Astro Gaming: Duty-Free Shipping to Canada!

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I'm not sure if you guys have heard of Astro Gaming, but they specialize in high-end audio and voice communication peripherals for the Xbox 360 and PS3. They have two different headsets available, the A40 (larger, bulkier, stay-at-home use) and the A30 (smaller, light, ideal for LAN parties). Usually shipping obliterates any deal from these guys, but right now they are running a duty-free promo, which makes shipping much more reasonable. Shipping is with UPS, which could make things more expensive, I believe (brokerage fees and such?) I added the A40 Audio System to my cart, and shipping was $17.79. Keep in mind, the A40 Audio System is expensive, but reviews around the web are extremely positive. The Tritton AX720s look very similar to the A40s, but I am unsure if there is any similarity in performance.

http://www.astrogaming.com/products/
 
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i'm not sure CHEAPASS gamer is the ideal place to bring up headsets that cost more than the systems we'd be using them with.

but for those people that are interested in this I'm sure your post is helpful
 
Yeah they definitely are expensive, but they are light-years ahead of any other headset set-up. If you've spent thousands on a gaming setup, another $300 for the best headset setup may not seem so bad. I'm thinking about jumping on the A40 System, but in the end I have no money, and no real gaming setup to speak of while basement renovations are taking place.
 
[quote name='Princess Zelda']I'm renovating my basement too. What are you doing to it?[/QUOTE]

Oh nothing major at all, I fully moved back from university not too long ago, so I've 'annexed' my parents' basement and I'm making it a bit more personal; washing and painting walls, fixing up broken drywall, painting light fixtures, replacing a broken door frame, and replacing the carpet, wall-mounting the plasma, buying some new furniture, putting posters up and stuff like that heh. Pretty excited! It's hard to get motivated to do renovations after you've worked an 8-hour day, though!

What are you doing to your basement, Princess? (Sorry to derail the thread everyone, but I don't imagine this will be a heavily-viewed topic lol)
 
Avoid cross-border UPS like the plague, their additional charges are through the roof. I can think of at least two times that they wanted me to pay over $100 to accept an item that was worth less than the extra charge.
 
[quote name='Solid-Snake-Eyes']Avoid cross-border UPS like the plague, their additional charges are through the roof. I can think of at least two times that they wanted me to pay over $100 to accept an item that was worth less than the extra charge.[/QUOTE]

+1

UPS + crossborder shipping = mega-hurtz

I personally refuse to deal with any company that only offers UPS as a shipping option, no matter how good the deals.
 
[quote name='mabba18']+1

UPS + crossborder shipping = mega-hurtz

I personally refuse to deal with any company that only offers UPS as a shipping option, no matter how good the deals.[/QUOTE]

So is it the brokerage fee that makes the shipping so expensive? Remember this is duty-free shipping, so that can't really be a factor. I've never bought anything shipped by UPS before, so I'm unsure.
 
[quote name='mabba18']+1

UPS + crossborder shipping = mega-hurtz

I personally refuse to deal with any company that only offers UPS as a shipping option, no matter how good the deals.[/QUOTE]
Word, me too. Both UPS and Fed Ex are deal breakers. I remember a particularly bad one when my dad bought a palm pilot on eBay for around $70, so UPS shows up wanting something like $140 to accept it.
 
[quote name='game_fanatic']So is it the brokerage fee that makes the shipping so expensive? Remember this is duty-free shipping, so that can't really be a factor. I've never bought anything shipped by UPS before, so I'm unsure.[/QUOTE]
It's gotta be the brokerage or some other kind of handling fees, duty charges are nowhere near that unreasonable. Usually the duty is like a $5 handling fee plus the equivalent of sales tax on the value of the item converted into canadian $. Lately I've been having pretty good luck with shipments from the US via USPS, $60 values and no duty. I thought the max duty-free value was $20 and it had to be marked as a gift.
 
[quote name='Solid-Snake-Eyes']Word, me too. Both UPS and Fed Ex are deal breakers. I remember a particularly bad one when my dad bought a palm pilot on eBay for around $70, so UPS shows up wanting something like $140 to accept it.[/QUOTE]

yup been there before with UPS. A few years back I ordered a shirt for a younger cousins b-day off the WWE site. Needless to say a $25 shirt turned into an extra charge of $40 at my door. More than a little bit pissed off. Contacted the WWE people and they refunded the extra charge I paid as i clearly wasn't aware of the absurd fee that'd be added on this side of the border. Never shopped there again. UPS/FedEx cross-border can kiss my ass :booty:
 
Hmm, well hopefully Astro would do something for you if UPS wanted an outrageous fee to ship the item. The price listed should be the price paid, I hate this hidden fee nonsense!
 
[quote name='game_fanatic']Hmm, well hopefully Astro would do something for you if UPS wanted an outrageous fee to ship the item. The price listed should be the price paid, I hate this hidden fee nonsense![/QUOTE]

The best thing they can do is just offer USPS as a shipping option.
 
[quote name='Solid-Snake-Eyes']Lately I've been having pretty good luck with shipments from the US via USPS, $60 values and no duty. I thought the max duty-free value was $20 and it had to be marked as a gift.[/QUOTE]

From the Government of Canada site:

You don’t have to pay duty or the GST on the following goods that are imported into Canada by mail:

  • goods worth CAN$20 or less; and
  • gifts from family members or friends who live abroad when the gift is worth CAN$60 or less.
If the item is shipped by a company and its over $20 you're supposed to have to pay duties + tax on it, however the chance of them checking it is pretty much a coin toss (according to a customs officer and two postal workers whom I chatted with)

Example # 1

Lets say officer "Billy" just got back from vacation, he's all relaxed and mellow, his team won the Stanley Cup, he got lucky the night before etc. Bob sees your package and its valued at over $50 (non-gifted), he figures he'll let it go through this time since there is a fair bit of paperwork involved and he is in a good mood.

Yay for you.

Example # 2

And here we have "Bob". Bob has had a rough week. His team lost the World cup, his wife is pissed off at him for not spending enough time at home, and his kids are delinquents. Bob sees your package valued at over $35 (non-gifted). He figures he'll vent out some of this frustration on you by making you pay for your package.

These are the scenarios that I was given by the post office workers.

And for those of you who care to know, customs officers don't get any special exemptions when they have items crossing the border either (though in theory if they knew the guy who was checking the packages then it could work out, but i digress)

Phew! Hope this clears things up :) Imma gonna go make me some food
 
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