"I came here to write a review on Buy.com (the worst on-line merchant I've ever dealt with!), and realized that I need to write one for Amazon, who is the exact opposite! I placed five different orders with Amazon this Christmas season. The only problem I had was with an impulse purchase I made... they had a few items "free after rebate", and I ordered two: a DVD Wallet (to hold DVDs), and a 25-pack of CDRs. Upon receipt, I tried to file the rebates (completely on-line), and was told that one was denied because there was a limit of one per household. Apparently even though they were different items, the promotion (no longer on their site) was only good for one item total. I don't remember seeing this, and there was no rebate form to refer back to since it was all on-line. Admittedly, I was frustrated, but decided to call and give them a chance to fix this. The customer service rep (apparently in India) couldn't do anything about the rebate, but agreed to take the CDRs back and apologized for the hassle. This is much better than Buy.com, and as a result, I am still proud to be an Amazon.com customer. I hope Scott Blum (arrogant CEO of Buy.com) falls off the roof of his "Internet Superstore" and lands in jail where he belongs!
30 Nov 2009 Update: BTW, the reference to Buy.com's CEO on the roof was from a TV add they used to run where he was standing on the roof... anyway, I wanted to update my review on Amazon.com as I am still a very satisfied customer. I purchase from Amazon about one-third as often as I do from Newegg, but still about every other month. I have purchased watches, movies, appliances, computer parts, hand-bags, books, iPod/cell accessories, sports equipment, etc. etc. from Amazon and have always had a great experience (save one--see last review)... I appreciate the photos of items (usually) and extensive reviews from Amazon and many customers. Bottom line is I feel safe shopping at Amazon and will not hesitate shopping there in the future."
"As an Amazon.com customer for over 7 years, I can say without hesitation that they have NEVER disappointed me. The prices are almost always the best around, the sales are frequent, the shipping price is great, and the customer service has ALWAYS been helpful.
I've never had an order lost in processing, I've never had any problems with gift certificates (be they sent to me or by me, or paper certificates in the US mail, or email gift certificates), and I've never had a problem with returns (nor have I ever been charged any return fee).
On the rare occasions when I had a problem, the customer service was always helpful--often giving me a free gift certificate "for my troubles."
After several hundred purchases, and several thousands of dollars spent, I can't recommend Amazon.com enough!!"
"I have purchased at amazon.com several times a year for almost 4 years, and NEVER, never had problems regarding wrong shipping address, defective product, delayed shipping or else, I am VERY satisfied with their service and I highly recommend to search this store first before buying somewhere else. I use this store no matter if the product I am buying is 10 dollars higher than other stores."
"I've ordered many items through Amazon.com - probably well over 50 items - and have never had a problem with either the merchandise or delivery. Latest item was Lowepro Computrakker AW Camera Backpack. I paid $110.46 with free shipping and no sales tax. Ordered on 1/5/07 received 1/11/07. Best local price was about $150.
Again, I've never had a problem with Amazon."
"Amazon had a holiday special that stated that any "FREE Super Saver Shipping" orders placed by Sunday, December 17, 2006 would be received by Friday, December 22. There was a slight delay in getting my order out but Amazon shipped it on December 20th and I received it as promised by December 22nd. Good price and free shipping that was received on the specified date before Christmas...works for me!"
"I have ordered numerous items from this seller in the past, and have had a good-great experience. This past Christmas however, I feel that they have turned quite greedy. I placed an almost $300.00 order well before Christmas(November 21), and also picked the super saver shipping. My advice to all is BEWARE OF THIS SHIPPING! As of January 6, 2007 more than half of my order has yet to be shipped, even though Amazon says most of it is in stock. It is hard for me believe that for an entire month they didn't have any of the items that I ordered. A few days after Christmas I received 1 pair of tongs. I emailed customer service, where I was told that since I picked super saver shipping, I am automatically put in a category where my items have to be shipped in as few orders as possible. Understandable, but apparently they can ship out one pair of tongs and not 4-5 other items that appear to be in stock? Also, the tongs where in a box about 5 times bigger than the item. Seems like a waste of money, better put towards shipping out items in a timely fashion.
BEWARE OF THIS COMPANY- they take advantage of super saver shipping option to lure in customers,then appear to take care of other customers first."
