YouTuber launched a reef tank kit, scam or no?

[damsels are not mean]

It’s like complaining it only costs $50 to produce a $1300 smartphone. I say if people are buying his tanks, good for him. Good for us too, more people in the hobby means more demand for innovation. Really, how many people that buy a small tank stick with a small tank forever? They either succeed and buy a bigger tank or fail and sell everything off.

not really a fair comparison it's more like complaining that someone is selling a smartphone for $1300 when other phones that have existed for a while with the same specs cost $800

 

[FishyFishFish]

Does it change the perception if this 'YouTuber' is also a R2R sponsor? @coralfish12g

Change the thread title to 'R2R Sponsor launched a reef tank kit, scam or no?' and the response might immediately be different.

 

[a hill]

not really a fair comparison it's more like complaining that someone is selling a smartphone for $1300 when other phones that have existed for a while with the same specs cost $800

Its probably even better to compare the phone between two sellers, one running a promotional 20% discount and the other at full MSRP plus tax.

However, the comparison doesn’t fit here because it’s lacking a direct comparison.

Here we have a decent kit tank made to order for a specific audience. There’s no chance of it having name brand gear because that’s not profitable or possible.

Its not glass for durability.

It is expensive for what it is, no doubt, but many fans will purchase to support the channel more than anything.

Patreon subs already pay for access, this is simply another way to do so.

To the original point, in this case it’s an apples to oranges comparison because you’re buying YouTube merch that happens to be a nano tank, not a nano tank that happens to be sold by a famous YouTuber.

If you want to give it a try there are dozens of people in China who will sell you the same stuff and even brand it for you. I just doubt you or I will be able command the premium.

It’s no scam, it’s just simply YouTube fame.
Succinctly,

-Andrew

(I have no affiliation to the product nor seller)

 

[vetteguy53081]

If its too good to be true . . . . . . . . .

 

[FishyFishFish]

I’d be interested to know how many people here have actually ordered a big shipment like this from overseas.

I have (once, and never again!) and it’s not always the cheap process that people appear to be implying. Once you pay all of the shipping fees, duties, taxes etc it all works out pretty expensive. For someone who said that the tank would cost $300 so he makes $150 profit, that assumes that the $300 is the landed cost, and nobody knows if that is correct or not; even then that still doesn’t cover US internal shipping, insurance and taxes.

My shipment cost twice as much in shipping, taxes and fees, as the product actually cost me to buy. You might be lucky and get one tank into the country without accruing the usual fees, but 50 tanks aren’t going to slip through. For him to make any profit at all then I am guessing he will need to be paying $150 or less for the actual complete packages.

Big companies can take advantage of economies of scale. They probably buy a whole container (at least) at a time, they might already have business accounts that can get the shipping and fees at preferential rates.

Even if it is overly expensive (which is in the opinion of the purchaser and hasn’t really been universally agreed) it could well be that this seller is making almost zero profit on these.

It might not be a ripoff or a scam. It might just be an expensive way of buying a tank.

 

[a hill]

I’d be interested to know how many people here have actually ordered a big shipment like this from overseas.

I have (once, and never again!) and it’s not always the cheap process that people appear to be implying. Once you pay all of the shipping fees, duties, taxes etc it all works out pretty expensive. For someone who said that the tank would cost $300 so he makes $150 profit, that assumes that the $300 is the landed cost, and nobody knows if that is correct or not; even then that still doesn’t cover US internal shipping, insurance and taxes.

My shipment cost twice as much in shipping, taxes and fees, as the product actually cost me to buy. You might be lucky and get one tank into the country without accruing the usual fees, but 50 tanks aren’t going to slip through. For him to make any profit at all then I am guessing he will need to be paying $150 or less for the actual complete packages.

I’m using simple numbers of a commercial import and averaging the total cost per system. Getting them to the USA is expensive and annoying.

This is a short minimum run so cost per unit with current rates of shipping plus other costs is sky high.

I assumed he did not get a good price, nor do the import as efficiently and cost effectively as possible so they were around $300 each to him.

I don’t actually know, I just don’t think there was much profit had here.

Often I’m approached by companies in China and it almost never is profitable enough to bother with.

Succinctly,
-Andrew

 

[ariellemermaid]

What do you mean by scam?

He clearly has the tanks; his videos show them being delivered. He shows what you are getting and tells you the cost.

If you don’t like it, you don’t have to buy one.

A scam is if he takes your money and doesn’t send you anything, or doesn’t send you what you’ve paid for. That clearly isn’t what is happening here.

$500 might be a lot for a mass-produced item, but it seems he has only had 50 kits produced so far. Even if they are just re-badged, simply having them made with his branding and in his boxes would have cost a lot, just in shipping and fees, for such a small shipment.

If you think it’s too expensive then buy something else!

I agree wholeheartedly. A deal that you don’t like is a bad deal in your opinion. Bernie Madoff was a scam that robbed people of their life savings. It’s irresponsible to use that language when you just don’t like something.

By the same definition, the iPhone is a “scam.” You can objectively get better technology from many android phones for less cost. Don’t even get me started on high price fashion.

