Amazon Prime Waste of Time

jizmo on 16/12/2021 - 16:34

Never used AZ then saw this deal https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/671266 so I've jumped on it setup TV. Everything I was interested in they wanted money to view kind of defeats the purpose of paying them $60.
Then I read somewhere orders over $50 are free so I've gone to check out on an order for $80 and they want another $30 for delivery $110 in total. Yesterday I'm sure I could buy the same thing off Ebay delivered for less than $80.

I can't see where the attraction is with Amazon what am I missing.

Poll Options

  • 3
    Don't use Amazon for this reason
  • 177
    Use Amazon mostly
  • 13
    Use ebay Aliexpress and Amazon
  • 6
    Only use Ebay and Aliexpress
General Discussion

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Amazon AU
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Comments

  • Hithere on 16/12/2021 - 16:40
    +4

    Where's an option - Only use AliExpress?

  • spackbace on 16/12/2021 - 16:41
    +8

    Then I read somewhere orders over $50 are free

    Many items are shipped free with Amazon Prime with no spend limit, hence why grocery deals are popular as people will get a $5 item delivered for free

  • apsilon on 16/12/2021 - 16:41
    +39

    You misunderstand how the shipping works. If it's shipped from Amazon AU it ships free regardless of the value. If it ships from a third party then that third party may charge shipping.

    • Almost Banned on 16/12/2021 - 18:36
      +5

      Or Amazon International - in which case you need to spend over a certain limit to get the free shipping.
      I do lots of buying online from Amazon and it is almost always free.
      Plus Prime video and music are nice extras.

  • 87percent on 16/12/2021 - 16:42
    +5

    What a poet, and he didn’t know it

  • Cheaplikethebird on 16/12/2021 - 16:44
    +23

    It took me about ten re-reads and some long division but I think I've made sense of your post.

    You purchased Amazon Prime with the main intention of using it for the Prime Video streaming service but have found that most videos need to be purchased. You then checked to see if you could get free shipping on an order as an alternative method of gaining value for your subscription.

    So, Amazon has a huge video catalogue as it's a massive distributor of digital media, what is free is limited but as a free add-on to your Amazon prime service (as most people view it) it's still pretty good.

    Prime will give you free shipping but only on items marked as Prime and if you're ordering from Amazon US or UK you have a minimum order amount of $50.

    I find it's good value as I order quite a bit from Amazon as in a lot of cases it's a way to avoid the 'Australia tax'. They also pricematch Coles/Woolies specials often so it's nice to be able to bulk buy specials without having to empty a supermarket shelf.

  • geek001 on 16/12/2021 - 16:44
    -5

    I feel the same way. I got free Amazon Prime as part of this deal. https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/670045

    So far, my Amazon Prime use has been quite underwhelming. I am not sure I would get enough use out of it to justify the $60. I find the stuff I want to buy are usually more expensive on Amazon compared to elsewhere. There are some rare occasions where Amazon Prime could get you something from overseas, like this deal: https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/658388

    • PronounceIt on 16/12/2021 - 17:20
      +1

      Amazon Prime is good when you want things quick and are prepared to pay a bit more.
      Refunds are easy as, and then you get (some) movies and (some) music as well as a part of it for a low cost. I think games also?
      Sure its no Netflix or Spotify but for occasional use its awesome for the price.

      • geek001 on 16/12/2021 - 17:39

        In Australia, if you want something quick, don't you just go to the shops? I know that is old school, but the stuff I buy from Amazon still take a week to arrive, very similar timeframes to B&M websites and ebay. I know that is not Amazon's fault, that is just the way it is in Australia.

        I don't think I have ever bought anything delivered that takes less than 3 days to arrive since COVID, maybe once a long time ago when Au post had next day delivery, which arrived in less than 24 hours, but that was yonks ago.

        Yes, I agree refunds/returns are easy, easier than most. Amazon Prime Video is no Netflix, but I found something to watch on there, so again, not terrible. I am not saying that Amazon Prime is bad, just underwhelming.

        • foxmulder on 16/12/2021 - 18:17

          Some of the stuff I need I just order it under a minutr or two and it will be there in a day or two. Once I ordered on Saturday and on Monday morning driver show up with the item I order. Yes you can buy at store but if the price is the same (and even discounted with gift card and cashbacks), why bother to go right.

