Techrific Australia
Verified1,101 reviews
I wish i read the other reviews earlier. Bought a used Apple Watch from Kogan in “Very good” conditions. arrived with deep scratches across the screen, and with a counterfeit band. Store doesn’t want to take responsibility for it, and they asked me to pay $55 + postage for them to inspect it. A complete scam. Show details
WARNING - SCAMMERS I ordered an Apple Watch through the Dick Smith website unaware that it was sold via a third party. That third party was Brus Australia aka Techrific and a few other names. I received an email from Dick Smith saying my item has been posted and here is the tracking number. Australia Post tracking says shipping label created. No… Read more
further update, no parcel scanned. After three days of no tracking update I contacted Australia Post, they do not have a parcel. So I contacted Dick Smith and they informed me they were passing on my enquiry to the third party. Brus Australia emailed me saying they had to ask their dispatch department, and please wait longer. No other communication from them. I only use PayPal to pay for anything online so I contacted PayPal and requested a refund stating my concerns that this is a scam. I also contacted Dick Smith customer support and told them likewise. Brus Australia now have 10 days to provide PayPal with proof that they sent the item (they sent nothing) or I get an automatic refund. I am disappointed with Dick Smith allowing third party sellers with such bad reputations and no prior warning given to “their” customers.
Do not purchase from this seller, Digital Store Australia who also operate under several other business names selling second hand iPads, iPhone, and other devices. I got scammed by this seller after purchasing an item they advertised but didn’t actually have to sell, I was then sent a completely different cheaper item. When you try and return the… Read more
incorrect item, they implement ruthless delaying tactics and eventually you either get stuck with an item you didn’t order and don’t want, nor do they pay a refund. Amazon were completely useless, and their so-called a-z buyer guarantee is a scam. Please check google reviews for Digital Store Australia also known as Brus Australia who have been subject to numerous breaches of Australian Consumer law and complaints to the Consumer Affairs Victoria some of which have resulted in enforceable undertakings which I believe have not been adhered to. Review web sites and forums are littered with complaints about Brus Australia/Digital Store Australia who continue to place fraudulent advertisements on Amazon and other seller web sites for products it doesn’t stock. Brus Australia/Digital Store Australia deliberately sends an incorrect and most likely cheaper item hoping that the buyer will accept it. When the buyer seeks to return the item, Brus Australia/Digital Store Australia delay the process and won’t answer specific questions about the return process or why they sent a different item to the one ordered. This behaviour is contrary to legally enforceable undertakings Brus Australia/Digital Store Australia gave to Consumer Affair Victoria.
Reviews with attachments
Scam merchants of the lowest order – Techrific(BRUS) Australia sent me a Samsung galaxy phone which right out of the box had a "moisture detected in charge socket" fault which meant I can't charge my phone, or upload or download via the usb cable. they refused to help or accept any responsibility, instead blaming me for the shoddy condition of the phone they sent me, and suggesting I… Read more
pay them to repair it...are you serious? Phone is supposed to be covered by a 6 month warranty, which clearly they're ignoring. A couple of months on, now the screen doesn't work, what a bunch of scumbags.. The fact that Dick Smith(Kogan) are ok with dealing with such dodgy sellers is astounding, amazingly bad business practice. and makes them just as complicit as Techrific(BRUS). Shame on all 3 of them. Just do yourself a favour and check out all the horror stories and negative reviews about them, seems obvious reading those that if you're unlucky enough to buy a 'lemon' phone off them, they DON'T want to help. Guess everyone's made their money and that's all they really care about...
AVOID AT ALL COSTS. Absolutely dishonest and unprofessional – ‘Brus Australia’ or ‘Digital Store’ via Kogan are absolutely the worst seller I’ve ever dealt with. I purchased a Samsung Galaxy Note+ and found that the pen/stylus did not connect to the phone. After six weeks of troubleshooting and back-and-forth emails they finally agreed for the phone to be returned under warranty to be fixed, replaced or… Read more
refunded.
Before I sent it back to them, I took several clear photographs of the phone demonstrating it was in excellent condition. I then sent paid for it to be couriered back via insured Australia Post. When they received it back, they claimed the screen had been damaged and I’d have to pay to have the screen repaired before they’d look at the fault. They provided a picture showing NEW damage to the screen that was NOT there previously.
I directed them to the pictures I took which showed ZERO damage to the screen. The phone must have been damaged in transit, and I suggested they engage with Australia Post as the item was fully insured. They refused saying Australia Post rules state that the sender has to do this. But that’s incorrect, Australia Post actually requires the receiver to instigate a claim. I told them this and sent them a link to the Australia Post website which explicitly states this. They simply ignored me.
