Buying Refurbished consoles, such as Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, and Playstation 3 is relatively common. Though they are indeed second hand and most likely recently repaired, they are still cheaper. You may be able to save somewhere between $100 - $150. Not a bad bargain especially if you’re like me, who dresses like a hobo and tries to buy everything on the cheap.
After reading this discussion over at FraudWatchers however, and then receiving this comment on our own blog, I would like to reiterate.
You cannot buy a refurbished console for $34.99.
There are some sites that are legitimately selling refurbished consoles, but if you see a price for $34.99 with free shipping, or a price even remotely close to that, you should stay away. The statements on the Credit Card will show the payments as going to gaming-plugins.com. If you have one of these you should call your Credit Card provider immediately and explain the situation to them. Hopefully you can reverse the charge and get your Credit Card number changed to prevent any fraudulent activity. You should also report the crime to the Internet Crime Complaint Center, they will want any reports of this.
Thankfully their sites are being shutdown in quick time, but I’ll list them anyway because Google is friendly to these kinds of things.
http://www.1cheapps3.com http://www.cheapestwii.com http://www.waycheap360.com
These sites are still active, but remember kids, it’s a scam.
http://www.refurbishedxbox360s.com http://www.35dollarxbox360.com http://www.buyxbox360s.com http://www.consoles4less.com http://www.consolesforless.com http://www.ps3-bargains.com http://www.buyaxbox360online.com http://www.getacheap360.com http://www.refurbishedwiis.comThese ones oddly sell what seems to be a fake WoWCheat Mod
http://www.bargain-ps3.com http://www.buyxbox360s-online.com
If you come across more, please let me know in a comment below and I will continue to post them here.
Edit : There is also a more extended write up on these scams here http://www.prowler-pro.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=466
Another site for $34.99 XBox 360 refurbished consoles. The web address is as follows:Www.consoles4less.com
I just orderd one of ps3-bargains ill never get to find out if its true but if u guys went thru this fragualence I guess i l put a stop to my payment, thks to this forum I might be able to save my 35 dollars and my account
the place is in orlando fla. they got me for 90.00$ and i want my <expletive deleted> money back.
www.refurbishedxbox360s.com got me for $34.99. Ordered on July 15 and used to get status results until a few days ago. Call the toll free number, but no one to talk to. What can I do now?
File a complaint with http://www.IC3.gov
You should also be able to contact your Credit Card company and let them know about this fraud, see if you can initiate a Charge Back.
WWW.REFURBISHEDXBOX360S.COM GOT ME FOR 34.99 ORDERED ON AUG. 7 2008 NEVER RECEIVED A CONFIRMATION # OR ORDER # I ALSO CALL THE TOLL FREE # BUT NO ONE TO TALK TO SO WHAT CAN I DO NOW? REPLY
File a complaint with http://www.IC3.gov
You should also be able to contact your Credit Card company and let them know about this fraud, see if you can initiate a Charge Back.
Refurbished wiis is Same page format as the XBOX and PS3 page. Too bad that Comcast deal just ended in our market, they were giving away a free Wii with a triple service bundle and 2 year contract.
Well, i just wasted $34 dollars then... That Comcast deal wasn't all it was cracked up to be either, they made you put a $249 deposit down, jacked up the price of the service, made you commit to a 2 year contract and if you backed out on it, they kept the 249 for the wii
ordered one of these wii consoles also and have gotten nothing. ordered on aug.1,was charged on my credit card before i found out it was a fraud
Call your Credit Card company and explain the situation to them, this is fraud and you should be well within your rights to reverse the charges.
Also file a complaint with www.ic3.gov
i ordered a xbox360 from a site www.getacheap360.com i guess i can stop waiting for it to get here
Same here! Paid for an XBOX360 from www.refurbishedxbox360s.com and yep...they got me!! How stupid right! =(
SOmebody said they're in orlando, figure out where the IP address is coming from and take a bat down there and get your money back!! ha that'll show em some broken knees.
