Amazon Prime

Winchester said:

Amazon is reducing the cost to $73 this weekend. It starts at 9 pm Friday night. I'm going for it then. Not until 9 pm Friday night. That's a $26 savings.

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Just as an FYI - this ends tonight at 11:59pm PST!

Di and Bob said:

I guess I just don't understand....... 99.00 for free shipping that I get get for nothing? Two days instead of five? I guess I think the 99.00 will buy a lot of 'stuff'', so I'll save the 99.00 and wait three more days I don't 'stream' or anything like that, I'm barely computer literate, I buy E-books, but most of those are free and get sent free to my Kindle. So would someone enlighten me, I guess I'm missing something?  

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I don't know how it is now, but before I got Prime, you had to buy so much eligible stuff to get free shipping (and that free shipping was 5 day, if you got free shipping). I can't believe how thankful I was to have this when I was buying stuff for Lucky. I didn't have time to search for crap I didn't really want or need, when all I wanted was that syringe! Or any number of things I realized I needed along the way. Plus I got 2-day shipping for free. Time was of the essence with Lucky (even if I didn't realize it at the time) so five-day shipping just was not an option.

You know, other than at Christmas, I'm pretty much OK with the wait on shipping, if I can get free shipping. I ordered a case for my Ipad last week, I think it was, and it's supposed to come to work tomorrow (Tuesday). That's Ok. The wait didn't bother me. But at Christmas? I want it now, I just want to know that whatever we ordered for our grandkids (esp the grands) for Christmas is here, in the house. And then I don't have to worry about it. So for that alone, I guess Prime will be worth it.

And yes, there were times when I bought a cookbook for $25 and then needed something "extra" to get me to the $35 free shipping and that was a pain, too. Most of the time, my co-worker or my sister or SIL needed something that could make up the difference or I could find something. But that can be a hassle, too. 

But yesterday, I was looking on Amazon for k-cups. The coffee that I drink is becoming harder to find (can't find it locally at all anymore). A lot of the coffee vendors don't do Prime, so I was checking around, trying to find a good buy, but yet something that didn't kill me on shipping charges. Some are free shipping anyway, so it wasn't too bad. But then Carol/LaRussa suggested that I check out the Keurig site. Keurig didn't have the coffee that I wanted, but they did carry another hard-to-find-locally coffee that I really enjoy. I ended up buying 4 boxes of k-cups from Keurig, two cents cheaper per k-cup than anything I found on Amazon (hey, it adds up), with free shipping over $49. And it should be here sometime this coming week; that's not bad. So I didn't use Amazon for that anyway. And it pays to check around for the best bargains for you. (I always look for the best bargains I can find, look for any available coupon codes, promotional codes, etc.)

All that being said, I am looking forward to streaming some tv shows. Maybe a few movies along the way. And the books. Can't forget the books.

I definitely don't use Amazon for everything these days. Especially now that I discovered Chewy? Spending $50 on pet food is like a drop in the hat so getting free shipping with that is easy enough. I actually do a lot of my grocery shopping on there though!

Just a heads up for anyone who uses Amazon but is on the fence about going for the Prime membership. They have increased the minimum order amount for free shipping from $35 to $49. I just noticed it today. I'm not sure when it went into effect.

Kat0121 said:

Just a heads up for anyone who uses Amazon but is on the fence about going for the Prime membership. They have increased the minimum order amount for free shipping from $35 to $49. I just noticed it today. I'm not sure when it went into effect.

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$49 seems to be the magic number at a lot of sites. Chewy, Petco, Petsmart, Drs Foster and Smith.

And it was still $25 when I got Prime!

Donutte said:

$49 seems to be the magic number at a lot of sites. Chewy, Petco, Petsmart, Drs Foster and Smith.

And it was still $25 when I got Prime!

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Yeah it does. Amazon and Chewy have started watching each other. I've noticed that a lot of their prices mirror each others'.

It was $25 when I started with Prime too. The good old days.

Kat0121 said:

 
Just a heads up for anyone who uses Amazon but is on the fence about going for the Prime membership. They have increased the minimum order amount for free shipping from $35 to $49. I just noticed it today. I'm not sure when it went into effect.

