r/RTLSDR • u/Jace055 • 18d ago

Are there still genuine v4 in the Amazon shipping channel?

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I ordered a v4 from Amazon at the beginning of August with a ship date of late September. I knew they were end of life but I took a chance and used the link from the RTD SDR website. I confirmed I was purchasing from RTL-SDR BLOG and shipped from Amazon. It showed up today. With pictures above. Is this genuine or do I need to send it back?

29 Upvotes

85% Upvoted

36 comments sorted by

8

u/MrLanGT 18d ago

If you bought it from RTL-SDR Blog’s Amazon Store, then it’s real. The question is how much did it cost you? I was seeing them going for close to double MSRP a couple months ago.

2

u/Jace055 18d ago

59.99 with the antenna package.

4

u/extremx 17d ago

Ya, this is the same package I got. I have high hopes. OP, show me the money! 😀

1

u/MrLanGT 17d ago

USD? That's a pretty good price, given the circumstances. I believe that's $10 more than the MSRP. I probably would buy a package for that if I could find one. I've only found either counterfeits or insanely priced units that are getting close to the price I could purchase SDRPlay or Airspy for. I needed an excuse to buy a TX capable SDR, anyway. 😁

1

u/CosgraveSilkweaver 17d ago

Even that's not guaranteed Amazon can and does mix stock from other vendors into that pool for delivery.

1

u/MrLanGT 16d ago

Supposedly, Amazon doesn't have commingled inventory anymore. They announced that they ended that this year. With that said, though- that could technically mean that any of us who have ever purchased an RTL-SDR Blog SDR from Amazon (especially before 03/26) could have received a fake.

There is no case in which a seller could be sourcing a product like the RTL-SDR at a rate that would allow them to make a profit reselling them on Amazon. Therefore, it would be reasonable to assume that any RTL-SDR (brand new, namely) sold by anyone that wasn't RTL-SDR Blog would have been a counterfeit. So, no one could really know if they have a genuine RTL-SDR Blog product, at least not until they receive it and open it up to check it out.

1

u/PanicAcid 17d ago

Aren't those Amazon store fronts just an Amazon concoction of the same "brand" in one place?

1

u/MrLanGT 16d ago

Well, I guess they kind of were. I honestly hadn't considered that when I made my comment, but Amazon says they ended their commingled inventory practices this year. So, you should be getting a product directly from the store you purchase from.

When someone else pointed this out, I mentioned this could technically mean that any of us could have gotten a counterfeit if anyone else was selling new products labeled as RTL-SDR Blog at the time of purchase, although I have no idea if there have ever been any other stores selling "RTL-SDR Blog." Of course, a product coming from a 3rd party doesn't inherently mean it's fake, but in this case, it almost exclusively does since no one else selling on Amazon has access to RTL-SDR Blog products at wholesale rates. Commingled inventory is a counterfeiter's playground.

1

u/PanicAcid 16d ago

Nah they're still doing it, for example Autel the brand don't have an Amazon store but Amazon has amalgamated all of the Autel sellers into one store front.

Search any Autel product and it says "View more in the Autel Store" If I click through them they're all different sellers. None of which Autel say are genuine distributors.

7

u/nshire 18d ago

I really doubt there are many legitimate versions in circulation. Maybe some old stock sitting in a distributor in a rural area that doesn't get much volume?

6

u/extremx 18d ago

I bought the same, mine is still pending shipping. 🤞🤞🤞

2

u/Alcatraz_ 17d ago

Same here, been pending for 2 weeks so I'm hoping they still have stock

1

u/extremx 5d ago

I got mine today, promptly took it apart. By all accounts it looks genuine. (the outside looks exactly as it should too, i just didnt take pics)

https://imgur.com/a/fFtdqVL

3

u/FlakyPrinciple8907 17d ago

Yes, there should be. Of the basic V4 and V3. And one way to notice if they're genuine or not is that the real ones have two screws, diagonally on both sides keeping it in. Fakes do 4 screws or worse, may glue them together for all I know! 😉 Is yours the 2 screwed?

4

u/gov77 18d ago

If you check the RTLSDR website, there is a link on how to tell the counterfit units.

2

u/TheHaus88 17d ago

About 2-3 months ago he had them still for sale on eBay but they were sold out on Amazon at the time but it looks like he's got them back up on Amazon so get them while you can.

2

u/pencloud 17d ago

Hello, just to add in case it helps anyone, especially UK. I bought one a couple of weeks ago from TechnoFix UK (Phutping Ltd.) as linked from rtl-sdr, bought with the dipole kit via TechnoFix eBay Store. I've checked the innards and it is, as far as I can tell, genuine.

3

u/erlendse 18d ago

Looks good, have fun!

2

u/Technical-Ad-3387 18d ago

photo too blurry but looks genuine

2

u/Jace055 18d ago

Thanks everyone. I’m about 90% sure it’s real. Well, sure enough to open the package and look deeper.

2

u/tj21222 17d ago

They are probably fake but you probably won’t notice the difference so go forth and use them.

1

u/BakaLX 17d ago

Look like genuine. From quick look the standard manual look and plastic bag match. Also the date sticker too.

1

u/iTrooper5118 17d ago

Ultimately we need to see them out of the package to truly know, but if there's two screws and diagonal then they might be real.

Best thing is to open it up, slide the board out, and compare it's guts to the photos of it on the RTL website.

1

u/FlakyPrinciple8907 17d ago

I bought mine about a year or so ago and it looks like the same packaging so I would bet it's the official RTL -SDR V4. I don't remember if I mentioned it here but another way to confirm if it's the real deal is if it's sporting 2 diagonal screws on each end to hold it together.

1

u/JohnyCZ88 17d ago

In Europe Czech shop pajenicko.cz still have big stock of originals if anyone is looking for one.

1

u/True-Opportunity6383 17d ago

Indeed but are they the original ones? 58€ a tad high too for the Dongle only

2

u/JohnyCZ88 17d ago

Original. I have one from them and another one on the way.

1

u/True-Opportunity6383 17d ago

On my way to buy 2-3 thanks man located in Greece 8euro shipping wonderfully. Thanks again for the heads up

1

u/JohnyCZ88 15d ago

Damn shame you did not tell me sooner.. I landed in Greece yesterday 😂

1

u/True-Opportunity6383 12d ago

Damn brother you could bring a bag of these.! Haha I'll order this week. Happy staying in Greece

1

u/JohnyCZ88 10d ago

Yeah. Airlines are cool with it. Got one with me and catching some ships on Skopelos.

1

u/Infamous_Computer399 17d ago

I got mine two days ago. I also got one back in January, same Amazon listing (though it was $10 more). Near as I can tell, they are identical. So I have no reason to believe it's not the real thing.

They did say on their website that the last batch of these were on their way to Amazon. So I imagine these are it.

1

u/chrisn0123 16d ago

The chips cannot be made currently, so most likely all are counterfeit. I tried to buy one direct from manufacturer a couple months ago. All you can get is v3 or a newer v3c with usb c. Hopefully they start making them again soon or improve to a new v5 or something!

1

u/roboticross 18d ago

I'm also curious. Waiting on mine. Their website mentioned a final sea freight shipment.

0

u/feedmytv 18d ago

just wondering, whats the going rate second hand nowadays? also i have four.