[LanceH]

There is a dead spot between using EC2 on demand and paying for the 3 year reserved instance, both of which I've found to be practical.

At both ends of that spectrum, however, I've found the pricing to be fairly reasonable. It just might not work for a startup.

[oijaf888]

How is the 3 year reserved instance practical given Amazon tends to cut prices significantly in a 3 year span? I've seen 1 year terms make sense but never 3 year.

[vacri]

Talking with our account manager, he mentions that the 1-year term is what most people go for anyway - you won't get caught short with long-term price drops, and you have more flexibility when business demands change. Overprovisioned capacity is less painful when there's only 6 months left rather than 30 months...