Have bought a few items from Fosters & Smith over the years, but for the majority of items I have needed, I was able to find it for less elsewhere. I would be too leary to buy fish without being able to see them first (too worried about most being "boring" to use your words), but regardless, some of them ARE really pretty, and it is good to know the fish were packaged well. I may try them at some point (eyeing their "black koi" but out of QT space for a bit).
Wasnt sure which way to take the wording about NDK. I have bought several fish from them, and have both pro and cons about them, BUT would still buy from them. One is to watch their pictures WELL. Some of the fish we have received have been VERY thin, but when I went back and looked at the pics, was sure it was the right fish, and just learned to look closer at the pics. The "thin fish" were fine, and gained weight quickly, but hey, it was the first time I ordered fish online. My bigger complaint was with the second order. $35 shipping no matter how many fish we bought... about THAT. Bought 7 fish ranging from 7" to 12"... all in one bag... sure it was double bagged, BUT the inner bag leaked, and they only had a couple of inches of water left in the inner bag. Lesson there, only purchase a few at a time, or they will be crammed into a single bag/box. We wont address the issue we had with the UPS guy, just suffice to say he was almost knocked out! (Hint: Box says live fish with arrows pointing up)
Another company that I like better (on ebay) is BKD... Not as educated as NDK (they often miscall the color/patterns of the fish they are selling), and charge shipping by the BOX. Same boxes as NDK, but they refuse to put as many in, and if you ask WHAT fits in a box, they will tell you upfront.
