Temu: the Good, th Bad, and the Ugly?

[Ken from ontario]

I bought from Temu a few times in the past (they were usually cheap stuff that even if got lost or damaged I wouldn't get too worried) but they recently raised their minimum purchase and once that happened I stopped buying from them, I get better prices and faster service from AliExpress. .

 

[whitmore]

Temu has odd descriptions, and uneven quality, but that's because they
accept a conglomerate of minor merchants' offerings into the catalog.
As far as delivery and payment, the shell company that handles the orders
has always been professional.

Like eBay, though, the descriptions and pictures bear careful attention,
and translation errors are rife.

Tungsten carbide is sometimes called 'tungsten steel', for example,
and TiN coating called titanium. Don't buy anything that's too good
to be true, of course.

 

[CJ5Dave]

When my wife’s order is late (10 days maybe) she gets $5 coupon.

 

[RJSakowski]

Thanks to all for the comments. I believe that discretion dictates that I steer clear until the site matures, at least.

 

[anddsn]

I have purchased from them about a 1/2 dozen times with no problems. Use PayPal for payment, like other have said if it sounds to cheap then what you receive is probably not what you are anticipating getting. Over all have no complaints, take about 2-3 weeks to get the item , $5.00 coupon if later than stated. I mostly have purchased cheap toys and STEM projects for my grandkids , STEM are die cut wood science related kits . The quality of the $3.00 -$8.00 kits have been spot on. I recently purchased 4 pcs of 20/20 extrusion 19 inches long for around $20.00. After 6 week got and email from Temu that they must be lost in the mail and got a refund and was told to keep them if the arrive. 3 days after email they arrived (Free-Yahoo). I purchased some micrometer heads for around $5.00 each and were impressed with the quality. Don't know what I will do with them ,but like most of us , can't walk out of a Flea Market without buying something we don't need or already have

 

[St. Paul Steam]

I've purchased from them many times, they really excel in personalized items, very inexpensive there, I also agree with "Cadillac" about it being Chinese stuff like most other things, but cheaper. I did purchase a 1100 lb. Rated hydraulic lift table, the box was battered pretty good & the FedEx guy lugged it 10' from the road & just left it in the yard. (Glad it wasn't raining) the lift table was ok, couldn't hardly hurt it, (167 lbs.)but the lift pedal was missing and Temu pretty much has 2 ways of handling issues, send it back or keep it. After more than 2 weeks of me complaining they refunded me back $78 ...I thought that to be pretty generous as I had already made a nice custom pedal for $20, I had gotten the table on some super sale for $184.00 total !

 

[brino]

I signed up for Temu in Jan 2024 based an a recommendation from @cathead here:
https://www.hobby-machinist.com/threads/cutting-carbide.110020/post-1097471

...and I bought the same diamond wheels.

Since then I have done a dozen orders, including several t-shirts, swim trunks, a big pack of flap wheels, hex-shaft "bottle" brushes and more recently some carbide burrs.

Just know most of the stuff is low quality.
With those expectations, I have not been disappointed.

I only use paypal and have had no issues.
I do NOT use apps on my phone -for basically anything, as I will not pay $50/mo for a data-plan and the screen is just just too tiny and frustrating.

You can find most of the same stuff on ebay, but usually for several to a few dozen times the Temu price.
I have never used Banggood or AliExpress, however I consider them as equals.

Brian

 

[whitmore]

I do NOT use apps on my phone -for basically anything, as I will not pay $50/mo for a data-plan and the screen is just just too tiny and frustrating.

Apps don't require a data plan, unless you want the 4G/5G telephone to handle the internet access; turn on WiFi
and the phone can get to the internet at any tether-friendly site (home, a library, coffee shop, some universities...).

Most tablets will work fine, if you want a bigger screen; a touch-type friendly bluetooth keyboard and mouse complete
the ensemble.

 

[brino]

Apps don't require a data plan, unless you want the 4G/5G telephone to handle the internet access; turn on WiFi
and the phone can get to the internet at any tether-friendly site (home, a library, coffee shop, some universities...).

Sure. I know I could.
I use wifi on the phone about for 3 mins every few months, but just to sync my password manager.
The phone is really just a calculator, camera, and very occasionally a communication device (mostly texting).
Never wanted any more.....

Brian

 

[cathead]

Lately I have been making some finger joint boxes starting with trees and a home made band saw sawmill, then drying the wood and planing and building boxes. Sometimes I make my own hinges and hasps but Temu has some
nice stainless steel stuff that I can not compete with for the price. It takes several hours of work to make custom hardware which I can buy for just a few bucks. Also those green diamond cutoff wheels I use to cut carbide are
quite amazing.