What's The Deal with "Sealed in the Box" sales?

[Dale D]

I am noticing an increase of for sale items in the forum with "sealed in the box" deals. Are these legitimate? Where do these "sealed in the box" items come from? I am beginning to have some suspicious thoughts. Anyone care to comment? Why would somebody want to buy a new item, then sell it without even opening it up? Just asking.

Dale
Miami

 

[msinger]

Why would somebody want to buy a new item, then sell it without even opening it up?

Likely:

• Bought some time ago, never opened, no longer interested
• Bought at a lower price and flipping to make a profit
• Buying a replacement drone as a package and selling the unwanted accessories to make up some of the cost
• Buying drones for a commercial purpose and selling the unwanted accessories
• And, they could be hot, but less likely since most stores have these types of items locked up

 

[Cafguy]

I have a friend who purchased a Backup Mavic 2 Pro -It is still sealed in the wrapper and he will probably Ebay it like that

 

[msinger]

Also, if you're interested in buying those items, you could ask the seller for a copy of the receipt, etc. to eliminate any doubts.

 

[Dale D]

Likely:

• Bought some time ago, never opened, no longer interested
• Bought at a lower price and flipping to make a profit
• Buying a replacement drone as a package and selling the unwanted accessories to make up some of the cost
• Buying drones for a commercial purpose and selling the unwanted accessories
• And, they could be hot, but less likely since most stores have these types of items locked up

Msinger
These are possibilities but I am still suspicious of this kind of activity.
Dale

 

[msinger]

hese are possibilities but I am still suspicious of this kind of activity

All should be good if you do your due diligence before buying from those listings (that goes for buying anywhere really). And some of them do explain why they are new in box (for example).

 

[SWTSU]

They also could be DJI Care Refresh replacement drones following a crash and the seller is getting out of the hobby. I have seen this a lot and bought my FPV this way from EBay.

 

[mavic3usa]

These are possibilities but I am still suspicious of this kind of activity.
Dale

Is your concern primarily these are ill-gotten goods or the goods are "not as described?"

 

[Dronecation]

Msinger
These are possibilities but I am still suspicious of this kind of activity.
Dale

Could also be an unwanted present/gift...

 

[mavic3usa]

I think the concern arises when items that are still sealed show up in quantities larger than *one* so it might be usual if someone has 2 or 3 of the same model remote control NIB. I understand you can find a deal from somewhere and buy them all, only to resell them later but when it's a model from 2019 or something older, there may be some concern about where you can still find one of these NIB. It certainly is possible and if you use Paypal I wouldn't worry too much especially if the seller is in the forum (as opposed to eBay or FB) answering questions and the asking price is realistic (not super rock bottom). Most items need to be activated by DJI so you can always check the SN# with them for authenticity or see if it has been reported to them stolen.

 

[Dronecation]

I recall when this happened last year and wondered about the drones being resold. These should easily be de-activated by DJI when notified.

Break-In At The Camera Store

At approximately 5:00 AM this morning, Wednesday, May 3rd, 2023, two individuals broke into The Camera Store and stole over 30 thousand dollars worth of Sony, Nikon, and DJI equipment. From our surveillance video, it looks to be a male and a female. We are offering a $5000 TCS shopping spree...

thecamerastore.com

 

[msinger]

These should easily be de-activated by DJI when notified.

Indeed. DJI has disabled stolen drones in the past.

 

[Winston Bull]

While I did not click on any of those posts, I did notice that they were all grouped together, having been posted at about the same time. I just figured it was someone getting out of the business or upgrading a business's fleet of drones, although the "still in box" aspect was a little...wonky...

 

[Dale D]

While I did not click on any of those posts, I did notice that they were all grouped together, having been posted at about the same time. I just figured it was someone getting out of the business or upgrading a business's fleet of drones, although the "still in box" aspect was a little...wonky...

Maybe a hijacked Best Buy Truck? Just kidding of course.

 

[msinger]

Yeah, lots of legit possibilities here. Very few point to nefarious activity.

 

[EssenYVR]

I am noticing an increase of for sale items in the forum with "sealed in the box" deals. Are these legitimate?

Seems to me that if someone has a "brand new in box" item, then they should also have a receipt that they could give you. If they can't cough up a receipt, your spidey senses ought to tingle...

 

[mavic3usa]

Seems to me that if someone has a "brand new in box" item, then they should also have a receipt that they could give you. If they can't cough up a receipt, your spidey senses ought to tingle...

If you are talking about an online receipt, anyone can manufacturer a receipt for you if you insist but receipts often have personal details on it that some are not willing to share. However, just because someone provides a receipt doesn't mean a whole lot; just as a product that comes "sealed in wrap" doesn't mean much either. Anyone can wrap up a box.

 

[Kilrah]

One common reason for "new in box" sales I've come across is a way to get quick cash, people buy an expensive thing on their credit card/with financing plans then sell it so they get the cash now.

 

[StevenBrodsky]

I am noticing an increase of for sale items in the forum with "sealed in the box" deals. Are these legitimate? Where do these "sealed in the box" items come from? I am beginning to have some suspicious thoughts. Anyone care to comment? Why would somebody want to buy a new item, then sell it without even opening it up? Just asking.

Dale
Miami

I did that once. I bought a Mav 3 Enterprise after mine crashed. They said it was on back order and would take 1 mnth to arrive. In the meantime, I sent my crashed drone to DJI who fixed and returned it in less than 2 weeks. I couldn't''t back out of the purchased drone, so when I received it, I wanted to sell it on ebay as "NEW". On ebay, you can't claim it's new if you open it. If you open it you have to sell it as "OPEN BOX" which reduces it's value. So I kept the box shut and waited for a buyer who didn't question why I kept the box sealed. I got a better price than I would have, if I had opened it.

Also, some people will buy drones in bulk and sell them. They too can't open the box. The item would be considered open box and the price would have to be reduced. So they keep the box sealed , so they can label it as NEW.

 

[StevenBrodsky]

One common reason for "new in box" sales I've come across is a way to get quick cash, people buy an expensive thing on their credit card/with financing plans then sell it so they get the cash now.

That is true. I've thought about it. It's actually less expensive to buy a drone . keep it sealed and sell it new in the box, than going to a credit union. Quick cash places and credit union charge quite a bit for cash advances.

Also, you can buy stuff with you credit card and sell them on ebay at a cheaper rate than getting a cash advance from your credit card company.