Radioddity & Retevis - Return process broken [updated]

[Wayfarer]

UPDATE:  I just got an email and Radioddity has made good on both of the radios, the DB20-G and the TYT-9800.  Apparently, the TYT-9800 got lost in the warehouse and they just found it.  It took three weeks, but hey, that's a lot better than never.  And they are refunding me for the returned-to-sender DB20-G, even though it got lost by USPS. 

Now I feel like a bit of a heel for posting the rant below.  But this has been dragging on for weeks with no apparent movement, and then tonight I got an email out of the blue saying both issues have been resolved in my favor.  To the poster below who suggested I keep pestering them with emails and they will eventually fix it, you were right, at least regarding Radioddity.  The Retevis radio is still an open question, but the return issues with Radioddity have been fully resolved.  Still, I would have preferred avoiding the whole hassle by having radios that weren't DOA. 

At least Radioddity customer service did right.  In fact, I celebrated by buying a DB20-G ... from Amazon. 

....................................................

A bit of a rant here.  I recently decided to give cheap chinese radios a try and bought three radios, two from Radioddity and one from Retevis.  After I ordered the first one, a DB20-G, I decided to splurge and get their nicer dual band, the TYT-9800, so I refused and returned to sender the DB20-G.  Well, it turned out the TYT-9800 was defective and I returned it (separate thread on here with me working through that problem).  Well, now no one at Radioddity can find the radio and apparently it was lost in their warehouse, despite my RMA# being on the label and written prominently on the box.  I've tossed the shipping receipt and no one at Radioddity has the tracking number for the return.  Consequently, they are refusing to refund the purchase. 

As for the DB20-G that I refused and returned to sender, the shipment made it all the way back to the USPS City of Industry distribution center, and no further.  It was scanned in there 7 weeks ago and after that disappeared.  USPS won't let me initiate a trace because I never took possession of the package, only the shipper, Radioddity, can initiate the trace.  So it appears this shipment was probably swiped at the distribution center.  Well, Radioddity won't refund my money for that shipment either.  (Edit: isn't the loss in shipping on Radioddity since I never took possession of the package?)

Third time's a charm, right?  Well, I ordered a Retevis RA86 and it was also defective, with a loud popping during scan and receive (a known problem with the RA86 it turns out).  I requested a return the day after I received the radio and have been getting a run around ever since.  First, they had "to check with their tech team,"  then after several days, they told me to reset the radio, which I did already.  Then a week later, they told me to open the radio and send them a photo of the board revision.  Problem is, the case screws are a mini-sized torx (apparently, it's so small I can't be sure without a microscope) screw.  I have three torx bit sets and several mini screwdriver sets and none of them fit the screws.   I even went to to the local hardware store and they didn't have a torx bit that small.  So my only option is to special order a mini-torx bit set online.  Of course now it's been over 30 days since I placed the order.  I'm not sure I'm going to go through the trouble of finding the right mini-torx bit online and am thinking of just tossing the radio to save myself further hassle.  I live in the boonies, and driving to and from the nearest town with a post office and hardware store is a half-day affair.  

I've had over two dozen emails back and forth to both companies, with seemingly nice customer service people.  I feel sorry for the customer service people having to deal with shoddy warehouse procedures and company policies that won't accept a return of a defective product.  All told, I'm now out $450 on three chinese radios.  I've never had so much frustration buying radios, first with the defective radios themselves, and then with the returns.   

My advice, if you're going to buy a radio from either of these two companies, do it through Amazon which has an easy and efficient return procedure.   Better still, avoid these cheap chinese radios altogether and buy a Yaesu, Kenwood, or Icom from a reputable ham radio dealer.    

[OffRoaderX]

Can confirm ..

This is why i always recommend purchasing via Amazon when possible because Amazon protects against this exact thing - even if you have to pay $6 more, it's worth it.

[WRYZ926]

Sometimes paying a few extra dollars is worth the peace of mind.

[CoffeeTime]

I am very sorry to hear that.  

I also purchased directly from Retevis and I had a few problems also. 

I refused to give up. I kept emailing/ saying the same thing differently until someone could understand the points/problem.

They did make me whole. 

Best regards!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

     

[Wayfarer]

3 minutes ago, WRYZ926 said:

Sometimes paying a few extra dollars is worth the peace of mind.

It was actually more expensive by a few bucks direct from them than through Amazon.  I ordered direct from them as a courtesy to save *them* a couple bucks of not having it go through Amazon.  

[Socalgmrs]

I’ll beat this drum forever.  Don’t buy that garbage from any retailer.  Retivis and radioditty are just junk as witness but the constant and continuous problems noted just in this site let alone others.   This is another reason to ad to the list.  Why oh why would any one continue to buy them.    

