, but how is YesAsia on that front these days?

Also, how do the two compare in terms of packaging and delivery times?

Thanks in advance!

[thisgenius]

KimchiDVD is cheaper than YesAsia when it comes to price of the actual product.

YesAsia do offer free shipping for orders of $39 and above, but that is without tracking. That takes a while to get to you, anywhere between two weeks and a month and a half. Their expedited service comes through DHL, I think, and is sometimes liable to be paid customs on.

KimchiDVD offers various shipping options, and they're all tracked. I've personally always used their cheapest option, and it hasn't taken more than a couple weeks for delivery. KimchiDVD pack their products to survive rigorous transit handling, so your purchases are quite safe. Also the ability to decide how much you want the customs slip to say it cost you is an added bonus.

So yeah, if it's anything Korean and available on KimchiDVD, I'd highly recommend using them, as would a lot of people on these forums, I guess. If it's something Chinese or Japanese, go for YesAsia. Hope this helps.

Originally Posted by witchmania

I'm based in the UK and looking to order an item from either YesAsia or KimchiDVD - I've never used either previously.

Can anyone recommend one over the other? Have any UK boarders had customs charges from either company - I realise KimchiDVD lets you specify the customs declaration yourself, but how is YesAsia on that front these days?

Also, how do the two compare in terms of packaging and delivery times?

Thanks in advance!

[witchmania]

That's super helpful! Thanks, thisgenius!

The item I'm looking to order is over the $39 threshold, so it would actually work out slightly cheaper to order through YesAsia, but you've sold me on KimchiDVD for quality of service - and I guess for peace of mind with the customs slip.

In terms of that customs slip, would you say picking the option below would be the safest, (because you wouldn't necessarily want to include the original invoice in the package)?

'Mark as "MERCHANDISE" and Write Value USD On shipping label & invoice'

[logboy]

Originally Posted by witchmania

That's super helpful! Thanks, thisgenius!

The item I'm looking to order is over the $39 threshold, so it would actually work out slightly cheaper to order through YesAsia, but you've sold me on KimchiDVD for quality of service - and I guess for peace of mind with the customs slip.

In terms of that customs slip, would you say picking the option below would be the safest, (because you wouldn't necessarily want to include the original invoice in the package)?

'Mark as "MERCHANDISE" and Write Value USD On shipping label & invoice'

that's what i use. i believe the recent redesign of the kimchi site has made slightly fewer options available, so it's clearer. you should request MERCHANDISE and have both the invoice and shipping label read the same, make it a dollar amount equivalent that's safely below (though not absurd for the size & weight of parcel) you are expecting it to be.

YESASIA is somewhere i no longer use, because they can no longer guarantee to avoid customs charges. i am guessing they've been told by HMRC to declare true values - i've heard of other seller being contacted and told to do so over the years.

note that kimchi only largely seem to stock BDs these days, so there's other options to consider for korean DVDs - i look at eBay sellers 'wooridvd' and 'korean muse' who are geared towards international sales in a similar manner, and i've used both quite happily.

if you are after something very expensive and don't mind paying for courier service, might be worth some folk looking at >

http://www.aladin.co.kr/home/welcome.aspx

tricky to use (need to translate via google) but range is huge and service is apparently superb.

as for CHINESE discs (i am guessing it's meant HK!) i've long used DDDHOUSE and BUYOYO which are both customs friendly.

[witchmania]

Thanks logboy, that's also really helpful.

I just had a look around Aladin and found a Hong Sang-soo boxset I'd love to buy, but I'm not sure I'd be very confident knowing what I was doing ordering from there.

Similarly, Yes24 looks to have a bunch of stuff I'd love to order, and the prices are decent, but their global store isn't listing what I'm after, even thought the main store is.

Does anybody have any experience ordering from them?

[thisgenius]

I have always had it marked as "Gift" and have had a value of $15-$20 put on it.

Originally Posted by witchmania

That's super helpful! Thanks, thisgenius!

The item I'm looking to order is over the $39 threshold, so it would actually work out slightly cheaper to order through YesAsia, but you've sold me on KimchiDVD for quality of service - and I guess for peace of mind with the customs slip.

In terms of that customs slip, would you say picking the option below would be the safest, (because you wouldn't necessarily want to include the original invoice in the package)?

'Mark as "MERCHANDISE" and Write Value USD On shipping label & invoice'

[Ben_C]

Another satisfied Kimchidvd customer here.
Being able to set the merchandise level for customs is great, and they have always packaged the items with plenty of bubble wrap (they're a shining example of how to package items to protect from damage). Even with the cheapest shipping options, stuff arrives fairly quickly to the UK, so much so that I wouldn't want to pay any extra for faster shipping.

Used to use YesAsia all the time, but stopped after they announced they were no longer offering guaranteed customs safe shipping.


As far as Japanese stuff goes, I just tried out ZenMarket, and they were pretty good. They're another one of these proxy shipping services, so you can get them to buy stuff for you from various Japanese sites, it's shipped to their warehouse, then they ship it on to you.
I'm wanting to get quite a few of the Japanese Kitano blus fairly soon, so thought I'd look at a few options to see if I could get them cheaper than lots of other places (I didn't want to bother setting up a whole new Amazon Japan account, plus with Zen you can again set the value amount for customs). It took a while for the item to ship to them (it was from an Amazon Japan Marketplace seller), but once it arrived at their warehouse, the shipping time from them to me was super fast (even on one of the cheapest shipping options).
They also offer interesting extra options, like taking photos of the item/s for you when they're at the warehouse, so you can check them out (at a small cost though).

[Naiera]

Japanese stuff should be purchased from Amazon Japan. Use a re-shipper like Tenso for marketplace purchases.

Hong Kong/Chinese stuff should be purchased from DDDHouse. Just ask to have a low value noted on the package (use the commentary field) and it'll sail right through customs.

I see no reason to involve YesAsia. Terrible store.

[Ben_C]

How are Tenso for customs? It's nice to avoid those ripoff handling fees etc, so being able to write what you want the package value to be declared as is a huge bonus.
ZenMarket seemed pretty easy for me as you don't even need to create new sign up info, you can log in with gmail.
As far as prices go, it would be interesting (though time consuming) to work out which is the cheapest of these re-shipping sites, including all charges, for the same product.

Used DDDHouse once (for the 36th Chamber set) and thought they were ok, and would definitely use them again if needed.