this post was submitted on 31 Jan 2024
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  • The author canceled their Amazon Prime subscription on a whim and realized they didn't really need it.
  • Leaving Prime meant slower shipping but the author was happy to wait and still found the selection and delivery speed satisfactory.
  • Many people love Prime for its fast shipping and convenience, but some readers expressed ambivalence and considered canceling.

Archive link: https://archive.ph/3M27c

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[–] [email protected] 14 points 10 months ago (2 children)

I've never really understood what prime actually is. They nag me about it on the occasion I might buy something from amazon. weird to think someone perhaps couldn't live without it.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 10 months ago (2 children)

Free two day delivery and access to prime video

[–] [email protected] 12 points 10 months ago (1 children)

One thing I've noticed is that it pretty much always takes two days to deliver your items. The only difference is that Amazon will let your order sit in their warehouse for a few extra days if you don't have Prime.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Yep I think that they optimized so much for 2 day delivery that it is cheaper to give to everyone. They just let the order sit around for a few days to make it take longer.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 10 months ago (1 children)

That's what I don't understand. The item is using up warehouse space, marked for me, for five days. Surely they'd make more money just mailing it and restocking the item to sell more during those five days.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 10 months ago

Then you wouldn't be pressured into paying for Prime. A subscription is the gift that keeps giving forever. Amazon probably wouldn't give half a shit if nobody ordered an item ever again as long as everybody keeps paying for Prime.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 10 months ago

I canceled my prime over a year ago but previously have been a prime member since 2003. the two day shipping thing was legit for a lot of those years but has been anything BUT two day shipping for at least the last 5 years. week if you're lucky.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 10 months ago

You would need to pay shipping on orders under 35$ - previously 25$ was the threshold. With some exceptions that require shipping be paid no matter what prime was there to give you two day shipping on all orders at no extra cost. Now they have prime video, prime gaming, prime music, and prime reading as part of it aswell. All of which have were some nice added value to anyone already paying to get the shipping. Although prime video now has ads, music and reading are really just a worse version of their subscriptions for those services - amazon music and Kindle unlimited.

Basically if you have frequent small orders on Amazon it might be cheaper to pay the monthly sub than to pay for shipping. For most people it's really not worth it, either because you don't place enough orders or they would meet the threshold for free shipping anyway.