Dec 30, 2008

Amazon Just Saved Me $30 (and then I spent it)

I picked up some books at the local Borders this evening... that'd be two computer books totaling $86 after tax. When I got home, I checked out their reviews and prices on Amazon, and found that I could get them for $55 w/ free shipping.

So what did I do next? Ordered them on Amazon, and added one more book in. So, I still spent $86. Well, I spent $160, but I plan on returning the books I purchased within the week so I don't own costly duplicates.

How often do you buy books and return them? I know bookstores aren't libraries, but their return policy (w/ a receipt within 30 days) can easily be followed if you want to get a quick read in, or buy now and buy cheaper later. I feel guilty doing that and don't do it often, but in this case the Amazon price is so much cheaper, and I haven't really read the books yet. Of course, the people at the store don't know that, and I always feel so foolish when I return my entire purchase a few days later.

Plenty of people sit in Borders and read books, so I don't see a huge difference in taking it home to review and returning it. I rarely do this, though, because I like to write in my books and keep them. The only reason I'm going to return these is because I bought the same ones for cheaper online.



2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think if you buy a book and read it, you shouldn't return it.

If you didn't want to keep it then get it from the library.

Anonymous said...

No, Amazon and Borders are not one and the same. They are completely different companies that shared a "partnership" for a few years, but that has been dissolved.

Why not check a book price on Amazon before purchasing it at a brick and mortar store? No one would fault you for buying the cheaper editions, that only makes sense. As for buying, reading, and then returning the book, you could use the library for that service.

Post a Comment