**My Experience with Gazelle: Buying and Selling Tech Devices**

As a tech enthusiast, I recently decided to try out Gazelle, a popular platform for buying and selling used devices. My goal was to not only purchase some new gadgets but also sell a couple of old tech items to see what the trade-in process is like.

I began by listing my two devices up for sale: an iPhone 11 and a Galaxy S21. When I compared prices on Gazelle with other platforms, I noticed that their deals were often 10% higher than the competition. However, this came at a cost - I wouldn't receive the same warranty or return policy as some of the other platforms.

After creating my listings, I decided to put in an offer for both devices. The iPhone 11 was listed at $62, while the Galaxy S21 had a lower starting price due to its flaws. To my surprise, Gazelle offered me $107 for the S21, which seemed excessive given its cosmetic condition. It became clear that Gazelle has a bias towards iPhones and doesn't like Samsungs.

Moving on to purchasing new devices, I placed an order for an unlocked iPhone XR in excellent condition. However, when I checked my order, I was shocked to see that it cost $262 - a whopping 12% more than the listed price! This experience reinforced my suspicion that Gazelle's deals are not as competitive as they seem.

Despite some initial frustrations with Gazelle's platform and customer service, I eventually received my new iPhone XR. When I tried to contact them about their cancellation of my previous order due to a fraud warning, they were helpful and provided assistance in resolving the issue.

Overall, while Gazelle has its perks, such as the convenience of selling and buying used devices online, there are some drawbacks to consider. If you're looking for a platform that offers competitive prices but also provides warranty coverage and a good return policy, you may want to explore other options.

As I reflect on my experience with Gazelle, I realize that it's essential to weigh the pros and cons of using their platform. While they offer a convenient way to buy and sell used devices, there are some trade-offs to be aware of before making a decision.

In conclusion, I decided to place an order for a Z Flip3 and attempt to purchase a Z Fold3 after being disappointed by Gazelle's cancellation of my previous order due to the American Express fraud warning. This will give me a chance to experience the platform from the other end of the spectrum - as a buyer, not just a seller.

When I checked out, I found that they don't even have photos of some devices, including the Google Pixel 7A. It's clear that Gazelle has its limitations when it comes to showcasing their inventory online.

WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: en- Gazelle promises to not only beyour one stop shop to sell your old tech,but also to buy lightly refurbished stuff.Now, Gazelle's been around forever,but today I'm going to not onlybuy some stuff from Gazelle,but I'm also gonna sell thema couple of bits of my techto see exactly what thetrade-in process is like.Sell your device in minutes.So they take iPhones, Samsungs,Google Phones, iPads, and MacBooks.So, I have two devices herethat I'm willing to sell them.I have an iPhone 11 and a Galaxy S21.Okay, cool. So let's gothrough the process, shall we?What is the overall cosmetic condition?I would say lightly used.Not quite flawless.I'd say it's actually not far away,'cause it's really quite good.But there's a couple of very light scuffs.So let's see what they'll give us.Alright, my Gazelle offer is $62.(Alex laughing)What happens if I goflawless? What does that do?Oh my god. Flawless gives you $2 more.So there's no version of an S21they're gonna pay any money for.Wow, that's not good.So with the iPhone, itdoes fully function.The biggest downside with this phoneis that it is in a little bitrougher of cosmetic shape.Overall condition, I wouldsay scratched or scuffed.The answer is $107!So I think what we're learning hereis that Gazelle like iPhonesand don't like Samsungs.That sounds like it.Do I want a check, PayPal,or Amazon gift card?Well I can't take a check. (bell ringing)Pierre Luigi doesn't cash checks.And Pierre Luigi doesn'thave a PayPal account.But I could use an Amazon gift card.While we're waiting for that,I wanna place an order forsome new tech from Gazelleto see exactly what the other endof this experience is like.Can I get an unlocked iPhone, like say XR,but in excellent condition?What would that look-Two hundred and sixty-Two hundred and sixty (stuttering)-(groaning) That hurts.That's just disgusting.I'll tell you, obviously theiPhones are the best sellers,but man, these deals are pretty rough.Okay, so Google Pixel 7A, man...(sighs) They don't evenhave photos of these things.Photos coming soon.If you're selling a phone,you couldn't literally go and downloada stock photo of a Google Pixel.Oh my God.I consistently am seeing prices on Gazellebe 10% higher than mostof the competition.And the problem is, is that the Gazellesort of like, experience is not as good.You're not gonna get the warranty,you're not necessarily gettingan amazing return policy.It's decent, it matches most other people.But, if I'm gonna be paying morethan somewhere like Back Marketand I'm gonna be getting less,even if these conditionsare in great shape,that's a tough sell man.That's a tough sell.S21. Okay, well you know atleast I will say something.They actually are selling better,they've got better deals on the S21s.Still though, I don't knowif it's super competitiveand that's it?Wait, they don't sell any Z Flips!?Aw, I can't buy another Z Flip.There we go. We got some Z Flips.Let's get a Z Flip3.Oh no, that's Z Fold3. Uh-oh.Actually should we, yeah, let's do it.You know what? We always do Z Flips.Let's actually try to get aZ Fold and see how that is.So with that, I'm goingto place this orderto purchase these devices from Gazelle,and I'm also at the same timegoing to ship in my trade-insto see exactly if Gazelle is worth itor whether I'm going to turn to a lionand devour a Gazelle onthe plains of the savanna.I didn't really think that one through.And so, it is time to sendour phones to Gazelle.Now, we had some difficultiesgetting to this point.So, when I went to orderthe items for this video,I had a problem.American Express gave me a fraud warning.Not all that uncommon.We ordered a lot of sus things.I approved it, no big deal.The charge went through, andthen Gazelle canceled my orderand I hit their customer service upand asked what was going onand see if they could help me.And they said "Sorry, we can't help you."Basically, the order was susand they didn't wanna touch it.I tried to order again,and that order alsoimmediately got canceled.They charged my cardand they gave me a refundwithin like five minutes.So, third time being the charm,I asked Matt to order the exact same itemsusing his credit cardand that order seems to have gone through.So, while we wait forour new items to show up,let's go ahead and package upour iPhone 11 and Galaxy S21, shall we?Wait? Is this...That's it?Am I supposed to put two phones in here?So it's a little lumpy,but soon hopefully Iwill give you an updateon not only the processof trading our devices in,but hopefully, in the next couple of days,our brand new Gazelle refurbished stuffwill be here in the studio.So we're just about toshoot another video,when I got the emails from Gazelle.They have received my phonesand have given me my orders.So let's see what we've got."Hi Pierre.When we checked outyour iPhone 11 Unlocked,we found some conditionsthat affected the value of your item.Scratches; we found the devicehas more than the acceptableamount of scratches.Because of this, we areadjusting your offer to $86."They changed it from $107to $86 because of scratches?What the hell?"You identified yourgadget as S21 Unlockedbut is actually an S21 Locked to AT&T."No it's not.So they knocked my value onthe S21 from $62 down to $50.I guess I'll give them that.I'd never tried to putanother SIM card in it,so maybe it was locked.I'm gonna take the deal,I'm gonna let themknock off all the money,'cause they feel like it.But, when I get my new items from Gazelle,they better be in minty fresh condition,or I am gonna be a real grumpy boy, here.Let's see what we've got from Gazelle.I'll tell you, now thatwe finally have our box.It's very like, weirdly weighted.Like, it's like, it feels thatthere's like two things on the bottom.Well, there's your problem.You got a bunch of littleboxes on the bottom,which is rattling around,and you have a little bit of paper on top.Boy, I am not feeling great about this.Okay, our first item is our Galaxy Z Fold.Now they say grade B here.Remind me again, what conditiondid I purchase this in?