Jaycar / Amazon / AliExpress - Is There Any Difference between These Products?

Lady Grey Tea on 06/01/2025 - 12:08

Hello all!

Can any of you tech smart folks tell me if there really is a difference between the quality and durability of products like this VGA-HDMI adaptor?

Jaycar - $19.99
Amazon - $8.99
Ali-Express - Approx $2.00

I'm happy to buy at Jaycar if it's actually a superior product and will last longer….
But I don't want to be a fool and buy it if it's the same thing as AliExpress, just rebranded. (The jaycar one is matte and with a different symbol on it, but looks much the same)

Can any experienced people here advise, please? Thank you!

Electrical & Electronics HDMI Adapter

Related Stores

Jaycar Electronics
Jaycar Electronics
AliExpress
AliExpress
Marketplace
Amazon AU
Amazon AU
Marketplace

Comments

  • HamBoi69 on 06/01/2025 - 12:19
    +6

    They’re probably all made in the same factory. The difference is whether you want to wait 3 months for shipping or get it tomorrow and overpay.

    • Lady Grey Tea on 06/01/2025 - 12:22
      +1

      Ali-Express has pretty fast shipping, and I'm not in a massive hurry…
      For me is less about the speed and more about the quality. I also suspect the old 'same factory' story, but I don't actually know for sure.
      I'm not expecting the ali-express one to blow up, but I would hope that it would be durable.

      • CrispyChrispy on 06/01/2025 - 12:27
        +1

        The return/refund process for AliEx is pretty good nowadays, too - just make sure you get the right spec (eg. whether it can do 4K or only 1080p or smth) as you probably know how deceiving AliEx listings can be

        • Lady Grey Tea on 06/01/2025 - 13:36
          +1

          Yep, I feel like AliEx has definitely improved, but still it's a case of buyer beware. Luckily so far I've managed to avoid the traps.

      • HeWhoKnows on 07/01/2025 - 08:00
        +1

        The Ali Express one is NOT the price you see.

        Its part of AE's Choice range which is a BUNDLE DEAL subject to $15 minimum order - but you get free shipping.
        Choice range is shipped and delivered within 7 to 10 days so very quickly!

    • websterp on 06/01/2025 - 13:37
      +4

      3 month shipping for Ali is a thing of the past. Instead of leaving the shipping with the seller (which had been the reason for long delays in the past as individual sellers would go for the cheapest shipping method) these days Aliexpress has their own consolidation warehouses (somewhat similar to the Amazon model) so purchases are shipped in large volumes to each overseas hub and distributed to their final destination from there.

      For me in Melbourne they usually turn up within 1-2 weeks now.

      • Lady Grey Tea on 06/01/2025 - 13:41

        Oh, that makes sense, no wonder things are quicker. Thanks for the info!

    • brad1-8tsi on 06/01/2025 - 14:29

      AliExpress takes 2-3 weeks at the moment

  • Jimothy Wongingtons on 06/01/2025 - 12:48
    +2

    Sweet spot Amazon imo
    $8.99 for next day delivery is unreal
    Id prob spend that in time and petrol to get to my nearest jaycar

    • Lady Grey Tea on 06/01/2025 - 13:36

      True, time is also worth factoring in. And Amazons returns (if it doesn't work) are painless too.

  • Bruceflix on 06/01/2025 - 12:50
    +2

    JayCar = Get it today.
    Amazon = Get it this week
    AliExpress = Get it this month

    With convenience comes price.

    • Lady Grey Tea on 06/01/2025 - 13:37
      +1

      Yep - luckily this time I'm not in a rush, hence the forum post haha.
      I can take my time, but I feel like AliExpress is more like - get it in a fortnight, rather than a month these days.

  • Yummy on 06/01/2025 - 14:17

    All made in China.
    One could be manufactured in proper factory, or it can be made by some random garage shops.
    Fact.

  • hasher22 on 06/01/2025 - 14:53

    Shop on eBay too, eBay usually sells the same products as Amazon and Aliexpress…… (I am basing this that all 3 sellers use the same exact picture)

    • Lady Grey Tea on 06/01/2025 - 14:56
      +4

      Oh yes, ebay can be good too!
      But watch out!
      Once, I really really needed something fast, so I bought express from ebay (knowing it was a generic product and it was a reshipper, but I needed it fast and could only get it online).