I ordered a Wii..I figured $20 bucks..Why not try it.!!!!.its only 20 bucks..If I get it awesome..if I dont..well I loss $20 bucks...I ordered it a month ago still nothing...I do track it everyday..and it does have updates of the shipment...I figure if I lost 20 bucks well..thats my problem...I pretty much figured it might be a scam.actually was 90% sure it was a scam.But I took the shot...My loss...But hea after finding this site..I just might go and get my money back!!...By the way the site was www.wiisforless.com Thanx
I ordered a wii and a ps3. Tell the truth the money aint nothin I just feel stupid cause you know what they say if it's too good to be true then it probably is!Ahh oh well wasn't my money anyway ha!
Also listed by the IC3:
cheapestplaystation3.com
gaming-plugins.com
gaming-strategies.com
powerleveling-wow.com
refurbishedxbox360.com
wiisforless.com
wow-advantage.com
wow-powerleveling.com
wow-toolbox.com
I ordered one Wii before I saw the complaints. It has been about 25 days. They do update the status of the order but I think it was just a hoax. I called my credit card company and they are looking into it.
my 11yr old daughter has been telling me about/sending me emails with the link to refurbishedWii (with "I Love U Mommy" in the subject line lol!). well i finally did a bit of research and emailed her the link to this page. i keep telling her its fake, but she won't listen. now she has proof ;)
thanks!
Its a fake website.since one and half month the same status - www.refurbishedwiis.com - please never buy anything from this site
08-08-2008 ORDER RECEIVED BY FULFILLMENT DEPARTMENT
08-11-2008 INVENTORY PROCESSING - AWAITING BULK SHIPMENT FROM WAREHOUSE 14
08-24-2008 ITEM LEFT WAREHOUSE - SHANGRI DEPOT
08-28-2008 ITEM AT CHINA CUSTOMS - INSPECTION
09-03-2008 PALETTE AT CHANGZHOU PORT - PIER 4
09-06-2008 ITEM LOADED ON SHIP - IN TRANSIT
09-13-2008 ITEM IN TRANSIT
www.ps3-bargains.com they got me! Shouldve done better, hope that I can get my money back.
Do not buy a xbox 360 for 34.99 its a scam one of the websites is buy a xbox360 online
I fell for the scam as well, from refurbishedwiis.com, it all seemed legit, I to received order status show the same that praveen did, I lost 20 bucks. Now the website is gone as well.
well ive been waiting in vein for a month, its true im a sucker.S**t happends when u dont want to pay 300$ for a console. at least i know im not alone, there are other sucker like me in the world.
Hi all!!
v4788.vps.masterhost.ru add to list. my email for refurbished Nintendo Wii's.same gyus at http://v4788.vps.masterhost.ru/ so call WoW GodMod still up.09/06/08
How do we get our money back??? Do anyone knows where this scam is coming from????? I guess you have to live and learn but for someone to offer goods and not provide them should be unlawful and they should get a felony charge for every persons money they took, maybe that will stop them or anyone that thinks they can do this.
RE: 360xbox My husband gave my son approval to use his new cc. He will learn from this. I think it just shows how trusting people are. We hear of scam after scam, and never think it will happen to you. We are trying right now through our credit card company. Seems like a hassle, we will do the first round of complaints, then that will do it. Make sure before you order anything, check out these helpful websites for any fraud! I will for now on. Good luck everyone
I'm one of those people who use their credit monitoring devices religiously and I always like a bargain. When it comes to technology, I apply the "I'm too poor to buy cheap stuff" life philosophy. That's because I prefer paying the full price of an object that will last for years to come, instead buying the same refurbished product that will probably last a year or so.
Thank god I saw this before I place an order! I saw Xbox 360 for $34.99, it was so appealing!
I've also posted tons of information about the scam here:
http://www.prowler-pro.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=466