Echo Shindaiwa review: Customer service and battery/charger

I purchased a Shindaiwa string trimmer/hedge trimmer combo with battery and charger from Power Equipment Direct (PED). Items arrived in a timely manner. The problem was that the battery was not able to "click" or "seat" properly in the charger, so the battery would not charge. After a few emails back and forth to customer service of Echo/Shindaiwa (and many more unanswered emails) a new battery was sent to the local business handling warranty claims. Battery was received but the new battery exhibited the same problem as the first battery. Now we are approaching the 2 month mark of not being able to use the equipment. The last update (8/4/22) is that a new battery and charger are being sent to the warranty rep. He will see if this new set of items will actually work. Needless to say this has been a frustrating experience with the time delays and unanswered emails. It may also be the case that the battery and charger are shoddily made, revealing poor quality control.