- This was supposedto be in good condition.- Okay, I guess B is good.- The screens of these devicesare in very good condition.There are light scuffs or nicksthat do not affectfunctionality of the phone.- So the outer display is good,but because it's a Z Fold,there's a lot of screensand cameras to check here.So, check the hinge.Definitely, it's gotten dropped.So there's some scuffing onthe hinge here on the side,but cosmetic, and in fact,it's actually quite smooth,so you're really not even gonna feel that.Alright, let's see what we got.(tense music)Ooh, well it didn't make a good noise.(phone clacking)So it does not have theoriginal screen protector on it,which is a little bit unfortunate,'cause you definitely don't wantto take off that screen protector.It's pretty important.That being said though,well, let's see if we can fire it up.I'm gonna give them a pretty solid gradefor the screen quality.I'm seeing nothing but littlebits of like, you know,dirt and debris, but like you know,nothing that you wouldn't havejust from being inside a cardboard box.Alright, you know I'mfeeling okay about this.Maybe I was a little too harsh on Gazelle.- Yeah, but it did cost a lot.It cost us $500.- Was it $500 even?- It was like $499.99, basically.- So I'm actually gonna spenda little bit of time using this Z Fold,see if any kind of problems creep up,or if spending $500 on a giant foldy boyis actually a good idea.So the cool thing about thisis that I can use the muchbetter rear facing cameraswith a nice preview hereif I wanna do a little bit of vlogging.So this is what the ultra wide looks like,but I can easily justtap over, go into the 1X,which personally is goingto look a whole lot better.Or, if you wanna be a complete lunatic,you can go all the way up to 2Xand get a very, very zoomed in photo.Now I'll tell you, thatthis definitely gets heavyif you're trying to vlogwith it for a little while.But it really just kind of goes to showthe versatility of this form factor.It's one of those things whereyou could probably buy this,use it for a little while,decide if you wanna upgrade tothe Z Fold6 in a few months,or just save your money andflip it back to Gazelle for $73.Okay, still salty. Sorry.I totally understand why someonewould be interested in a Z Fold.Just not me, 'cause Z Flip's better.(box rattling)Next up, we got something that'sreal rattly in here. Okay.Oh, it's my iPad mini.They just don't have a small box for itso it just rattles aroundlike absolute crazy.So, this is our iPad Mini 4.So, it is showing that it is64 gig, unlocked, with LTEand it has 94% battery health,which is also pretty good.Now this one is also grade B,which I'm assuming meansit is in good condition.- Correct.- Okay, lovely.Now, I'm curious'cause I have not used theiPad Mini 4 in quite a while.So this is the older school design.So it does still have the home button.We do have some quite noticeablescratches on the back,not sure you can see on camera,but like, they're quite deep.Now, you can feel them alittle bit. It's not terrible.(Austin sniffing)Smells clean.Do you know what yearthe iPad Mini 4 came out?'Cause it's still supportedby iPadOS, right?- It came out at the end of 2015.- iPad Mini 4?- iPad Mini 4.- I totally thoughtthat this was an iPadfrom like 2019 or 2020.Not 2015. Huh.So, you know, I'm gonnaguess this probably will notstill be supported, huh?(laughs) Whoops. Well.But well, here, here, here.It'll make me feel better.It was really affordable, right?- Yeah, I will admit thatit was pretty affordable at $150.- Oh that's actually not very good.- (laughs) I didn'tsay it was an amazing deal.I just said-- I thought that that was a good dealconsidering that this waslike a 4, 5-year-old iPad,not a 9-year-old.(both laughing)Damn you Apple, why do youkeep the same design for a decade!?You confused me. I could'vejust Googled this but I didn't.I guess, let me set this upand see what I can still do with this iPadthat might be a little outta date.So, iPad Mini 4.So, I've got this guy allset up, fully up to date.It is unfortunately only on iPadOS 15,so it's a couple generations behind.And I have some thoughts.The power button, very sticky.And by very sticky, Imean most of the timeit clicks this horrible like...(button clicking)It works okay fine,and then you leave italone for like a minuteand it just smashes, like...(button clicking)You hear that?Like every time you clickit, it sounds different.Like, the button's definitelynot in great shape.Now, $150 is a little expensive, right?I think that for that kind of moneyyou could spend just alittle bit more moneyand get an iPad Mini 5,which is almost the exact same,but again has a severalyear newer processor,importantly with fullsupport for iPadOS, still.And that will be my recommendation.As far as a little deviceto watch videos and play around with,like honestly, it's not bad.It definitely feels slow.And while you can domultitasking, so I'll show you,it will do the split screenmultitasking if you try it.There we go. It'll do it eventually.Just give it a minute.If you too would like to see meexclusively make YouTubeShorts from the iPad Mini 4,drop a like, and I'll definitely do that.- You're also mostdefinitely in frame. (laughs)Okay, Grandpa. (laughs)- Is this thing on?Is this thing on?- You're stillprobably not in frame.(both laughing)- Next up, we havean iPhone XR in Coral.Carl! Carl!I'm trying to make jokesthat were relevant whenthis phone came out.(both laughing)Grade C condition, uh-oh,that's the bad condition.What do they call Grade C?