This says it's using AmazonBrandFilter's list of brands. Why would we use/support this chrome extension instead of the upstream one [1] which is actually doing the important maintanance task? "Knockoff" seems to be literally describing itself. [1] https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/amazonbrandfilter/m...
AmazonBrandFilter dev here. Yeah. I don't know. I don't love that they're just ripping the list like that, I wouldn't mind as much if they at least helped contribute to the list. That is far and away the hardest part of this thing. But it is what it is, I'll be more peeved if they monetize it (which I'm unsure if they're doing). Maybe I should put one of those buy me a coffee links on the repo, I'd probably be better…
Amazon without the knockoffs
161–170 of 273 posts
Re: Amazon without the knockoffs
#162Cuts two ways. Why should I pay $200 for a BigBrand dog bed if this knockoff site shows SHRDLU has the same thing for $40? We all know that BigBrand gets it from the same supplier. The real knockoff problem I see is that you buy what you think is BigBrand and get shipped Knockoff because someone is mingling inventory.
Person: Grasp the knockoff.
Computer: I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHICH KNOCKOFF YOU MEAN.
[1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SHRDLURe: Amazon without the knockoffs
#163Earlier quoted context omitted.
AmazonBrandFilter dev here. Yeah. I don't know. I don't love that they're just ripping the list like that, I wouldn't mind as much if they at least helped contribute to the list. That is far and away the hardest part of this thing. But it is what it is, I'll be more peeved if they monetize it (which I'm unsure if they're doing). Maybe I should put one of those buy me a coffee links on the repo, I'd probably be better…
need the firefox extension please
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/amazonbrandfi...
I'm a Firefox user myself. It is cross browser but it started Firefox first.
Re: Amazon without the knockoffs
#164Earlier quoted context omitted.
AmazonBrandFilter dev here. Yeah. I don't know. I don't love that they're just ripping the list like that, I wouldn't mind as much if they at least helped contribute to the list. That is far and away the hardest part of this thing. But it is what it is, I'll be more peeved if they monetize it (which I'm unsure if they're doing). Maybe I should put one of those buy me a coffee links on the repo, I'd probably be better…
Not that trying to repackage and possibly resell existing work isn't a little lazy and borderline scummy, but your filter list "brands.txt" is MIT licensed. You could always release the plugin code MIT and keep the brands.txt file proprietary or under a more restrictive license if you don't like what they are doing. After all, you did explicitly allow this.
Re: Amazon without the knockoffs
#165Counterfeit goods are clearly bad and a problem, but knockoffs that aren't counterfeit seem to be a good thing from an economics perspective, right?
A knockoff that isn't counterfeit isn't deceiving customers -- it is just competing and competition drives benefits to consumers.
There are many knockoff goods that reach comparable quality as the original, luxury good. We shouldn't support the idea of brands for their own sake. Today, many luxury brands are actually degrading in quality as the only thing customers are buying them for is the status signal more than the actual quality.
What is critical is a customer is informed about the trade offs between the goods to make an informed decision.
When I recently was buying camera gear, I bought some of the peak design bags and accessories (which are amazing). I then also bought some knockoff gear that is compatible with their system. Real:https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07F94FQRB $29.95 Knockoff: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FYCB594Y $5.01
I knew what I was buying in both cases. I wouldn't trust the knockoff clips to hold my $3K Canon, but I am ok with the knockoff clips to hold an old, light film camera I also brought on the trip. I made an informed decision and my choice also helped contribute to competition between vendors, which is good for the market as a whole and consumers broadly.
If everyone used these chrome extensions, economic theory predicts that prices would rise for consumers and quality of the original brands would degrade through reduced competitive pressure.
What could be more informative for consumers that simply eliminating knockoffs from their search results would be to increase information. Maybe adding a visible indicator of which company is the established or originator of the design and which are knockoffs would be better than simply filtering them out.
