BINTEL finally has a new website

[dylan_odonnell]

Hi all,

I've been rebuilding Bintel's website so it handles real time transactions and shipping calculation. No more ringing through and wasting a day sorting out the shipping cost.

It also has near real-time inventory so will let you know if something is in-stock or needs to be back ordered.

It's live but it's not "official" yet as the old site is still running, but would love any feedback or suggestions if you have any. I'm sure many of you are Bintel customers and if not, any advice to the company about what they'd need to do to get your business is appreciated.

New Bintel Website :
https://www.bintel.com.au/

d

[Derek Klepp]

Can,t seem to find the Solar gear?

[dylan_odonnell]

I've been asking them that too :) There are 650+ products in the store right now and more on the way as we synchronise the website with their in-store systems so the inventory is accurate everywhere.

They assure me that a new batch of products are going to be pushed through soon to the website including the solar scopes and filters. Thanks for bringing it up! They are getting all this feedback.

d

[AndrewJ]

Looks like there is much less stock shown on the new site vs the old.
Ie in Mounts/equatorial, the AZEQ5 and AZEQ6 arent on the new site.
in ZWO cameras, only one of the 4 new 1600s appears
Old site lists wedges, new doesnt.
Maybe it currently only shows whats in stock?????

Andrew

[dylan_odonnell]

You are right. There is a lot of stuff on the old site that isn't actually in stock or available, but there is no indication of that there. The new site will tell you if it's in stock, or let you backorder it (2-3 delay). It will also tell you if there are only a couple left of any item.

I'm told they don't stock the AZEQ5, but they do stock the AZEQ6 and they'll get this added to the new site shortly. A staff member is working on pushing through the new ZWO camera models as we speak :)

Thanks for the feedback!

d

[OICURMT]

1) I would suggest that the images open popup style like here on IIS. The way it loads now results in hitting the back button in order to get back to the item.

For example, click on the image of Saturn. https://binocularandtelescope.com.au/product/orion-saturn-map-observing-guide/


2) Also, image size is important. Same link above, second picture is unreadable.

3) Wishlist can be added without logging in, but you can't view a wishlist unless you register and login. Wishlist should be disabled unless you are logged in.

4) Slider for the cost filter disappears when results return no items. Consequently, you have to reload the page from scratch and start over.

[dylan_odonnell]

Thanks! You found a page that was actually broken with some code in the description. I've sanitised the text and now it loads correctly and the images appear in a lightbox.

Will feedback about the wishlist .. The main issue is that the wishlist is a little useless without an account to save it in, otherwise it will disappear when your cookie does. We'll have a think!

The price filter seems to work ok here.. what browser are you running?

Thanks so much for the excellent feedback!

d

[Stonius]

Just letting you know, 'Cassegrain' in the drop-down from the 'Telescopes' menu is a 404, but it works if selected from the left hand side Nav Panel.

-Markus

[dylan_odonnell]

Great pick up .. Thank you!

d

[barx1963]

Also notice that the picture accompanying the Paramount MEII shows an MYT mount.
Also, one feature I always liked on the old site was you could select to show only particular brands. So if looking at mounts you could select to only show SW ones for example.

Malcolm

[speach]

I'm having trouble login in

[Stonius]

Yes, filtering search results would be good, by brand, objective size, goto, push-to, EQ, visual / astrograph...there's a whole bunch of criteria that could be useful!!

[dylan_odonnell]

Thanks.. I'll ask them to fix that picture!

I agree, being able to drill down to brands is great. We've organised the binocular section this way and it needs to happen for mounts too!

d

[dylan_odonnell]

Is it the facebook connect login that you are having trouble with? If you haven't signed up yet you'll need to register an account (click the join the bintel society link) as the old site was on a completely different platform.

d

[Logieberra]

Under "Premium Refractors" heading you have a pic of premium mirrored scopes e.g. CDKs.

