Why one should NOT buy a storage solution @ Flash Memory Store (negative customer stories in comments)
Warning (Update 11th January 2007): read comments first, maybe making a purchase @ Flash Memory Store isn’t such a good idea after all. Jeremy
The initial post:
My background:
I´m not a technologist, yet – though I´ve experienced IT a lot as a simple customer. I´m in the process of graduating with a Master in Management from HEC Paris (http://www.hec.fr), the leading French business university. However, I´ll be specializing in high tech next year, namely doing an additional Master-level course at Ecole Centrale Paris (http://www.ecp.fr) in computer science, telecommunications and project management. This track should provide me with the necessary tech knowledge, and know-how, to make”Tech IT Easy” more and more technical with time going by.
Why you get to know about my background:
Because I´m hardly a technologist (so far), my posts for some time will probably relate experiences I´ve had as a customer (this very story for instance), or IT analyst (I read basically everything´s that related to IT in every major international paper every day, or every week when times are frantic; and I´ve worked as an IT stock analyst in Delhi, as a project manager in an Internet start-up in Tel Aviv, and a business development assistant in a Barcelona-based Venture Capital company). But your tech inputs are more than welcome, especially if you´re a sound, real geek: debates need depth to be relevant in today´s complex world.
The story:
We all need external storage solutions: think about all the private, precious data in your laptop that relies on your ability to avoid catching a virus! A 150€ move may secure a nice hedging strategy against information loss risks.
I decided to purchase an external hard-drive online, and found after researching the Internet an apparently pretty messy website, Flash Memory Store, which prices were rather low (not to say “dirt cheap”). 5 days after, I had received a nice QMemory 100BG mini-external drive. One week after, I was very happy about it when, coming back from a client in cold New Hampshire (USA) and having left my laptop in the trunk of the car, I found the hard drive frozen, like dead.
Though panicking since I had important stuff in it and only in it, I quickly found on Flash Memory Store the way I could sort things out: send it to their warehouse with all the details of my purchase, and they would return it fixed.
And you know what?
It worked. About a week later, I received a brand new external hard drive, with all the information previously stored in the frozen external memory drive in it! That´s what I call a nice online customer experience – who said online shopping is risky?
I´ve tried a lot of online stores in my life, and all I can say is that reviewing your vendors (on Amazon, eBay, etc.) and buzzing about NOT (see comments) great online stores (like http://www.Flash-Memory-Store.com) is the only way to drive crooks (numerous on the net) out of business – for the sake of all.
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This is a load of crap. Flash store memory.com is just another one of those crooks.
They had a SANDISK 2gb SD card for sale offered at a great price. So I purchased the item. 2 weeks later I received a 2gb SD card that was from Qmemory (a virtually unknown brand) and MUCH cheaper than the Sandisk I purchased.
Thinking this was a mistake I wrote to them and they said that they were simply backlogged with Sandisk cards and that we should just try and use it.
SO INSTEAD OF ASKING THE CONSUMER IF THEY WOULD LIKE A DIFFERENT PRODUCT AND/OR WAIT FOR THE BACKLOG TO FINISH (IF THEY EVEN SOLD SANDISK TO BEGIN WITH) THEY TRIED TO SNEAK ONE BY ME BY QUIETLY SHIPPING OUT A CHEAPER LESSER KNOWN PRODUCT FROM WHAT I HAD ORDERED!!!
THAT MY FRIENDS IS BAD BUSINESS AND IN FACT CRIMINAL!!!!!
You’re totally right Chris: this is very bad business. Although I enjoyed doing business with Flash Memory Store, I’m happy to have enabled you to tell your story to warn potential customers about such malpractices. I also had a terrible experience with Delta Airlines, a dangerous airline that I definitely do not recommend: http://jeremyfain.wordpress.com/2006/06/25/why-i%C2%B4ll-never-fly-delta-airlines-again/
I wish I had read this sooner. The exact same thing has happened to me. I definitely will never do business with Flash-memory-store.com again.
Hey Andrew,
Thanks for your testimony. Seems that Flash Memory Store isn’t so good after all.
Same thing happened to me w/ the SD cards.
I ordered two ATP 150x SD cards and today in the mail I had two Qmemory 150x cards. WTF. I’m getting a refund. The Qmemory looks shady as hell. Even one of the labels on the card is crooked. I don’t care if they have a lifetime warranty or they give you a free bag of skittles. It’s shady to send a customer something else when it clearly states on their invoice otherwise. I hope they don’t give me a hard time.
I’m sorry to say this same thing just happened to me. I ordered one ATP 150x SD card and today in the mail I received one Qmemory 150x card. so far everything I’ve found out about Qmemory is comparable to ATP, but I am new to this and could be wrong. More research is in order before I keep this and use it.