[WRYZ926]

[FishinGary]

1 hour ago, OffRoaderX said:

Can confirm ..

This is why i always recommend purchasing via Amazon when possible because Amazon protects against this exact thing - even if you have to pay $6 more, it's worth it.

That's exactly what I've done with Radiodditty, since their return policy seemed sketchy and we know that DOA happens.

[Wayfarer]

I wouldn't paint chinese radios as all bad or junk.  It's hit or miss, some people get a good radio and it works out for them, others, get a bad radio and then a subset of them have a bad return experience.  I'm in the latter group.  Following the suggestion of several on this forum, I bought a TYT-7800 and it too was defective, but luckily I bought it from a reputable US-based ham shop and the return was seamless.  So that's 3 out of 4 chinese radios that were DOA. 

In 30 years of being a ham and buying dozens of radios, I never got one that was DOA until this experience.  Take it for what it's worth, your experience may be different.

In fairness to Radioddity, I did have a good experience with them last year, having bought a QT80 direct from them, and it works great.  So I thought I'd give the VHF/UHF radios a try.  Maybe the HF radios run off a different assembly line.  

I've decided on a Yaesu FTM-150 but am waiting for the spring hamfest deals to come around first.  I'm swearing off chinese radios until they work out the quality control issues.

[73blazer]

Which "retivus" did you buy from, retivus.com or retivussolutions.com? Two different stores both listed as "official" sites.

Amazon sucks where I live, they use unvetted "independent" no teeth meth head drivers who show up in 1991 rusted out white Ford vans  wearing flips flops and shorts and  torn t-shirts with a prime arrow magnet on the drivers door and a freezer in the back where they try to sell you a monthly steak plan. No thanks.

[Davichko5650]

15 hours ago, OffRoaderX said:

Can confirm ..

This is why i always recommend purchasing via Amazon when possible because Amazon protects against this exact thing - even if you have to pay $6 more, it's worth it.

When I ordered my DB20-G from Amazon, got a bundle deal with the GM30 HT added that I did not see offered on the Radiodiddity Website.  Buyer protection and a better deal, Yes, please!

[wayoverthere]

I guess I've been lucky product wise, but both times I've ordered from Radioddity, I've gotten solid gear (a DMR handheld, and an HF transceiver), but shipping was the issue.

One order got hung up because they shipped DHL to my PO box, the latter was like $50 cheaper for a bundle with some good extras, and said they had us stock, but it shipped from China anyway and took like 3 weeks to get here.

The couple anytone at779uv I've bought (from Amazon, twin to the db20g) have been solid also

[GrouserPad]

On 3/18/2025 at 9:49 AM, 73blazer said:

Which "retivus" did you buy from, retivus.com or retivussolutions.com? Two different stores both listed as "official" sites.

Amazon sucks where I live, they use unvetted "independent" no teeth meth head drivers who show up in 1991 rusted out white Ford vans  wearing flips flops and shorts and  torn t-shirts with a prime arrow magnet on the drivers door and a freezer in the back where they try to sell you a monthly steak plan. No thanks.

Same here man. Couple times I thought someone was going to break in to my house. They say don’t judge a book by its cover but when a mini van with busted windows, broken headlights, no exhaust shows up with a side sliding door missing and two guys in it….you tend to grab the Glock real quick.  But alas just another Amazon delivery  

[WRYZ926]

7 minutes ago, wayoverthere said:

I guess I've been lucky product wise, but both times I've ordered from Radioddity, I've gotten solid gear (a DMR handheld, and an HF transceiver), but shipping was the issue.

I have two Xiegu G90 radios. The first one I bought directly from Radioddity and I won the second G90 in Radioddity's 12th Anniversary raffle back in September. Both radios work great and shipping was very fast both times. I had a technical question and their customer service was very quick to answer my question. The G90 I purchased was one of their bundle deals that I just could not price match anywhere else.

That being said, I will buy from Amazon or other venders that have better customer service and better/easier return policies when possible. And I am will to pay up to $20 more for the peace of mind. Now if the difference is closer to $50 or more is a different story.

I have paid 10-20 dollars more for amateur radios by ordering from DX Engineering, Giga Parts, and R&L Electronics over finding the same radios elsewhere. Those three companies have great customer service and easy return policies.

I avoid eBay, especially for amateur radios since there is a good chance that you will get a Japanese or European version that doesn't work on US amateur radio bands.

 

[TDM827]

The forums sees plenty of posts about Chinese radios that don't work properly upon arrival.

If it doesn't turn out to be operator error, it seems like a problem with production consistency and the buyer somewhat takes their chances. While not a fan of jumping through hoops, buyers of cheap radios should not be overly surprised when they encounter problem radios out of the box. And, have to go through the replacement dance. Thankfully most companies seem to make good and replace the radio. 

