In the computer hardware market, parallel imports are a noun that is often raised. The so-called tallery refers to products that are inflowed by non-regular channels (such as smuggling), not for products sold for the country or region. It is relative to parallelism. In fact, in most cases, the difference between parallel and licensed is not very large, even exactly the same. The biggest difference between parallel importance and licensed is that product manufacturers can provide warranties without parallel.
Due to the different market strategies of the product manufacturers, parallel imports may have lower (even lower) prices relative to licensed, which is the biggest reason for the water-efficient market, sometimes even the only reason. In the market of laptops, parallel products have been described in "flooding". Recently, a friend of the author participated in a parallel laptop transaction, the author (nothing did not understand), accompanied friends to experience the entire process.
Brightly large paralleler vendor
The author is a student of Xi'an University. In September, there is a laptop seller to our school to do activities, and there are three IBM T42 protots on the booth. A friend who is just the author is intended to buy a laptop, so the author has a detailed consultation with him. According to reports, this vendor distributes IBM, Sony, HP laptops and related components, while providing trading platforms for second-hand laptops. They have their own trading websites and office venues, but there is no special store or computer city booth, most transactions are carried out on its website. We visited their website and found that this is a forum that is not too small. There are many posts on the related sectors to buy laptops or related accessories. Here we understand that this vendor also sells MP3, CD players and a small number of mobile phones. The forum also has sections and special second-hand laptop sales sections that discuss technology and special second-hand laptops. It is quite perfect. There have been a few days before the forum (according to the observation, it is generally updated a week).
Positive handshake
According to the offer on the forum, the author's friend looks at an IBM X31 / 3LH. The specific configuration is Pentium M 1.5 GHz / 256MB DDR / 30GB HDD / Mobility Radeon, and the offer is 11200 yuan (Figure 2). At the time of the market, the price of this X31 was exactly the same, the price of X31 / 39C was 13,700 yuan (IBM has different naming of the same products sent to different countries and regions, the price from 2004 "Mini Computer "magazine), merchant promises to give IBM small black rat, IBM red dot bag, wipe screen, system restore disc, etc., and can add 50 yuan to give a CD machine for HP / Compaq (the offer on the forum is 450 yuan). After several rounds of bargaining on the Internet, I promised to pay at the price of 10900, but I don't enjoy the treatment of adding the CD machine.
The representative of the distributor found us and brought us to its office. In a small office, we met the dealer and conducted a more detailed conversation with him. Dealer frankly, they sold the sale of parallel, the source is generally the Hong Kong area, which is commonly known as "Hong Kong licensed", the supply is over Shenzhen. If the purchaser can get a valid entry and exit certificate (requiring entry time after seven days of the machine production date), you can enjoy the domestic blue express delivery service (Figure 1). When the author's friend said that the dealer promised that the dealer was responsible for the first year's warranty, in the second, three years provided a round-trip toll by the purchasers, the dealer was responsible for sending the machine to Hong Kong maintenance, and guarantee Maintenance time is no more than two weeks. The friend who conversation is interested in the laptop of a brand in China. The distributor immediately demeanors the brand, and raises the weaknesses of the brand. From its speech, the dealer is related to the laptop and its associated Technical understanding is not deep. When talking about the legitimacy of the parallelens, the dealer said that he said, now there are now many JSs to sell the parallel brush machine as a license, and they are just right selling parallel. Dealer said that IBM's laptop has always been known as quality, so in most cases, there is basically no trouble to after-sales service during the three-year warranty period. From this point, the parallel machine is more than the licensed machine. The price is inexpensive, and there is no difference. This is why they only do large brands such as IBM, HP, Sony. When you see the goods, the dealer told us that X31 / 3LH has no spot, only five, six IBM T series machines. There are only internal carton packages, and all have been unpacking. The dealer said that this is to give each machine to the Chinese operating system, clearly, the operating system here is pirated. When a friend asks the copyright issues of the operating system (licensed IBM laptop), the distributor is called the original COA label (Certificate of Authority, anti-counterfeiting certificate, pre-installed Windows XP) The system's brand machine has a label, Figure 3), but it is necessary to add hundreds of dollars. After opening the box, you can see that the machine is indeed brand new, and the accessories, etc. are not missing. When a friend insists on x31 / 3lh, dealers say they accept bookings, need to pay 200 yuan deposit, you can get the goods after one or two days. The author's friend immediately delivered 200 yuan deposit. After two days, the dealer gave a friend to call, the goods were to Xi'an, but in Xianyang International Airport, it has been a problem, and the two or three days cannot be taken. Ask the specific situation, the dealer avoids it. In the end, a friend took it back.
Pumped cargo machine, you are really beautiful
In the domestic laptop market, the sales volume of the patrol machine is very visible, and even a few people with certain related knowledge will take parallel to one of the best choices when purchasing a laptop. It is undeniable that due to the different market strategies of the product manufacturer, the price advantage is very obvious compared to the licensed machine, the price advantage is very obvious, less than two or three thousand yuan, more than five or six thousand yuan, in some The high-end models can even have nearly 10,000 yuan, which attracts a large number of shame but want to enjoy high quality consumers in international products. However, the warranty of water products is un guaranteed. The product manufacturer does not have any obligation to provide warranty for parallel products. It can be said that the warranty of the goods is only the conscience of the sale. According to the author and several dealers who have purchased computers in the text, this dealer basically did its commitment, but who would know that you buy it today, is it? Tomorrow's dealer is closed? IBM laptop quality is good, but no one can guarantee that every product will not have problems. In a sense, buying parallel products is gambling, and they can only rely on luck. The cause of the laptop market is flooding, one is what is said above, the price of licensed products is high (but not necessarily high), and the other is the general quality of domestic products. Most of the domestic manufacturers are very impetuous. My other friend has deeply understood that I have used IBM's machine and then lazy to see those domestic garbage. Although his words are somewhat incompatible, it is not a basis. While domestic laptop manufacturers, the quality of its products is always in a lower level. If the value of the after-sales service is considered, some domestic laptops have cost-effective than expensive international brand products. It is much lower. Many users have a low price, and the result is not small, regret it.
Ok, we see that as China has continued to join the WTO, and the international big manufacturers have begun to strategically adjust the Chinese market, and the prices of many international brand products are gradually entering the scope of ordinary people can accept; at the same time, domestic Some manufacturers have also begun to pay attention to the innerness of the product, launched a lot of high quality, low-priced products, meet more and more intense competitions with international brands, these are subjective and objectively compressed market share of parallel products. . We can clearly predict that the word "parallel import" disappears, and it will be available at the time.
Drawings Figure 1: Process from the Panel on Applying for blue express delivery services for parallel dealers' websites. Figure 2: Quote on the site on November 2 website. Buying the corresponding licensed with this price is unimaginable. Figure 3: COA label on the back of the IBM ThinkPad Body
