Buying unlocked version from Clove or Expansys-USA to ship to US?

[Deleted User]

Hey guys,

I've been debating whether to buy an unlocked version from the UK Clove website or the Expansys-USA website. The Expansys-USA is much cheaper, however it seems some people are getting mixed products from various vendors. So I wanted to know which of these two would be best. My questions are as follows:

1) Upon researching this forum, some phones come with and without factory seals (i.e., some NewEgg users do not have seals). Does anyone know if Expansys-USA or Clove is factory sealed?

2) Which one would give me a working US adapter (not an add-on)?

3) Anyone know if there are fundamental hardware differences between the phones of different countries? I know India S2's DO NOT have NFC... but what about the versions from Clove (I assume UK) and Expansys-USA (I also assume from the UK)?

Thank you!

 

[steslatt]

Clove - comes with factory seal and no NFC.

 

[CWL21]

1. The Expansys-usa units are factory sealed and do not have NFC.
2. Expansys-usa puts a UK to US adapter in the box.
3. The UK units from Expansys-usa do not have NFC

 

[Trooper]

1. The Expansys-usa units are factory sealed and do not have NFC.
2. Expansys-usa puts a UK to US adapter in the box.
3. The UK units from Expansys-usa do not have NFC

So is it preffered to purchase from Expansys-usa?

 

[CWL21]

By all means buy from wherever, just answering the questions on what I know how devices come from Expansys-usa.

 

[Deleted User]

The hard part is that I'm still deciding whether to buy from Expansys-USA (cheaper), Clove (great reviews + most reliable), or from an online Canadian reseller (could be even cheaper + more reliable since I live in the U.S.?). My main criteria is that:

I would like to buy the phone that was made in Korea, but for the UK/CA market (thus, factory sealed) and comes with a US adapter (not add-on). That seems to be the best one, but I am unsure which one would provide all of that.

 

[jaydee77ca]

The hard part is that I'm still deciding whether to buy from Expansys-USA (cheaper), Clove (great reviews + most reliable), or from an online Canadian reseller (could be even cheaper + more reliable since I live in the U.S.?). My main criteria is that:

I would like to buy the phone that was made in Korea, but for the UK/CA market (thus, factory sealed) and comes with a US adapter (not add-on). That seems to be the best one, but I am unsure which one would provide all of that.

For what it's worth the Canadian versions are locked to either Bell or Virgin so you would have to root it and unlock it yourself. Unless you bought from somewhere that did it for you.

The UK versions come from the factory unlocked so that's why they have the factory seal still.

I'm in Canada and here's how the prices break down:

Expansys.ca - $725.68
Clove.co.uk - $651.23
HandTec - $635.57

All prices include shipping, etc. They don't include any charges paid on receipt.

I have heard that if you order from Clove or HandTec you may have to pay anywhere from $0 to $90 when you receive it. One Canadian customer posted his FedEx bill he got after he ordered from HandTec and it showed $42 in charges on receipt (GST and a processing fee). Another guy said he didn't have to pay anything on receipt (using DHL Courier from Clove). Yet a third said he had to pay $50 in customs charges after ordering from Clove.

So, if you add in $25 or so for a UK to North America power adapter (which apparently is included in the Expansys order) and a potential $50 charge on receipt then all three are probably the same end cost.

The one thing I don't know for sure is whether the Expansys version is a factory unlocked UK version or an after-market unlocked version from somewhere else (like Newegg, which is an after-market unlocked one from Chile).

 

[Deleted User]

I have e-mailed Expansys-USA asking where their S2 comes from. Hopefully, it comes from the UK since the original website is out of the UK.

Expansys-USA actually comes out cheaper for me. I checked Clove's prices. $648.99 USD is what Expansys-USA would charge for me (with coupon & free shipping) as opposed to something like $680 with Clove. The VAT/tax/duty stuff worries me, though since it has to deal with customs and since some people (as you mentioned) had to pay that.

 

[Trooper]

I have e-mailed Expansys-USA asking where their S2 comes from. Hopefully, it comes from the UK since the original website is out of the UK.

Expansys-USA actually comes out cheaper for me. I checked Clove's prices. $648.99 USD is what Expansys-USA would charge for me (with coupon & free shipping) as opposed to something like $680 with Clove. The VAT/tax/duty stuff worries me, though since it has to deal with customs and since some people (as you mentioned) had to pay that.

May I ask where this coupon is? Im probably going to pull the trigger fairly soon on this phone.

Thanks.

 

[Deleted User]

May I ask where this coupon is? Im probably going to pull the trigger fairly soon on this phone.

Thanks.

Enter coupon code "LSJULY10" (ends in 2 days!) at the checkout for $10 off. I think I'm going to go for this one, too.

 

[Trooper]

Enter coupon code "LSJULY10" (ends in 2 days!) at the checkout for $10 off. I think I'm going to go for this one, too.

Thanks man appreciate it!