Well, they are/were the staple instrument for a generation of uke players (say, somewhere between mom/dad and grandpa/ma depending on your own age) in Japan.
The laminate mahogany is very thin, as is the laminate koa (according to my speculations, the best sold uke in Japan?).
I guess they may be more expensive than your average (or above average, good, excellent) China made instrument, but not overly so. Try before you buy is always good, although the finish is good mostly, here in Japan I have seen the occasional rough spots, thick varnish, stuff like that. Perhaps they check better before exporting?
(This is not an attempt at bashing, just my shallow experience and meant as a point of advice)
Then again, the KS-1 (mahogany laminate) is about 14000 yen, and I bought a friend a Chinese soprano (solid mahogany) for 10000 yen at the same store that sounded just as good or better. YMMV.