Has anyone heard of XINYI dolls?

I found these while bumming around AliExpress.  Apparently the brand is called XINYI.  There are so many new brands than there were when I left the hobby, and I don't want recasts of any kind, so I figured I would ask you knowledgeable folks! 

A couple examples:  Exhibit A , Exhibit B, and Exhibit C

In related news, also just found one - not the best looking but the price is great - called Hi-ME.  Seen here

As a general rule of thumb I avoid buying dolls off Aliexpress, since the marketplace is flooded with recasts. The "Xinyi" doll's head in particular seems suspect to me, so I wouldn't buy either one of these. The "Hi-Me" shop straight up sells resin recasts, so just stay away.

If it isn't from Volks, Smartdoll, Azone, Obitsu/Parabox, Visuadoll, Angel Philia, Pink Drops, Yamato/Arcadia, or TinyFox (a sister company of Dollzone/Doll Chateau), then to me it is likely a knockoff. The brands I listed are the only ones I know for certain are legitimate vinyl doll companies.

Edited December 21, 2020 by Selenae

Ok, good to know!  Thank you for that, and for the list of companies that are for sure solid.  I'd not even heard of some of them, but now I know who to look for! 😊

Other legitimate vinyl companies:

- Fairyland (AniFee is a vinyl body/resin head combo)

- Dollce (sells vinyl heads)

- Dolly Pop! (sells vinyl heads & parts, sometimes full dolls)

- Vindoll

- "Real Art Project" and "Quarantotto" are also used to describe Angel Philia dolls

- Night Lolita are legitimate but be cautious as a lot of recast sells will slap the label "Night Lolita" on dolls that are decidedly not Night Lolita

Mandarake is a safe place to shop for second-hand dolls, as they don't carry recasts.

 

More information about other doll options running around out there:

 

I've been trying to figure Manadarake out, but it's just confusing me.  I'm sure with more time I'll get it, though. (I can be a bit slow on the uptake sometimes. lol)  

I think I've actually found a few legit Night Lolitas, but I'm researching them more before I purchase.  Funds for dolls is really tight, and I would hate to spend what I have only to have to trash it due to being a recast (and that's exactly what I'd do).

I plan on getting a Granado Vindoll once I figure out how their layaway works, they're gorgeous! 

My entry-level vinyl recommendation is usually Azone:

- US dealers mean you can avoid international shipping costs / proxy fees / etc

- Come as full sets (make-up, eyes, wig, outfit, shoes) so you can enjoy your doll right away, out of the box

- Lower price point, usually $400 - $500 (again, for a full set)

- Repair parts are cheap and plentiful (I have 8 and only 1 has ever required repairs)

I'm looking at an Azone for one of the girls I'll need.  Sadly, they don't work for the boys.  The Vindoll Pancho is perfect for my main boy, and I have a couple resins that are going to be a few, leaving me with 1 doll to find.

As to my girls, 2 are resin, 1 is 55cm Obitsu, leaving me 2 to find.  Trying to find super-cheap stand-ins for the time being until finances improve, but we'll see how that pans out. *shrug*

In our local bjd community that strictly abides by DOA's standards, we consider Xinyi dolls as legit, same with the ones you particularly linked as pictured.

However some dolls may also be labelled as Xinyi as a generic term and does not legitimately come from the Xinyi brand. 

Of course in DOA, Xinyi is off topic as it is not resin nor vinyl.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/33055796850.html < this specific body and face sculpt is what in our community considered as legit Xinyi brand.

@toufufu  Thank you for that!  I also noticed, in a link provided by Cauldroness about known legit/counterfeit dolls in another thread, that Xinyi is listed as legit as well.  However, like you said, have to be careful since so many counterfeit sellers like to spam company names in order to snag sales.

*Addendum to above ^*

I've been looking through the actual store for that link (HERE).  It seems they have several 1/4 dolls listed as Xinyi.  I hope that they are legit, as it seems, while planning out my new "family", that the idea of 1/4 instead of 1/3 is quickly gaining traction for me.  

