[ProllyInfamous]

Louis Rossmann just released a video on this about Toshiba hard disks [1]. I canceled my Prime account in 2018, after my last online order for memory. Now, I only purchase in-person from large vendors with direct-from-manufacturer custody [this costs more, obviously].

[1]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DeUNC7z5MM0

[bee_rider]

The only downside about canceling Prime is that you can only do it once. I canceled prime because they started putting ads in their video service, despite the fact that I was paying for it. That was a fun one.

Now it’s like, well, what else can I do? I guess I’m boycotting Amazon, but is it really boycotting when their store is “here’s a random electronic device, maybe it is what you ordered,” I mean, why would I place an order for that in the first place?

I’m also boycotting gun store that only sells footguns.

[goostavos]

The ads thing is unreal. "Customer obsession". I pay the extra 2.99 and still see pre-roll ads, but those apparently, according to customer service, don't count as ads. Oh, and part of the platform is under "freevee," which is an ad-based service, so "obviously" the fee for removing ads doesn't apply to that one. Prime started out great. I still like that I can pay money in exchange for watching something, but ham-fisting of ads fills me with contempt for the entire thing.

[TheBozzCL]

The same thing made me cancel Apple TV. People keep telling me “but those aren’t ads, they’re trailers!”

[blibble]

they offer you the free trial again a few months after cancelling

so you can sign up for the free trial every time you want some counterfeit tat shipped cheaply

then immediately cancel it

[blibble]

I bought 4 new N300 disks "Sold by Amazon" in a single order

one was obviously a return by someone else, it was in completely different unofficial packaging and was DOA

getting the bot like staff to accept that it wasn't me that had broken it was such fun I ended up deleting my 20 year amazon account

and haven't bought anything since

[dylan604]

It's almost like you have to become an unboxing content creator for every single order you ever make regardless of where it was purchased. I purchased something from Home Depot that was clearly a return based on the type of tape used to reseal the box and even more obvious once opened to discover the missing contents. Luckily for me, there's a human available on their phone line, and they very quickly helped me to a very satisfactory resolution. So at least that happened.

[ProllyInfamous]

>I purchased something from Home Depot that was clearly a return

Had this exact thing happen... with a septic pump [gross!].

----

About one year ago, after terrible customer service from a major UPS vendor, I decided that I was now only ever purchasing backup batteries from CostCo: their "lifetime satisfaction warranty" means I don't have to deal with OEM return processes (IMHO) designed to prevent claims submissions (e.g. return shipping fees; questions designed to invalidate your warranty).

[nextos]

What freaks me out is that clearly many large manufacturers design boxes so that it is easy to resell returned products as new. Lots of mobile phones are packaged with weak seals that do not damage the cardboard once taken out. Google does this and it looks intentional to me. Apple, which I don't like for other reasons, seems to be an exception.

I am very uncomfortable buying electronics and hygiene products from many places because of this problem. For example, years ago, on what became my final Amazon purchase, I received used underwear (yuck!). Knowing that Amazon tends to sell returned products as new, I had explicitly bought a brand that is sealed, shrink wrapped, and promises to dispose returned items, but that wasn't enough.

Recently, I was reading a newspaper article where they described how a criminal gang bought Google Pixel and high-end Samsung phones from reputable online and department stores. They opened them, installed malware, returned the product, and you can guess what happened next. Lots of stolen bank credentials. People tend to buy stuff, test drive it for a few days and return it as new abusing pro-customer regulations. Many shops are unwilling to take a loss and resell these things as new. Very dishonest, should be better regulated.

[ProllyInfamous]

>They opened them, installed malware, returned the product ... lots of stolen bank credentials.

Absolutely terrifying.

[yjftsjthsd-h]

> Now, I only purchase in-person from large vendors with direct-from-manufacturer custody [this costs more, obviously].

Could you say which you've had luck with?

[ProllyInfamous]

Really depends on the item/product, but for example I only purchase uniterruptable power supplies from CostCo, because if it breaks I can get a new one immediately without shipping fees.

For hard drives, I usually wait for OfficeMax sales/coupons, and then stock up.

Sometimes I have to drive to Atlanta (about three hours, round trip) but there are some incredible electronic parts stores in huge cities.

Regardless of what/where I purchase, I always open items inside the store (before leaving, near the customer service desk) because I have literally had "new" items contain hazmat returns (e.g. a "new" septic pump, a la feces).

[dudus]

Ask about price match. Often times they are happy to match the price with Amazon as long as it's shipped from Amazon.

[sebazzz]

Funny, one of the preroll ads on the video was one of those Chinese (I presume - the robot voiceover was in my native tongue though) scam ads for a product, with a big QR code with viewer discount.

[laweijfmvo]

I wouldn't even know where to buy RAM (good RAM, at online prices) in person...

[pomian]

Here is the link to Crucial, which is the customer selling division for Micron Memory. https://www.crucial.com/products/memory

It works well. They are competitive in pricing, and have a good lookup system to make sure you get the correct type of RAM( and SDD). Free shipping USA and Canada. (Been using that for over a decide.)

[ProllyInfamous]

RAM is one of the few things I typically still purchase online — and Crucial is the distributor I trust most (Micron chips).

[Ekaros]

Not the absolute best prices, but in general local computer shops should get it directly from distributors that have reasonably good supply chain direct to manufacturer.

[the_snooze]

Lots of places do price-matching. I can go to Best Buy and get Amazon pricing (for items sold directly by Amazon) without the Amazon BS.

[ProllyInfamous]

Best Buy is a "go to" that even most smaller US cities can visit — and yes they will always price match [the clerk doesn't giveAF].

[FireBeyond]

They've got a lot better. Years ago they'd have their own specific SKUs...

"Sorry, this Western Digital 7200rpm 2TB drive is a WD72002048-AMZN, and we sell the WD72002048-BBY, so we can't price match."

They got busted for having different prices if they detected you were hitting the website from a store (Wifi or terminal)... "I know you thought it was $109 when you looked online, but you must be mistaken, here, let's pull up the website, yup, $159".

There was a brief loophole for a while when Amazon allowed ad-hoc Marketplace items from users - find what you wanted on Best Buy's site, create a listing to sell it on Amazon for $x cheaper, and then show them that as the price match. Then they moved to "must be fulfilled by Amazon to be eligible".

[2OEH8eoCRo0]

I've had better luck buying memory on EBay from Shenzhen recyclers! I'm done with Amazon.