I then engaged the Kogan Escalations team for assistance and provided them all the information incl. the clear photographs I’d took, and ultimately Kogan Escalations supported the seller. Their position (despite the photos I had taken) was that I had damaged the screen. So, the phone was sent back to me without being repaired, and with NEW damage to the screen!!!
This is complete gaslighting. I'm shocked that this can happen to a consumer despite the clear evidence I provided. I asked Kogan Escalations to please look carefully at the photos I took and TELL ME if they see any damage at all. They simply ignored my request.
Thinking maybe I'm going crazy or something, I took the step of uploaded my pictures and the sellers picture to ChatGPT and asked if there was any indication of screen damage in my pictures at all; ChatGPT found NONE.
I will NEVER shop at Kogan again and I will be raising formal complaints against this seller with the ACCC and NSW Fair Trading.
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Scratched apple watch from kogan – I was wanting to buy a apple watch for my daughter off Kogan and saw heaps in different conditions like "excellent", "good" and "fair. I bought a "excellent" condition one that states minimal marks. Once receiving the watch it was covered in scratches on the screen mostly light ones but there was a couple of deeper ones very noticeable. To me… Read more
the condition was fair to good defiantly not Excellent. I contact "digital store" about this and sent photos of the screen and said it's not as described and would appreciate a partial refund. Their first response was its not new so it won't be like new. I responded saying I know it's not going to he like new but it should be in better condition then what I received. Then they offered $10 and I said I would like $20 refund as that's how much I could of bought one for in that condition. They replied and said no they can only do $10 or I can send back which of course they keep 15%. Not worth the hassle. I wish I had of read all these reviews before buying off them.
DO NOT BUY FROM THEM. They operate under several names! – I bought a phone from this company who were operating under the name "digital store" on Kogan. The phone was advertised "Like new" and in "excellent condition" and "ex demo" model. The phone was meant to dispatch within 2-4 days, however, it was much later than this. When I received the phone there was a crack in the camera lens, the finger… Read more
print scanner had a dent in it, there were scratches and dents all over the phone, the in-call volume does not increase so phone calls can't be heard and the pedometer does not work.
The communication from them has been unsatisfactory and they want me to pay to have it sent back. I have sent it back and requested a refund as I've purchased a phone elsewhere to replace it and want nothing more to do with this business or support it in any way. However, after reading other reviews, I am not liking my chances in getting a refund. Kogan have been of little assistance.
Then I did further research into the company (Brus Australia) and found that they have breeched consumer law in the past that it's been taken to court. Seems they are now operating under different names, such as Techrific, to mask the fact that they are scammers.
Positive reviews
Techrific ALL GOOD – I just wanted to write a quick review because I was very impressed with the customer service , Replies and the product came on time and it's totally Perfect. I panicked when I saw those Google reviews but I was impressed and I got my NEW PHONE and it's ALL GOOD. Thanks
Better than my previous phone – Just received the Samsung S8 which I bought few days ago. Everything looks good and as a demo phone it is in very good condition. Very satisfied with the purchase, even better than my broken S8 I bought from Samsung a year ago. Show details
Very Happy – Great online shop, product was cheap, genuine and shipping time is alsi very good. My phone received within 2 days only. It still in very good condition. Could not be happier. Thank you.
Negative reviews
DO NOT GIVE UP WHEN TRYING TO GET A REFUND FROM THIS COMPANY!!! My main advice is: If you didn't realise you were buying a product from this business at the time of purchase, have now tried to deal with them due to a fault or warranty issue and are having trouble getting what you want - DO NOT GIVE UP. It is frustrating & time consuming but my… Read more
own experience has shown me that this business tries to make it as hard as possible for customers to get what they deserve, hoping they will just give up. Unfortunately for them however they are a business that must abide by consumer law so as long as you stay firm with your request, quote consumer law/your rights as a consumer, they cant avoid refunding you for a major fault - but it would probably take a few months so try to be patient!
