What differentiates Aliexpress versions from local vendors?

[null]

I thought the only difference was that you had to register it to a country that the serial number was « allowed » in.

I prefer supporting local distributors and pay VAT, however the local « kingsong Europe » (not kingsong) are just too damn greedy , using the geolock to inflate a 18XL to 2500€, when it can be had for 1900€ including VAT in Scandinavia. 
 

Anyhow, to the point: @mrelwood was mentioning some functions of his imported 16s where not available in third party apps. Just how much are « wrongly » localized KS wheels missing out on? Does everything work in the official app? 
 

Sorry to make a whole topic of this, but I searched a bit and it didn’t seem clear. There are various reasons to import a wheel, including getting the right version, so let’s leave that aside..

[Chriull]

4 minutes ago, null said:

Anyhow, to the point: @mrelwood was mentioning some functions of his imported 16s where not available in third party apps. Just how much are « wrongly » localized KS wheels missing out on?

Afaik just firmware update?

4 minutes ago, null said:

Does everything work in the official app? 

No. Imo no settings work with the official KS App, but with the KS App there ?is? the possibility to get everything working with a VPN connection to china?

[null]

That’s handicapping enough but at least if the update can be done with KS app and the speeds still changed with third party apps..

I suppose Android should allow for a fake gps and with vpn if that should be necessary..

Edited February 16, 2020 by null

[Rywokast]

? there's no such thing.. I've bought all types of wheels from ali never had any issues.. only thing you'll be missing out on is the warranty.. ks has had some issues with "illegal device" I think it was but that's only because it was a lost serial number or something like that it only happened to me one time and go figure it was from a local dealer haha, but I was able to get it back myself no problem.. people all over the world buy straight from China never heard of anyone having any issues with geo locking.. i have owned 19 wheels, probably 12 of them from aliexpress... never a single issue.. anyone who had an issue it was an anomaly that could happen regardless of where you bought the wheel imo

Edited February 16, 2020 by Rywokast

[mrelwood]

I have had no geo-locking issues with my 16S bought from Aliexpress in 2017, and the KS app has always worked without additional restrictions. Despite registering the account with a Finnish area code.

DarknessBot and EUC World only very recently received the features for adjusting speed settings, calibrating, and updating firmware on KS wheels. These new features are what are not allowed to work with a wheel whose serial number indicates an inland China market.

The mentioned functions still do work with the KS app. As long as you already have it installed that is, since the app was recently pulled from both Apple App Store and Google Play Store.

If you don’t already have the KS app in your phone, purchasing a KS from Ali is problematic right now since you couldn’t perform the mentioned functions with any app that’s currently available.

[Rywokast]

9 minutes ago, mrelwood said:

I have had no geo-locking issues with my 16S bought from Aliexpress in 2017, and the KS app has always worked without additional restrictions. Despite registering the account with a Finnish area code.

DarknessBot and EUC World only very recently received the features for adjusting speed settings, calibrating, and updating firmware on KS wheels. These new features are what are not allowed to work with a wheel whose serial number indicates an inland China market.

The mentioned functions still do work with the KS app. As long as you already have it installed that is, since the app was recently pulled from both Apple App Store and Google Play Store.

If you don’t already have the KS app in your phone, purchasing a KS from Ali is problematic right now since you couldn’t perform the mentioned functions with any app that’s currently available.

anybody who wants it.. it's really easy to just download any android apk and install it, doesn't matter whether it's supported/currently available or not

https://easyupload.io/sn1uat

[Wgm]

On 2/16/2020 at 9:13 PM, Rywokast said:

anybody who wants it.. it's really easy to just download any android apk and install it, doesn't matter whether it's supported/currently available or not

https://easyupload.io/sn1uat

I can't get an account for this.

[Chriull]

On 2/17/2020 at 3:13 AM, Rywokast said:

anybody who wants it.. it's really easy to just download any android apk and install it, doesn't matter whether it's supported/currently available or not

https://easyupload.io/sn1uat

 

9 minutes ago, Wgm said:

I can't get an account for this.

The app seems to be still/again available at the kingsong home page kingsong.com under Support/App Download/Android.

[Rywokast]

37 minutes ago, Wgm said:

I can't get an account for this.

you can, its just their servers are shit and go offline often, you just have to keep trying... i did it with a phone number but i had to type in the country code as well as my area code included in my phone number, that was the only way it worked... had worked flawlessly since

[Leucistic]

On 2/17/2020 at 1:17 AM, Rywokast said:

? there's no such thing.. I've bought all types of wheels from ali never had any issues.. only thing you'll be missing out on is the warranty.. ks has had some issues with "illegal device" I think it was but that's only because it was a lost serial number or something like that it only happened to me one time and go figure it was from a local dealer haha, but I was able to get it back myself no problem.. people all over the world buy straight from China never heard of anyone having any issues with geo locking.. i have owned 19 wheels, probably 12 of them from aliexpress... never a single issue.. anyone who had an issue it was an anomaly that could happen regardless of where you bought the wheel imo

