This store does not conduct business in an ethical manner. I ordered a 58 inch Panasonic TV and was advised the product was in stock on the web and by a salesperson. Five days later an each day thereafter for five days I was advised the order had been shipped. I knew this was false because my credit card had not been charged. On the tenth day I cancelled the order. Such blantant consumer rip offs should not be allowed. There motto is "customer satisfaction is our number one priority". Please!!

These are the same guys that operate PriceMAD under a different number. Read the reviews on PriceMad-need I say more!

123buydirect is horrible. I purchased a 46inch Plasma from them on 12/17/07. My credit card was charged the next day. They assured me I would have my TV by the 24th. Didn't happen. After numberous e-mails, calls, etc., they are still telling me it is being processed. I will NEVER buy from them again, nor will I recommend anyone to either.

Well same thing...total ripoff! Ordered a 46" Sony online, paid, website says "order shipped". When I called to get the tracking number I was told that with the free shipping option there was no tracking number provided.

This was contrary to what I was previously told. People answering the phone are RUDE and unprofessional. BEWARE!!!

Thankfully I was able to stop this before my card was charged.

Do not waste your time turtles move faster

they will charge your card as soon as possible

and deliver weeks later BEWARE

I had all of the same experiences as the other posters. The delay, the rudeness, even the thing about the tracking on free shipping. Fortunately, I was able to cancel before they charged my card, despite the fact more than two weeks had elapsed. It is clear to me, however, that the ratings on CNET and Pricegrabber are more fiction than fact.

My experience with 123BuyDirect was a bumpy ride with a happy ending, so this is a mixed review. Despite several negative (mostly bait and switch type) reviews posted on websites, I selected them because 1) they offered a great price on a Sony KDL-52XBR4 and 2) most reviews sounded positive. So I placed my order via their website on Sat, Jun 14. On Jun 15 one of their sales reps called me to confirm my order, but said a few things that raised "bait & switch" warning flags. First, he said that 123BuyDirect is not an authorized Sony dealer, hence Sony would not honor the warranty, but he could sell me a 3-yr warranty for $300. Second, the XBR4 that I ordered is a 2007 model, but he could send me a much-upgraded 2008 model for just $300 more, plus he would throw in the warranty and an HDMI cable for no additional charge. Sounded like a reasonable offer at the time, so I accepted, thinking I would be getting a 2008 version of the XBR4. My credit card was charged that day, Jun 15.

On Jun 28, I received an invoice in the mail for a KDL52W4100PK Pro Kit showing an Order Date of Jun 19. Also included in the mail with the invoice was a CD that contained the warranty details. On Monday I contacted Customer Service (open Mon-Fri only) and they referred me to my original salesman. I explained I had ordered the XBR4 and was surprised to see a different model on my invoice. The sales rep suggested that I do some research to compare the specs of the two models. He said I would find that the W4100 is superior to the XBR4. Well, it turns out he was actually right, so I agreed to go with the 52W4100. During this process, I contacted him 4 or 5 times, and never had any problems getting through to him. My longest wait was maybe 5 minutes. In each case he politely answered all my questions to my satisfaction.

On Jul 2, I received a call from a local dispatcher that my TV had arrived and would I be able to accept delivery the next day. They gave me a 1-hour time window for delivery. I asked them to call me 30 minutes prior so I could drive home from work in time for the delivery. The next day, everything went like clockwork, they called me at work right on schedule, and 30 minutes later I met the delivery truck at my house. They had the TV in its original carton strapped down securely in the upright position. The driver then helped me carry the TV upstairs, then helped me remove the TV from the box so I could inspect it for any damage. All parts were there, including the extra HDMI cable as promised. The driver helped me lift the TV onto the stand, and it looks and works great. So, bumpy ride with a happy ending.

BTW, I’ve seen a few postings asking what is a PK or “Pro Kit” model. At one point the sales rep tried to imply that Pro Kit means the set itself has some additional enhancements over the non-PK model, but I see no evidence of that claim. My guess is that Pro Kit must be some sort of industry code associated with Grey Market merchandise. The Sony website makes no mention of PK or Pro-Kit model variances. The Sony label on my shipping box had “Pro Kit” stamped on the label after the label was printed. There was no additional “kit” contained in the shipping carton, unless the additional HDMI cable is considered a kit.

Moral of the story is that you should buy pricey products only from Internet vendors that you've heard of. I will occasionally buy from an unknown vendor, but never something expensive at first. Unfortunately, on the Internet all vendors look the same in terms of reliability and honesty. It's only after you place your order that the honest ones are separated from the dishonest ones.

