Is Amazon Getting Less Useful?
Sunday, May 25, 2008 at 07:17PM I've bought a new toy. It is a Panasonic HD camcorder that records direct to HDSD memory cards. And it is lovely. Quality is amazing, and because I got the less than newest model (i.e. one that is six months old) the price wasn't too painful either.
I went on to Amazon to price up some memory cards and also a reader (high density cards use an interface that my old card reader doesn't like.
I found this. It looks like a real bargain. Until you find that the price does not include shipping (which is rather high at 4 quid, and even more if it goes for the overnight option - which is what the item seems to default to). Closer inspection reveals that it is, of course, not sold by Amazon themselves, but by a "partner".
I've noticed this more and more on Amazon. I bought a CD from a partner which turned out to be a different disk. Weasel words in the description told me that rather than being the album I thought I was buying it was instead a "special edition" (i.e. knockoff copy) of one of the singles from it. I never got my money back there, and I'm not prepared to risk it on this memory card reader either.
I expect a certain amount of rough and tumble when I buy from ebay, that is part of its charm. But when I go to Amazon I'm looking for quality because I equate it with a shop. I think they are going to be careful if they are not going to be tarnished by the sharp practice of the people they let onto their site. I must admit if there was a "don't show me partner offers" setting for my Amazon account I'd use it right away.
Life
Reader Comments (2)
That said, memory cards in Japan cost anywhere from double to triple the cost of the UK, and so a 30 quid 4gb card becomes 60 or 70 quid here. At those times, amazon marketplace is the place to buy them from.
I thought that amazon regulated its sellers quite vigilantly. I'm sure I read somewhere you should be able to expect the same quality from its sellers as amazon itself.