Amazon.com question (never used it...)

[VJ]

I'm not sure if this the right forum...

Has anyone here in Europe have experiences with ordering things from Amazon.com (not the UK, French or German site) ?

Any particular loopholes I should be aware of ?

I'm thinking about ordering a Viking 256 MB Compact flash card, the price difference with cards here in Belgium is huge (price on Amazon for the Viking is about half the price here for a non-branded card).

Thanks !


Jörg

[Dogbert]

Some time ago (over a year ago actually) I ordered books and DVDs from Amazon.com.

It took a while but everything arrived here (Israel) very well wrapped with no problems what so ever.

Never ordered electronics though.

[Pace]

Another vote for no problems with books (albeit .co.uk), but never bought electronics.

Will you not have to pay tax on it though?

[VJ]

Probabely, but it still remains cheaper (even with tax and delivery cost !)...

Besides, I'm sure of being able to buy a known brand; whereas here brands are hard to find (if you find them, they are more expensive), and the non-branded cards often don't perform as well... (there is quite a speed difference between CF-cards)

Jörg

[Alfie]

I've bought books,cd's and a camera from Amazon,they have about the best setup of anyone out there.
Their shipping is very good,their communication with customers is excellent and their prices are good.

[xortam]

The question was directed toward European users Alfie.

[Wombat]

Just be careful, they sell your info to anybody and everybody.

[xortam]

Originally posted by Wombat
Just be careful, they sell your info to anybody and everybody.

If so, I haven't seen any repercussions from this. I've bought CDs from them over the last couple years and I haven't been spammed, except from them. Have you got something to back up that claim Wombat?

[Wombat]

All your information belongs to them, even if you earlier opted out, they "fixed" that for you. This article has a summary: http://www.komotv.com/news/story.asp?ID=11371

So, Amazon hasn't <I>yet</I> done anything with your info, except give it to subsidiaries, but they reserve the ability to sell it when needed. I should have been more precise.

[orangejulius]

I've sold things on Amazon and haven't gotten spam.

If you're buying on Amazon Marketplace, ask the seller if he can ship it Global Priority Mail for a flat rate. I do this for free for my overseas customers. Much faster than surface (boat) shipping.

[xortam]

I recall the hoopla over that now Wombat. I'll have to look into this more to see if there's any recourse since they already have my info.

[VJ]

Well, I ordered a CF-card. Not from Amazon.com (they don't ship to Europe, due to warranty constraints; the European Amazon sites are just as expensive as local stores), but from powerinnumbers (http://www.powerinnumbers.com.au , I read a lot of good comments on them on digital photography forums). The card was ordered last thursday, and arrived today !

(seems that my first online purchase was a succes )


Jörg