          • geek001 on 16/12/2021 - 18:28

            @foxmulder: I can see the attraction of convenience, especially in these strange times, going out is a risk!

            Maybe your experience is different because you live in Sydney.

            Just to give you an idea, my last order from Amazon was placed 4 December. It arrived 15 December. I admit this one took longer than usual, I am not sure why, but this was a definite outlier.

            The one before that, ordered, 24 November arrived 29 November. 5 days is about the average.

            • foxmulder on 16/12/2021 - 18:39

              @geek001: Are you prime member? Non prime usually get 'delayed' shipment.

          • Almost Banned on 16/12/2021 - 18:38
            +8

            @justdigi: I am regularly stunned at how fast I get stuff from Amazon.
            Even here in Perth I routinely get stuff delivered next day, or second day.

          • geek001 on 16/12/2021 - 18:47

            @justdigi: You are probably right. Maybe the stuff I buy has to come from another "warehouse".

    • plmko on 16/12/2021 - 17:36
      -1

      My least used subscription. Most people that find Amazon 'cheap' are those who are lazy to seek their own deals (fair enough) but Ebay is hands down the cheapest especially if you factor in sell benefits.

      On the odd occasion it is cheap, they're probably just price matching competitors in which case I'd rather reward the deal maker rather than the price matcher.

      • geek001 on 16/12/2021 - 17:50

        Same. If they are cheap, it might be a price matching error, like this one: https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/669535

        To be fair, you can get discounted Amazon gift cards, so there is an incentive to just buy at the matched price on Amazon, plus you know you got one rather than trying to chase stock at B&M stores.

        That being said, I am not sure how their price matching algo works, not many items are price matched automatically and you can't request a price match, so most of the time, most things are cheaper somewhere else compared to Amazon.

        I have only made 2 orders from Amazon in the last 3 months, not worth the subscription if I have to actually pay for it.

      • apsilon on 16/12/2021 - 17:53
        +5

        No doubt it's what I buy but I've found the opposite, Amazon is cheaper than ebay. eg my last order the same item on ebay was $15 more and I'd have to wait for it to come from China as opposed to local stock that arrived in a couple of days. Order before that Amazon was $46 cheaper. I could go on. Of course that's not to say I don't shop around.

        • Almost Banned on 16/12/2021 - 18:39
          +3

          Not only do I find Amazon competitive on price with Ebay, I actually tend to get what I expected to buy on Amazon, and can return pretty easily if there's a problem - again, unlike Ebay.

        • geek001 on 17/12/2021 - 10:51

          Perhaps I am using Amazon Prime wrong. There seems to be a number of people disagreeing with my experience saying stuff on Amazon is more expensive, judging by the number of downvotes on my comments. Genuinely curious, what do you buy on Amazon that is cheaper, if you don't mind me asking? Some people pointed out the "Australian tax", do you buy things from overseas Amazon?

          • apsilon on 17/12/2021 - 12:31
            +1

            @geek001: I doubt you're using it wrong, you're probably buying things like PC parts which I've never found cheaper on Amazon. I buy a lot of tools, DIY stuff, too much random stuff to list. Much of it is local stock but often it's also stuff from Amazon UK or US if I can meet the $49 requirement for free shipping.

            • geek001 on 17/12/2021 - 13:05

              @apsilon: Actually you know what? I did buy some PC parts from Amazon and they were comparable to local computer store pricing. I got them from Amazon because I could use discounted gift cards. That was a while ago and I have to put a page monitor on the product page because Amazon pricing seems to change quite often for some products, every few days, or even twice a day sometimes. Few dollars difference at a time, but meh, money is money. :)

              Are tools generally cheaper on Amazon UK/US? I buy DIY things as well, but mostly from Aliexpress if you don't really care about the quality and one use,eg. drill bits and whipper snipper blades, etc. Most electronic components are ok, consumer tech is a bit hit/miss. It does take a while to get here, 3 to 5 weeks, but it is significantly cheaper than say, Bunnings/Jaycar.

              For example, I am looking for an poster picture frame today. Cheapest I have found is Kmart, not Amazon. I was looking for an Omron blood pressure monitor the other day, cheapest is one of the chain chemist, still not Amazon. Nintendo 3DS battery, cheapest is Aliexpress.

              So, what is the secret? I have been shopping online enough to know that getting a good deal is all about timing and patience, do you just hang out on "Today's deals" page on Amazon?

