221–230 of 510 posts
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Main reason I still use them is 100% hassle free return policy. I don’t stress about buying something crappy, as I know I can return it, in very convenient ways.
Will their return policy rebuild your house when a faulty power adapter burns it down?
I don’t buy unknown Chinese brands for stuff like that. And that’s getting harder. But that’s a separate issue.
Amazon-the-store is mostly near-shored AliExpress + 7-Eleven at this point. That's got its uses--it's awfully convenient!--but it leaves them open to niched-down competitors that I would love to give my money. AWS, on the other hand, feels pretty sustainable.
Maybe with enough time, non-Amazon services will pop up more and more with the same kind of reach.
I think postal shipping is still within reach in USA, but in Canada, the post sees parcels as a profit-centre and are shouting themselves in the foot as their volumes drop.
It runs deeper than just everything being an ad. It's also completely flooded with rebadged junk from dropshippers. A few weeks ago, I was looking for a new whetstone, and this is what I got when I searched Amazon https://i.imgur.com/1Utp2dF.png The results keep going like that. You see constant repetition of the exact same units with slightly different branding, often with the same stock photography, repeated for pa…
> I was looking for a new whetstone The King whetstone on the bottom right is legit if you want to freehand. However, I recommend something like an Edge Pro if you have quality chefs knives, etc.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Filter by seller is still available
I see options to filter by brand including a separate “out brands” option, but that isn't the same unless I'm looking for a specific brand rather than “just not cheap & grotty drop-shipped crap thankyouverymuch”. The usefulness of the brand filter seems to vary greatly by product. For instance when searching for SATA SSDs it only offers “Seagate, Crucial, Western Digital, Samsung”.
The search function was always capricious like that, from the get-go. Presumably there's method to that madness.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
What are your preferred alternatives?
Yes. The alternative is track down the original, individual vendor and deal with their custom sign up, shopping cart, shipping, and support on their site. Repeat with each different vendor for next purchase. As much as Amazon hates its customers and vendors, it's got a consistent experience.
And since most of them actually outsource their websites to shopify or whoever, the user experience is basically as consistent as Amazon.
I have to say, we have gotten extremely complacent if “half” your page being filled with ads is considered acceptable. I can understand the unfortunate reality that online services need ads to survive, but surely half of a screen is still far from acceptable.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Main reason I still use them is 100% hassle free return policy. I don’t stress about buying something crappy, as I know I can return it, in very convenient ways.
For some reason that changed for me lately and they no longer do free UPS pickup for returns. I have to go mail them myself, which tips the balance of the return convenience scale for me.
Amazon will also do something where certain drugs will be the top of searches for other drugs or sometimes for example drugs for cats will show up even if you search "for dogs" so if you aren't paying complete attention you might not realize your mistake.
It runs deeper than just everything being an ad. It's also completely flooded with rebadged junk from dropshippers. A few weeks ago, I was looking for a new whetstone, and this is what I got when I searched Amazon https://i.imgur.com/1Utp2dF.png The results keep going like that. You see constant repetition of the exact same units with slightly different branding, often with the same stock photography, repeated for pa…
That King whetstone is good, I have it and use it.
(*I said _often_, meaning I concede that it is sometimes actually not cheaper: please resist the urge to provide counter-examples, I know of their pricing trickery!)