I’m glad I posted this article at first. At least, people thinking of buying on Flash Memory Store will think twice before moving on…Thanks for your testimony.
I ordered one ATP 150x SD card and today in the mail I received one Qmemory 150x card. — An update. I discovered that Flash Memory Store is located no more than 15 minutes from me, so I paid them a visit. They’re in an industrial office space in Northbrook, IL. When I told them I had been shipped the wrong item, they said they’d replace it with the ATP card (currently out of stock but which should be available in 2 days.) The manager there said that instead of losing orders, they will ship substitutes. (The Flash Memory Store site specifically states that if an item is out of stock, “your order will be placed on backorder.”) I was told the Qmemory card is manufactured by/with parts from Samsung (as the ATP card supposedly is). But aside from all this, take a look at the Qmemory website and you may be surprised to discover that the only way to purchase Qmemory products is through Flash Memory Store and their affiliates. A FAX number is provided for “prospective resellers” of Qmemory products which uses the area code (847), which is the same area code in which Flash Memory Store in Northbrook, IL. is located. Furthermore, a visit to http://www.qmemory.com/terms+conditions.html pretty much confirms my suspicions. Qmemory LLC is the umbrella under which “its affiliated companies, including without limitation, Flash Memory Store, Computer Memory Store, Qmemory, and Interplanetary Media” are organized. Read it yourself, it’s right at the top of the page, 3rd line down. On my visit to their office, I was told that Interplanetary Media is their main business, specializing in creating and marketing such things as flash drives with your company’s logo, or USB drives customized to meet other needs your company might have, such as copy protected proprietary software. Indeed, on the back of the manager’s business card is a list of the companies which comprise Qmemory. (You can add customusb.com to the above list.) So, the products we order seem to often be out of stock and are then substituted for with Qmemory products. I wonder how the Better Business Bureau will feel about all this, and the Illinois Attorney General’s office. As if all this weren’t enough, the VeriSign seal AND the BizRate.com seal displayed on the Flash Memory homepage are both unclickable (already reported this to these two organizations.) And the displayed “Certified Merchant Guarantee” seal? A search for that turns up many hits, but I found nothing that looked like the seal on the site. Perhaps Qmemory invented that one all on their own. Search for Flashmemorystore.com on pricerunner, you’ll get more of these complaints. This is definitely bait and switch.
Wow, what an investigation! Many thanks, what a valuable input. So, it’s official, no Flash Memory Store anymore on my behalf.
And for those of you who enjoy detective work, check out http://ipmedia.manufacturer.globalsources.com/si/6008824863552/Homepage.htm (yes, Interplanetary Media Asia, complete with phone numbers and address of the Flash Memory Store in Northbrook, IL. – same logo as on the manager’s business card) and use the links on the left to learn about this company further. It would appear that the Qmemory SD card is a worthy product manufactured by a company with legitimate certification issued by BSI Inc. (German Federal Office for Information Security) and IQNET. It seems the problem here lies with the rather less than honest Flash Memory Stores marketing procedures. If they had been more up front with me, it would have helped our relationship immensely. I quote from Chris, Sept. 6, up above – SO INSTEAD OF ASKING THE CONSUMER IF THEY WOULD LIKE A DIFFERENT PRODUCT AND/OR WAIT FOR THE BACKLOG TO FINISH (IF THEY EVEN SOLD SANDISK TO BEGIN WITH) THEY TRIED TO SNEAK ONE BY ME BY QUIETLY SHIPPING OUT A CHEAPER LESSER KNOWN PRODUCT FROM WHAT I HAD ORDERED!!! This is what angers me too. Well it’s time for me to stop sleuthing and get back to work. This has been a learning experience!
After ordering, emails and voicemails went unanswered which made me suspicious. After a quick Google search, I found this site *and* and epinions thread where many, many people have had them switch brands to some off-brand.
I cancelled the order and placed a dispute on it with Visa and emailed them. THEN a reply came acknowledging the cancellation so I checked with Visa (24 hours after receiving the email) but NO CREDIT had been issued.
After tracking down a human (see below) I ended up talking to Alex who informed me that they’d allegedly put through the credit then “but it can take from 24-48 hours” for the credit to go through and Visa to see it.
Yeah…in Bizarro World.