              • apsilon on 17/12/2021 - 13:40
                +1

                @geek001: I always buy at least mid tier tools as I see them as an investment. I bought cheaper tools when I was young and would often be frustrated by their performance or they'd just break. You can definitely get cheaper on ebay if you don't care about quality but if you're shopping for particular brands, I find they're rarely even available on ebay. Tools like most things generally are cheaper OS than local.

                I don't think there's any secret. I'm not saying Amazon is the cheapest bar none, I do buy stuff elsewhere. Actually I got curious while typing this and checked. I've placed 18 orders on ebay this year and 9 have those have been some variety of fastener. That's higher than normal due to lockdowns which is why half the orders have been for fasteners. I've placed 97 orders on Amazon and that's just Prime, there'd be a few third party ones as well and I've had a slow year as I've made a conscious effort to cut back my purchases.

                I used to use ebay a tonne, but since they introduced ebay plus and stopped offering frequent site wide discounts my purchases via that site dropped off to a tiny fraction of what they once were as I can usually find things cheaper elsewhere. I do use extensive "wish lists" on Amazon. If it's something for an upcoming project or just a nice to add to the tool box type of thing where I can wait, things do often go on sale which also helps. I rarely look at todays deals at all as I find it mostly cheaper quality stuff that I'm not interested in.

    • meowsers on 16/12/2021 - 19:51
      -1

      I get every dollar out of amazon prime and then some. I literally had a 100ml of lemon juice and a free coke no sugar delivered the other day. We get stuff like toilet paper delivered on the regular for $12 for a 45 pack. Stuff arrives in 12 hours in capital cities not sure about NT and WA / TAS though cause they don't count.

      Prime is a fantastic deal.

      • foxmulder on 16/12/2021 - 20:02

        Where do you see $12 for 45 pack? Normally around $18-20

  • SF3 on 16/12/2021 - 16:48
    +8

    I thought people only join prime for shopping, video are like a bonus (e.g. it didn't really matter).

    But TIL /s.

  • TheBean on 16/12/2021 - 16:55
    +3

    where's the option for using all three?

    Also free shipping is on Prime items and free on Prime international if over $49 total international spend in one transaction.

  • brendanm on 16/12/2021 - 17:24
    +9

    I think prime is the only subscription service that is actually value for money.

  • MS Paint on 16/12/2021 - 17:38
    +5

    This will be the best $4 you've ever spent

  • raptormesh on 16/12/2021 - 18:12

    Depends on how much you buy, according to Amazon I saved $50 per month on delivery usually.

  • aguitarfreak on 16/12/2021 - 18:14

    When you say “Everything I was interested in they wanted money to view”, was there really nothing you cared for included in the prime subscription? There are a lot of amazing prime exclusive movies and shows on there that are worth the price of admission.

  • Nutrino on 16/12/2021 - 19:15

    Amazon prime has the best service.

  • payless69 on 16/12/2021 - 19:20
    -5

    Ordered an in stock iten that turned out to be a drop shipper who had no stock. So just extra time to chase up and wait. But in all honesty Amazon has the most draconian contracts for drop shippers and one could say bent the line less than ebay.
    I think the only bargain from Jeff would have been his ex that if I would have been a good divorce lawyer.

    Yep they have movies, but I got no time for them. Not a unionist but I do think patriotic enough to say we should avoid firms that have an overall bad impact on Australia.

  • Soundwave on 17/12/2021 - 09:10
    +1

    I signed up for Amazon Prime because I could get monthly bonuses from their Twitch Prime perks for a game I play constantly.
    With Twitch Prime I can give my favourite Twitch streamer a Sub for 'free'.
    Also free games monthly.
    But in the last two years, I am just happy with their Online Shopping. I have ordered something close to midnight and had it delivered the next day. I have had overseas orders arrive within 4 working days.
    A lot of things I order have free express delivery being a Prime member.
    I also like the wide range of items available and their Black Friday sale was great.
    Amazon Video, yes it is disappointing to see their are movies you still have to pay for. It's the same with their music service as well.
    Amazon does have some great TV shows that I like though - The Boys, Invincible, Vinland Saga.

    I see the value in this service especially compared to Netflix where it's service is just streaming. Prime offers so much more and it's cheaper.