- They call it fair.- So could yougimme a little refresheron what they consider fairbefore I look at this?'Cause I think theysay some scuffs, right?It's kind of normal.- Yeah, you knowwhat, it's a little confusingbecause their definition is,the screens of these devicesare in good condition,even though they call it fair.There is some wear and tearthat does not affect functionality of the phone.These devices have been pricedat the lowest amount possible, I guess,to help you save money on aphone in great working order.- Okay. Alright, well let'stake a look at this thing.Oh boy, okay, well they'vegot some scratches,but, oh no, those are real scratches.You see that?- Oh yeah, that big gash.- So there's a very deepscratch from left to right hereand there's some lighterscratches from top to bottom.This is definitely,with that deep scratch,a grade lower than the good itemsthat we've already taken a look at.I mean, considering this isthe cheapest version ofthis phone that they sell,that one scratch, while it's annoying,considering that we saved some money on it,it's not too crazy.So, battery health is 86%.You know what? That's fine.Considering how old thisdevice is, that's reasonable.How much was our 64 gig CoraliPhone XR in fair condition?- Well, that's areal pretty color, huh?- It is. It's a greatbudget color, I would say.- Well it was $165.(crickets chirping)- $65. That's a great deal. Wow.- No, no, no. $165.- I'm gonna just checkBack Market real quick.I'm feeling it.- No, no, don't do that.- I'm gonna do it.- Don't do that.- I'm gonna do it. I'm gonnago Back Market right now.Well actually, hold on a second.Back Market has theiPhone XR starting $157.So that's actually almost the exact same.Now, of course, the difference isBack Market does offerthe one year warranty,which is not something that Gazelle has.So how do we judge the XR from Gazelle?It's not maybe thegreatest deal in the world.I actually give Gazellea thumbs up on this one.I think it's actually a pretty clear cut.This is not overpriced.It is in good condition,considering, you know, whatwe actually paid for it.So, not badif you want some Carl energy.Next up we've got,so this is the Pixel 7A,the Google Pixel 7A, aswere recording this video,is still the most recentversion of the A line.Now, by the time you watch this,we're right about probablysee a new Pixel 8A,but whatever, like, very modern phone,more modern than any of the otherdevices we've gotten from Gazelle.So let's take a look here.Now, this one is listedin grade A condition,which I believe is, what dothey call it, good or excellent?- Excellent.- Excellent condition.Can you refresh me onwhat excellent condition should entail?- They actually don'tgive that much information.- Of course they don't.- The information they give you is,the best condition Gazelle has to offer.The screen and body of thesedevices are an excellent condition, so.- Okay, now there are acouple of little scratcheson the bottom of the back of the Pixel.Certainly a little bit of wear.It looks like it was in a case, honestly.I think this should qualify for excellent.I think I'm okay with that.It's not perfect,but I mean, I thinkthis is the kind of wearthat you would get if you get a Pixeland you put it in a case for six months.It's just a little bit ofscuffing on that very bottom.Oh, I just found some scratches.Yeah, there's some scratches right hereon the top right of the display.I couldn't see them untilI looked a little closer.That's a little borderlinefor excellent, actually.Okay, well I'm sure it wasa great deal though, right?What you got?- So brand new direct from Google.- Wait, the original price is $500.Okay, let's just start.$500 we're up here. Okay.- Yes, the original price was $500when it was first released.- Great price.- Right now it's on sale for $350.And we bought it fromGazelle at excellent,I mean, I guess borderlineexcellent condition,- Yeah, not excellent.- For $360.- Ah!Well (duck quaking). Okay.Well, then.(Austin laughing)How much, outta curiosity,is the good condition?'Cause I don't, this is notexcellent. This is good.- So, the good pricing is $305.- Wait, hold on a second.It is $360 for excellentand $305 for good?This is not an excellent condition.This is in good condition.It's not terrible,but it's very much inthe same sort of realmas something like the Z Foldor something like the iPad,both of which I would definitelyqualify as good condition.This is a tough one,because we paid too muchmoney for this phone.There is no doubt about that.At the end of the day, I don't thinkyou should really treatGazelle as a great place to buyor necessarily sell your electronics.To me, Gazelle, if theyreally want to be in the game,they need to get a littlebit more aggressive.We need more optionsand certainly, weshouldn't have this wholeexcellent condition thingwhen there's scratching on the screen.That's just a big no go.And the prices, I think, across the board,are just a little bit too high.So while Gazelle mightbe an OG in the space,it's not it.It's not it. It's not it.What do you think about Gazelle?Let me know when the comments below.Make sure to subscribe to the channeland ring-a-ling that ding-a-ling button.And if you'll excuse me,I'm gonna go lurk in some shady alleyslooking for a Back Market Gazelle eBay.- What?- Amazon.- I think we broke him.- Refurbished.- Oh yep. We broke him.- Refurbished.- Gazelle broke him.- Refurbished.- Gazelle broke him.- Refurbished.Refurbished! Refurbished!- Yeah, that last one was too much.- I can only get scammed so many timesbefore I just finally break.And I think today is the day.I think I'm just done.I think I gotta liketake a break and like...- Just buy new tech.- You can buy new tech?- Mm-hmm.Apparently it's cheaper.(all laughing)(relaxed music)