Receiving Electronics: Models, Serial Numbers and Accessories

Phones, screens, routers and appliances rarely fail at receiving in dramatic ways. They go wrong in the details: a model with a different suffix, a colour that was not ordered, a box that lacks its charger, a unit that has plainly been opened before. Each detail is small, and together they decide whether a pallet can be sold. This article covers what to check on the carton, on the unit and in the contents of the box, and how to record serial numbers so that a mismatch can be traced.

What goes wrong most often

• The model code is nearly right but is not the one on the order. Variants of the same product differ in memory size, power supply, region or colour, and sometimes only a suffix shows it.
• The plug or power supply is not the one your specification requires.
• Accessories are missing, or are of another type.
• The box has been opened, the seal is broken, or the unit looks used or refurbished.
• Cartons hold a mix of variants, while the packing list shows a single one.
• Units are damaged inside boxes that look fine.

What is acceptable depends on your order and your specification, so bring both with you on the day.

On the outer carton

Before opening any box, look at the carton.

• The model code and the description on the label, against the invoice and the packing list.
• The quantity per carton and the carton number.
• The state of the tape and seals. A carton that has been re-taped deserves a closer look.
• Shock or tilt indicators, if fitted, and their state.

Photograph the label with the carton number visible.

On the unit and inside the box

For a sample of boxes, which you agree in advance, open one and compare:

1. The model label on the unit with the model on the carton and in the order.
2. The colour, the size and any region mark that your order specifies.
3. The serial number on the unit with the one printed on the box. Note any mismatch.
4. The accessories with the list on the specification sheet: power supply, cable, adapter, manual, warranty card, mounting parts.
5. The seals and the protective film. A unit without its film, or with scratches, suggests that it has been used.
6. Visible damage: cracked screens, bent housings, loose parts that rattle.

A quick power-on check may be possible in agreed cases. A laboratory test or a full functional test goes beyond a receiving check, and a power-on does not prove that the unit will go on working, so say so in your notes.

Opening a sealed box may reduce its resale value. Agree the number of boxes to open, and who bears any cost, before you begin, and reseal and mark the boxes you have opened.

Recording serial numbers

Use a table with one row per unit:

• carton number and pallet;
• model code;
• serial number, with a photograph of the label beside the entry;
• accessories complete: yes or no;
• condition and remarks.

For high-value units, record every serial number, since you may need them for warranty, theft or return claims. For lower-value goods, record the serials of the sample. Afterwards look for duplicates and for gaps in a sequence. Two units with the same serial number, or a block of numbers that does not match the batch on the paper, should be reported as they are.

A conditional example

An order is 400 boxes of routers in white, model code R-200. You agree to open 20 boxes. Of the 20, 18 are as ordered. Two carry the code R-200B on the unit, with a power supply that differs from your specification, although the carton label still says R-200. You photograph the carton label, the unit label and the two power supplies side by side. The record: "20 of 400 boxes opened; 2 with unit model R-200B and a power supply that differs from the specification (photographs 41 to 48); carton labels read R-200." The supplier can answer that exactly, and you can decide whether to open more boxes from the same pallets.

In short

For electronics the details are the check: the model, the serial number and the contents of the box. CargoChek checks samples against your specification, records the serial numbers you ask for and reports mismatches with photographs. It does not carry out laboratory or functional testing.