Exactly. I prefer Amazon Basics to YAYWOWND brand every day.

It is one of the few brands on Amazon you can count on to not be Chinese crap. Even if it is made in China, the Amazon Basics products are generally good quality.

I think it's slightly better than <insert anonymous three day old Chinese company here> but just slightly. Amazon Basics within my company has earned a reputation for being extremely fragile crap that will break quickly and, occasionally, dramatically. I have had absolutely awful experiences with their surge protectors.

But yes - it's a step up from YAYWOWND which is a company that probably didn't exist last week and almost certainly won't exist in a month when their product spontaneously combusts and you try and chase down damages or at least a refund... Still, I'm actually finding myself buying more and more name brand crap because at least that way I know there's a company I can reach out to when it breaks down.

We’re coming full circle

The /r/usbchardware subreddit used to recommend AmazonBasics cables because they are USB IF certified https://www.usb.org/single-product/728 but lately... https://www.usb.org/products the entire company is gone. https://i.imgur.com/qFzHbvP.png It also used to be you could use the ASIN to search for it... you can't now.

Bonus points for YAYWOWND that didn't exist last week, yet all it's products have thousands of 5 star reviews that amazon somehow doesn't think is fraudulent.

Amazon Basics products were previously known for causing fires and destroying electronic devices. See: https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/10/business/amazonbasics-electro...

I don't know if they ever fixed this problem (they have changed suppliers before), but I try to avoid using products from Amazon or no-name Chinese companies that plug into the wall.

That is another problem with Amazon. It seems like my only options are Amazon Basics, or weird 3-day old Chinese brand.

Where are all the actually reputable brands hiding?

Many reputable brands are not on Amazon because then they people who buy from them are not getting a counterfeit. You have to be a certain size to pull this off though, small companies have trouble getting a market outside of amazon or ebay.

Kirkland has a big difference here, in that it's a much better consistent indicator of quality than the Amazon house brands.

Probably true. But then feels like it's one or two tweaks away.

It might be, but Costco has a reputation for integrity, and it's not worth trading that for a few percent cost savings on generic items that aren't even a big portion of their bottom line.

I meant for amazon.