Oldboy UE thread part two: The Revenge!
 

Since the other one was locked for whatever reason, here is part two I suppose. I ordered this set about three or four days ago from KoreanDVDs using the 25% off coupon, and the total came to $84.xx. I got an email last night that they have shipped my set, so now it's time to play the waiting game. I'll update everyone on the condition of mine once I receive it, just as others have done.

I've never ordered from KoreanDVDs before, so let me ask this. How long does it usually take to get a shipment from him? I did pick the cheaper shipping option by the way.

Also, the last I checked, this set was still available at KoreanDVDs.

The following is some of the important information regarding exchanges and how to get replacement parts for your Oldboy UE set. If I'm leaving out anything that is highly important, then please let me know.

Here's the FULL notice from Starmax regarding replacements:

YesAsia contact information:

Perviously posted by ehonauer:

I've never ordered from them, but my friends' order (Cheap shipping) came within about a week after ordering.

Thats a great price. Mine was $120 +Tax at the store :(

I remember when had the UE around $78 shipped. I believe they underpriced it by mistake. :)

Brent,

You should have your item within a 7 day window from the original shipping date. It might take a little longer considering that USPS is experiencing high volume.

Here's a link to the old, closed thread.

Oldboy UE Thread Part I

Benedict (moderator) said he closed it because of length, although it seems that somebody posting a link to an eBay auction is what raised it on his radar. So people, don't post any links to eBay auctions here!

To sum up the last thread, the Oldboy Ultimate Edition (UE) is a beautiful package in a limited edition of 2,754, but the DVD digipacks are getting scraped by rivets on the custom copper case during shipping. Starmax has agreed to send replacements digipacks, and retailers seem to be coordinating this for consumers outside Korea. However, Starmax is only taking replacement requests THROUGH 12/20. So if there is a problem with yours, don't lollygag before reporting it.

Brent, I have another set on the way from KoreanDVDs, too. This is the wrong time of year for overseas shipments. Hopefully we'll get ours before the 12/20 deadline for digipack replacements!

I'm curious how KoreanDVDs still has this in stock. Maybe they have all those extra copies Starmax pressed up after the first 2,754 sold. ;)

mine shipped from koreandvds.com as well and it got here with EMS in about 4 days. The mailman left the notice so I'm going to get it tomorrow at lunch time. let you guys know then as well as the damage. I'm glad I was able to get it before the window from starmax to get replacement packs. I've never ordered from koreandvds.com before that is why i went with the ems shipping. I'm happy so far and i did get replies to my emails. The one thing is is that it looks like their selection might be limited in comparison with other places. I've only order from Korea once through Mr Kwang but i never received the item although he sent me the money back, I just felt bad cause it wasn't his fault but it wasn't mines either and i know is hard for a small shop to take such a loss. So from now on i worry about using the regular mail if there is no sort of tracking. Is the regular airmail reliable? do they offer coupons usually? shipping cost is a killer.
As for the other thread, i thought that it was the ebay link(s) that really drove the dagger in.

Koreandvds for me is a no go zome :(
as here in the UK we would get stung by Customs for that set maybe about 20 quid charge to get it back! scary! :(

Oh wow, I hope I get mine before the 20th. What process is KoreanDVDs making everyone who bought it there go through in order to make everything right?

Click on the link three posts above yours. :)

Anyone got a reply from yesasia yet?

I guess they were swamped by emails and pics :)

Hey fella's meet the proud owner of #1310. it arrived today. the damage was like everyone else's around. everything else was good. the box is scratched from the manufacturing, but once is cleaned it should be fine. thumbs up to koreandvds.com

Has anyone who emailed Starmax, had a response?
I emailed them with the info they asked for, but haven't heard anything back.

I've sent them numerous messages, even including the Korean text in the subject line (December 4th), but all has been quiet.

me too.

No reply from starmax for me either.

All of my emails from @Yahoo were being returned, I sent one with @Gmail and it apprently went through. I'm just hoping I dont get a message in a few weeks saying "Gmail was unable to send your message and it has been returned" :(

I have a huge question for everyone, so help me out here.

I placed my order for this at KoreanDVDs on 12/09/04, and that night I got a pending charge for $84.19. That is still listed as pending as of right now, listed on my PayPal account. Tonight however, I just noticed an actual charge, a completed charge, for $84.19 that went through today...12/15/04. Is this normal, or should I be worried about anything? Usually the pending charge will just change to completed, instead of something totally new showing up.

