Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Buyer beware…

This may be a “well, duh!” type thing for some, but I’m posting it because I have encountered people who got ripped off, and because this is a fairly materialistic blog. What I want to say is: Be very careful when buying K-On! DVD’s on eBay.
A normal search for K-On! DVD’s gives some rather unpleasant results. Aside from a few legitimate copies of the US release, it appears most items for sale on eBay are in fact bootlegs. That’s not to say legitimate releases from, say, Japan can never be found but it’s not at all common.
You do not want to buy bootleg K-On! DVD’s. These bootlegs are not only illegal and unethical, but they are also of very low quality (that’s what I’ve learned from people unlucky enough to have purchased them, anyway). Besides, you don’t want to be a chump and pay for pirated videos – if you want go the piracy route, it’s not exactly hard to find the stuff you want online for free. Not that I’m recommending piracy at all, I’m just saying – paying for piracy is rather stupid.
If you insist on shopping for DVD’s on eBay (and this may apply to other online auctions as well, but I don’t know much about those) make sure you know what the official DVD’s look like and what their specs are. If you’re bidding on an item that differs in any way from the version you can find on amazon.com (or any reputable store); chances are you’re bidding on a rip-off.
A few things to keep in mind:
If the DVD you’re buying has English subtitles and is advertised as being region free, it is a bootleg. The real ones are region locked.
If the DVD you’re buying is in English and is a “complete season” set, it is a bootleg. There is no real “complete season” box set in English. There will be one at some point, but as of now it does not exist.
If the DVD you’re buying is in English but the cover doesn’t look like the ones I’ve shown in this blog before… it is a bootleg.
Bootleg.

Bootleg.

Bootleg.

Real... Just kidding. Bootleg.


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