Buying Laptop From The US - Some Queries.

kidrow · Feb 9, 2015

Hi all, I'm looking to buy a used convertible tablet pc from ebay.com. I'm looking at a whole lot of options from ones which are ~$200 to ~$400 USD. These haven't been ever released in India afaik. (For eg. Lenovo/Fujitsu tablet PCs, Microsoft Surface Pro, Samsung XE700T etc.)

I have a couple of queries I hope folks can help me-

A] Which of the following would you suggest would be the better (ie most accurate estimation of cost & reliability) route-

1. Seller who ships internationally on ebay.com itself. Charges seem to range from $50-60 USD for shipping & excludes customs. But the hassle of clearing customs remains.

2. HopShopGo, PPOBox, iShopInternational etc. Read a few posts on how the charges are usually higher than the estimates. So how much higher can I expect them to be?
I'm calculating on the basis of PPOBox's calculator & using lxwxh as 30cmx25cmx5cm & weight as 4lbs. Is that in the ballpark for a laptop?

3. Ebay GEB. This has limited options & seems to be pricier by 6-7k INR than the PPOBox calculator. So again, how accurate is that PPOBox estimate?

B] Queries about customs-

1. Is the import of a used/refurbished laptop for personal use allowed by Indian Customs dept.? A google search seems to indicate that it isn't allowed but they are older sources & I'd also like to know whether it is actually enforced in practice.

2. Since this is a used product & also one that hasn't been launched in India, how will the authorities calculate customs? The launch dates of any of the options I'm considering are more than 2 years old & were ~$1000-1500 USD when launched.

3. Is Mumbai customs reasonable, generally speaking?

4. Will ordering a scuffed/scratched piece be better vis-a-vis customs charged than a newish one? Or this won't matter?

5. Which parcel forwarder is honest/provides proof about the amount of customs actually charged?

C] Certain ebay.com sellers require a confirmed Paypal billing address as per their terms & conditions? Certain others also add that they won't ship to post boxes. Is there any way around this?

Many thanks!

Calvin · Feb 10, 2015

Importing used electronics is strictly prohibited. My BIL sent me a used mobile (which was bought in India) through Fedex and it was stuck in customs. After a bit of struggle, I managed to clear it from the customs. Try to get a relative or friend to bring it with them during their next Indian trip. That is your best bet.

kidrow · Feb 10, 2015

Calvin said:
Importing used electronics is strictly prohibited. My BIL sent me a used mobile (which was bought in India) through Fedex and it was stuck in customs. After a bit of struggle, I managed to clear it from the customs. Try to get a relative or friend to bring it with them during their next Indian trip. That is your best bet.

Thanks for that. I guess I'll have to buy something new then. Any idea why it's (viz. importing used electronics) restricted?

Calvin · Feb 11, 2015

kidrow said:
Thanks for that. I guess I'll have to buy something new then. Any idea why it's (viz. importing used electronics) restricted?

To prevent India from becoming a dumping ground of used electronics. Don't laugh, that's what the Fedex guy told me.

kidrow · Feb 11, 2015

Calvin said:
To prevent India from becoming a dumping ground of used electronics. Don't laugh, that's what the Fedex guy told me.

I did laugh,

. Seems funny from an average, regular Joe's (read mine) perspective. Guess it must be an attempt to curb shady practices by large importers.

May I ask what you had to do to get around the problem? (I can understand if you can't/won't share the details publicly. {Hint: PM}).

Thanks!

Calvin · Feb 11, 2015

kidrow said:
May I ask what you had to do to get around the problem? (I can understand if you can't/won't share the details publicly. {Hint: PM}).

Thanks!

Nothing much actually. I sent the flipkart invoice of the mobile to Fedex first and still the mobile was held. Then I sent a letter to the commissioner of customs along with the invoice, declaring that I'm not importing the mobile, but simply getting it back from my relative. Had to do a lot of follow ups and it took 10 days to release the shipment. Fedex people told me I'm lucky to get my mobile back.

EDIT: Fedex helped me a lot too. If the importer (PPOBox, HSG) says they clear it from the customs, then you can go for it. But that's a long shot, IMO.

kidrow · Feb 11, 2015

kidrow said:
Guess it must be an attempt to curb shady practices by large importers.

Yep, did a bit more googling & the reason I've consistently come across is that it is an attempt to curb e-waste. Now surely, one would expect that there would be some minimum no. of units that is allowed per shipment, but I haven't come across any such stipulation.

kidrow · Feb 11, 2015

Calvin said:
Nothing much actually. I sent the flipkart invoice of the mobile to Fedex first and still the mobile was held. Then I sent a letter to the commissioner of customs along with the invoice, declaring that I'm not importing the mobile, but simply getting it back from my relative. Had to do a lot of follow ups and it took 10 days to release the shipment. Fedex people told me I'm lucky to get my mobile back.

Thanks for your reply. Helped clear things up for me. Cheers!