351–360 of 495 posts
A lot of the things I used to buy on Amazon I buy on eBay instead using “buy it now”. Even free shipping items are frequently less than Amazon. I’ve already phased out AWS, I hope to stop using amazon.com by the end of the year. I don’t like doing business with military contractors.
I tried ordering some things from Home Depot the other day, and they silently cancelled half of my order while still charging me the same amount for delivery from the store and while saying that some things can only be delivered from a warehouse and that some things can only be delivered from a specific store and that delivery from each store has a $45 minimum purchase before they'll even consider delivery despite th…
HomeDepot's ecommerce is a joke. Not only the shopping experience is poor, they treat logistics as if they were doing you a favor. And, on top of all that, you get damaged items. I made 7 purchases and all 7, in different periods of time, had to be returned or replaced. Same for Lowe's. There's a reason people shop on Amazon. Other than BestBuy, no other retailer "gets" ecommerce.
Sweetwater for music gear. They are the only online company I've ever dealt with that I consider better than Amazon.
Although the focus is somewhat narrower than amazon, for my professional needs I have had nothing but an excellent online experience with bhphotovideo. I have ordered hundreds of items worth tens of thousands of dollars from them starting about 2007. Their site can be a little frustrating, mostly from not narrow-enough categorization, but their app for iOS is very good. Their prices are usually as good and often bett…
Also just started using them, great so far! fyi they are about to close for a week because of passover
Right when this all was starting, I had finally chosen a bass guitar I wanted. I decided to try and support a non-Amazon business in GuitarCenter (the local music shops focus a lot more on school band instruments). So, I order online, and pick the "pick up at store" option, since it says they are in stock. I show up, and an hour later they figure out that they don't have it in stock, they only have the floor model (w…
Amazon isn't the only store and its convenience is waning during this outbreak. They are lucky they are doing so many things right compared to competition.
Personally, I am debating dropping Prime, which I had for one main reason:fast free shipping.
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> Other than BestBuy, no other retailer "gets" ecommerce Target.com is a pretty solid experience. Walmart.com is also surprisingly good. Although I'm sure people can provide horror stories for both retailers.
I'll toss Staples on to there. I ordered a chair two years ago. Relatively modern website, free delivery, and it arrived earlier than anticipated with no damage. Just make sure you unsubscribe from their newsletter. I also think they'll price-match.
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I assume you use Linux for your operating system then? Both Apple and Microsoft do business with the military.
My personal morals find a difference between “we sell physical goods and anyone can buy them without restriction” and “we will build you a whole set of dedicated custom data centers with racist hiring policies”. https://aws.amazon.com/govcloud-us/ Also, Apple doesn’t sell OSes. One could buy secondhand Macs. Linux is used by the military, too. The issue is not “not matching”, it is a question of providing financial s…
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-defense-tech/pentagon...
I tried ordering some things from Home Depot the other day, and they silently cancelled half of my order while still charging me the same amount for delivery from the store and while saying that some things can only be delivered from a warehouse and that some things can only be delivered from a specific store and that delivery from each store has a $45 minimum purchase before they'll even consider delivery despite th…
I ordered a chest freezer from Home Depot. When I ordered it, I double checked that it was not listed as out of stock. I got a notice they were delivering on April 4. It was never delivered. The delivery company told me they were never shipped the freezer to deliver. When I called Home Depot, they said freezers are on back order to June. They told me I could call the manufacturer. This is a bit crazy. I have never ha…
I bought a stand mixer from John Lewis, a British department store with a (arguably fading) reputation for better service, its own 5y plus guarantees, etc.
When I needed to call ok that guarantee for a replacement part, I had two months of email run around before getting a reference number and phone number for the manufacturer's UK distributor.
It was a further 3.5 months of calling the distributor, being promised it was on its way, and on occasion receiving the wrong part (once) or no part (twice).
When I complained to JLP about the experience, that I didn't feel I should have to contact some third-party distributor/wholesaler for assistance in a claim under the guarantee agreement with itself, I just got fobbed off with an email telling me to phone the number their colleague had already sent me, as if I hadn't read the email - comically ironic since it was clear from my own complaint that I had; so it was my email that hadn't been read.
Anyway, rant over. Moral: if you're in the UK, JLP not what it was, think twice for purchases where guarantee relevant; relevance: I only very thinly veiled my description of how much better its 'online competitor' is in handling returns/replacements.
John Lewis: 5.5 months emails, calls, waiting for a £20 replacement part.
Amazon: 2 minute chat and until next day wait for a whole product (~£150) replacement due to defective (~£10) part. Original to be returned ~at leisure.
Honestly even if Amazon's a few quid more expensive (at that price point), which it typically isn't, I'm at the point where I choose it just because it isn't painful when it doesn't go completely smoothly.
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Never really heard of them before. Looks like everything I bought is out of stock anyway, but it's good to know there are alternatives.
I imagine a lot of gear is tough to get unless it’s high end stuff right now. There has been a ton of people picking up instruments during the shelter in place orders. Sweetwater is significantly better than GuitarCenter though. Better customer support, better site, better warranty, better everything.
Help requested. My wife, who is in her 50s, is immunocompromised, and she also has a history of fast escalating and difficult to treat respiratory problems. We are and have been (for the past 32 days) treating this bug very carefully. If she catches it, she has a very good chance of not surviving it. Our son and I are at less risk, but we can easily bring this bug home. We've been having more and more trouble getting…
Many are just using gloves or masks as a talisman to ward off the corona but not appreciating how these PPE items, when used poorly, are likely worse than having no PPE, a few items for sanitizing, and awareness.