The above is not necessarily true, at least in part. Factories have defects all the time from low to high end bikes, and in fact most high end bikes come out of the same factory low end bikes were made at, and China does not have a stellar record for quality control. I would return the bike and not accept an issue even though it's relatively minor. The new bike you get will probably not have that issue.

It may be true you can get a better bike by paying another $300 extra, but if you can't afford another $300 then just get the one you had.