  • BigBirdy on 17/12/2021 - 10:06

    I tried Prime Video and found nothing, ziltch, to interest me. Didn’t watch anything. Not much on Netflix either. I have found a few series and movies on SBS Catch-up to my liking. I guess they each focus on particular markets/interests.

  • OzHunterNSW on 17/12/2021 - 10:52

    You can always cancel your subscription within 30 days

  • jv on 17/12/2021 - 10:53
    +1

    so I've gone to check out on an order for $80 and they want another $30 for delivery

    Was it from their Australian warehouse?

  • Opaquer on 17/12/2021 - 11:23

    I'm probably going to cancel my Prime membership before the end of the year. I've realised that I don't make enough use of Prime Video (while I've enjoyed a lot of their exclusives like Invincible, Wheel of Time, Tomorrow War etc, there are other ways to watch their stuff), and I probably don't buy things from Amazon enough to make up paying them each month.

    Also the last 2 orders I've had have also not arrived anywhere near on time, and their customer service has been average at best, so while the stuff I've wanted has definitely been cheaper than local places, I think I'd rather just pay a little more to get it locally (probably end up costing the same once I stop paying for Prime too :P!) Of course, everyone has different experiences, and this is just based on mine

    • jv on 17/12/2021 - 12:11
      +2

      and I probably don't buy things from Amazon enough to make up paying them each month.

      I hardly use ebay anymore mainly due to the awesome delivery times from Amazon.

      I've often placed an Amazon order around 10pm at night and it's still delivered next day, even on weekends.
      Ebay typically take 1-2 weeks to get anything delivered.

      That alone is worth the membership for me.

      • Opaquer on 17/12/2021 - 12:32

        See, if I could get that, I would absolutely use Amazon, but for me with Prime Delivery, I haven't had that.

        I needed to get a computer keyboard. Had a look around and saw Amazon had it for Prime delivery. It was a Monday, and Prime said that they could deliver it by Tuesday (the next day) if I ordered it within like 11 hours and 40 minutes or whatever. So I ordered it, and when the confirmation came through, it said it was going to arrive Thursday. Not a huge deal, but I did need it by Monday for work, so was hoping to get it by the weekend at the latest.

        However on Thursday, I get an update from Amazon saying it had just left their warehouse, and it would arrive now on Tuesday/Wednesday the following week, which wasn't ideal, and would be 7-8 days to get delivered from when I ordered it. I contacted their customer support to see if there was anything we could do to speed it up (was even happy to pay for express shipping), but they said nothing could be done, as it was with the courier now. They did tell me that if I found it elsewhere in time, I could return it no issues to Amazon. I ended up ordering it from a different place on the Thursday, and they delivered it Friday with no issue, and it only cost me a tiny bit more.

        For reference, I'm in Brisbane metro area (so not regional), and the item was in stock, all through Amazon. The real kicker that annoyed me is that on Thursday when I was on the chat to customer service, I went to check the keyboard was in stock (just in case I had misread it), and it said "In stock - order within 9 hours and whatever minutes and get this item by Saturday". I asked customer service if I could have it delivered by Saturday then, since according to their website if I made a new order it would be here (apparently) by Saturday, but they said it wasn't possible, and I'd have to wait until Tues/Wed for it instead, but he confirmed if I were to order it within the 9ish hour time frame, I would "probably" get it by Saturday!

        Of course things happen, and maybe I got unlucky with it, especially with all the craziness going on ATM. I've ordered some Christmas presents through them that should be here first thing next week, so we'll see what happens - they reckon it'll be here with plenty of time to spare for Christmas, but I have backup plans for presents just in case :P!

        • jv on 17/12/2021 - 12:37
          +2

          For reference, I'm in Brisbane metro area

          I guess because I'm in Melbourne and their warehouse is here, it makes it easier to do next day delivery.

          • Opaquer on 17/12/2021 - 12:40

            @jv: I agree - though even 2-3 day delivery for me wouldn't be too bad, but it just as long as it's consistent :P! We'll see how the Christmas presents go though!

  • WT on 17/12/2021 - 13:29
    +1

    Aliexpress<ebay<amazon for price usually
    same order for delivery times, slowest to faster

    Coincidence?

    Ebay has a lot of people reselling from aliexpress now. They put their cut, say its in stock then it takes ages to get to you from the "same city". At least with aliexpress you know it will take 2-12 weeks

    Been using a lot of prime and getting next day or 2 day delivery. Ordered stuff end of november from ebay and still waiting on that

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