Real Ethical Dilemma
I have a real ethical dilemma and would appreciate any input from the WC community. On a whim, I ordered the watch pictured above from AliExpress for about $28. I thought it would be a fun budget lark. However, this is what I received in the mail today.
As near as I can determine, this is an arrempt at an exact copy. Granted, I am comparing this to photographs online, but it really looks and feels like the real deal for the most part. There are some noticeable differences, for example, the back is printed rather than engraved, and the strap is substantially different. I am afraid I have purchased my first true counterfeit watch and do not know what I should do with it. I would be really uncomfortable wearing it, giving it away, or returning it, and selling it is out of the question, so what should I do with it? Is it even possible there is somewhere I could surrender it or report it or both? Does it just collect dust in a drawer or should I just throw it away? What would you do with it?
LúmëgaudAnar is the correct spelling, and means time machine of the sun in Quenya. I've been collecting for a few years and have a decent collection of mostly budget and entry-level watches with a few...
Haha, people really get hung up on branding here!
Well, since the branding so offends you, remove the branding. Or does one have magical powers of evil beyond the markings that they fear?
Discarding it is an environmental crime. Debrand and/or do whatever mystical cleansing ritual one requires. Then congratulations on your new Omega, I mean watch.
They should have listed it as a fwatch! Ha!
No, just use it until it dies. There are watches for which counterfeiting would irk me, but I can't bring myself to care about the plastic fantastic stuff from Swatch. Their product is disposable anyway and only meant to last a few years -- not a lifetime.
I would keep it and just wear it around the house for fun.
It’s a counterfeit of a copy…does the double negative become a positive? At least it’s a positive in your wallet.
I wouldn’t wear that thing. Not to sound preachy or condescending, far from it, but I’d just put it in the trash.
You paid for a copy and they sent you a fake.
Fakes suck.
Take @Dingus advice.
Buddy of mine ordered a cheap AP-style watch from AliExpress, and when it arrived it was branded AP on the dial. The picture didn't say that, and he was not happy since it went from a copy to a fake. Although with the MoonSwatch you got, I almost wouldn't sweat it. I've been tempted to get one of these too, because I think this proce is much closer to what it's worth, the price of the real thing is way too much. Hell, some of these fakes are better even. Mineral crystal and a smoother sweeping chronograph hand, better than the real thing!
Haha, people really get hung up on branding here!
Well, since the branding so offends you, remove the branding. Or does one have magical powers of evil beyond the markings that they fear?
Discarding it is an environmental crime. Debrand and/or do whatever mystical cleansing ritual one requires. Then congratulations on your new Omega, I mean watch.
It's not so much that I am hung up or offended by the branding. I am just not wanting to support counterfeiting.
They should have listed it as a fwatch! Ha!
No, just use it until it dies. There are watches for which counterfeiting would irk me, but I can't bring myself to care about the plastic fantastic stuff from Swatch. Their product is disposable anyway and only meant to last a few years -- not a lifetime.
I guess I don't see any difference between counterfeit luxury watches and counterfeit budget watches. I would not want one of the counterfeit Casio F91W watches either.
I would keep it and just wear it around the house for fun.
Good idea. I might do just that.
It's not so much that I am hung up or offended by the branding. I am just not wanting to support counterfeiting.
Honestly I'd rather support struggling counterfeiters than the Swiss cartel, but it's moot. The ship has sailed, they have your money. Return it and/or leave a scathing review. The object is blameless. Feel free to ship it to Swatch to show them the differences between their product and fakes so they can learn to make and price their products better.
I guess I don't see any difference between counterfeit luxury watches and counterfeit budget watches. I would not want one of the counterfeit Casio F91W watches either.
Right, but it's not like you sought it out. You already have it, and the damage has been done, so you might as well get some use out of it.
I have never returned anything to AE. Is it difficult? If not, why not send it back since they didn’t send what you ordered?
If it’s difficult, I’d feel karmically fine just wearing it as the beater of all beaters until it meets its end, or sacrificing it by opening it up to learn about its guts (and sharing the video of course).
Issue 1: You're ordering from AE, a site so notorious for counterfeits that it's pretty much their niche. Of course, at this point Amazon and so many online retailers aren't much better. Unless authenticity can be verified or I'm dealing with a dealer through a third party then there's always going to be a chance of getting screwed over.
That said, I'd just wear it around the house. Honestly, a lot of folks with a Moonswatch just wear it around the house.
I have never returned anything to AE. Is it difficult? If not, why not send it back since they didn’t send what you ordered?
If it’s difficult, I’d feel karmically fine just wearing it as the beater of all beaters until it meets its end, or sacrificing it by opening it up to learn about its guts (and sharing the video of course).
I have never returned anything to AliExpress either, so I don't know how difficult it would be. Maybe I will test how durable it is. 🤣
Chalk it up as a $28 life lesson. Obviously it is a counterfiet but why not wear it and enjoy it. Nobody will know it is a "fake" except you (and other watch nerds like us).
What I'm amazed at is that people counterfiet Swatch watches. Yes, the solar system series are hot, but really? How much profit can you make selling them at $28? Is it worth the time, effort and potentially getting sued? WOW.
I'd pull it apart and paint the dial! Tho ideally you would be able to return the watch since it wasn't as pictured
I just know if I bought one of these, it would come back with LOGO written on it in big letters……
It’s a counterfeit of a copy…does the double negative become a positive? At least it’s a positive in your wallet.
The Chinese used to make a fake game boy that was so good it developed a following. They stopped making it, and another company started making it because there was still a demand. So I wound up with a fake, fake Game Boy.
You can eat fake McDonald’s hamburgers all around the world. Nothing new there.
I would wear it and tell people it's a fake. Treat it as a party trick. It should be good for a laugh.
That’s what I do with my Steeldive Ploprof.
The Chinese used to make a fake game boy that was so good it developed a following. They stopped making it, and another company started making it because there was still a demand. So I wound up with a fake, fake Game Boy.
Right, it’s not that folks can’t make a good product, it’s that they choose not to develop an original one themselves and profit off someone else’s IP.
This specific Gameboy was actually better than the thing it copied. That was the ironic part.
Take it apart and practice modding VKxx movements. Once comfortable, order a $30 case from AliExpress.
I had the same thing happen to me, albeit with a different brand. It was not what I ordered.
Just keep it and wear it around the house.
I have never returned anything to AE. Is it difficult? If not, why not send it back since they didn’t send what you ordered?
If it’s difficult, I’d feel karmically fine just wearing it as the beater of all beaters until it meets its end, or sacrificing it by opening it up to learn about its guts (and sharing the video of course).
Not at all they sent me a shipping label and it delivered to a US warehouse. Once it was there I got refunded. So a lot faster than I expected
It's made of coated lead, and will slowly poison you and drop the IQ of yourself and everyone around you. At least that’s what I hear in the back of my head from every comtemplated metal ali-express product ever. 😂😂
Yep you got conned. If it was original you would be paying $300 up 😃. But at least it satisfies a % of your requirement and that is to get a watch that can tell you the time!
The chinese are the master copy cats. They been catching up with these knocks offs lately they getting better and better at it.
I would probably just put it in a drawer somewhere or wear it with fellow watch enthusiasts as a gag. Its a fake watch clearly even if the seller said it would not have a logo on it. Treat it as such, open it up, play with it. It could be a nice lab rat to discover the details of a quartz chronograph. And no dont tell random friends you bought a fake swatch, maybe a watch enthusiast will get the joke but your random friend probably will think its not that funny. Its not your fault the seller expressed it at a clone, just make do with a strange situation and learn from this mistake.