Re: Amazon without the knockoffs
#166Earlier quoted context omitted.
Every time I do that I get frustrated: - shipping sometimes goes to from day(s) to weeks - suddenly their ads start going to email - please review us emails I'd rather bezos get his cut.
I bought a weed whacker directly from the maker about 5 years ago, and since then have received literal tons of their catalogues in my tiny mailbox. They send > 80% of all the mail I receive. I've regretted it ever since. Now I feel like I need to keep my address a secret unless there's a good reason not to. Amazon has had it since the last century and has never abused it. I'd buy more from such if it was easy to hid…
No business gets my real phone number, and the email I provide is companyname@mydomain.com. The minute I start receiving unsolicited email, I revoke the alias and spam will bounce.
Re: Amazon without the knockoffs
#167Earlier quoted context omitted.
This is what you said: " Make your burrito or bowl at home, and it'll cost $4 or less " That statement implies you can straightforwardly save by substituting that one meal with a made at home meal. The reality is much more complicated, as shown by your backpedaling to making several burritos and other meals. I could just as easily lob that economic literacy jab right back at you. For example, perhaps OP has a burrito…
I mean, I figured the concept of buying ingredients to make a single meal for one person and then just throwing whatever's left away is so ridiculous on the face of it that I wouldn't need to qualify it, but apparently I was wrong. I currently live by myself and I bought a pork loin to barbecue for Independence Day as a treat. I bought one of the smallest ones I could find, then ate about a third of it that night. Th…
Point out that prepping meals at home is a great way to save money, sure. It just falls flat when pushed in the context of burritos. I would posit that the majority of people who set out to save money by trying to make burritos at home do end up wasting a significant portion of the ingredients, and end up considering the experiment a failure. So I'd say if you're trying to encourage financial savvy, focusing on burritos actually hurts that goal.
Re: Amazon without the knockoffs
#168I stopped buying from amazon unless its a known brand, anything random I am just buying from costco instead. Had enough of the trash, or used product i keep getting from amazon
The fact that Amazon doesn't care enough to implement this filter themselves is a strong indicator to just not buy of the site. Amazon doesn't give a shit if you're being hustled. If they have to issue a refund, that's the sellers problem, in all other cases they make money. There is so much junk of Amazon that's just not worth it. The only reason I ever shop at Amazon is if I truly cannot get the item elsewhere. The…
Costco is great for curation, but only for the items they carry.
A combo of Amazon for the random junk I don’t care much about and Costco for consumer staples works out well.
And no online vendor gets remotely close to Amazon for speed of shipping, ease of returns, and product selection. Usually matches the best price I can find on most things too - outside of stuff I buy direct from China.
Lots of the random crap I buy on Amazon I want the marketplace for. Like I needed a dozen plant domes this spring. I wanted them tomorrow, not next week and I didn’t need qty 100. So having the option for that vs. a gardening warehouse that targets large growers is quite handy and exactly what they excel at for me. I could care less which random brand sells the thing to me since they are all the same.
Re: Amazon without the knockoffs
#169This says it's using AmazonBrandFilter's list of brands. Why would we use/support this chrome extension instead of the upstream one [1] which is actually doing the important maintanance task? "Knockoff" seems to be literally describing itself. [1] https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/amazonbrandfilter/m...
AmazonBrandFilter dev here. Yeah. I don't know. I don't love that they're just ripping the list like that, I wouldn't mind as much if they at least helped contribute to the list. That is far and away the hardest part of this thing. But it is what it is, I'll be more peeved if they monetize it (which I'm unsure if they're doing). Maybe I should put one of those buy me a coffee links on the repo, I'd probably be better…
Re: Amazon without the knockoffs
#170It's funny but their homepage exemplifies why one may actually want the "knockoff" brands. $39 instead of $224 for a pet bed. I know which one I'll buy. There are plenty of categories of items where the cheap knockoff is perfectly adequate.