I just had a video chat on Skype with James about this topic and realized that many "everyday" consumers might not realize what I've noticed on Amazon. I'm about to upgrade my faithful Panasonic Lumix DMC-F27 digital point-and-shoot for a DSLR. After doing my research and factoring in my budget, I've settled on the Canon XSi, which lists for $899 or so. Like any gadget-hound, I've hit up all of the major electronics websites for pricing and of course, Amazon is in the mix. Here's where it gets interesting: in the past 16 hours, the price for this camera has changed three times. Each time it was "Sold by Amazon" and each new price was lower than the prior.
Yesterday afternoon, the camera kit with lens was $845, or pretty much in line with many other retailers. Last night before bed, the price had dropped to $810, making it a very attractive deal. Still, I decided to hold off because it was too late for one-day shipping and I knew had time to kill before buying it for a Thursday delivery. This morning, I checked again and see that it's now $799 and it can still be here tomorrow.
I just had a video chat on Skype with James about this topic and realized that many "everyday" consumers might not realize what I've noticed on Amazon. I'm about to upgrade my faithful Panasonic Lumix DMC-F27 digital point-and-shoot for a DSLR. After doing my research and factoring in my budget, I've settled on the Canon XSi, which lists for $899 or so. Like any gadget-hound, I've hit up all of the major electronics websites for pricing and of course, Amazon is in the mix. Here's where it gets interesting: in the past 16 hours, the price for this camera has changed three times. Each time it was "Sold by Amazon" and each new price was lower than the prior.
Yesterday afternoon, the camera kit with lens was $845, or pretty much in line with many other retailers. Last night before bed, the price had dropped to $810, making it a very attractive deal. Still, I decided to hold off because it was too late for one-day shipping and I knew had time to kill before buying it for a Thursday delivery. This morning, I checked again and see that it's now $799 and it can still be here tomorrow.
James made a good point when we chatted about this. Since Amazon has so many places it can receive stock from and because they "represent" so many sellers, the pricing can easily fluctuate as suppliers compete against each other. Granted: you can't keep waiting for the price drops because you never know when they'll change back to price increases. But sometimes a little patience can save a fair amount of money. It's a crapshoot, of course, but it's an interesting phenomonon to watch... and take advantage of when you can. Anyone have similar experiences with Amazon? Did you "win" or "lose" by waiting?
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