I purchased a mobile phone from this company from the DickSmithNZ website. Never again will I purchase from DickSmith or any other company that uses third party sellers. It took 2 weeks for Brus Australia to reply to my request for a repair due to a battery fault that developed during the warranty period. Over the next month they would answer some questions and totally ignore others. It took me weeks to get their physical address because they kept sending me a PO BOX address, which you obviously cant return a phone to. They also denied me the right to a full refund intially when I asked, even though it was a major fault and I had every right to receive one. At the time I gave up pursuing a full refund because the company was so difficult to deal with. I ended up sending them the phone to get repaired. This cost me $87NZD because you need to send lithium-ion battery devices via express post back to Australia. Brus Australia refused to refund me the full amount for the cost of shipping, saying they only would refund a maximum of $30 AUD for shipping. I argued against due to the fact that if they are going to be selling their products to NZ buyers, they should be willing to cover the full cost of shipping when it relates to repairs that are due to no fault of the buyer - they are also required to by law to refund the full cost of shipping when a consumer needs to post a product back to them so that it can be repaired.
By the time the phone was apparently repaired and Brus Australia was going to ship back the item, I had received advice from multiple sources, including Consumer Affairs Victoria, that I was well within my rights to receive a full refund for the mobile phone. I wanted to pursue this so that I didn't need to deal with Brus Australia again. When I stated my rights to them via email they then tried to turn around and claim that I couldn't get a refund because my warranty for the phone ran out. I made it clear to them, and provided evidence, that I had made my initial contact with them within the warranty period, and they had responded only after the warranty period had ended - which I believe was intentional. Basically they tried every tactic to avoid providing me what I wanted, and deserved.
When I didn't budge, and made it clear to them that I didn't want the phone returned, I wanted a full refund, they decided to ship the phone back to me anyway, I guess hoping that I would just take the phone and leave it at that. I had to cancel the shipment myself by contacting the courier company, where again Brus Australia tried to delay the process even more buy not responding to the couriers request for authorising the shipment to be returned to them.
Eventually they did and 3 MONTHS after I contacted them they finally refunded me the full cost of the mobile. I had to chase them up a week later to refund me the $30 AUD for shipping, which they did. I decided to let the remaining $57 for shipping go as I was just relieved to finally get a full refund for the mobile and not have to deal with this business again.
Buyers be warned - but don't give up! Brus Australia are dodgy as hell so if you find yourself in a similar situation like my own, don't let their tactics win and get your money back!!
Ripped off! – WARNING!!! DO NOT BUY FROM THIS PLACE!!!!! BAD PEOPLE I recently purchased a Samsung Flip 4 online, and my experience has been nothing short of frustrating. Upon receiving the phone, I quickly noticed two major issues. First, the phone repeatedly shows a water detection warning after a few days of use, causing it to not charge properly.… Read more
Secondly, when I close the phone, the screen switches off completely, making the device unusable in its folded state.
I reached out to the company for assistance, but their customer service has been absolutely unresponsive. After multiple attempts to get support, I was essentially ignored for a while. Now, they are blaming me for the issues, even though the faults appeared almost immediately after receiving the phone. I am extremely dissatisfied with both the product and the lack of support from the company.
It's incredibly disappointing to have invested in a high-end device like the Samsung Flip 4, only to receive a faulty product and face terrible customer service. I would strongly advise others to think twice before purchasing from this company.
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dont buy from brus australia / techrific > selling through Dick Smith – dont buy from brus australia / techrific > selling through Dick Smith. they sold me a faulty phone. then started a convoluted series of requests. they eventually failed to repair the faults and i got no compensation for a faulty product. shame on dick smith.
Recent reviews
Avoid this company and its subsidiaries operating on Kogan or elsewhere – I ordered a Samsung item through Kogan, but I never received anything from them. The tracking never worked, and customer service had no clue and did not provide any solutions. After two weeks, I had to make use of PayPal Buyer Protection. As many others have said, I highly recommend not buying from this company or any of its subsidiaries under… Read more
different names (e.g., Brus Australia or Digital Store). You will regret it and, in the end, spend more time, effort, nerves, and money.
Defective product – Misleading and deceptive conduct by selling products meant for other countries eg mobile phones which are not fully compatible on Australian networks. DO NOT buy from them
Stay away from them!!!! – Daylight robbery Avoid them as much as you can You receive a scratched item sold as excellent and they ask you to return it and never pay you back the postage fee nor the full refund Stay away from these cheaters and criminals!!! Show details
AVOID at all costs – Also known as Brus Australia Pty Ltd but operating under the reputable Dick Smith brand, it's disheartening to see such a venerable name associated with questionable practices. My purchase of a mobile phone, under the impression it was directly from Dick Smith, turned out to be from a company with a notorious reputation for distributing inferior… Read more
products. Almost immediately, the phone malfunctioned, necessitating its return. Despite Dick Smith's intervention and enduring weeks with a defective device, I eventually secured a refund. I was promised reimbursement for the shipping costs, yet, predictably, that promise went unfulfilled. I strongly advise against engaging with this purveyor of substandard goods and counterfeit items.