On 12/22/2020 at 12:34 AM, Cauldroness said:

My entry-level vinyl recommendation is usually Azone:

- US dealers mean you can avoid international shipping costs / proxy fees / etc

- Come as full sets (make-up, eyes, wig, outfit, shoes) so you can enjoy your doll right away, out of the box

- Lower price point, usually $400 - $500 (again, for a full set)

- Repair parts are cheap and plentiful (I have 8 and only 1 has ever required repairs)

Wait! where do you get Azone in the US? I always thought AmiAmi was my only option 😧

32 minutes ago, Air said:

Wait! where do you get Azone in the US? I always thought AmiAmi was my only option 😧

https://fabricfriendsdolls.com

On 12/21/2020 at 11:59 PM, Cauldroness said:

Mandarake is a safe place to shop for second-hand dolls, as they don't carry recasts.

Isn't faithz one of the legitimate websites?

3 hours ago, Gwandak said:

Isn't faithz one of the legitimate websites?

Yes, but it’s in Hong Kong, which might make shipping expensive to people outside Asia.

53 minutes ago, ragnamuffin said:

Yes, but it’s in Hong Kong, which might make shipping expensive to people outside Asia.

Is there an American dealer? I am planning on getting an angel philia sometime in the near future, and it would be nice to know what all my options are when it comes to websites.

1 hour ago, Gwandak said:

Is there an American dealer? I am planning on getting an angel philia sometime in the near future, and it would be nice to know what all my options are when it comes to websites.

I don’t know of one for Angel Philia, but Fabric Friends & Dolls (US) and Tasina (Canada) are usually recommended to North Americans for Azone stuff. The Azone store sells APs, so maaaybe you can get one that way if you ask the owners, but no guarantees. People here usually seem to get their APs from Mandarake.

 

8 hours ago, ragnamuffin said:

I don’t know of one for Angel Philia, but Fabric Friends & Dolls (US) and Tasina (Canada) are usually recommended to North Americans for Azone stuff. The Azone store sells APs, so maaaybe you can get one that way if you ask the owners, but no guarantees. People here usually seem to get their APs from Mandarake.

Got it. I've been looking a lot at faithz because I thought that was an official retailer for them. Thank you for letting me know!

24 minutes ago, Gwandak said:

 

Got it. I've been looking a lot at faithz because I thought that was an official retailer for them. Thank you for letting me know!

Just to clarify, FaithZ is an official retailer for Angel Philia goods. They don’t get recommended as often because the markup + shipping from Hong Kong means you’re going to pay an arm and leg for your order.

7 minutes ago, ragnamuffin said:

Just to clarify, FaithZ is an official retailer for Angel Philia goods. They don’t get recommended as often because the markup + shipping from Hong Kong means you’re going to pay an arm and leg for your order.

Isn't mandrake the same way though? That's shipping from Japan if I'm not mistaken, so wouldn't the cost for shipping be similar?

45 minutes ago, Gwandak said:

Isn't mandrake the same way though?

They don't have nearly as high of a markup, if there is one at all, and with the current exchange rate shipping is absolutely cheaper from Japan than from HK. 

You'll often be paying the cost of shipping from Japan whether an American dealer exists or not. Since AP is based in Japan, American dealers have to pay to ship their goods from there, and that cost is often passed onto the consumer in some form, usually as markups. It might not be as much of a markup since they order in bulk, but it's there. The dealer would lose money otherwise. I'd bet that's part of why FaithZ's markup is so high, too.

The exchange rate is also not taken into account usually - compare the Fabric Friends price for a Smartdoll with the current price in yen of one on the official shop, and you can see how a local dealer might not necessarily save you any money. Mandarake is currently the most economical option for full APs, from my understanding.

Wow, you both have saved me a lot of head ache in the future! I will start monitoring Mandrake more than faithz now because of the information you both provided, so thank you!

7 hours ago, Gwandak said:

Wow, you both have saved me a lot of head ache in the future! I will start monitoring Mandrake more than faithz now because of the information you both provided, so thank you!

No problem, glad to help. Another thing of note is that Mandarake usually sells secondhand goods, but they do seem to sell limited amounts of new stock of Angel Philia products in particular, so it pays to read the listing carefully.

I am OK with second hand. I don't necessarily feel the need to get new as long as it was taken care of properly. But I will make sure to read each listing before spamming the checkout button!