Does Amazon Actually Work? <:/ (mostly non pony related)

[Twilight Pink]

Hello there y'all,
First off I'm gonna come out straight with it: I hate, hate, HATE Amazon.com :/

I can't stand it, they take waaaaaay too long to ship out an item (like one time my friend ordered me a Green Day poster for my birthday and it nearly took a month for the thing to ship out and then given to me :L was that really necessary? The poster didn't even come from overseas. .. I trust eBay sellers more than I trust Amazon... )

But unfortunately, not everything can be bought from eBay especially not computer software programs, CDS, DVDs, or electronics of any sort e_e
So I have to sacrifice my sanity to sign up on that wretched Amazon site in order get a Sims 3 SP Katy Perry's Sweet Treats because I've discovered that its retired meaning there's no digital downloads (which doesn't make sense, since the disc is required to play Sims 3 <:/ ) nor being sold in stores (unless I get uber lucky )

So my questions are: Does Amazon actually work? Is it trustworthy? Is there a shipping time limit set to where they don't take an obnoxiously long time shipping out a single item? And what are Amazon packages delivered by (USPS, UPS,FedEx. ...)?

Thank you for your answers!

[Rainbowrific Renia]

I have honestly never had an item take more than a few days to be delivered to me if it was in stock.  Seriously, I've had zero problems with them, so I can't complain at all.  I've even thought of buying Prime because I highly enjoyed my 6 month free trial of it.

Even when I've ordered items that weren't in stock at the time, Amazon was very prompt with getting me my order once they had the items available.

One important thing to check for is for the “fulfilled by Amazon" sentence that can usually be seen near the top of the page of the item you're looking at.  This is the safest and easiest way to ensure you get your item from Amazon and not a 3rd party seller.

Also, I believe Amazon uses multiple delivery services.  I ordered resin mixture and the new Cadance and Celestia 8 inch ponies as a single order.  The resin was delivered by UPS and the ponies were shipped a few days later and arrived via USPS.

[HollowZero]

I've never, ever, had a problem with Amazon. Even when I needed items for an event and asked what was up (order kept saying "shipping soon") they guaranteed it would make it to my house in time. It did.

[Libelle]

I used to love Amazon Germany, because items never took more than a day or two to arrive (I'm using Amazon Prime, though). The only thing that has been bugging me lately is the fact that they now sometimes use an unreliable carrier service without giving the buyer the opportunity to opt out of that service and choose a different one. In fact, this is bugging me so much, that I hardly buy anything from Amazon these days.

[Skeen]

It sounds like your poster wasn't shipped by Amazon, but by a third party seller using Amazon as a storefront.  That isn't Amazon's fault.  You need to make sure you're either buying from them directly or from a store whose orders are shipped by Amazon.  They may not always be the cheapest but it's the most reliable.  Amazon has earned its reputation by actually being very good at what it does.  Its Prime service can't be beat. 

[archidraca]

Anything sold or fulfilled by Amazon has been wonderful for me, even before we got Prime. 3rd party fulfillment is still kinda spotty, especially during bad weather or near Christmas, but otherwise things get sent out as one would think. Just make sure you check both stars and written ratings and you should be fine. 

[flying_narwhal]

It sounds like your poster wasn't shipped by Amazon, but by a third party seller using Amazon as a storefront.  That isn't Amazon's fault.  You need to make sure you're either buying from them directly or from a store whose orders are shipped by Amazon.  They may not always be the cheapest but it's the most reliable.  Amazon has earned its reputation by actually being very good at what it does.  Its Prime service can't be beat.

My thoughts exactly, sounds like you might be buying from third party sellers. It's pretty much like buying from someone ebay, you could be buying from anyone and they set their own shipping times. Most of the time I haven't had issues buying from third party but there have been a few instances when the service was extremely slow.

I have personally never had many issues with orders fulfilled by Amazon itself. In the event there was a problem they were always quick to replace/refund. My only issue with Amazon is their packaging. Generally it is ok but there have been several times when I have bought expensive and/or limited collector's edition items that were not packaged properly and arrived with damage (which is irritating when something is limited edition and sells out since they can't replace). I've noticed this issue can depend on the warehouse fulfilling the order.

[Twilight Pink]

It sounds like your poster wasn't shipped by Amazon, but by a third party seller using Amazon as a storefront.  That isn't Amazon's fault.  You need to make sure you're either buying from them directly or from a store whose orders are shipped by Amazon.  They may not always be the cheapest but it's the most reliable.  Amazon has earned its reputation by actually being very good at what it does.  Its Prime service can't be beat.

They had 3rd party sellers from about 8 years ago? O.o (I was still in middle school when I got my poster)

And as I look at the listing for one of the Katy Perry SPs, the seller's name look oddly similar to the one on eBay if that's the case then I'm just gonna wing it on eBay besides, if its defective I'm gonna return it ^^

[Skeen]

They've had 3rd party sellers since the late 90's at least. 

[Rainbowrific Renia]

I was gonna say, I'm pretty sure they've had third party sellers as long as the website has been around.

[CupidStrikes]

Amazon UK's service has declined in the past few years and I've had a few issues with them that have made me look elsewhere even if it means paying a little bit more (things like deciding to combine two separate orders resulting in a sold out LE game being damaged because some idiot put a 700-page book on top of it, and taking over a month to investigate a pre-order's DLC before cancelling it about a week before it was released because they didn't have sales rights for the item in the UK). Their customer service is great, at least.

[Galactica]

Amazon works great for me- Amazon Prime particularly has been a lifesaver for Christmas/Birthdays/random stuffs that I need...  everything from art supplies to ponies and kitchen appliances.   I definitely have much slower/spottier service if I buy products that are coming from third parties (rather than amazon).

My friend who works for the post office says that most of her work is for Amazon deliveries these days...

[brittney_rochelle]

I actually love amazon! You need to look at where you are ordering from, though. Look for things sold by or fulfilled by amazon. Prime is where it's at though. I love it. You get a free 6months if you have a .edu email

[Ringlets]

I don't think I can add anything to the good advice everyone has already given you here  (thanks all!   ) 
Buying things supplied by Amazon itself  I've never had any problems with either - as the others said , it's the 3rd party sellers you have to look out for. I think they've always had those on Amazon as far as I can remember. If its a seller , not actually Amazon , that you are buying the item from, you might be better looking for it on ebay first (which is what I do personally )

[buddyboymama]

They had 3rd party sellers from about 8 years ago? O.o (I was still in middle school when I got my poster)

And as I look at the listing for one of the Katy Perry SPs, the seller's name look oddly similar to the one on eBay if that's the case then I'm just gonna wing it on eBay besides, if its defective I'm gonna return it ^^

That's what I would do, too. I found an item in both places, and I thought it was the same seller. I opted for eBay because the sellers are held more accountable. In my experience, individual eBay sellers ship faster than even Amazon does. I have bought from 3rd party sellers on Amazon a few times without incident, but I get the impression that if you have problems with a 3rd party seller, you're on your own dealing with them.