Hi everyone,
I was looking over the expired deals (such as the recent eBay one) and was pretty sad I missed out (as I'm sure many others are as well). Had an idea of an ozbargain app maybe to set alerts when a deal receives a certain number of votes, so more people would be notified. I understand not everyone has or uses a smart phone, but again, just an idea and wanted to see what everyone thinks of it. Thanks! :)
OzBargain App idea
Bot_1 on 22/01/2013 - 19:06
Comments
I believe there are some OzBargain apps already (not sure if they're official or not) but yes, this would be a good feature! Also could have push alerts for deals you subscribe to, similar to the email alerts we already have
Great idea, there is one already at the moment that alerts you when a deal hit the front page, but it seems like it is always 30-60mins delayed
Check out the post we made about unofficial Android apps. I think Bargain Deal Alerts would do what you wanted.
When a deal reaches 50 votes, it gets posted to the Facebook page. Frontpage deals also get pushed to the OzBargain Hot Twitter account. I'm sure you can get an app to notify you through those mediums as well.
Any chance (in the distant or near future), ozbargain might get it's official app on ios and android? Just curious :D
In my opinion, the mobile site exceeds the functionality and usefulness of any of the current apps. Thus the site will work correctly on Symbian, Android, iOS or whatever other mobile device comes out next (e.g. Linux) assuming they adhere to web standards. That said, the things a website can't do that an app can do is notifications, location awareness (not as well), and integration with the OS (e.g. photos).
Something that is on the agenda is putting some kind of location data in the posts. Whenever I go to Big W or some other store, I usually put OzBargain Big W in the Google and then see what the deals are. Well, if the phone was aware of where you are, then an app could tell you where the deals nearby are.
So if OzBargain were to make an app, it would have to offer features that a mobile site can't. At this time, we don't have mobile OS developers. I believe we want to release more of an API to developers so they can build better apps.
Sounds good :) Thanks neil
Not everyone who buys will vote, including guest. So by the time the deal reaches 50 votes for example, the deal probably has expired! Whats the point!
Statistically, that does't happen too often. Today, there are 14 active deals on the front page. The one that did expire from eBay did so at about 300 votes. Additionally, our algorithm will detect fast moving/voted deals so sometimes you will see a deal reach the front page without reaching 20 votes.
Best way is to sit at your computer all day and follow new deals. ;)
If you use Twitter just follow the OzBargain twitter account. Every deal is posted instantly to twitter when it is published, you will never miss a bargain.
I was never a fan of twitter and never thought I would be, but for something like OzBargain it is absolutely perfect and much more convenient than a dedicated app.
If you are keen on some interesting ways of being notified, try out IFFT. You can set all kinds of notifications like emails, sms, posting to Facebook, turning on a light when there is a hot deal.
IFFT no longer has Twitter triggers thanks to their stupid updated API rules.
Would only be able to utilise RSS/Facebook. Is there a RSS/FB link that's the equivalent of OzBargain Hot on Twitter?
Is there a RSS/FB link that's the equivalent of OzBargain Hot on Twitter?
http://www.ozbargain.com.au/feed
Front page and OzBargain Hot is 20 votes. Occasionally, a deal can hit the front page / Oz Bargain Hot under 20 as mentioned before . Facebook is 50 votes.
iOS has an App that provides notifications: BargainMate
However, see here
http://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/90142the app doesn't work anymore
I still get push notifications from it, but there is no content within the app.
One of the annoying things about the email newsletter is the deals are more often than not expired.
If you go to Settings-Newsletter, you can check the box that says
I want to exclude Expired Deals
You'll find that solely relying on daily newsletter is often not enough if you wish to catch the hottest deals — they can go expired/out of stock within hours.
It would be good to get an official ozbargain app.
Then we can have push notifications of deals/categories we are interested in.
Often I would miss a great deal just cos I didn't look at the site at the time.
Sounds like a great idea!