Bell'O WAVS-341 Bent Wood Audio Video Cabinet (Espresso Finish)
by BELL'O INTL. CORP.
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List Price: Our Price: $383.57 You Save: $366.43 (49%) Availability: Usually ships in 3-4 business days Category: Home Theater See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
Buy this product at amazon.co.uk
for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Bell'O WAVS-341 Bent Wood Audio Video Cabinet (Espresso Finish)
Customer Review: There will be styrofoam
Summary: 4 Stars
A short description would of this item would be upper-class Ikea with better design, but not as good execution. Basically a flat-pak kind of item, with better quality design that Ikea, and arguably better materials, but the manufacturing quality, assembly instructions and packaging are not as good as Ikea.
Ok, I first ordered this from Price brothers thinking it would be drop shipped directly from Bello. I live in NJ, and Bello is less than an hour away from me. But no, Price Brothers tried to ship this from California.
Big mistake. The boxes these come in are not intended for individual shipment. They are intended for palletized shipments, where you stack a bunch of them on a pallet and wrap them in shrink-wrap. This packaging in not sturdy enough for the handling individual shipments receive. I used to work in shipping and receiving, and currently work for a major shipping company.
To ship this, they need to pack the existing box inside another box with at least two inches of protection on each side, minimum. Considering the weight of this, that would probably require foam pieces or expanded poly-foam in bags. This can get expensive, so I can understand them not trying it, but damage returns probably cost a lot more. This was damaged when I received it, badly enough you could see splintered wood through the hole in the packaging.
So I returned it to Price Brothers. Which reminds me, it took a while to get a refund, since they need to receive the item back, and LTL freight is not that fast. So be forewarned.
I re-ordered from Amazon instead at the higher price. They did not drop ship from Bello either, but from their facility in Pennsylvania, so it was almost as short a trip. The item arrived with only one small tear in the carton that did not damage the contents.
Putting this thing together was a bit of an adventure. The instructions are wrong in a couple places, and also have you do things the hard way and leave some things out. Just read through them and go slow and one person can put it together with a little thought. But if you have back troubles, get help, as assembly requires some movement not friendly to your back.
The packaging is full of large thin sheets of styrofoam, the flakey, friable kind that leave little pieces all over. Be prepared to chase these down, for a couple days, and spend some time wiping down the stand to remove all the little white spots caused by this.
Also, the chrome cylinders used to support the pieces came loose in transit and caused some marring of the finish, but only on the inner surface of the legs, where it is not visible. This is a poor packaging choice by Bello. these are heavy enough that they deserve a separate box inside the main box, not just the poorly secured bubble wrap that was used.
After assembly, there was a small delamination of one of the pieces. This was due to the two main pieces not fitting together very well. The color pen that came with this covered it up, but the fact they include this seems to indicate they expect this kind of thing, either due to the poor packaging or inexact manufacturing.
For the money, this is a good stand, with a nice design that fits into more modern homes, such as ones with Scandinavian style furniture. You would pay a lot more for something equal to this in most stores. Could it be better if Bello packaged it better, and sellers shipped it better, and maybe if Bello spent a little more time writing the instructions and a little bit more on quality control? Sure.
But it's a good value.
Customer Review: Smart looking stand but poor quality control.
Summary: 3 Stars
I just received my TV stand today. After reading some of the reviews I carefully inspected the packing box when it arrived and it appeared to be in relatively good order. There where just a couple of minor knocks and abrasions but no apparent damage. As I unpacked the contents they seemed to well packed with foam liners surrounding the contents and protective coverings over all the items to protect them from scratches in shipment. Only while dusting the packing material off the components did I discover a large dent in the middle of the lower flat panel in the front. If it were in the back where it would not be seen I perhaps would not have returned it and requested some kind of price adjustment if possible.
I am not at all convinced that the damage was the result of shipping. The carton did not have any damage that coincided with the observable damage. To put as large a dent in this plywood veneered panel had to take a lot of force and no visible force or damage showed on the carton. I think the damage was done at the manufacturer and it was just shipped that way. Poor quality control is the best explanation I can come up with. I have arranged for a replacement unit and UPS pickup. Repackaging the item is no fun since I had to unpack it in the garage where the driver left it due to the weight and take it in and back out of the house one piece at a time.
Overall the stand looks pretty much as advertised. When they say solid wood be mindful that they mean solid wood veneered plywood. This is how they get the bent shape and if you look closely you can see the multiple layers of glued plywood. Also the color would be best described as "Espresso". If you like your coffee color black then you will like this. It is not at all the color shown. The new low price ($440 from 512 too good to be true) perhaps explains my current dilemma.
Will update later on new arrival
Update
Since I received my first delivery I have had two more replacements sent. One was lost for a week in transit. Both were also damaged on arrival. Return pickups were prompt and courteous. The packaging on this item is just not sufficient to withstand the handling procedures of the shippers and they stated this to me since they are somewhat heavy and large packages.
All said and done I cannot speak too highly of the Customer Service Department at Amazon. Their customer calling number connected me to a service rep in less than 30sec. They went "WAY" above and beyond my "Wildest" expectations in making up for the unconvinced I had experienced. This is one case of a bad result turning into a very pleasant experience. Amazon's dedication to making your online purchase reliable and enjoyable is the reason, in my opinion, why they are the very best online retailer.