I think these radios play a good part in allowing people to jump into GMRS at a very reasonable price point. Even I could not resist when Radioditty had a blow out sale on open box  models. The radio works great and I got a killer deal.  

As noted here by others, Amazon is a good way to make sure you can get your money back or an exchange on a clunker.  

Bottom line.... Buyer beware and understand it might take some extra effort on your part to end up with a workable radio when buying a budget priced radio.

[WRYS709]

You should re-edit the Title of this thread

Every new post (including this one) repeats your damning statement!

[WSHH887]

Something I have noticed on several forums. Folks will scream bloody murder if they get bad products or services. But most remain quiet as church mice when things are good.  I take rants with a grain of salt. 
Then there are those who never have a good word to say about anything. Those are flatly ignored.  Which is too bad because sometimes they do have valuable information to pass on. 

[Wayfarer]

14 hours ago, WRYS709 said:

You should re-edit the Title of this thread

Every new post (including this one) repeats your damning statement!

The return process is indeed broken.  It took weeks of pestering to get it resolved.  I updated my post right at the very top, so I think I've done my duty to paint the full picture.

9 hours ago, WSHH887 said:

Something I have noticed on several forums. Folks will scream bloody murder if they get bad products or services. But most remain quiet as church mice when things are good.  I take rants with a grain of salt. 
Then there are those who never have a good word to say about anything. Those are flatly ignored.  Which is too bad because sometimes they do have valuable information to pass on. 

I totally agree it's misleading and inconsiderate when original posters don't circle back when an issue is resolved.  

 

[BoxCar]

12 hours ago, WSHH887 said:

Something I have noticed on several forums. Folks will scream bloody murder if they get bad products or services. But most remain quiet as church mice when things are good.  I take rants with a grain of salt. 
Then there are those who never have a good word to say about anything. Those are flatly ignored.  Which is too bad because sometimes they do have valuable information to pass on. 

one ahh shit wipes out 100 atta boys.

[WRYZ926]

1 hour ago, BoxCar said:

one ahh shit wipes out 100 atta boys.

Yes it does. 

[SteveShannon]

14 hours ago, WSHH887 said:

Then there are those who never have a good word to say about anything. Those are flatly ignored.  Which is too bad because sometimes they do have valuable information to pass on. 

Exactly right, that’s the natural consequence of constantly complaining. It’s the “Peter and the Wolf syndrome”. There’s no way to know whether they’re just complaining as usual, which is exhausting to listen to and affects all who hear it negatively, or if this complaint is one that’s valid. Those people are far worse to have around than the ones who are quiet when something works the way it should.

[WRYS709]

7 hours ago, Wayfarer said:

The return process is indeed broken.  It took weeks of pestering to get it resolved.  I updated my post right at the very top, so I think I've done my duty to paint the full picture.

I think I will start a thread about how @Wayfarerposts misleading and inconsiderate thread titles and then circle back and Edit my initial post and add “[updated]” to the title!

YMMV!

“Now I feel like a bit of a heel for posting the rant below.” - Your comment, not mine!

[GrouserPad]

I’m 2 for 2 in good radiooddity radios. Their gmrs db20g and. Mb3 cb. Both working very very well. But….i ordered them from Amazon  

[Wayfarer]

15 hours ago, WRYS709 said:

I think I will start a thread about how @Wayfarerposts misleading and inconsiderate thread titles and then circle back and Edit my initial post and add “[updated]” to the title!

YMMV!

“Now I feel like a bit of a heel for posting the rant below.” - Your comment, not mine!

That the return process is broken is a true statement and my post contains accurate information that may be helpful to other members here.  
 

I came back within an hour of getting the email from Radioddity to update my post and title and put that at the top of my post.  I’m not sure what you’re wanting me to do?   

 

[WRYS709]

12 hours ago, Wayfarer said:

That the return process is broken is a true statement and my post contains accurate information that may be helpful to other members here.  
 

I came back within an hour of getting the email from Radioddity to update my post and title and put that at the top of my post.  I’m not sure what you’re wanting me to do?   

 

You are one anecdotal experience and personally I am sorry that you went through it.

You even admitted that: "Now I feel like a bit of a heel for posting the rant..."  I agree with you.

Your title, which is repeated on the list of Unread Messages EVERY time someone posts to this thread is not ameliorated by the fact that you acknowledged that they DID give you satisfactory replacement service.

You just don't like the timeline...

I have NEVER had ANY problem with Radioddity and their Technical Support responds within 24 hours of my questions.  Anecdotally, I think they are just terrific, but I would NEVER title a thread: BUY FROM RADIODDITY IN EVERY INSTANCE!

But apparently you do not see my point...