I bought a Samsung S22 Ultra along with a case and a protective screen. The price of the phone was NIS 1,729, and after some haggling, the seller agreed to include the case and screen for an additional NIS 100, bringing the total to NIS 1,829. I paid with a credit card, but there were some issues with the card machine, and I didn’t notice when the seller changed the price to NIS 1,879 while resetting it. I only discovered the NIS 50 overcharge after I got home. I had my reservations about buying a grey-market smartphone. I also chose to ignore a few red flags, like not receiving the full specifications of the device before purchasing (since different regions have different versions of the same model), and the practically non-existent warranty. These are compromises you accept when buying a model that’s already a couple of generations old. Still, being quietly overcharged NIS 50 for accessories that cost only a few dollars on Temu or AliExpress felt insulting. It wasn’t about the amount—it was the feeling of being taken advantage of. It’s a pity, because I actually liked their range of models and the reasonable pricing, and I was even considering coming back in the future. But there’s something genuinely unpleasant about being bluntly ripped off over something so small. It leaves a bad taste and makes the whole experience feel less about selling a product and more about squeezing a few extra shekels from a customer who wasn’t paying attention. Photo 1 in review by Yuri Kozlov