The one that is pending is listed as ESTOP INC. ., but the one that is completed is listed as WP-ESTOP INC. SEOUL GB. I just want to make sure this is all normal, since I've never seen anything like this before. Thanks a lot guys.

hmm, Im not sure.

I do know that with places like CDJapan, they'll "make sure" you have the money in the account (And you wont be able to touch it for a few days), it'll eventually return though and they'll later-on charge when it ships.

What might be the problem is they "authorized" the payment to make sure you had enough money, and before it was replaced, they "Charged" you the amount. If thats the case, it should re-appear in a few days.

Yes, I got an email from them yesterday morning requesting what digipacks i needed replacing

Was it in English? Great news... i'm only hoping the rest of us hear back from Starmax before the deadline, in fact, I expect it.

Is that because you emailed them about the replacement program, but didn't state what needed replacement?

I also got an email yesterday morning from Starmax. It asked me to send them my details (name, address, serial number, description of damage). Basically the same info that was posted in the other thread.

I had emailed them a week ago about it, so it did take them a while to get back with me. And I did use the Korean text in my subject.

Edited to add: I had originally just asked them if they would replace my damaged cases since I lived in USA. I did not specify which cases were damaged.

Can you post the email that you sent them? How did you use Korean text in the subject?

Or heck, post the email address in this thread also.

It sounds like they sent through two separate transactions, an authorization and a charge, rather than an authorization and a charge on the same transaction. I believe PayPal expires authorizations in 11 business days, so that $84 will be locked up until then.

Starmax only seems to reply when you ask a question. If you send a replacement request, they don't reply. As far as I know, I was the first one to get a response from Starmax (I asked them about replacements to the US), but after I sent my actual request to them I never heard back. Same thing with YesAsia.

All this info is in Part I of the thread.

http://www.dvdtalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=380994

I know that, but since it's locked I thought it might make sense for someone to post it all here at the start of this new thread, considering the other one is so long. It makes sense to me at least.

Sounds like a great idea! Get working, new thread starter! :)

You know more about it than I do, so let me know if I missed any very important information.

Some important info, if you want to send the Korean subject line to Starmax.


To get Korean language support:
Start --> Control Panel --> Regional and Language Options --> Languages (Tab) --> Install files for East Asian Languages
(it then prompts you for the Windows XP installation disk)
-DrGerbil


You should also note that some retailers like KoreanDVDs and YesAsia are coordinating replacements with consumers, so there shouldn't be a need to directly contact Starmax if you've purchased from them.

If anyone is having issues sending the message after following all those instructions, it may have to do with the email account you are using and how it is configured. Gmail works best for this situation, so if anyone needs an account, let me know. :)

I definitely waited too long to order on this one and placed my order with KoreanDVDs today ... am I just SOL on the cases? Not horribly concerned, but it would be nice to know if I could send them a request under the assumption that my cases would be damaged. Thanks!

Received 12/20 4:42 AM:

Dear Valued Customer,

Further to our previous email dated Dec 7, 2004 regarding the replacement of DVD keepcase for Disc 1 and Disc 2 of "Old boy Ultimate Edition", we would like to inform you that as required by Starmex, Korea, it is necessary for you to notify us on the serial number being printed in the original DVD case so that they can arrange to deliver the replacement case with the same serial number. Besides, also according the request from Starmex, Korea, you are kindly requested to provide us with your contact number for their reference and record. Please kindly reply on or before Dec 22, 2004 by filling in the blank space at the bottom of this email so that Starmex, Korea will be able to send out the replacement cases as soon as possible. If Starmex, Korea does not receive your reply by Dec 22, 2004, they will assume that no replacement case is required.

Regarding the other kinds of defects other than a damaged keepcase for Disc 1 and Disc 2, Starmex, Korea does not guarantee that they will be able to provide replacement at the moment. However, our responsible colleagues will be monitoring closely on the relevant issue and we will keep you informed once we have any feedback from Starmex, Korea.

Please kindly accept our sincere apology for this unexpected incident. Should you have any further inquiry or comment regarding this item, please do not hesitate to contact us at [email protected].

For better service, please include this email when you reply.

Yours sincerely,
Customer Service Department
YesAsia.com, Inc.
Within US & Canada: (888) 716-5753 (US toll-free number) Outside US & Canada: (852) 2522 1227(Hong Kong number)

Reply: Order No. :3439053 23-Aug-04
Serial number :
Contact Number :

That part is perplexing... does it mean Starmax are going to send us a duplicate copper case in addition to the replacement keepcases? I can only assume that was a mistake on the part of Yesasia (LIT, perhaps).

