What to do with an Amazon Prime membership?

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ultimatebob

ultimatebob

Lifer
Jul 1, 2001
25,134
2,450
126
Rumpltzer said:
For the OP, you can go into your settings and uncheck the option to auto-renew Prime. That way you don't get the same thing next year.
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Yeah, I already turned off the auto renew option. My wife has already ordered enough baby stuff to make the $79 fee worthwhile, but I'm still looking for some good "free" books to read.

Although having all 9 seasons of Spongebob Squarepants on demand is pretty cool :)
 
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TheUnk

Golden Member
Jun 24, 2005
1,810
0
71
ultimatebob said:
Yeah, I already turned off the auto renew option. My wife has already ordered enough baby stuff to make the $79 fee worthwhile, but I'm still looking for some good "free" books to read.

Although having all 9 seasons of Spongebob Squarepants on demand is pretty cool :)
Click to expand...

Maybe you should turn it back on =p
 
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bearxor

Diamond Member
Jul 8, 2001
6,605
3
81
I had a Prime membership about six months before I really started using it. Now that I do, it's great and I don't mind renewing this year. I'll give you two examples from this weekend.

Was at Ulta (beauty supply store) to purchase cologne. Found my cologne I wanted and bought it. It was $75 + tax and came with a free chair (one of the fold up ones). Left and went to Gamestop. Looked around for something that I might find fun. Found Max Payne 3. I had rented this from Redbox but they don't rent the second disc so I never finished it. Gamestop had it used for $17.99 and new for $29.99. I never buy used from GS and if it's the same price as everywhere else, I will ALWAYS buy it from somewhere else.

So I turned my phone on and went to Best Buy and saw they had it for $19.99 new. Cool, I'll go grab it. I left and got in my car. As I was pulling out I thought to myself, 'Self, why don't you check Amazon?' So I did. $14.95 with no tax and free two-day shipping. Ordered. You just saved me $5, Amazon!

While driving back home, I wonder why the heck I didn't check the cologne price before I bought it. I decide I'll do that as soon as I get home. Get home, fire up the Amazon app on Windows Phone, scan the barcode on the cologne, it comes up, and.... $42. Forty-two dollars? Are you shitting me? That's almost half price? And free shipping and no tax? It is half price! Ordered.

Game came in yesterday. Cologne will be in today. Will return the one I got from Ulta and collect my $40 net refund. I basically saved half the cost of the Prime membership in one day.

A couple weeks ago I was in Staples and wanted to upgrade my 3DS's SD card to a 16GB because I had run out of room. I found the card I wanted for $19.99+tax. A quick snap of the barcode with the Amazon app and literally 5 seconds later (thanks to 1-click purchase), it was bought on Amazon for $15 shipped to my door.

So my advice is to just start buying stuff off Amazon that you would normally have bought somewhere else. You won't be able to do everything like that, but most things you will. Once you get used to it, I think you'll find it's well worth the $80/yr.

EDIT: I just went back and looked at my very first Amazon purchase on my account. July 17, 2004 - a Linksys WRT54G.... ahhh, good times.
 
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Wonderful Pork

Golden Member
Jul 24, 2005
1,531
1
81
Prime has saved me a ton of cash in the last 2 weeks!

I had a small crack in a rear tail light (light still functioned and was fully enclosed) so it failed inspection, even though it was cracked in 2010 and wasn't flagged. Repair shop quoted me $140 parts+labor, I found the part on Amazon for $60 and got it in 2 days, it was literally a 2 minute repair. That alone was worth cost of membership.

Then I just randomly got a check engine light, got a free scan from AutoZone turns out I just need a new gas cap. $6 on Amazon, shipped. It'll be here tomorrow. I bought a OBD-II Scanner for $16 just so I can read codes myself now.

You name it, I buy it on Amazon first: vitamins, shampoo, shaving cream, shoes, clothes, guitar strings, books, cameras, electronics, tools, the list goes on. I get exactly what I want, the first time. And if not, painless returns.

Just go to Amazon first, and look at how much you save over retail (even if you factor in sales tax) and hassle of not driving all around town looking for something in particular. Hell I check Amazon first just for the reviews, even if I am going to buy it retail.

Best $80 I spend every year. And I didnt even talk about the streaming!
 
Midwayman

Midwayman

Diamond Member
Jan 28, 2000
5,723
325
126
The best thing about prime is that you kill the $25 requirement for free shipping. That means ordering small stuff is always worth it on amazon as long as you don't need it *that day*. I order almost everything I can get away with through prime now. If it saves me a trip to the store, that's money saved in gas and time as well.
 
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tfinch2

Lifer
Feb 3, 2004
22,114
1
0
If you have not used the prime shipping after Amazon charged you, they allow you to cancel it if you do not really want it.
 
TwiceOver

TwiceOver

Lifer
Dec 20, 2002
13,544
44
91
Do you need anything really heavy such as battery backup units or a TV Media Cart? Those were my favorite 2 day purchases. Saved the $80 in 2 carts.
 
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TheUnk

Golden Member
Jun 24, 2005
1,810
0
71
Ordering weights is fun.. 120lbs overnight, wonder how much that costs them..
 
John Connor

John Connor

Lifer
Nov 30, 2012
22,757
619
121
smitbret said:
People still use eBay?

You probably had to pay $23 for the shipping and handling of that camcorder, too.

Prime = $0

That being said. With the amount of streaming that my 2 year old does on her Kindle with Dora, Diego, Super Why, etc. I have easily gotten a few DVDs in value from that. Not to mention that I think I used at leat $79 in shipping during my first month of Prime Membership alone.
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No, shipping was five bucks. I don't buy enough shit on Amazon to merit getting Prime, but without it their shipping is fucking slow as balls! I get stuff faster on Ebay and if it don't come I open a case on their ass and get my money back.
 
Raduque

Raduque

Lifer
Aug 22, 2004
13,140
138
106
shortylickens said:
yeah for unique or outdated items ebay is pretty much your only choice.

Amazon doesnt even sell the kindle 3 anymore.
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Found a flip/switchblade-style key/remote combo for my truck on eBay for $35. Amazon has a ton for $60, and none say they work with 04+ F150s.
 
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TheUnk

Golden Member
Jun 24, 2005
1,810
0
71
Another thing that works occasionally is if you want to overnight multiple smaller things, place the 1st order of 1 item with the $3.99 overnight and the rest as the free 2-day. They'll sometimes ship them all overnight. They probably save money on the shipping and you get out of paying $3.99 per item.
 
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