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i was over at amazon yesterday evening, and had some problems redeeming the e-credits i'd earned (for selecting 'no rush shipping'). it turns out that since i last bought a kindle book, amazon has changed things a bit. now the kindle book listings have the publishers listed (prominently) in many of them. the issue i had was figuring out which kindle books are eligible to use the e-credits to buy/towards buying. i talked with amazon's customer service about this, and they told me that down in the 'product details' section the 'sold by' must be 'amazon digital services LLC' in order to be eligible to use e-credits to buy/towards buying. there's no way to search just for kindle books that are sold by amazon digital services LLC, as far as they know. so you just have to look at the listings carefully if you're wanting to use your e-credits.

mickNsnicks2mom said:

 
i was over at amazon yesterday evening, and had some problems redeeming the e-credits i'd earned (for selecting 'no rush shipping'). it turns out that since i last bought a kindle book, amazon has changed things a bit. now the kindle book listings have the publishers listed (prominently) in many of them. the issue i had was figuring out which kindle books are eligible to use the e-credits to buy/towards buying. i talked with amazon's customer service about this, and they told me that down in the 'product details' section the 'sold by' must be 'amazon digital services LLC' in order to be eligible to use e-credits to buy/towards buying. there's no way to search just for kindle books that are sold by amazon digital services LLC, as far as they know. so you just have to look at the listings carefully if you're wanting to use your e-credits.

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I wonder why they didn't tell anyone about the changes before they did it. They told everyone well in advance when the price of the Prime membership was going up.

I don't get e-credits. I want my 2  day shipping. I'm not a patient person.

Kat0121 said:

 
Just a heads up for anyone who uses Amazon but is on the fence about going for the Prime membership. They have increased the minimum order amount for free shipping from $35 to $49. I just noticed it today. I'm not sure when it went into effect.

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You know, last night I looked at the price of cat food, cat litter, dog, food, and certain other grocery items on Amazon. I wasn't impressed with any of the prices at all. I can get them much cheaper at our local Giant store and/or PetSmart, esp when items are on sale and/or I have coupons. I don't understand what groceries people are buying through Amazon that are so much cheaper than the local grocery store. What am I missing? Or is it just the convenience of having things shipped for free?

I noticed that the minimum order amount increased; I'm not sure either when it happened. Some people on another board were complaining (quite bitterly) about the increase. 

As for Prime, I ordered the Composure Max Liquid for the girls last Saturday. It came the following Wednesday and that was with Prime. No 2-day shipping there, even considering the Presidents' Day holiday.

Kat0121 said:

 
I wonder why they didn't tell anyone about the changes before they did it. They told everyone well in advance when the price of the Prime membership was going up.

I don't get e-credits. I want my 2  day shipping. I'm not a patient person.

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i dunno!        the price increase for prime membership kind of makes sense that amazon would tell everyone in advance. i mean, that's usually set up to put through/charge each new years membership price automatically -- though can be set up not to charge automatically too. i'd be seeing red if the price went up and was auto-charged, with no notification about it. i'm very careful with my budgeting -- 'run a tight ship' with my budgets.

re the other changes -- i think amazon might expect people not to be pleased about them, and with the change with kindle book listings and which are eligible for e-credits.........that took their customer service transferring my call a few times and explaining of the (seemingly) fine details of the change to me.

i'm patient, because i want the e-credits! i use those for kindle books, and between the e-credits and kindle first monthly book, i rarely buy (pay out of pocket for) a kindle book at amazon.

Winchester said:

 
You know, last night I looked at the price of cat food, cat litter, dog, food, and certain other grocery items on Amazon. I wasn't impressed with any of the prices at all. I can get them much cheaper at our local Giant store and/or PetSmart, esp when items are on sale and/or I have coupons. I don't understand what groceries people are buying through Amazon that are so much cheaper than the local grocery store. What am I missing? Or is it just the convenience of having things shipped for free?

I noticed that the minimum order amount increased; I'm not sure either when it happened. Some people on another board were complaining (quite bitterly) about the increase. 

As for Prime, I ordered the Composure Max Liquid for the girls last Saturday. It came the following Wednesday and that was with Prime. No 2-day shipping there, even considering the Presidents' Day holiday.

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ahhh, if i'm not mistaken the '2-day shipping' time does not start until or include the day it ships.

mickNsnicks2mom said:

 
ahhh, if i'm not mistaken the '2-day shipping' time does not start until or include the day it ships.

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Oh! Well, that explains it.

Received an email Sunday that it had shipped and it came on Wednesday. Probably would have come on Tuesday, had it not been for the holiday.

Winchester said:

 
Oh! Well, that explains it.

Received an email Sunday that it had shipped and it came on Wednesday. Probably would have come on Tuesday, had it not been for the holiday.

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just the 'fine details' of prime shipping...

mickNsnicks2mom said:

 
ahhh, if i'm not mistaken the '2-day shipping' time does not start until or include the day it ships.