In an ideal world YouTube content creators deliver high quality, entertaining, useful information to the world. Doing so requires a significant investment in time, technology, and resources. So whether we’re talking about ads or sponsored products or home grown products, revenue supports the channel to keep it going. Participate or don’t, but know the true definition of scam before you start throwing it around.

 

[Miami Reef]

Devils advocate here: I’d rather newbies pay a higher markup once for an all in one setup than to buy cheap equipment and need to replace them one by one because it won’t grow corals.

Cheap costs double, but paying more for a system that is proven to work is better, even if it costs more than buying each item separately . You are paying for not needing to research hours on each individual item.

I’m not saying that the items are good quality (I didn’t research what’s inside the package) but I’m sure the lights are good enough for basic softies and stonies. Probably not for anemones nor acros though.

 

[TnFishwater98]

I mean even if its a scam or not, people are buying it. biggest proof that it was sold out within the first few hours. what might not be ok for us is ok for others. I think its more of a; "I bought a limited edition tank made by my favorite youtuber" than "I am a beginner and I need a tank". if they are selling good then good for him, you cant blame him or blame companies like WWC if there are people buying.

Lots of peeps might of followed him before decided to dive in. With him offering a “complete setup” it’s seems like the easiest Turn key way to do it for some…

 

[TnFishwater98]

More competition is good even if over priced. The market will work that out.

 

[elysics]

I don't know why people are discounting the fact that his logo on the set is going to raise the price. Other people buy plastic figurines for 3 figures or above $100 for a white tshirt. Others just straight up donate money to these people. Band tshirts with some random logo cost double what a normal tshirt with some random logo costs. Others give money to their church.

Just because you personally can't understand that people get joy out of these things doesn't make it a scam.

 

[Bato367]

No.

 

[AnotherReefHobbyist]

Wow… that got real toxic real fast

I have never before been scared to respond to my own thread, but here we go.

I was simply trying to ask a question about a product I saw that I thought may be a ripoff, not trying to attack anyone or criticize them for possibly making a profit. I was coming from a consumer point of view, and asking if this is overpriced for what it is.

I will note not to ask questions or state opinions relating to anything of the sorts in the future.

 

[FishyFishFish]

I think using words like ripoff or scam (particularly the latter) will always run the risk of eliciting a certain type of response, one way or the other.

 

[Sean Clark]

Gotta get those clicks somehow. Why not use some bait?

 

[brandon429]

this pales

the most offensive thing I’ve seen in the last twelve years online was the recent link to a 180 gallon reef tank + stand that cost $14,768 dollars. Only the tank and stand

Filthy vermin

 

[ying yang]

Wow… that got real toxic real fast

I have never before been scared to respond to my own thread, but here we go.

I was simply trying to ask a question about a product I saw that I thought may be a ripoff, not trying to attack anyone or criticize them for possibly making a profit. I was coming from a consumer point of view, and asking if this is overpriced for what it is.

I will note not to ask questions or state opinions relating to anything of the sorts in the future.

No need to get scared ^_^

You had your opinion and others had there's is all and if you have any questions or a opinion,this is one of main reasons the forum works imo so I wish you good luck with your tank and to start any thread that you may need or want to start ^_^

 

[Tamberav]

The waterbox 20g comes with an AI prime and is $510

 

[ariellemermaid]

Wow… that got real toxic real fast

I have never before been scared to respond to my own thread, but here we go.

I was simply trying to ask a question about a product I saw that I thought may be a ripoff, not trying to attack anyone or criticize them for possibly making a profit. I was coming from a consumer point of view, and asking if this is overpriced for what it is.

I will note not to ask questions or state opinions relating to anything of the sorts in the future.

I don’t think any toxicity has been intended although suggesting someone might be a scammer is highly accusatory and could land you in court for libel under certain circumstances.

And that’s the thing, it’s all in the word choice. Above you said ripoff. A ripoff is something that’s priced above what you value it for. Absolutely nothing wrong with saying that. I think Apex is a ripoff relative to the cost of the components but I’m still willing to make the deal because I value what it does. But they still got me, by choice.

A scam is when someone takes your money and refuses to provide you with what you paid for. In addition to being a criminal accusation, it’s a personal attack on someone’s character, ethics, and morals. That is totally different than a “ripoff.” You might even say it’s toxic

For the record I have never seen this person’s YouTube channel. No hard feelings, I see what you intended to say, it’s just that wording matters a lot and I think it’s important to point that out.

 

[Idech]

I like watching his videos because I’m a newbie and I learn and because he’s entertaining.

I have watched the video where he explained his marketing project and I thought it was well done. He says he took years to think about what the perfect tank would be for him (after having many small tanks in college). He also wanted to make a tank where you wouldn’t have to upgrade what came with it.

I thought about my 13.5 Evo that cost me 225$ CAD but ended up costing about 700$ after the upgrades. Without a media basket. So his tank would have probably cost less, and the return pump is controllable, which is a nice feature.

I agree we don’t know about the quality of the light, but I suppose people are going to start talking about it in the next few months.

I’m not a fan or supporter, but I probably would have bought it as my first tank, if I had known how much upgrading costs. But only if the reviews had been good.

I think it’s too early to have a real opinion on this tank.