Original $79.00 was fine while I had a daughter living out of town. Shipping for birthday and holidays made it worth it. She moved back and now retailers have free ship to store. I dropped Prime. A lot of the BBC dramas we like to watch are free via DVDs at our local library.
The thugs have figured out all they have to do is follow UPS or USPS and wait for them to deliver a package to a doorstep and they know it's an Amazon package. They hop out of their car, take the package and resume following UPS/USPS. It's been a pretty well established pattern, they don't hit the same neighborhoods on a regular basis and the local pd is too undermanned to catch them (and the thugs know it.)
If I have to have a package shipped to an Amazon drop-spot and drive there to pick it up, it defeats the purpose of Amazon IMO. I also don't use Amazon Prime Video or Audio very much and can find other content elsewhere.
Yes I know I can purchase some Amazon system which will let the delivery person inside my front door to deliver the package "securely" and I'm not comfortable with that either.
Back to the brick and mortar stores I go.
I hate having to use it, but we live in a rural area and Amazon saves me money.
I can sometimes find the same products elsewhere, but typically the shipping costs eat up all the savings.
We pay through the nose at brick and mortar stores to get anything beyond normal staples.
Here’s an example. I needed a replacement bolt for my truck. m10-1.5, 25mm long. Had to be 10.9 strength, not 8.8. I checked Tractor Supply, Walmart, Advance Auto, Home Depot, Lowes locally. Nobody had it. Couple minutes on Amazon and I have a whole bag of them on the way. I wasted more time driving around looking for one than I’ll wait for Amazon to deliver it to my office.
And stark contrast to Netflix, Amazon charges for far too many programs and movies on Prime TV. Just another reason why I am considering discontinuing my Prime subscription.
Is Amazon Prime worth its new $119 price tag?
I’m done with Amazon. They and their fast delivery is a joke. When you are really buying from a third party be careful because Amazon has NO control over any delivery. Also, they don’t vet their third party vendors so they do not have any control over the return policy of that vendor, they can do what ever they want.
Two orders and two problems. Buy locally.
I use the free shipping, music, and video features of Amazon Prime.
The free shipping feature pays for the service for me many times over. I bought 12 heavy duty, rolling, steel shelving units from Amazon last year. They weighed 54 lbs. each. All shipped free and arrived quickly, usually within 3 to 5 days of ordering. How much do you think the shipping on those units would have cost from a third party vendor?
I use the Prime music benefit everyday. I listen to a wide variety of music (Christmas, religious, classical, big band jazz, historic, etc.). I have nearly 100 albums in my music library that I can listen to anywhere on any device that can link to the Internet. The only downside is that I am a CD buyer in the age of the MP3 download. If I could just click and buy an album CD, I probably would have purchased many of these albums by now. As it is, you have to hunt the album down by searching through the main Amazon site.
I don’t use the Prime video service that much since I like to patronize local theaters and businesses when possible. I usually buy the films I see on DVD (Amazon gets only some of that business). I agree that the video selection that is free with Prime is not that great. That’s one area that needs better management. But you can rent 30 day viewing of first run feature films for far less than a regular Cineplex ticket. So there is a rental price discount through Prime.
(Another reason for limited use of the Prime video benefit is that I also subscribe to Netflix. There is some of the same staleness in the selections on Netflix as they don’t turn over as much as you would like. However, the Netflix original features are very good (or better). I specifically recommend the 2018 revival of the 1960s “Lost in Space” scifi series. Just binge watched all 12 episodes of the first season last weekend. Terrific production values, CGI, character development, etc.)
So count me a satisfied Amazon Prime member even at $119.00 per year.
I guess is all depends on how much money $120 is to you. It’s not that much to me. The shipping and the TV more than earn it.
I’m very likely to end my membership when it expires. Worth is not there at the moment. Amazon justifies by saying that they are adding new features, but I am not seeing the worth to me.
We were getting it at the student rate, so we may reevaluate it when we renew. I do use Prime Music streaming almost every day, and I have a good playlist of mostly free downloads. There are some noteworthy gaps in their free Prime collection, so I am thinking about signing up for something else(suggestions?). My main hobby is fishing, and I can either buy the basics at Wal Mart or watch the sales at Bass Pro or Academy for any equipment that I need.
Nope.
Is it worth it? YES. Not just for the free shipping, but we have had superior service from Amazon over the years regarding ease of returns, and various other considerations.
Whatever I think of Jeff Bezo’s politics, he has a great company and we would not be better off without it for many reasons.
I suspect I will let my Prime membership expire this summer.
You get more than free two day shipping. You have access to hundreds of movies and old TV shows, and Prime Music. If you don’t use the movies and music features and only shop occasionally, then it may not be worth a subscription.
When you live in the boonies, it IS worth it. Free shipping on bird seed and dog and cat food (canned and dry). . .plus it is delivered to my garage. I do check the prices and what I buy is within reason. A good deal for a senior. I use Prime a lot for gifts. . .shipping alone would have been well over $119. I didn’t realize they raised the price.
Barely worth $99 - I don’t watch the videos or listen to the music, so it was marginal for me anyway.
I got my money’s worth the first couple of years by buying large items that would have cost a fortune to ship without prime, but this past year I have probably lost money. And I notice that the 2 day shipping isn’t really “free” - you pay more for the same item on prime than what it costs without prime - usually a little better deal than standard shipping rate but not always.
As long as I am just buying random used books and the occasional bottle of vitamins on Amazon, prime isn’t worth it. Will likely cancel it when it comes due again.
No, not if you want to save money, and if free shipping for Ad ons stays at 25.00 and 35.00 for the standard free shipping, and if the abundance of such remains, and you are just an occasional (less than 2 orders per month) shopper. Thank God. Even if you paid a 6.00 shipping charge (which is Walmart’s standard cost) you would need to make 20 orders per year to save money with via Prime, though sometimes there are special sales for that class.
Not many good free (prime) Christian movies either.
It's not free. They may not charge an extra fee for it, per se, but they do charge for it. The cost...or most of it...is burried in the price of the item.
I do a lot of shopping online and in stores before buying mostly anything over $20. Amazon's prices are not always the best I can find. When I have to have something fast, I'll pay the extra money.
Just looked at some items on Amazon Prime and the deliveries are getting longer and longer. Saturday and Monday for the items I want. Today is wed at 3:55. Friggin so much for the 2 day deliveries.