"As usual, a very good experience! I bought a Creative Zen V-Plus 2GB MP3 player for my wife for a Christmas gift, and received it very promptly. Unfortunately, we found that the internal battery was failing, and would drain of power well before it should. We arranged to ship it back to Amazon through their web site, where we were able to print a postage-paid mailing label so shipping would cost us nothing. We received the replacedment, which functions perfectly, just a few days after submitting the replacement request online-- even before the one we already had could have reached them! Painless and efficient!"
"I have ordered from Amazon many times during the last 10 years and have never had any problems at all. Shipping has been very prompt, customer service has been excellent and their prices are competitive. Great company."
"AVOID!! How many times am I gonna have to get burned by these losers before I finally learn my lesson? I thought I was smarter than this, but I guess not.
You've all read all the negative comments here about this outfit - maybe you're smarter than I am. Amazon is great for reading customer reviews about products, but that's about it - just don't order anything from 'em!
In my latest episode, they indicated an item was in-stock, let me order, then informed me almost two days later after the order was placed that the item was in fact out-of-stock. Thanks!
If you can't take a hint, you'd sure better learn how to pray if you order from this bunch - I've gotten items that were obviously open-box and not brand new as indicated, and I've received items that I was *amazed* arrived in one piece because of the lousy packing job.
They will tell you most anything to court your business, then lower the boom. And that routine of hounding you to death on your personal page with "HERE'S what you need to buy," - that got old after about two seconds.
km5er's comment below says it all - read it carefully and you'll get a good idea how the drill works.
AVOID!! AVOID!! AVOID!!"
"I needed a special backpack for a trip and when I found it at Amazon.com it was advertised that it was in Stock, being sold directly from Amazon and that if I ordered within the next 9 hours it could be delivered next day. So I ordered and received a confirmation e-mail. I checked the site and it was scheduled to be delivered Dec. 29. I checked the site at least ten times till about 9:30 AM on the 29th the site stated delivery Jan. 2. I received no e-mail regarding this. I cancelled the order disappointed. If you look the item up online Dec. 29 it still states one day shipping with delivery on Jan.2 Why would they have a problem with my order when if ordered the day after me it still offers gurantee one day delivery? I thought I was safe because it stated "from Amazon" and not a third party vender and because they have only a limited number of items that they offer one day delivery and each item has a countdown timer that tells how long you have to order in order to receive the item on time. I guess the poor ratings shown for Amazon are accurate. I have ordered small stuff that was not time critical since 2002. I doubt I will count on Amazon.com again. "
"Amazon as usual got things there on time and in good condition. The people who complain about amazon usually a) have shopped from the market place or b) ordered the item like 3 days before Christmas and still expect it to be shipped on time..."
"I've bought MANY MANY things from Amazon.com. They are like my "Newegg" for non-computer items. This year I did 90% of my Christmas shopping on Amazon.com. Whenever I can, I try to buy the items that are from Amazon, and not their partners. Also, I always try to take advantage of the free super-saver shipping. With the free shipping, it's usually like 4-5 business days, but hey... the shipping is free. I've only ever had 1 shipping mishap with them (a lost Ipod mini) and they took care of the situation quickly without question. Maybe I'm just lucky, but I've had full confidence in them for a long time."
"PLEASE CONSIDER AMAZON.COM'S RATING BEFORE ORDERING. I ordered three Christmas presents from amazon.com, not one of their resellers who are MORE reliable than they are! Ordered on Sunday, the last day of "FREE SUPER-SAVER SHIPPING" for the holidays, with an estimated arrival date of Dec. 22, the Friday before Christmas. I knew that delivery was not guaranteed on that date, but I figured it would be okay. After not receiving the package, I called DHL, who informed me that THEY NEVER RECEIVED THE PACKAGE! Amazon says DHL must not have scanned it, but in any case they both agree that it is FLOATING AROUND SOMEWHERE. Amazon put in a replacement order, with two-day shipping I might add, to arrive three days after Christmas. A very poor experience overall."
"Great price and items were received on the promised date even with the Christmas rush."
"I looked everywhere for a particular PC game and Amazon had it for $ 20 less than any other game site. Overall, I felt it went very well this close to X=Mas.. They took a few days extra to ship than most places do, but once it shipped, it got here ahead of schedule w/ the FREE shipping I got on it !! Was well packed , was informed of tracking when shipped, low price.. I have always gotten good stuff from Amazon, I will keep them on my list to check for any items in the future.."