      The seller literally just ordered to my address directly from ali-express and it was not 'express' whatsoever. He didn't have any local stock at all.
      Since then, I am very careful with ebay sellers haha!

      • hasher22 on 06/01/2025 - 14:58
        +1

        Yeah, some sellers are BS on eBay and mislead.

        But in my experience, filter the products by item location "australia" and 99% of the time they posting within Australia and use Australia post. I only shop on eBay that has item locations stating in Australia but yes, they can lie about that too unfortunately, though I think it's rare.

        • Lady Grey Tea on 06/01/2025 - 15:02
          +1

          Oh yes, I did! He listed it as having stock locally in Melbourne, and was a total liar - even listed it as Aus Post.
          It just shows, even when you do your best, you can still be unlucky :)

          (Every other ebay seller I've used has been fine!)

        • rocmelon on 07/01/2025 - 09:56

          Item location is not a good indicator
          check number of feedback, anything big >5xxx is suspect
          stay away from location suburb=Sydney or Darwin

  • samcro on 06/01/2025 - 16:01

    All the same. The Jaycar one is not better quality.

  • AndyC1 on 06/01/2025 - 19:29
    -3

    Pickup at Jaycar with a real ATO tax invoice.
    Ebay a week or two from a Chinese drop shipper that ships from a OZ post drop site.
    ALI-Express - from the chinese factory or middle person directly from China with WYSIWYG warranty and refund process…

    Where do you think Electus buy from? Give you a hint, it;s not OZ in 95+% of cases. If you do not know who Electus is then you are not in the electronics game or are new to it.

    • BewareOfThe Dog on 07/01/2025 - 11:46

      I used to buy a bit from Electus.
      Minimum $100 ex GST, then last time I logged in, you had to buy in lots of 4 or 6 to get the discounted price. I'll have to have another look, to see if this has changed.

      • AndyC1 on 07/01/2025 - 20:08

        10000% agree. I last bought from them with the company I worked for 15 years ago.

        Try Farnel or Element 14 or what they are now (one of them has changed their names 3 times since I first bought and then bought my RP4 from them).

        • BewareOfThe Dog on 08/01/2025 - 10:12

          Ty. Element 14 i have dealt with a few times, as well as rs components.

  • kiitos on 07/01/2025 - 07:19

    The variety of prices on AliExpress for what looks like the same thing always disturbs me, especially if it's electrical related. Doesn't mean the other sellers aren't selling the same cheaper items heavily marked up though.

  • BigBirdy on 07/01/2025 - 10:14

    Order two from two different Choice sellers on Ali, preferably that look different, plus some other stuff to get to the US$10 free shipping. You’ll most likely end up with two that work fine, but if one is faulty, you have a backup.

  • kaos on 07/01/2025 - 13:17

    I buy from AliExpress a lot
    - usually things are fine if you don't go after things like the fake $40 laptops
    - check the listing carefully
    I got a bathroom exhaust fan in about 4 days, very unexpected.
    But most things are almost exactly 2 weeks, maybe a day or two under

    I'll never buy from Jaycar again for 2 reasons
    1. They steal other people's ideas https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SW8K9D9u5aI
    2. I purchased $8.40 of items during covid on credit card, they never messaged me to pickup then ignored my attempt to fix until the credit card reversal time was up

  • The Hawk on 07/01/2025 - 18:54
    +1

    This is such an old technology at this point I would have zero qualms buying the AliExpress one if you can wait for it. But (near) instant from Amazon is tempting :P

  • bamzero on 08/01/2025 - 12:36

    Jaycar just has massive markups on nearly everything. Only time I buy there would be if I really needed it right now and even waiting for Amazon would be too long (or clearance items which are sometimes good deals). Still, sometimes even Bunnings is cheaper.

    FWIW I got one of these about 7 years ago back when Gearbest was around, for about $1.40 delivered (actually 2 because they mixed some addresses and I got someone elses too which obviously wasn't worth them getting back so they said keep it. Hope the other guy got his eventually). Hasn't missed a beat.

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