Revealed: The Truth about Aliexpress... and the bargain items that are almost too good to be true
If you went on an online shopping spree and added a pair of earbud headphones, a white gold ring and a fancy smart watch to your basket, you might expect the bill to come near to £1,000.
Each item alone usually retails for hundreds of pounds. Yet, these three items combined cost – staggeringly – just over £10 with online shop AliExpress.
The retailer may not yet be a household name, but having just paid David Beckham £5 million to be its 'global ambassador' that could be about to change.
The Chinese shopping giant is already worth an estimated £155 billion and is now looking to compete with £1.5 trillion global rival Amazon by boosting its presence in Europe and the UK.
![Made in China: Toby Walne with his haul of cut-price goodies bought from hit Chinese website AliExpress](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/08/13/20/88492943-0-image-a-1_1723578232807.jpg)
Made in China: Toby Walne with his haul of cut-price goodies bought from hit Chinese website AliExpress
In March, AliExpress agreed to an exclusive e-commerce platform partnership with UEFA, the European football's governing body, and last month sponsored the Euro 2024 football tournament, with its logo plastered around the pitches.
But while Amazon is a marketplace for just about all household items, AliExpress focuses on cheap copycat electricals and novelty items for ridiculously low prices.
I just can't believe that you can buy such hi-tech accessories as smart watches, as well as clothes and jewellery, for a fraction of the prices you might see on the High Street.
So I set myself a £50 budget to fill a basket with the best-looking of its so-called 'SuperDeals' to discover if AliExpress's bargains are treasures or just worthless tat.
Shopping with AliExpress
The sheer size of the discounts strikes me the second I land on the AliExpress web page.
There are categories such as 'Big Save', 'New Shopper Exclusives', 'SuperDeals' and 'Bundle Deals', and discounts of up to 85 per cent.
Unless otherwise stated, postage is free, while 'fast delivery' promises to arrive in a week.
I opt for SuperDeals, which AliExpress says are time limited, and seem to have the most impressive discounts.
I choose a set of earbuds – plus another mini pair, two smart watches, a gold ring, a health monitoring ring, a creative lamp, an electric toothbrush and a linen shirt.
A grand total of £46.20. Postage is extra for some items – £2.45 for the gold ring; £1.99 for 'Pro 6' earbuds, but free for the rest. Delivery for all items is expected within seven days. The bill tots up to £50.64.
Despite having paid for all the items in one go, over the next few days I am bombarded with dozens of email notifications when each item purchased is confirmed, packed and sent.
Incredibly, everything arrives a week after ordering without any damage. Most pieces come in a big red plastic bag from China, delivered by Evri, while the ring and shirt arrive separately via a tracked 48-hour Royal Mail delivery from Brierley Hill in the West Midlands.
What I bought
Earbuds Original Air Pro 6 and Pro 4s+ — £1.19 each
First to catch my eye is a pair of Original Air Pro 6 wireless Bluetooth earbuds at the obscenely low price of £1.19. They look similar to the well-known Apple AirPods Pro earbuds that sell for £229.
When they arrive in the post, there are no instructions or charge cable. I find a compatible charger at home, but after charging them overnight, they still don't work.
I also buy Pro 4s+ earbuds as they look impressive – each earpiece only slightly bigger than a Smartie – for £1.19; marketed as reduced from £9.13.
These come in packaging that bears a striking resemblance to that of tech giant Apple and – after I've charged them up – work a treat. Connected to my smartphone via Bluetooth, they are ideal for listening to the radio.
The sound quality lacks that expansive rich feel of genuine Apple earbuds, but at £1.19 they are incredible value.
Smartwatch: £13.47
My most expensive item is a smartwatch at £13.47. It promises a 'connection' to my smartphone for calls, to monitor how many steps I walk, play music and even measure my blood pressure. An Apple Watch with similar functionality sells for £399.
I scan a QR code in the printed instructions to download a 'FitPro' app on to my smartphone. This allows my phone to connect to the watch using Bluetooth technology.
