San Francisco-based platform Purse.io unleashed its Pre service, allowing customers to pre-order some of the latest tech in the world.

Thanks to Purse's own Bitcoin escrow service, Bitcoin payment for orders will be locked to the merchant until a customer has received or cancelled his or her order. This aims to decrease the possibility of scams.

Customer funds safeguarded

The press release, issued to the event, says:

"With Purse Pre, consumers can trust that they will either receive what they pre-ordered or get their money back. Already the world’s largest escrow agent for Bitcoin, a digital currency invented for online transactions, Purse Pre safeguards consumer funds until products actually ship."

Eighty pre-orderable high-tech gadgets were initially released on the Pre marketplace, with more to come in the future. The first are the throw-and-shoot camera, a drone known as Lily, which can follow you around, or Buzzclip, wearable ultrasound technology, which can help those who are visually impaired.

Purse Pre also allows users to track the status of their pre-orders all on one convenient website and cancel orders before their order ships for a full refund, thus removing any worry for missing or delayed orders.

“We are excited to bring Purse Pre to consumers around the world and to the community of entrepreneurs on Kickstarter and Indiegogo.” said Andrew Lee, CEO of Purse.

Andrew Lee, CEO of Purse

Websites such as Kickstarter or Indiegogo are already allowing project backers to use their donation to pre-order the product they love but over 60% of these are never shipped and often end up with customers fighting to get their money back via numerous emails or eventually lawsuits.

Roger Ver endorsement

"Purse Pre is perhaps the best consumer use-case for Bitcoin yet. The Purse Pre marketplace is a lot like Product Hunt, but with a Buy-it-Now button you can trust" commented Bitcoin venture capitalist, Roger Ver.

The Bitcoin-accepting online marketplace is already the most popular and fastest Bitcoin e-commerce platform with shoppers spending over $1 million a month on it. But Pre has changed the gameplay to take on famous online marketplaces such as Amazon or Shopify who already have massive market shares in the e-commerce sector.