Log In isn't exactly a... "shop". It's more of a Japanese (and US) shop deputy service. In shorter terms, SMJ lets you bid on Yahoo Auctions Japan (as well as other Japan-only auctions) in real time. They will then get the package from the seller and keep it in their warehouse. Once they have everything you ordered, you can then request for it to be shipped to your place anywhere around the globe via whatever shipping you prefer (from SAL to FedEx, they honor it). Aside from Yahoo Auctions bids, they can also buy from Japan-only online stores for you. They also even have a service where you'll describe the item, and they'll try to find it within famous Japanese stores, like the ones in Akihabara. Best of all, they honor Paypal (and credit cards). The only service I ever did try is the bidding for Yaho o Auctions. In order to bid, you first have to make a deposit. If you're using PayPal, the minimum deposit is $10.00. Once you've paid for your item, you can simply get this $10 back. The amount you deposit also determines just how much you can bid. Just multiply your deposit amount (in dollars) to 110, then multiply it by 5, and that amount is the maximum bid you can give (in Yen). For example, I deposited $10, so my bidding limit is $10 x 110 Yen = 1100 Yen x 5 = 5,500 Yen. Anyway, as I said, bidding is really in real time. Which is great. It's just like bidding on eBay! I've ordered around 12 items from them via the real time bidding, and I've had two packages sent to my place. My 2nd package just arrived yesterday, and everything is in order, no damage whatsoever. And the items were packed into a box filled with bubble wrap, so nothing got broken (I bought some CDs and games). My poster that was included (also bought it from an auction) was carefully packed in a tube, so it looks great. Customer service is also really good. They usually reply within the day to all my e-mails, or at least by the next day. Of course, a service like this have fees. And this is practically the only thing I don't like much about them. Their fees are a bit high (standard $6 for items worth 2,000 Yen or less; Standard $8 for items worth 6,000 yen or less). But then again, I chose SMJ out of all the Japanese deputy services because they offer the cheapest fees as compared to, let's say, Tenso.com. Anyway, don't let the... somewhat unprofessional site design fool you (I'm sorry SMJ, but this is just my opinion. You need a site redesign). It's a really great service with great customer support.