Don't Buy Their Phones!! Extremely Poor Quality Refurbs – I've had issues with my phone from Day 1. The battery didn't charge properly. I later found out there's an issue with the cable and when I charge it before going to sleep, I'll often find it's not charged by morning as the connection dropped out. I need to pull the cable in and out multiple times to get it to work. The screen was not responsive… Read more
all the time from the beginning. Sometimes when I'm typing, it stops responding all of a sudden. I need to lock the phone and unlock it to get it to work again. I usually need to do this a few times to get it working as normal.
After about 10 months I noticed the battery has expanded to the point it's protruding out of the case and caused the case to crack. The worst part is I can't back up the phone as it won't connect to iTunes. All this in just one year.
Not the product stated – Was sold a excellent condition gold macbook. They contacted to say they were out of stock and would i like a different colour. Chose different colour and product arrived in working condition. Cosmetically it is horrible and not the condition expected. Worst company to try rectify issues with. Dont bother Show details
Useless and a waste of time! – - Item was faulty - $800.00 iPhone and was USELESS trying to get a replacement or refund was frustrating - finally got a refund yet REFUSED to pay my own expense of tracked return postage of their FAULTY item - Do not purchase from them not worth the head ache! Show details
Just NO!!! – This is literally the worst seller i have EVER dealt with, they failed to send item in specified time frame so i requested a refund and now I'm being ignored! They trade under the name "DIGITAL STORE" on Kogan. I will be contacting fair trading to get my $977 back! Show details
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Stay Away From The Scammers – They trade under digital store on kogan. Payed for an item , and they never sent. The communication is terrible. I will leave it short and sweet but others reviews from other customers says it all. Complaint to ACCC issued. Show details
Should have read the reviews – I should have read the reviews. Sent the wrong product & the amount of time wasted trying to sort it out via emails was ridiculous, they couldn't answer a simple question, absolutely disgraceful. Show details
If I could give them a zero stars I would – I bought a mobile phone from them wasn't new but second hand and didnt work. The drama and emails stalling for a refund was ridiculous. PLEASE do not buy anything from this site! Show details
Terrible faulty product and customer service – Phone broke after 8 months with faulty product customer service will not provide me with information asked for terrible experience avoid!!!!
Do not buy from this store. Shown as Digital Store on Kogan – Avoid buying anything from this store. They don't dispatch the products at the time they promised and they are unable to provide clear updates. Very difficult to communicate. They don't respond to your requests and they don't answer to your questions. It's even very difficult to ask for cancelling the order and refund. Very disappointed at their customer services. Avoid buying from them is my advice.
Good not delivered and money not refunded – We bought a Iphone 8 via Kogan and it was returned to the warehouse in Melbourne due to an address error which we tried to correct from the time we placed the order. So far they (Techrific) stopped communicating with us and the Iphone 8 and the refund is a No Show. These people are dishonest but we will pursue this through regulators and the… Read more
courts if necessary. This dispute is ongoing as from the 13th August. The rude customers services person disapeared when we asked for the money to be refunded. We are not going away and we will get our money back through any legal means and the regulators must look at the conduct of both Kogan and Techrific.
Digital Store on Kogan - Do not buy from them! – I purchased 2 phones from these guys. DRAMA'S BOTH TIMES. Will never go there again. The first time they sent the wrong phone, I sent it back within days and it took them 4 months and countless emails before they processed the refund. The second time (I got sucked in because I didn't check the seller before I pressed purchase) they sent me a… Read more
phone that stopped working after 2 weeks. It had a faulty battery and wouldn't charge, they tried to blame it on me claiming that I had used it too much - which is hilarious because it wouldn't stay charged for longer than 15 minutes once it was disconnected from the charger. Again it took them weeks to process my refund and I really had to put my foot down as they tried to send me out a replacement phone - clearly I don't want anything from their store. They sell faulty goods and low quality products. Do not buy from them....
Horrible customer service – iPhone XR purchases, received later then told , it was faulty I returned it and asked for a refund plus my postage refund as I shouldn’t be out pocket. The jerks refunded my phone but not my postage. 3 weeks later still dealing with wanting my refund for postage .I included the receipt in the parcel which they have lost!. Refunded me part of the… Read more
postage still leaving me out of pocket for their screw up!
customer service is horrible 84 emailed and still not resolved, Kogan customer care is just as horrible and don’t care for customers will never shop with digital store and will warn others!
Do not buy from them unless you want to be treated like crap and have faulty items
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absolute terrible customer services still wont provide me with information required and