Customer Review: Excellent TV Stand - Terrible packaging
Summary: 5 Stars
After comparing several television stands online, I decided to splurge on this one.
It is a very beautiful stand with plenty of room for most components (I have 3 console systems, audio receiver, dvr and center channel - all with plenty of ventilation) and the 50" plasma looks great sitting on top of it.
My one warning would be regarding the packaging of the stand. I had read the reviews and knew I was taking a chance with the Two Day shipping from Amazon/UPS. This thing weighs in at a hefty 120lbs. It's not an easy item to return. Bell'O decided to use thin styrofoam around the outside edges of the box. This being where the most visually important pieces are located. The thicker styrofoam was used for securing the pieces near the glass shelf. I suppose they were very concerned with glass shattering, but didn't really think about this heavy box being rolled around on it's corners and sides during shipping. My first one arrived with major damage to the outer box. Once I opened it up I was disheartened to see the severe dents and chips in the front top and corners of the stand. There is no way to cover damage like that with the included marker. So, I returned it. Amazon was great about the return, but what they don't understand is the hassle involved in receiving and sending a huge item like this if you aren't normally home during delivery hours. The replacement arrived again with damage to the box. I held my breath as I opened up that box and assessed the damage. One major dent with chipped wood on the top portion of the stand. Only this time, it was on the back. I decided to just try to hide the damage and put the purchase behind me. Amazon offered to discount the price for accepting the damaged item (don't expect them to give you more than 20% off), but they were more inclined to ask me to return it for another replacement. I was tired of killing these beautiful stands off one by one with my delivery people and the manufacturer's lackluster packaging. It makes me sad to think how many of these stands are being returned looking as though they have been tortured. Is this Amazon's fault? No. UPS? Perhaps a little, but it's so heavy I can't blame them for doing what they had to do to deliver it. The fault lies with the manufacturer for not packing the item properly.
So. In short. If you can find this locally, I totally recommend this stand from Bell'O. It's really beautiful. If you have no choice but to order this online (like me) then just know that getting one in perfect condition will often be a rarity. Maybe your delivery people will be more concerned with the handling of your 120 pound items, it's all a game of chance really. In the end, it was worth the hassle and hidden imperfections though.
Customer Review: Gorgeous unit. I dare you to find a classier TV stand at this price
Summary: 5 Stars
I wanted so desperately to save money on something as simple as a new TV stand, but after seeing this unit I couldn't stop thinking about it. I love the modern aesthetic. I gave myself a few days before realizing that I simply had to have it. In my apartment, where the TV is really the center piece of my living room, it's a stunning, eye-grabbing piece of furniture just where I want one the most. Spend less money on your nightstands... nobody has to see those ;)
Mine came well packaged and 4 days ahead of schedule. The pieces are very sturdy. The glass shelf is thick, the chrome cylinders are heavy and shiny, and the wood pieces are smooth and well-finished. The assembly is simple enough. The weight of the TV stand as a whole might make it cumbersome for small-framed individuals, but I considered this a relatively easy assembly compared with all of the IKEA stuff I've put together in the past.
I like the shelves because unlike my old TV stand, which had individualized compartments, you can put three things (cable box, A/V tuner, PC, etc.) per level as opposed to only two. I also like the design of the piece in the back, which gives you plenty of room through which to route your cords. Some units give you a hole that's too small, which makes it difficult to install or reconfigure your stuff.
My only complaint is that I don't like how the curved top and bottom pieces of wood attach along a seam on the side of the unit. The fit of the two pieces together, given where they drill the screw holes, is not as tight as it could be. But that's probably just my being overly picky. It would take a very trained eye for someone else to notice that seam...
They just lowered the price significantly on amazon!! You can now get this for under $400 with free shipping?! That's a STEAL. There are TV stands that cost $1000 that don't look this good.
Customer Review: Gorgeous!
Summary: 5 Stars
When we started remodeling our living room where our HT is, we realized we would be needing a new stand for the audio/video devices, since we planned on mounting the TV on the wall. So we started looking for a stand we would like and that matched our room decoration.
Once I saw this model from Bell'O, I could not get it off my mind, we had to get this! We looked for other options and we always came back to this one so we finally went ahead and got it.
The box in which this is shipped, like many others have mentioned, arrived damaged, the shipping company should be blamed for that and not the retailer. The box is really heavy to carry and I should warn those with laminated floor to be careful if you plan on dragging the box as it may scratch it (like it happened in my case)
The instructions for assembly are quite clear and even though they suggest this to be assembled by at least two people, I did it myself and did not take more than an hour. All items needed to assemble this are included in the box with the exception of a screwdriver (that you use only near the end to adjust the back side of the unit) Additionally a marker is included to hide any scratches or imperfections, hopefully you will not have to use it.
Once assembled, it looks stunning! As seen in the pictures I added the design looks pretty nice and elegant, the Dark Espresso finish adds elegancy to it. It is supposed to hold flat panels up 56 inches, I am really using it only for my A/V equipment as the TV is wall mounted. The space is more than enough to hold up to four players and amplifiers, always looking good. The design is open so you should not have to worry about ventilation (an area of concern for any PS3 owners) and also features a Cable Management System very helpful for wire management.
I am very happy with how this looks in our living room!