Here are some of the more common questions that we are asked:


Do you license portions of your code?

No. Elm Electronics does not license the code to any of our products.

Do you offer discounts on volume purchases?

Yes, but not in the traditional sense (and not for the ELM327 v1.3a).
The InternetSecure system that processes our orders does not allow us to change pricing dynamically (for security reasons). With fixed prices, our only alternative is to offer bonus quantities on items purchased, as follows:

0 to 9 identical devices - no bonus
10 to 99 identical devices - 20% bonus
100 to 999 identical devices - 30% bonus
more than 1000 devices - 40% bonus

For example, a purchase of 20 identical ICs would actually be shipped 24 (20 + 20%), while a total order of 100 of one type would be shipped 130 (30% bonus).

Do you have any retailers or distributors in my country?

No - we only offer our products via the web, and do not have distributors. This helps to keep our costs down, so we can in turn keep the prices low. All orders must be made over the Internet, through our web site.

What is your return policy?

Returns are not accepted. As experienced electronics hobbyists know, mistakes can happen when you are building a circuit. Occasionally circuits are severely overstressed by excessive voltages or currents, and although they may not fail right away, they could eventually die prematurely due to the stress. We cannot know what an IC has been subjected to, so can never resell one if it were to be returned. This is common practice in the electronics industry - we are just being consistent.

What is your Privacy Policy?

Any information that you provide to us remains confidential, and is never shared with nor sold to another party.

When you go to the InternetSecure site to complete your purchase, you will be required to provide information that they need to authenticate the Credit Card information. We also need the same information in order to label your package.
Some people have questioned the need for providing their telephone number and their email address when ordering. We only print your telephone number on the invoice so that the Customs Office can reach you if they have to, but do nothing else with it. As for the email address, we need that to contact you if there is a problem with your order, and to tell you when your order has shipped.
It is to your advantage to provide accurate shipping information if you want to receive your goods with the least delay.

The Credit Card information you provide to InternetSecure travels as an encypted message directly to the bank. It is never stored at InternetSecure, and at no time do we at Elm Electronics have access to it. If the card information you provided was acceptable to the bank, they will send an 'authorization number', signalling that it is OK to fill your order.

I suppose we should confess that there is one other thing that we do with your address. We have a map of the world on one wall, and as we ship orders, we put glow-in-the-dark stars on the map for each new location. We're pleased to say that it is filling up nicely.

Do you do custom designs?

No, sorry but we are a small business, and do not have the resources required to develop and maintain custom products.

Can I phone you to ask a question?

No, you can't - we do not offer a telephone help line.
If you have a question, then ask it in an email. We do our best to answer your questions, but please note we are not in business to provide basic electronics training.

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