![Smart buy? This i8 Pro Max smartwatch, which is based on a £399 Apple iWatch, cost just £3.21](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/08/13/20/88492945-0-Smart_buy_This_i8_Pro_Max_smartwatch_which_is_based_on_a_399_App-m-4_1723578262604.jpg)
Smart buy? This i8 Pro Max smartwatch, which is based on a £399 Apple iWatch, cost just £3.21
To make a call, I click on the phone icon on the watch. I then type in my wife's phone number on the small watch screen and hit dial. To my astonishment, it works! I hold my watch up to my ear as I clearly hear my wife's voice coming from somewhere within it.
The line sounds a bit tinny, but she tells me from her end the sound is perfect. The watch also counts my steps – more than 10,000 by the end of the day.
Apparently, this is done with the help of an electronic sensor buried inside the gadget that can detect and record my every step.
There is also a heart logo that informs me I have a 'bmp' (which I am told stands for 'basic metabolic panel') of 79, blood pressure of 119 over 80 and a tissue hydration level of 99.
Apparently, it can discover such health details thanks to a sensor on the back of the watch that is in contact with my skin.
I am informed that this sensor can detect my pulse rate and even work out how hydrated I am by measuring the electrical properties of perspiration.
Mystified, and not entirely convinced by all this gobbledegook, I ask the office nurse how accurate it really is.
She takes her own measurements and finds I have a heart rate of 63 and a blood pressure of 140 over 89. She says: 'From my own readings I would not trust this watch as accurate — but at least it makes you aware of your health.'
I also buy an i8 Pro Max smartwatch. Why not? It only costs £3.21. The Apple Watch, on which these models seem to be inspired, costs £399.
Again, I scan a QR code to download an app on to my phone – but it fails to work. The watch has more than a dozen Apple-like logos on the watch face.
But apart from telling the time, the icons seem just for show as nothing happens when I click on tiny images that include a weather cloud, Twitter (X) and an office chair.
Electric toothbrush: £1.19
My old £50 Oral-B electric toothbrush is on the blink, while AliExpress offers one in similar baby blue for £1.19.
When it arrives, I'm unable to read the Mandarin instructions, but work out an AA battery is required.
The £1.44 Duracell battery costs more than the toothbrush. The toothbrush is sized for a child, and the vibration is lacklustre and less efficient than if I used a manual brush. But it could be a handy emergency spare.
Gold ring: £1.19
My wife claims her engagement ring is priceless, but I can get a 'Certified Luxury 18k White Gold Filled Round 2 Carat Zircon Diamant Ring Bride Wedding' ring for – you guessed it – a mere £1.19. It is '97 per cent off' the usual £41.02.
The '18k white gold' ring looks cheap, but there appears to be a hallmark on the inside of the band. I take it to Finery & Co jewellery shop in Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire.
Manager Ben Brooks brings out a magnifying loupe and squints through the eye piece. He says: 'The marking is not clear; it wants to give the impression of a hallmark – but is just a blur.'
![](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/08/13/20/88493197-0-image-m-7_1723578984953.jpg)
The jeweller also spots a separate 'bubbling' mark on the inside of the ring. 'This defection might explain why it is so heavily discounted,' he says.
Mr Brooks says the 'diamant' rock is made of porcelain material zirconia, and adds that he sells similar precious stone imitation rings for £80 – although he adds that 'our cut is far superior'.
He then tries an amber acid test – where a drop of nitric acid turns red if the ring contains silver. It does not change colour.
Further scratching reveals a base metal – perhaps copper alloy – and no sign of striking gold underneath the fake silver. Brooks believes £1.19, plus £2.45 postage, is a fair price as the ring materials are largely worthless.
Smart ring: £8.82
I also buy a 'military grade titanium steel shell health monitoring' ring to check my health, for £8.82. From the website pictures, it looks just like a £349 Oura Health & Fitness Tracker.
Green and red LED lights are supposed to flash on the inside of this ring – and I can actually see this happen when I connect the ring to an electric mains charger.
Apparently, these lights can beam right through my skin to measure heart rate and blood temperature – as well as 'blood oxygen' levels if I am being active. I am highly dubious you can get such information for less than a tenner.
This time a QR code in the instructions directs me to a QRing app that I must use to connect my smartphone to the ring. I charge up the gadget and, after an hour, the small red light on the inside turns green to indicate that it is ready to be used.