Well this is what happened to me. I was using EUC world without any problems. Updated FW with EUC World from 1.09 to 2.01 with my 16s with all the problems wheel being dead and not continuing the update from "downloading update" screen. Had to press down power button for several seconds to do hard reset the wheel. Somehow it started updating and finished. All was fine with test run and with EUC world still working as it should. I was pleased with no motor whine and all happy smile. Then my mailbox provider changed from free to monthly payment and i had to change my email from KS app. So I unbind my wheel from old account and made new one with new email address. Bind the wheel to new account and unlocked speed from KS app. Then started EUC World and BOOM! speed limit 20 km/h . I bought the wheel from local dealer here in my country not from Ali or China. I have had "illegal device" alert too couple of times, but it went away by it self. I tested with both accounts and now I can`t use EUC World anymore without speed limitation. I guess it`s time to write to my local dealer is it possible to make EUC World part of my riding or live without it.

[Leucistic]

20 hours ago, FunkyWheeling said:

Well this is what happened to me. I was using EUC world without any problems. Updated FW with EUC World from 1.09 to 2.01 with my 16s with all the problems wheel being dead and not continuing the update from "downloading update" screen. Had to press down power button for several seconds to do hard reset the wheel. Somehow it started updating and finished. All was fine with test run and with EUC world still working as it should. I was pleased with no motor whine and all happy smile. Then my mailbox provider changed from free to monthly payment and i had to change my email from KS app. So I unbind my wheel from old account and made new one with new email address. Bind the wheel to new account and unlocked speed from KS app. Then started EUC World and BOOM! speed limit 20 km/h . I bought the wheel from local dealer here in my country not from Ali or China. I have had "illegal device" alert too couple of times, but it went away by it self. I tested with both accounts and now I can`t use EUC World anymore without speed limitation. I guess it`s time to write to my local dealer is it possible to make EUC World part of my riding or live without it.

Apparently this app was clever than user this time . It knows when you put wheel against the wall and sets speed limit to lower level. Can`t keep up with updates they make to app. 

[Zwheeler]

On 2/16/2020 at 10:42 PM, null said:

I suppose Android should allow for a fake gps and with vpn if that should be necessary..

Just install "Mocation" from Google Play. That app allows You to set your position anywhere on the Earth by just clicking on the map. Does not need root access. Fools even Google Maps! For me, it has worked just fine

-Z-

Edited March 8, 2020 by Zwheeler
typo

[mrelwood]

Just to bump the thread and remind people: Don’t buy a KingSong wheel from Aliexpress, BangGood, or any other website selling wheels directly from China.

I don’t want to directly quote a personal email, but there’s a snippet from an email our local distributor received from KS early this year, posted on the Finnish thread:

Connecting a KS wheel bought from unofficial vendors to the KS app is said to lock the wheel. It is not known if this is a permanent lock or if the wheel can then be unlocked by other means. I also don’t know wether they lived up to fulfill the threat or if it was indeed just a threat to make people wary.

EUC World and DarknessBot do not support speed settings, unlocking, calibration, or firmware updates on unofficial KS wheels.

 The current Soft Tuner that KS released as a temporary app for iOS users was able to upgrade my 16S bought from Aliexpress in 2017. I can also adjust the speed settings. For how long, I don’t know.

[Rywokast]

28 minutes ago, mrelwood said:

Just to bump the thread and remind people: Don’t buy a KingSong wheel from Aliexpress, BangGood, or any other website selling wheels directly from China.

I don’t want to directly quote a personal email, but there’s a snippet from an email our local distributor received from KS early this year, posted on the Finnish thread:

Connecting a KS wheel bought from unofficial vendors to the KS app is said to lock the wheel. It is not known if this is a permanent lock or if the wheel can then be unlocked by other means. I also don’t know wether they lived up to fulfill the threat or if it was indeed just a threat to make people wary.

EUC World and DarknessBot do not support speed settings, unlocking, calibration, or firmware updates on unofficial KS wheels.

 The current Soft Tuner that KS released as a temporary app for iOS users was able to upgrade my 16S bought from Aliexpress in 2017. I can also adjust the speed settings. For how long, I don’t know.

i cannot understand why kingsong could possibly care less where you bought it from... if you are buying a KS wheel, they are making money regardless of where from.. whats the difference to them? and why not just open their own aliexpress store like inmotion then? idk if this is something new or not but my first 16S i bought from aliexpress, it worked perfectly out of the box and about a year later i sold it to someone else and has worked fine for them ever since..

[Mimetic Polyalloy]

Returning briefly back to the beginning: Does anyone know how the app identifies a Chinese wheel abroad? In my understanding, this can actually only be done via the serial number, otherwise the overseas wheels are certainly identical. I found this (elder) post around here concerning the SN composition:

If someone succeeded in entering a "political correct" serial number for an evil Ali device (e.g. via the Soft Tuner app) we might find a way out of this mess , or am I wrong?

