High shipping costs

[KC9UDX]

No. That's the drag effect of 5G waves. You must have been walking near one of those giant 5G towers.

[Peter Gamma]

Do these posters want to say with their posts, that their slogan is also "dolce far niente"?

[Peter Gamma]

After I sold my PinePhone one year ago to Italy, I struggeled a year with Ubports community phones, how to install it, kept putting that off, and investigated who to write to the external SD card with it. Now, I decided to buy another PinePhone. Unfortunately, it is sold out again. But I could find another one on Ricardo Switzerland. I will have it in a view days.

[Peter Gamma]

As a person who lives in Switzerland and often buys products in the US, I experienced that ebay somehow found the optimal shipping method to ship product from US to CH with the Ebay Global Shipping Progam. Shipping is fast, import taxes are prepaid, no additional fees, and it always worked fine. If I have the choice to buy a product in the US, I generally choose ebay. I suggest to sell the PinePhone also in an ebay store if possible.

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And as a person who lives in Switzerland and often buys products also directly in China, I normally buy products from China on Aliexpress, they are also very efficient. Shipping from China to CH is normally 2-3 weeks, shipping taxes and import taxes are low over Aliexpress. Is the PinePhone or PinePhone products not produced in China? I suggest if possible to sell these products also through Aliexpress.

[someGermanGuy]

I also live in switzerland. Because of the extremely bad logistic between CH and all other countries surrounding it, i usually drive to AT or DE and send the stuff from their. Its not only cheapier, its way way way faster without extremely expensive taxes. And then i do a shopping tour in that country.
I like switzerland, but when it comes to shipping, it just sucks hardcore.
Aliexpress, amazon and others found ways to make shipping very fast - but this is not possible for "mortals". They have special contracts with logistic companies, special contracts with the dutys etc.

[Peter Gamma]

There is also potential to optimize with the shipping costs for the PinePhone keyboard:

https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=16585

[Peter Gamma]

We eventually need several PinePhones shipped to Switzerland. Shipping costs of Pine64 to Switzerland are high (70 – 90 USD taxes + fees incl.).

In this thread it is written that it is also possible to ship the PinePhone keyboard via "Standard Shipping Method" for $11.99 to Switzerland:

https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=16585

It would be highly desirable, when this shipping option is offered in the PinePhone store for the keyboard, as anounced, but it is currently still is a fiction.

And if it is possible to ship the keyboard for $11.99 to Switzerland, is it not also possible to ship the PinePhone for $11.99 to Switzerland? We are waiting for a month or so for the option to be able to buy the PinePhone in the store. What is another month to wait until it arrives? To wait for a month, and then have it within 3 days, and pay between 70 – 90 USD dollar shipping and import taxes? Can this not be optimized?

[Zebulon Walton]

At least for the U.S. the "standard" shipping is via China Post. I've bought quite a few items from China shipped that way and never had a problem, but delivery can take weeks, tracking is spotty, and if you do have a problem it would no doubt be a nightmare to get straightened out. The "courier" shipping is DHL which is faster, has more reliable tracking and is presumed to be more reliable and easier to deal with overall.

When I originally ordered my Pinephone I opted for DHL. I think at the time it was only $10 or $15 more than the cheaper method. All parts and accessories ordered since, including the keyboard, have been via China Post.

[Peter Gamma]

If we order a phone in China for 150 USD, it shipped as "phone accessoire" via standard Aliexpess shipping vor 10 USD, no import taxes, arrives usually in two or three weeks by airway, always worked fine.

As we ordered a PinePhone keyboard, it was shipped trough DHL by Pine64 for 30 USD, no import taxes, since it was below 50 USD. But Swiss Post charched another 8 USD for the Express DHL shipping which lasted 3 days. The extra 8 US where because it was DHL and not "Standard Shipping Method" for $11.99.