It takes several attempts to link the ring with my smartphone – but once it kicks into life, the app shows that my heart rate is 68 – which appears more accurate than the smartwatch had suggested. Minutes before, the nurse had measured my heart rate at 63.
The ring also reports my stress levels (on a scale of zero to 100) to the phone app, as well as how many steps I have walked that day and the quality of my sleep.
![An AliExpress store, in Granada, Spain. The Chinese shopping giant is already worth an estimated £155bn and is now looking to compete with £1.5 trillion global rival Amazon](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/08/13/20/88492941-0-image-a-5_1723578294449.jpg)
An AliExpress store, in Granada, Spain. The Chinese shopping giant is already worth an estimated £155bn and is now looking to compete with £1.5 trillion global rival Amazon
The app tells me it can measure my 'sleep efficiency' by working out 'REM duration' and the difference between 'light' and 'deep' sleep – by looking at heart rate and temperature.
Unconvinced that any of this will work, my suspicion is confirmed when I wake after a refreshing night's slumber to discover nothing has been recorded. Or maybe I sleep like the dead? Because it recorded no sleep – either good or bad.
3D Creative Lamp: £6.32
At just £6.32, this '3D' lamp consists of a plastic slate on which you can write or draw with a special pen. Then you slot the slate into a socket to light up the image or words.
However, I draw on the screen, plug it in and the image looks dreary and flat – like a doodle on a dirty window. The 'new 3D' adventure leaves me feeling flat. For me, the most 'creative' thing about it is the description.
'Linen' shirt: £9.62
Finally, a 'loose summer' linen shirt for £9.62. At M&S, a similar one costs £38.
The 'linen' shirt looks much like it did in the photo, with short sleeves and two breast pockets.
However, I'm extremely dubious that it is made of linen as it doesn't have its distinctive texture.
There is also no label to validate the fabric – nor any washing instructions. The one, lone label reads 'made in China'. Nonetheless the shirt fits fine and is wearable.
Was it worth it?
Although some of the items do seem to work, there is still something unnerving about buying electrical items for little more than £1. Goods do not come with safety standard certificates and often no instructions.
There is no evidence that items are made in the Xinjiang province, where one million Uighur Muslims are believed to be kept in forced labour camps, according to Amnesty International – but I can't help but worry that there is no way that even paid factory workers can be getting a fair deal.
After all, surely you can't make something as sophisticated as a smartwatch for £3.21 while paying a fair wage?
In order to buy from AliExpress, I must create an account, giving my name, email address and password. I feel nervous providing a password to an unknown seller based 5,000 miles away.
There is a 'free returns' policy 'within 90 days', but because it is a foreign website, you are not automatically protected by British trading rules, such as the Consumer Rights Act if goods fail to arrive or are faulty.
Under UK Global Tariff rules I must still pay taxes on the imports, such as 20 per cent VAT. AliExpress adds VAT at the checkout to avoid lengthy postage holdups that can sometimes occur at customs.
However, because AliExpress sends products directly from China, rather than via UK warehouses, it is able to exploit a tax loophole that helps it to keep its prices low.
Any goods worth less than £135 can arrive into the UK tax-free, a rule designed to make it easier for friends and family to send gifts to each other. Because nearly all AliExpress purchases are well under £135, the company (and the shopper) aren't charged the duty.
By contrast, British High Street shops importing goods have to pay duties of 12 pc on top of the VAT it then passes to customers.
While shopping, I unthinkingly click on the 'accept cookies' button. I later regret it as I feel uncomfortable giving the China-based company permission to track my movements across the internet – a country hardly known for its stringent rules against surveillance of individuals.
What did AliExpress say?
A spokesman for AliExpress says: 'We are committed to bringing great selection, great value prices and a great shopping experience to our customers – enabling them to buy directly from manufacturers in China and around the world.
'We are also committed to protecting intellectual property rights and prohibit sellers from listing items that infringe the rights of third parties or that don't meet product compliance requirements.
'On the rare occasion where someone is not happy with a purchase, they can raise a case via our customer service channels.'
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