If you’re having problems at:
+ FlashMemoryStore or Flash-Memory-Store.com
+ ComputerMemoryStore or Computer-Memory-Store.com
+ CustomUSB.com
Then you might like to know the following:
a) The parent company of these three is:
Interplanetary Media
1901 Raymond Dr Ste. 4, Unit 11
Northbrook, IL 60062
Phone: (847) 205-5200
Talk to Alex Kay at Ext. 7115
Here’s where they are located: http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=1901+raymond+drive+northbrook+il&ie=UTF8&z=18&ll=42.111261,-87.827448&spn=0.003017,0.006287&t=k&om=1
b) Looks like the Flash/Computer memory stores are located at: 2516 Waukegan Road, #335 Glenview IL 60025
c) CustomUSB has their address here *and* a Live Chat which brings up a person if you want to connect with someone: http://customusb.com/contact.html
Hey Steve,
Thanks for everything. Now the potential customers of FlashMemoryStore will have enough fish to at least think twice before making their purchase.
Which comment are you talking about? I never delete sensible comments. So, if it wasn’t injurious or a spam, it should appear pretty soon. Give me some time to validate those moderated by my SPAM filter. Thanks in advance.
Last year purchased two 40GB QMemory USB external hard drives. One worked, one did not work. After several emails, I finally got the Return Merchandise Authorization from them. Sent it back and they sent me a new one. Works fine. Just ordered a QMemory 250GB external hard drive. Just received it, does not work at all. Received the Return authorization yesterday via email. Will send it back for exchange. I’ll keep you posted how it goes. I guess QMemory must not be very reliable. Won’t order from them again in the future.
I too experienced the bait and switch from Flash Memory Store. I orderd two Kinston 2GB 133X sd cards and was sent the Qmemory 150X cards instead. It will be interesting to see if they respond to my complaint. The price was so low for the Kinstons that I should have stayed away, “too good to be true” is something one should pay attention to.
Was looking for a discontinued item (Regular Memory Stick 256MB). Product was just what I needed, priced lower than most all other retailers. Insured shipping was available and appreciated. Shipping was so fast I received item same day I was notified it was shipped. Very pleased with merchant and will buy from again.
Larry H.
Yep. Got the 40GB external…it was QMemeory. First one didn’t work, replaced it, second one worked after getting some tech support (not from them but a friend), after less than a year, it stopped working and I guarantee no one will respond to my emails for at least a month. God I wish I would have done my homework on this. Now I can only hope my data on the device can be saved!!!
To Larry H.> Maybe you shouldn’t buy from again…
Jeremy,
are you high? i had a great shopping experience with them.
Placed an order 5/15/2007 for a 4G Qmemory CF. Website said “in stock” “ready for shipping.” Website also says they won’t bill the credit card until the item is shipped. BOTH LIES! Every time I check the order status (daily since 5/17) it says “will ship in 2-3 days.” ANOTHER LIE! Have contacted VISA to contest the charge…I won’t lose the money, but it’s irritating to have to do this. Have e-mailed these con artists three times, and called once. No responses at all.
I did a little checking around, and verified the Qmemory/FlashMemory/ComputerMemory/USB incestuous relationships as shown above…wish I had found this site earlier. Oh well, fool me once, shame on me…fool me twice not likely.
Thanks for this testimony Warren. You’re very right to protest. This company should go to jail (if it’s possible).
MY EXPERIENCE WITH FLASH MEMORY STORE.COM WAS TERRIFIC. THE PRICES ARE BETTER OR COMPARABLE TO THE COMPETITORS. THEY HAVE A WIDE SELECTION OF MERCHANDISE AND THE WEB SITE IS USER FRIENDLY. SHIPPING WAS ONLY 99 CENTS AND I RECEIVED MY ORDER WITHIN THE SAME WEEK. I WILL BE USING FLASH MEMORY STORE.COM IN THE NEAR FUTURE
Good but confusing experience,
I ordered a 8GB Qmemory 150 CF card to use in my E series Olympus cameras.
Ordered on June 3,2008, the next day I checked the order and it said out of stock, on back order.
On June 5, I received a email saying it shipped and gave a USPS tracking number. Checked the tracking number that day and up to yesterday, USPS said they had not receved the item yet.
However to my suprise just moments after I checked the tracking number yesterday the doorbell rang and there was my cf card. 5 days after I placed the order!
I was led to believe it would be a couple of weeks.
The Qmemory card downloads images more than twice as fast as any of my other “well known brand cards”,
reliability is still a unknown quantity as I’ve only had it for two days.
Just about purchased a 16GB qmemory card from then when I found this site… They have some decent prices but kinda glad I didnt order now even though the qmemory probably comes out of the same factory in China as all the other crap.. Just a FYI I just checked out http://canadacomputers.com/index.php?do=ShowProdList&cmd=pl&id=990.218.675
If anyone is in Canada… and they have some really cheap prices on some memory on some well known and some half known brand names.. just thought I would pass it along..