First of all, I followed @mrelwood 's hint and deleted the toxic KS app  from my phone to be safe, thx again.

[mrelwood]

4 hours ago, Mimetic Polyalloy said:

Returning briefly back to the beginning: Does anyone know how the app identifies a Chinese wheel abroad?

Last letter (fourth digit from the right): Letters A-O are for international units, P-Z are for Chinese markets.

 Changing the serial number should work, unless there are some fail checks implemented in the serial number, like there are in credit card numbers.

I‘d be willing to try, but changing the serial number requires newer login info for the Soft Tuner app than the one that was circling around at the forum earlier.

[Thatmustache]

So if you decide to buy a wheel other than kingsong from aliexpress (like a gotway, or inmotion) they should work fine, and you wouldn't need to worry about any of this?

[Rywokast]

2 hours ago, Thatmustache said:

So if you decide to buy a wheel other than kingsong from aliexpress (like a gotway, or inmotion) they should work fine, and you wouldn't need to worry about any of this?

they both have official and unofficial stores on ali... 100% supported... why KS doesnt baffles me

[Thatmustache]

7 hours ago, Rywokast said:

they both have official and unofficial stores on ali... 100% supported... why KS doesnt baffles me

@Rywokast I remember when I was trying to choose my first EUC you recommended getting one from aliexpress, as you had gotten them from there before. I ordered a Kingsong 18XL from Ali and I've never had any issues with it. Its still the only wheel I own, and i ride it every day. I love it.

I guess just make sure it's a reputable seller on aliexpress? I'm hoping to get another wheel this year, perhaps a gotway, and if I can I'll order on Ali because its significantly cheaper than buying them from a local vendor here in Canada

[Rywokast]

4 hours ago, Thatmustache said:

@Rywokast I remember when I was trying to choose my first EUC you recommended getting one from aliexpress, as you had gotten them from there before. I ordered a Kingsong 18XL from Ali and I've never had any issues with it. Its still the only wheel I own, and i ride it every day. I love it.

I guess just make sure it's a reputable seller on aliexpress? I'm hoping to get another wheel this year, perhaps a gotway, and if I can I'll order on Ali because its significantly cheaper than buying them from a local vendor here in Canada

ah yea, i remember at that time there was somebody selling the 18XL for just under 2500 CAD i think it was.. great deal, i dont think you can find them that cheap any more heh

[ride INMOTION]

On 4/29/2020 at 5:12 PM, mrelwood said:

Just to bump the thread and remind people: Don’t buy a KingSong wheel from Aliexpress, BangGood, or any other website selling wheels directly from China.

I don’t want to directly quote a personal email, but there’s a snippet from an email our local distributor received from KS early this year, posted on the Finnish thread:

Connecting a KS wheel bought from unofficial vendors to the KS app is said to lock the wheel. It is not known if this is a permanent lock or if the wheel can then be unlocked by other means. I also don’t know wether they lived up to fulfill the threat or if it was indeed just a threat to make people wary.

EUC World and DarknessBot do not support speed settings, unlocking, calibration, or firmware updates on unofficial KS wheels.

 The current Soft Tuner that KS released as a temporary app for iOS users was able to upgrade my 16S bought from Aliexpress in 2017. I can also adjust the speed settings. For how long, I don’t know.

yes,buy from authorized local retailers.

[ride INMOTION]

On 4/29/2020 at 5:43 PM, Rywokast said:

i cannot understand why kingsong could possibly care less where you bought it from... if you are buying a KS wheel, they are making money regardless of where from.. whats the difference to them? and why not just open their own aliexpress store like inmotion then? idk if this is something new or not but my first 16S i bought from aliexpress, it worked perfectly out of the box and about a year later i sold it to someone else and has worked fine for them ever since..

good question.

only the authorized retailers can sell the genuine Kingsong products,others may sell faked ones without warranty.

[mrelwood]

57 minutes ago, Kingsong Customer Support said:

yes,buy from authorized local retailers.

And how can the customer know which sellers are authorized KingSong retailers?

 And what if “local” retailers do not exist in the first place?

[ride INMOTION]

34 minutes ago, mrelwood said:

And how can the customer know which sellers are authorized KingSong retailers?

 And what if “local” retailers do not exist in the first place?

to know authorized KingSong retailers,riders can send me email:cs@kingsong.com

[Munirider]

I don't know why anybody in the US would want to buy an euc from Ali Express. I looked just to compare prices of the Veteran Patton and it is $3,090 on Ali Express and it is $3,099 on ewheels.com. On Ali it says delivery December 31st. Would you wait two months to save $9?

Maybe if you could save $500 or something, I wouldn't do it for much less than than that.

Edited October 25 by Munirider
spelling