I recently placed an order via the 3DR store, and was pretty disappointed with how it was handled.
One of the items was backordered, so I contacted customer service and asked for an estimated dispatch time. It was only a few days, so I was happy to wait. I had paid for express shipping, so I had expected the parts to arrive a couple of days after the 're-stock' date.
10 days after the 're-stock' date, my order was still on 'backorder', despite every part being instock. I emailed customer support, and within an hour my order had shipped, with an apology about the delay.
The order arrives, but one of the parts I had specifically requested was in the wrong configuration. Customer service told me that the requested part had gone out of stock, so they sent me this one to fill my order. If I wanted to change it, I had to pay to post it back (international postage, not cheap), and they wouldn't post me a replacement until they received it.
From my perspective, this indicates that there are some systematic problems with 3DR's service. Are orders that have components on backorder being set aside? When a component returns to stock, are backorders being prioritised? Why are incorrect parts knowingly being sent, without contacting buyers first? If 3DR admits that it is their mistake, why are they punishing their customer to rectify it?
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This is what I got from them when I contacted them about a missing screw:
Hello Benjamin,
Good day!
That is correct you won't be charge, this was sent because your were missing those screws also we don't keep customer credit card information for the safety of our customers and the company.
If you have any questions, please let us know.
Thank you,
Ludwing
3D Robotics
I recently placed an order via the 3DR store for X8, and was pretty disappointed with how it was handled, receive Y6 and not include DX7…
I have had a similar experience. I placed an order and got an email that the shirt I ordered wasn't available. I replied and said that is fine, just credit me back for the shirt and ship the order. I got the credit and thought everything was resolved. About 4 days later I decided to check on my order status and it said "On Hold". I sent an email and asked why it was on hold and when it would ship. I received the following;
"Thank you for contacting 3DRobotics, we are very sorry for the delay in our response there was an issue with shipping but it got resolved, your package will leave the warehouse after 5pm today, here is you Tracking Number:"
Seems like the ball was dropped and a generic "shipping issue" excuse was used. Not a huge deal but when I am paying about double for the same product I can get other places, it is kinda irksome. By the way, are they outsourcing customer service? The one time I called in for tech support it was kinda difficult to understand the young lady and was told someone would have to call me back. That coupled with some of the wording/grammar used in official communications and posts lead me to believe so.
Well I can certainly sympathize with you and the many others having problems with ordering and getting what you want. I have been trying to order just 1 APM 2.6 and my first ublox GPS since early August. I foolishly thought that even when visiting the US in August I could drop by 3DR and perhaps get one GPS unit. Sadly no. In late September I checked the online store and found that even though the web site stated 1-3 day order response, when it came to the check out the parts where showing out of stock on the GPS and APM2.6. I did write a few emails to 3DR and they responded quickly enough and were helpful but even today I am still unable to order the parts had verified by email a few days ago are in.
This time the online store will not let me log in. I tried to reset the password and put in a valid email and nothing came through. An hour later I tried again a still no email reset response. Is anyone having a similar issue?
Regarding orders not being what you want I thought I would order the older APM2.2 last year and solder the board myself. I figured the short supply of ready built APM's back then would allow my order to go through faster, but it was treated like the others and I waited 6 weeks (backorder) for the parts which the store confirmed the were in stock at the time.
Hopefully things will improve. I have also experienced the wrong part situation too. On receiving my 2 telemetry modules which came through fast enough, some of the DIL pin sets were tin plated not gold as per the web site photo and description. I mentioned this had happened, but never received any replacement pin sets. Whilst the ones supplied worked fine, it is not the point. You expect to receive the quality and specification of your order not a substitute. I would of course be understanding if there was a note saying we placed these in your order to get you by now and will replace the item when back in stock. No such luck in my case. So now today I have a mix of different pins types.
There is no doubting the technology, it is just really hard to get your hands on even one unit these days. I hope my latest order placement issue can be sorted.
Hi All,
I would like to say that I have been reasonably happy with the 3DR shipping lately. Being a Developer I have to look ahead and place orders for 3DR components well ahead of when I will need them. Also I split my orders up to ensure that one big order will not be held up by one or more backordered parts.
On Tuesday of this week I placed three orders: 1) for two APM2.6s with PMs, 2) for one GPS/Compass module, and 3) for various cables and telemetry hardware. My three orders showed ready by noon and shipped that evening by USPS priority mail. As of this morning all three orders are in transit to my destination here in Florida.
I must say that this is quality service compared to the experience of other members who have ordered from 3DR. Maybe I am just lucky or maybe 3DR is really working hard at making prompt fulfillments for member orders now:-)
Thank you 3DR for the quick turnaround of my order!!
Regards,
TCIII ArudRover2 Developer
You are not alone. I've had the same problem, and we given false information about order status, including being promised it would ship the same day ... getting a fedex tracking number ... and then only getting it shipped several days later after posting the story on several very public forums.
I finally got my stuff, but the deception and lack of accurate updates when I asked should be a warning to anyone considering buying from 3D Robotics.
Apparently they are more concerned about getting their 30 million in funding from VC people than actually running their business. I'm of the distinct feeling this is just Chris Anderson pumping and dumping a company as they can't possibly last very long with the kind of service they provide.
I ordered the 3dr telemetry kit, shipping 1-3 days cool! After 5-6 days and no kit, I email for status, no answer but the order page shows on hold? hmm.
After 8 days and 2 unanswered email inquires I call to cancel and request refund which was promptly handled over the phone.
Not a huge deal as this just a hobby but come on guys, I have had emails and live chats with customer service in China answered within minutes-hours? nothing worse than being ignored, you can do better.
At the minimum don't take the order if it is out-of-stock unless back-order is agreed upon with the customer.
I've had similar experiences. if i order from them (which i'm not sure I'll do again), I usually call them the next day to check on the status of my order. It seems they only ship items out when their customer asks about the order. Same thing with support and RMAs. You have to get on them in order for them to remember to do anything.
Customer service has been appalling. The products are conceptually awesome, but customer service is just terrible. I think I get better service from their Chinese competitors at this point