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It often does. An order I placed on Friday was shipped yesterday. It's coming today. This happens all the time.

mickNsnicks2mom said:

 
i dunno!   

    the price increase for prime membership kind of makes sense that amazon would tell everyone in advance. i mean, that's usually set up to put through/charge each new years membership price automatically -- though can be set up not to charge automatically too. i'd be seeing red if the price went up and was auto-charged, with no notification about it. i'm very careful with my budgeting -- 'run a tight ship' with my budgets.

re the other changes -- i think amazon might expect people not to be pleased about them, and with the change with kindle book listings and which are eligible for e-credits.........that took their customer service transferring my call a few times and explaining of the (seemingly) fine details of the change to me.

i'm patient, because i want the e-credits! i use those for kindle books, and between the e-credits and kindle first monthly book, i rarely buy (pay out of pocket for) a kindle book at amazon.

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The deals I get on pet food, treats and household items are through the subscribe and save. I get toilet paper, paper towels, cat food,conditioner, etc. I also get Pure Bites (the big dog sized bag) for WAY cheaper than anybody else including Chewy. With my 15% discount, I often get them for about $16.50 per bag. I think Chewy gets $24.99. The pet stores get about $30. The paper goods I get at the same price or cheaper than Wal Mart. Add in the fact that you're not burning any gas or waiting on line at the checkout and it adds even more to the savings.

Some of the items will actually not have anything less than x-day shipping (a lot of things I've seen have no sooner than 3-day), but the shipping page still only says 2-day. Probably hard-coded that way unfortunately. Also, depending on WHEN in the day you order, it may or may not count the day you order it.

if you look on the side of the page when placing your order, it will usually say something like "if you want by *insert date*, order within *x hours*".

I've often had things come past the 2-day mark, but I've often had things arrive the next day. And in one case, when I ordered something very early in the morning, it arrived that same night.


As far as groceries, I love Prime Pantry! Yes, a lot of things there ARE cheaper than the regular grocery store. Not all, but quite a few. Supplements are OFTEN cheaper there, like CoQ10. Omg, that is so expensive at the store, but actually doable from Amazon.

As far as pet food and pet supplies, I always have multiple tabs open so I can compare Amazon, Chewy, Drs F&S, Petco and Petsmart. The redeeming thing with Amazon - since I DO have Prime, I don't have to hunt for stuff to get to the $49 mark.

Kat0121 said:

 
It often does. An order I placed on Friday was shipped yesterday. It's coming today. This happens all the time.

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oh yes! i often receive packages from amazon before their estimated delivery date. 

Kat0121 said:

 
The deals I get on pet food, treats and household items are through the subscribe and save. I get toilet paper, paper towels, cat food,conditioner, etc. I also get Pure Bites (the big dog sized bag) for WAY cheaper than anybody else including Chewy. With my 15% discount, I often get them for about $16.50 per bag. I think Chewy gets $24.99. The pet stores get about $30. The paper goods I get at the same price or cheaper than Wal Mart. Add in the fact that you're not burning any gas or waiting on line at the checkout and it adds even more to the savings.

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hmmm......i've seen and looked into the subscribe and save option on certain amazon items, but never have gotten myself organized with using it. i think i need to look into this again and further, and figure how much i use of the items/how long they'll last and how often more would need to be shipped. being a frugal person, i really like the thought of saving the money...and also having it shipped (free) to me instead of dealing with buying at brick and mortar stores.

are you able to change the frequency of the subscribe and save orders? or to delay them?

mickNsnicks2mom said:

hmmm......i've seen and looked into the subscribe and save option on certain amazon items, but never have gotten myself organized with using it. i think i need to look into this again and further, and figure how much i use of the items/how long they'll last and how often more would need to be shipped. being a frugal person, i really like the thought of saving the money...and also having it shipped (free) to me instead of dealing with buying at brick and mortar stores.

are you able to change the frequency of the subscribe and save orders? or to delay them?

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Absolutely, I've done it quite often.

mickNsnicks2mom said:

 
hmmm......i've seen and looked into the subscribe and save option on certain amazon items, but never have gotten myself organized with using it. i think i need to look into this again and further, and figure how much i use of the items/how long they'll last and how often more would need to be shipped. being a frugal person, i really like the thought of saving the money...and also having it shipped (free) to me instead of dealing with buying at brick and mortar stores.

are you able to change the frequency of the subscribe and save orders? or to delay them?

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Absolutely. I have about 30 items in my subscribe and save. Once a month I go through the list and keep anything I need on it and skip anything I don't. You can change the frequency or cancel the item by clicking edit on the picture of the item but I find it easier to just skip the item if I don't need it.