[dylan_odonnell]

I knew I posted on IIS for a reason.. you guys are the best. Thanks!

d

[MortonH]

It seems to show 12 items per page with no option to change this. Can we have a 'Show all' option?

[dylan_odonnell]

Sure thing! It's at the bottom of the page now.

d

[speach]

No it's a straight login on the site, and I am reg user.

[dylan_odonnell]

Sorry about that! I didn't make it clear on the login page that existing users will need to register again on this new site. I've added a message on the login page to make this clear, with a link to the registration page.

[Visionoz]

Nice and fresh looking - UX-Flatsome theme is pretty versatile indeed though wondering if it would have display speed issues over time just because it is a WP site.

Good luck with the change-over, great effort Dylan! :thumbsup:

Cheers
Bill

[dylan_odonnell]

Thanks Bill! The site has it's own dedicated server so we can ramp up resources as needed, but it's eating it up so far and the guys are adding new products every day which is good.

We have had issues with one bit of unoptimised code query but should be able to made it good :)

Really appreciate all the feedback and testing, it's given us some great data to improve. For example I kept seeing people change to sort by price, so I saved them a click and made it default. The Bintel guys are reading every comment and considering everything.

d

[peterl]

Noticing that some images, mounts eyepieces etc are stretched and would look better at normal proportions.

Peter.

[dylan_odonnell]

Thanks Peter, that definitely shouldn't be the case. Can you see many? I will regenerate the graphics overnight to ensure they are scaled correctly.

d

[peterl]

On my samsung galaxy 2014 10 inch tablet on the new site,the mount section,az and eq section shows stretched images horizontally.
These same sections on the older bintel site with the same galaxy tablet shows perfect proportioned images..
I just entered the new site with my windows 7 pro system Pc and every image is fine 100%.
Every other website is perfect on this tablet and runs well.
very puzzled.
Peter.

[dylan_odonnell]

I regenerated all the graphics sizes so hopefully there shouldn't be any resizing glitches on your tablet (though they don't appear that way on compliant browsers as you observed!). Let me know if that helps!

Dylan.

[Peter Ward]

Nice web site.

No longer selling Paramounts?

[dylan_odonnell]

Thanks Peter! I'm told they will be getting to the "higher end of town" products and listing these as well. They certainly do still sell them.

Thanks for the feedback!

d

[MortonH]

Maybe you can change one of the things that bugs me about many, if not most, websites. Let's use the Eyepieces and Barlows section as an examples:

After clicking on Eyepieces and Barlows you are presented with six sub-categories: Barlows and Powermates, Bintel, Eyepiece Kits & Cases, Orion, Specialty Eyepieces and Tele Vue. You are then forced to select one of these before proceeding.

What I want is the ability to select all eyepieces regardless of brand. And ideally be able to sort them by focal length. It's annoying and more difficult to compare them when you get forced into a cul-de-sac each time.

Agena Astro is the best website I've seen for this kind of flexibility.

[Stonius]

+1 to that. People want to make up their own filters!

[ab1963]

I agree with the Agena Astro comment,IMO they have it right across the board from website to item price and postage costs and the time the item takes to get to your door ,I tend to deal with them mostly due to their professionalism,that's it in a nutshell

[webtubbs]

How are items added to the wishlist? I can't see any "Add to wishlist" button anywhere.

[webtubbs]

Nevermind, found it hiding on the item image, but it's only visible on mouseover.

[dylan_odonnell]

We hear you all :) We will be adding custom filters to product categories. It takes a little bit of extra development as different products have different search criteria that have to be curated. (eg Focal Length for scopes, Filter Size etc) ... but it's definitely in the works!

[ZeroID]

In ZWO Cameras the cooled ASI 174 has the wrong picture.

[dylan_odonnell]

Right you are! Fixing now ...

d

[lazjen]

On various pages there's the option to "Ask an expert". Is it possible for an email to be sent to the supplied address indicating the submission has succeeded (and the contents) and perhaps some form of reference number for possible follow ups?

