Using Amazon in Australia [Australian input please]

[Rassilon]

Hi Everyone,

I've been looking at the price I pay for D&D books here in Australia vs. the converted (USD to AUD) price for buying from Amazon, and it's about half.

For all those guys who find $29.95 (USD) to be pricey for their next bauble, try $66.00 (the purchasing power of each dollar in it's country is very roughly equivalent).

So: Can anyone who has actual experience buying from Amazon let me know how the experience went, if there are any hidden costs, if the glorious Australian Customs Service added any taxes or otherwise got involved, etc.

Cheers,

Rassilon.

 

[Olive]

I'm not sure I agree with purchasing power actually, but whatever.

Amazon are fine, once a book is in stock. Remember you need to take postage into consideration. Books can take around 2 weeks. Never had GST or whatever slapped on for any order and never ehard of anyone getting it put on, but I'd be nervous about ordering too much at once, or about ordering electronics at the same time.

Hope that helps.

 

[humble minion]

I've ordered a few RPG books from Amazon, though admittedly not for nearly a year now. In my experience, even including postage going through Amazon will be somewhat cheaper. It's never been a huge amount cheaper, but the savings might improve if you order multiple books at a time so you only pay one lot of postage.

Be a little careful about the amount you order at once - once you get over a certain value in a single order, you start attracting import taxes and so on.

Also, Amazon is erratic to say the least regarding when they get new releases. It was two months after the release date before I got the Star Wars Ultimate Alien Anthology, for instance.

 

[MrFilthyIke]

Hey, Australian customers is weird in their descisions. We sent a care package to our family overseas and it arrived with a bill for 100AUD included! So, one apology and money transfer later... :\

 

[Eremite]

I haven't bought books from Amazon but a number of my friends are buying CDs and DVDs from there and they have, thus far, arrived without Customs adding a bill for duty and/or GST.

FYI, I buy my WotC books here in Brisbane from Ace Comics. Products with a MSRP of USD29.95 becomes AUD39.95 not AUD50 or AUD60 like some of the other stores charge. When I asked them why they had become so cheap they explained that there was a new distribution method that resulted in lower costs. It seems, however, that only one store is passing those discounts on....

 

[1upus]

Esemite,
Thanks for the tip, will have to trudge up the stairs to have a look at Ace. Usually avoid the place as I normally don't head that way to check books as it is always hot up here, but if the price differential is that great, it's worth a look.

With regards to ordering from Amazon, have done so for a few things. Usually DVDs as there are stuff released o/s that we will never get here, and they are so much cheaper! DVDs and CDs usually work in well with costs as they don't really attract that much postage. Books are a killer as the weight does cost you. Recently ordered a hard cover Eddings in my order from Amazon UK and the blasted thing almost doubled my normal postage costs.

However, if careful with ordering and shopping around for deals via Amazon or even Overstock, you can get some great deals which do work out cheaper, seeing as how the Aussie dollar is up at the moment.

Lupus

 

[arwink]

For Brisbanites, I'll put another word in for Ace comics. The stairs are a pain, but the stock is well-priced.

My amazon experiences have mostly been good, although be warned about making bulk purchases. My flatmate bought over a $1000 worth of stuff from the US a while back, and once you start ordering that amount of stuff Customs starts to get invovled. Smaller parcels (I think anything up to about a couple of hundred dollars worth) tend to come through normal post.

 

[Eremite]

Eremite,
Thanks for the tip, will have to trudge up the stairs to have a look at Ace. Usually avoid the place as I normally don't head that way to check books as it is always hot up here, but if the price differential is that great, it's worth a look. (snip)

Lupus,

Did you know that they have moved to the Queen Street Mall? The new shop is air-conditioned so heat is no longer a problem. It's next to Hungry Jack's (Burger King for any non-Aussies who might be reading).

 

[mhacdebhandia]

The release date issue is a problem, as is the relationship between cost and shipping time - but even so, I often think it's worth it. Here in Sydney there's no good choice - even the friendliest stores are just too expensive.

 

[Eremite]

I was really surprised by how expensive RPG books were in Sydney, although you do have access to a much better range of products than we do in Brisbane.

Overall, though, I've been pretty surprised and annoyed by the high costs of RPG books in Australia compared to what I had been used to when I lived in the Singaporean Collective. In the Collective, prices are basically the US prices calculated at the exchange rate. Fortunately, I still travel there regularly so I can still pick things up cheaply (although the new pricing policy of Ace Comics for WotC products has made that less of a necessity)... which is what I plan to do this weekend.