Comparing vendors for group order

So me and 4 friends are looking to place a group order. It's actually our first time pooling like this, so we're trying to weigh our options real carefully. We've narrowed it down to a couple of vendors, but we keep going back and forth on what really matters most for a group buy. Figured I'd throw this out here and see if anyone with more group order experience can chime in.

So here's the core debate: turnaround time vs. quality. Two of the guys are impatient and just want the fastest shipping possible – they're talking about using the vendor that claims 7-10 day delivery. The other two are leaning toward the higher-tier option that supposedly takes 3-4 weeks but has much better scans and microprint. I'm honestly kind of stuck in the middle. We're willing to wait if the quality is significantly better, but we also need to coordinate timing since we're all splitting shipping. Has anyone here done a group order with a slower vendor and actually noticed a night-and-day difference in the finished product? Or is the gap smaller than people make it out to be?

From what I've gathered reading through old threads, here's where we're at. The fast vendor says about 7-10 business days after payment clears, but I've seen some reviews mention 2-3 week delays during busy periods. The slower vendor advertises 3-4 weeks and seems to stick to it pretty consistently from what I've read. For group orders, that timeline difference matters because if one of us gets delayed, it messes up the whole shipping split. Packaging stealth is another big deal for us. Since this is a group order, we'll get everything in one package, so it needs to be discreet. I've heard one vendor uses a plain bubble mailer with a fake return address like "Gift Shop" or something generic. The other vendor supposedly double-boxes and wraps each ID individually to prevent scratching. But I haven't seen recent confirmation on that either way.

Communication speed has been hit or miss. I reached out to both vendors with a group order inquiry. The fast vendor replied within a day with a simple yes/no. The slower vendor took three days to respond, but they gave a more detailed breakdown about pricing for 5 IDs and even asked about our specific state templates. That suggests they're more attentive, which makes me lean toward quality. For value for money, I'd give the fast vendor maybe a 6/10 – you get what you pay for, decent for the price but nothing impressive. The slower vendor feels like maybe an 8/10 in terms of overall quality-to-cost ratio, especially since we're splitting the shipping cost five ways, so per person it's not much more expensive for the better product.

Let me break down the pros and cons as we see them. For the fast turnaround option: pros are quick delivery, which helps with group coordination, and lower upfront cost. Cons are inconsistent quality – I've seen reports of off-center holograms and flimsy PVC, and sometimes the UV is barely visible. For the quality-focused slower vendor: pros are much closer to real specs, better lamination, microprint that actually holds up under a loupe, and the holos look sharp. Cons are the 3-4 week wait, and you might have to follow up if you don't hear anything for a week. There's also a slight risk of the group order getting seized if the packaging isn't tight, but that's a general risk for any ID vendor.

At the end of the day, honestly, we all want IDs that pass a casual glance, but we're not trying to use them at high-security places. So maybe the faster, cheaper route is fine for us? I'd love to hear from people who've actually done group orders similar to this – did you regret going for speed over quality, or vice versa? What matters more in your experience?