Also, if you're on a product page and using that form, does it know about that product? As in, do the details get submitted with the form?

[dylan_odonnell]

Hi Lazjen!

Adding an autoresponder is possible and I will do this to confirm receipt of the enquiry, but it can't contain the contents of the question otherwise spammers use the form to email whoever they like with their scams and promotions.

I can confirm that the "ask and expert" form does let the Bintel guys know what product it was sent from.

Thanks!

d

[lazjen]

That sounds fine.

[MortonH]

I liked the ability on the old site to view Tele Vue eyepieces by type, e.g. DeLite, Nagler, etc. instead of all together.

[LewisM]

New website... I really don't like how if it is NOT in stock it does NOT give the specs/data for many products. Kind of makes you not want to pre-order. I found that the case with a few of the ZWO cameras and some other items.

Can't believe the amount of markup from buying from ZWO direct and the Bintel price - talk about sticker shock! But I am becoming an old curmudgeon ;P

[lazjen]

I must be looking at the wrong place then. The prices listed at ZWO are in USD and don't include tax (GST) which you might have to pay on import.

Factor in the currency conversions and tax, and at least for the '1600 series cameras, the mark up seems quite low?

[04Stefan07]

About time, new site is OK. Every product listed should have photos and a description with it. Usually if I am browsing and there is no stock photo I skip over those products. The old site still exists, they need to shut that down and redirect the old URL to the new one.

[ColHut]

A challenge for me: it completely overwhelms my Ipad I. Flickering gibberish all over the screen! Fine on my desktop but I like o browse from elsewhere. Any chance of selecting a less intense view?

regards

[beren]

I just wish Bintel could improve their email response time, apart from that the site and service is great, the last two enquires have gone unanswered {one involved a Atik ccd}. The days of not answering or taking a couple of days to get back via email to a customer is over. Here is a list of stores that I have used that consistently communicate back in short order Claude at AEC, Steve at Astroshop,Andrews communications,Telescope Express, Agena, Opt, 365astronomy{UK store},PrimaLuceLab,Woodland, Adorama,Cyclops optics. I prefer having correspondence/business done in the written form for record keeping, to counter the "use the phone " argument. Anyway that's my soapbox moment :).

[happycamper]

Haven't read the thread so not sure if this has been covered yet.
I tried the mobile site today on my iphone and wasn't able to navigate to eyepieces. Thought it might be in accessories, but didn't see it there. I was only able to do a search (for say "nagler"). Didn't try TOO hard to find them but then it shouldn't be hard either.
cheers
John

[jamespierce]

Doesn't feel like an improvement on the old site (which was quite serviceable ?)

[Peter Ward]

Oh dear.

Clicked on the link and got the attached...:sadeyes:

[rustigsmed]

i can confirm this (using chrome)

[mountainjoo]

https://www.bintel.com.au/ working fine on chrome.

[dylan_odonnell]

Hi John!

I just tried on my iPhone and didn't have any trouble. There are two ways there - Either scroll down from the homepage to the list of categories and there is a main one for eyepieces.

OR clicking on the mobile menu, then the arrow next to "adapters and accessories" and eyepieces are in there.

Let me know if either of those things isn't working for you!

Dylan.

[dylan_odonnell]

Yep, because we've switched to the old (original) domain name now - bintel.com.au .. when trying to hit it with the temporary/transition URL binocularandtelescope.com.au you will get the SSL warning.

We decided that the original domain name was the best one to run with now that the old site is gone so please update any bookmarks you have to go directly to bintel.com.au and you won't get any errors.

I'll update the original post to reflect this too.. thanks!

Dylan.

[Kunama]

:mad2: The website works too well, just cost me a small fortune :mad2:

at least the steady stream of Aust Post vans coming to visit will make me feel better... :D:D

[dylan_odonnell]

Haha! Well that's good to hear, I think :lol: Merry Christmas!

[MortonH]

Hey Dylan,

A few things I miss from the old site...



