Garmin edge 500

[huwsparky]

Hi

Looking to buy the above computer and can buy on eBay from China for a good deal cheaper than I can but in this country.

Does anyone know if this computer would work in the UK without any issues?

 

[davdandy]

The Chinese will be a copy,so don't hold much hope for it lasting too long.

 

[huwsparky]

The Chinese will be a copy,so don't hold much hope for it lasting too long.

Thanks for the heads-up! It's still a £100 though...

 

[Mo1959]

Thanks for the heads-up! It's still a £100 though...

Amazon are doing it for £122....not too bad.

 

[huwsparky]

Amazon are doing it for £122....not too bad.

I'll probably bite the bullet and order from Amazon anyway. Peace of mind and all that...

 

[Learnincurve]

The Chinese will be a copy,so don't hold much hope for it lasting too long.

Naww, this is a myth. We don't need to panic about getting electrical good from china any more. If it says Garmin 500 then it will be real and either coming in via hong kong where there is no VAT/customs charge or coming in via china and it's 50/50 if you get hit with customs charges. It changed around 8 years ago when the Chinese government basically said that they would not recognise western patents or copyrights on goods so these days the fakes would be called the "Gurmin bench 500".

But as I said, customs charges are one thing, the other is warranty, if Garmin do a global warranty then you are fine, if they don't then you will have to return it to china if it's broken.

Source: used to be a camera dealer, imported Olympus cameras from Hong Kong. (Oly have global warranty)

 

[BrynCP]

coming in via hong kong where there is no VAT/customs charge

Hong Kong would only be exempt if the seller is collecting VAT?

The risk here is that the £100 could jump to £120 with VAT, and likely anywhere from £8 - £20 handling charge by the courier, meaning it costs more than Amazon.

 

[Leodis]

I bought mine from Wiggle who priced matched for me, least through them I know I will be looked after if owt goes wrong with it.

 

[BrynCP]

I bought mine from Wiggle who priced matched for me, least through them I know I will be looked after if owt goes wrong with it.

Exactly, when my Edge 500 stopped working I contacted Garmin and Amazon, where I bought it, after just a few months. Garmin wanted £65 to send me a reconditioned unit and Amazon had a brand new one out in the post FOC before I had even sent my own back. I had no reason push for better service from Garmin bearing in mind Amazon's service, but worth bearing in mind if anything does go wrong, a UK retailer should be simple to get what you want if it goes wrong.

 

[huwsparky]

Thanks all for clarification of where I stand here, I honestly didn't have a clue as I've never really bought from the east before.

Doesn't sound like it's worth the risk for a relatively small saving which could well turn out to be an expensive mistake on my part.

 

[Learnincurve]

Hong Kong would only be exempt if the seller is collecting VAT?

The risk here is that the £100 could jump to £120 with VAT, and likely anywhere from £8 - £20 handling charge by the courier, meaning it costs more than Amazon.

Oh I completely agree, you need to factor in VAT just in case either they didn't pay it or they say they are in Hong Kong but are actually shipping from china. This is too small an amount of a saving to order in from overseas I was ordering tens rather than hundreds of high end cameras from a legit wholesaler based in hong kong and when I added in VAT to be paid by me at the UK end it worked out that I could undercut the shops and make a bit of a profit for myself.

 

[albionbri]

I have, or I should say had a Garmin 500. I'd had it a year or so and following a software upgrade on Connect, the screen stopped working, still beeped etc, so obviously the screen. Googled it, and found plenty of users with the same problem, loads of solutions offered, but nothing worked. Couldn't remember who I bought it off so contacted Garmin who said it was out of warranty and would cost £65 to repair. Anyway, didn't take up their offer, got an 800...dont ask why, always fancied one. A few weeks ago came across the old 500 in a drawer, messed about with it and to no amazement it came on, somewhat garbled with symbols and letters flashing all over, put it on charge and tried it again later, the screen was still garbled but much better, then it just died again, still beeped, so obviously still a screen problem. Tried it again the next day and it's worked perfectly ever since. Weird or what?
Gave it to the daughters boyfriend who was looking for a comp. He's over the moon with it.