--Bob

I ordered an LCD tv on 8/2/08. They said it would take 3-4 weeks to ship so I waited. And waited. I called the first week of September to see where my TV was and got transferred 4 times over the course of an hour until I got disconnected. I called again today (9/15/08) to just cancel the thing and once again got transferred and disconnected. What kind of company is this? What a waste of time. The only good thing to come of this is my credit card was never charged. If by some miracle they actually ship a tv, I'll just refuse shipment since they won't let me cancel it.

There is no real 123buydirect; they are part of CompDirect based in NYC and actually located in Port Washington, NY. When you a call to confirm your order look out - it is a scam to sell you stuff you don't need or want or get you to trade up to another more expensive model (well more expensive on their site, but available far cheaper elsewhere) They charge your card the minute you place an order rather than on shipment. There is no customer service to speak of and you get no confirming e mails that you item shipped. If it ever does it will take twice as long as they say. If you do business with these assholes, you only have yourself to blame (even if they are a "certified" store on CNET)

My 123BuyDirect experience: Ordered a Sharp Aquos 52 inch TV. I passed on hearing about newer models from the sales rep. Received paperwork for a different Sharp Aquos TV on CompDirect stationary. After 3 weeks, I received an "Entry Level" (not Aquos) Sharp TV. Sales staff insist I must have approved the swap. Sales staff refuse any changes unless I pay return freight and restocking fee. Pretty good racket. Are we having fun yet!

Well, I ordered a 50 inch plasma tv from them a month
ago and just received it today. 30 days vs. the 7-9 business
day shipping that I paid an extra $99 for. I was so scared
after sending this company my money and really thought I was
being ripped off by them. Customer service is lousy to say
the least, I called today to see why I hadn't received my
$99 that was supposed to be credited back to my credit
card last week and was told that they were shutting down
their business. Although their website is still up, You have
been warned not to do business with this flakey company.
If you want to do business with a honest internet company
I would suggest Abe's of Maine...

The facts: On Oct 31st I ordered a flat screen tv from Jeff, and they took my credit card info. Called to check on shipping info. They said they are going out of business and already charged my account $1653.00. Nov 13 and still no tv or refund. Still waiting..... It's now come to my understanding that I will have a file a claim with visa to try to get my money back...... Andrew Meysembourg St.Paul, Minnesota
P.S. I will try the Attorney Generals offices in NY and Minnesota. This is credit card fraud.....
Here is there address and phone numbers...
123 Buy Direct
417 5th street
NY, NY 10016
1800-524-1182

Hey Andrew and everyone else on this page who was ripped off. My story is exactly the same. I stupidly used my debit card to pay (kick myself everyday) and want my money back. If you put it on a real credit card, you should be able to reverse the charges for 50.00 and visa/mastercard will go after the aholes. I believe you have 90 days to dispute a charge.

For anyone like me, I think we should keep this thread going and see how we go about getting our money back. In America fraud is fraud. I would like to see Joseph Baranthan go to jail. I'm thinking NY state attorney's office, IRS (since I'm sure 123BD doesn't report stolen money and I'm going to report it as a loss), FBI internet fraud division, etc. Time for justice.
I'll get the ball rolling. Here are some links:

FBI Internet Crime Division:
http://www.ic3.gov/complaint/default.aspx

NY State Attorney Internet Fraud form (for monetary loss):
http://www.oag.state.ny.us/complaints/pdfs/internet_complaint.pdf

NY State Attorney Online Internet Complaint:
http://www.oag.state.ny.us/online_forms/complaint_alert.jsp

Here is the registration name for 123buydirect.com:

Registrant:
Comp Direct
417 5th Ave.
New York, NY 10026
US

Registrar: DOTSTER
Domain Name: 123BUYDIRECT.COM
Created on: 11-JAN-06
Expires on: 12-JAN-09
Last Updated on: 02-NOV-08

Administrative, Technical Contact:
Barnathan, Joseph mgr@123buydirect.com
Comp Direct
417 5th Ave.
New York, NY 10026
US
800-524-1182

Here is the IRS fraud reporting link:
http://www.irs.gov/individuals/article/0,,id=106778,00.html

Since Joseph Baranthan ran a fraudulent business, I will try to obtain his tax payer identification number. If he is audited, I'm sure his balance sheets will be of interest..


- Rob.