The old site had 'Eyepieces & Barlows' as a direct link at the top of the page whereas now it's hidden away under 'Adapters & Accessories'.
The old Tele Vue section had links on the left to browse by range, e.g. Naglers, Panoptics, etc.
Finally, and I'm being a little OCD, in my opinion the default sort order for eyepieces should be focal length. Currently they're thrown together in a random order.


Making them nicer to browse through will increase the chance of a purchase! ;)

[dylan_odonnell]

Thanks for the feedback Morton! I've fed this back to the team. The products are actually ordered by price (it's not random) from low to high which makes sense most of the time. Whether they want to sort by other options depends if they have time to manually sort each category depending on what it is. I'll see what they say about adding subcategories to televues and "eyepieces and barlows" to the main menu.

d

[MortonH]

Thanks, Dylan.

You're right about the sort order being by price, although (to me) it looks odd when that results in the first three items being Tele Vue Plossl 11mm, 15mm then 8mm - standard alphabetical sorting I guess.

[happycamper]

Ahh, that's interesting. On a mobile device, my first instinct is always to hit the Hamburger first, so I didn't scroll right down to the bottom of the home page.

However, if you do hit the hamburger, and the actual "adaptors and accessories" link (as i did originally on the left side of the menu), I still don't see an eyepieces section. However if i hit the ARROW there (right side of menu) i do. 'seems inconsistent.

But also, don't you think that eyepieces should have it's own main link under the hamburger? (you already have telescopes, and mounts at that menu level, so i would have thought eyepieces are of that same importance).

cheers
John

[MortonH]

Just came across the updated eyepiece section. Looks great!

[dylan_odonnell]

Yes we do listen, even to the visual guys ;)

Just joking. In all seriousness Bintel is always listening to the feedback!

[dpastern]

why not get a multi domain SSL? Costs a bit, but protects both the old and new domains...

[dpastern]

The old site had piers etc, but the new site doesn't. I don't know if Bintel no longer stocks such things (it's probably not worth their time or money), or they do, but their site isn't showing it.

I have to say I prefer the old site, but they, I'm a big subscriber to the don't change it unless it's broken mentality. A change for change's sake is never good imho.

Dave

[dylan_odonnell]

That's true! The new URL was really temporary for staging though and we won't be using it ever again. Google prefers a single URL so it doesn't detect duplicate content across different domains. It's already unindexed and the main domain is working well in google's index already.

The difference in stock between old site and new site is definitely the main feedback we get. Lots of stuff on the old site wasn't stocked any more but could be sourced if needed. They are still loading in new/old stuff all the time and over time it will accrue a large list of in-stock and out-of-stock items like the old site did, expect this time you can tell which is which in real time.

There is always room for improvement and while the new site performs better according to the back-end data, they still consider all the suggestions in this thread. Custom sorting is a big one but requires a fair amount of data entry and setup (e.g. adding all focal lengths for 100s of products) but the default "sort by price" works well most of the time. (e.g. small scopes are cheap, big scopes are expensive!)

Thanks for all your help Ice in Spacers!

d

[dpastern]

Well, if it's a Wordpress site, just make sure the server it's running on is using up to date Apache2.x and PHP5.x, with all security updates, and that Wordpress is updated as soon as a new update is released. Wordpress (and Joomla) both have very bad reputations for being a delight for crackers. I'd make sure that both the apache2 and php config files are hardened and probably train the staff to check both the apache2 and syslogs daily.

edit: you should be able to do an apache2 rewrite in a .htaccess file to redirect the old site to new, but I'm sure you already know this.

[dylan_odonnell]

Yep, I used to run an ISP and have been running my webhosting company since 1999, so I look after everything from the kernel to the html :) Updates are regular and controlled.

.htaccess with url re-writes / 301 redirects are in place just in case anyone comes in from the old links, but it's already phased out really.

Thanks again for all the feedback and advice!

d

[dpastern]

Excellent! I can't think of anything else.