Definately sounds like an error on Yesasia's end (Most likely due to the fact starmax probably asked Yesasia for Serial #'s to 'verify' or something).

On another note, its already Dec. 20 and I havent heard back from Starmax :(

has anyone who sent them an (english titled) email receive any responce?

I don't have my set yet... if it doesn't come today, I don't know what to do. Do you think I'm screwed?

Nope.... not even a form letter! I'm assuming Starmax will ignore all requests that are not entirely in Korean; instead dealing with the retailers themselves.

Not necessarily, but I would get in contact with the retailer you purchased it from immediately and ask 'em what your options are...

Well thats a disappointment if that happens (I bought this set from a local store and I doubt they'd contact wherever they got it from to contact starmax).

I just resent a letter with the korean text (Although I dont know if I'd call it 'korean'. it was: ¿Ãµåº¸ÀÌUE µðÁöÆÑ ±³È¯½Åû )

hoping to hear back.

Both times I included all the information, so I'm hoping thats why they havent gotten back (Because they have everything). It would be nice to receive a confirmation though.

Again, mine isnt that messed up, but if theyre doing replacements anyways, it would be nice to get one.

I did the same thing ;-)

I just ordered it from theDVDetective's latest restock, but he was good enough to send me the serial number so I could get my request in by today. Great service over there.

I don't believe you're sending Korean text if you're showing the "nonsense characters". You have to have Korean fonts installed on your PC to view Korean characters. Starmax has a pretty strong spam filter, and it may reject all emails with non-Korean text in the subject. See my next post below for detailed instructions. The best bet is to work through your retailer if possible, although that doesn't sound like an option in your case. KoreanDVDs and YesAsia have been a lot more responsive to inquiries than Starmax.

It sounds like Starmax is still in the process of collecting additional contact info (serial numbers, phone numbers) so there still might be some hope for those who expect to receive their set this week. I have to assume Starmax is asking for serial numbers so that they can reconcile the duplicate requests they must be receiving (requests sent directly to Starmax and requests forwarded from retailers).

Funny story about my order from KoreanDVDs.com - I placed another order at the last minute, and it didn't ship until the 17th via EMS. I gave up hope on making the 12/20 deadline to report damage. I got in late last night (12/19), near 11PM. I found a note in my mailbox from a delivery attempt. It said I could pick it up at the main post office until midnight(!).

So I headed over to the post office. KoreanDVDs had actually opened the set and placed bubble wrap inside the copper case, but there was still some damage to the digipacks. When I got home, I sent them an email. At this point it was around 2pm on 12/20 in Korea. I emailed KoreanDVDs and they said they'd add my name to the list. Talk about down to the wire!

It looks like KoreanDVDs is doing a first in-last out method on the Oldboy UE. The one I received last night is serial number 0284. I think that's the lowest number I've seen so far, and the one BuddhaWake received on 12/14 was #1310. So if you want a low serial number, try ordering from KoreanDVDs.com. NOW! I'd be surprised if these stayed in stock past New Year's.

Follow up on the email subject line: To successfully accomplish this, you have to install Korean fonts, and copy the Korean characters. THE KOREAN SUBJECT LINE HAS NOT BEEN POSTED YET IN THIS THREAD. Brent didn't have Korean characters on his computer when he created the thread, so that gobbledy-gook you see really is gobbledy-gook.

I'm going to post the Korean characters again:

올드보이UE 디지팩 교환신청

If you see the above as Korean characters, you can copy and paste it as the subject of your email to Starmax. Otherwise, don't bother.

To see the Korean characters on Windows XP:

To get Korean language support:
Start --> Control Panel --> Regional and Language Options --> Languages (Tab) --> Install files for East Asian Languages
(it then prompts you for the Windows XP installation disk)

In Internet Explorer, go to View -> Encoding -> More -> Korean.
Refresh this page, and you should see the Korean characters.

Make sure you send the email from a "real" email provider - ATT, gmail, etc. - not yahoo or hotmail. Include your name, address, phone number, and Oldboy serial number.

Starmax is still gathering info on replacement requests, so there may be time to send a request. Again, if you're working through your retailer, it's probably not necessary to send a duplicate request to Starmax. Deal with Starmax directly if your retailer won't/can't contact them for you.

i got that same message this morning from Yesasia. what do they mean by asking for the serial number?? the only thing damaged were the paper digipak trays #1 and #2 (movie and supplement one), and they don't contain any serial numbers. unless they mean a serial number from the tin box, but how that applies to replacing the digipak trays, i'm confused now.