There are certain services that can be such a good deal, that can help make the most of a small income. I've found Amazon Prime to be such a service, for me anyway, but lately I'm having doubts. If you don't know what it is, Prime is a subscription service provided by Amazon.com. It is currently priced at $99 a year (comes to $8.25 per month). Prime members get a number of perks, including free 2-day shipping on all Amazon products, and some affiliated vendors also. You have free access to a large library of streaming video and music, and to a free "lending library" of Kindle-format e-books. You can also select 2 free books per month from a collection of four pre-publication fiction books published by Amazon (Kindle First).
For me, the biggest value was in the streaming video. In the several years I've been a Prime subscriber, I've watched a lot of great TV. But in the last year, many of my favorites have been removed from Prime. No more Midsomer Murders, Matlock, Cheers, As Time Goes By, the Closer, the Andy Griffith Show, and so many more! They do have all the Downton Abby, the Goodwife, and a bunch of the HBO stuff such as the Sopranos. But it seems like most of what they now have on Prime is either shows and movies I've never heard of, or things that appeal more to a younger audience. Lots of violence and raunch. not so much of the older, gentler TV programming I imagine lots of older folks tend to enjoy more than so much of the gory, disturbing newer programming. I looked recently and probably 2/3 of my watchlist had been removed from Prime.
Now. the 2-day shipping is a good deal in and of itself, but only if you do a lot of online ordering from Amazon. And you have to keep in mind that they offer free "whenever" shipping on orders over $25, so unless you need fast shipping all the time, you can probably get free shipping for most of your orders, anyway.
I've read a couple of excellent books from the Amazon First and the Kindle Lending Library, but lately the Amazon First selections have not seemed very interesting, and most of the Lending Library things are not really first-quality. Anyway, they are convenient but not really needed, because I can get a large number of books, audio books, and e-books from my local public library, and the library-affiliated Overdrive (electronic books, audiobooks, and streaming video) service... all totally free.
Amazon's music streaming service is easy to use, and there is a lot available, including some excellent playlists. But... have you tried Pandora, or one of the other free music apps? Or just the radio? There are occasional ads, of course, but I've found Pandora's content to be excellent and I love the way you can build your own custom "stations." And, again... it's free.
But for me, the real deal-breaker is the marked reduction in the quality of their Prime streaming video offerings. I prefer to watch TV on my tablet, because I have a small TV and my eyesight is bad. I can hold my tablet and see quite well. Comcast's tablet app now actually works... most of the time (I was shocked that they finally got it together, actually.) I can watch my new telenovela (La Sombra del Pasado, on Univision), and my new favorite comedy, Fresh off the Boat (ABC), plus my secret vice, General Hospital (also ABC) on my tablet, free of any charge beyond my Comcast monthly basic cable subscription. I'm more of a reader, but I could watch a lot more Comcast programming if I wanted, or get a $7.99 Netflix subscription and watch just about anything. Netflix has an immensely better library than Amazon Prime. You can also watch Hulu on a computer to see many of the recent TV shows... you need to pay for HuluPlus only if you want to watch on a tablet or have a bigger archive available. In addition, I'm gradually discovering how much older TV programming is available on Youtube. Last night, for example, I watched an episode from the final season of the Inspector Morse series on Youtube... free of charge.
My Amazon Prime subscription doesn't end until next January, unfortunately. So I guess I'll catch up on Downton Abby and Parks and Recreation. But unless things change, I won't be renewing. It just isn't a good deal for me any more.
For me, the biggest value was in the streaming video. In the several years I've been a Prime subscriber, I've watched a lot of great TV. But in the last year, many of my favorites have been removed from Prime. No more Midsomer Murders, Matlock, Cheers, As Time Goes By, the Closer, the Andy Griffith Show, and so many more! They do have all the Downton Abby, the Goodwife, and a bunch of the HBO stuff such as the Sopranos. But it seems like most of what they now have on Prime is either shows and movies I've never heard of, or things that appeal more to a younger audience. Lots of violence and raunch. not so much of the older, gentler TV programming I imagine lots of older folks tend to enjoy more than so much of the gory, disturbing newer programming. I looked recently and probably 2/3 of my watchlist had been removed from Prime.
Now. the 2-day shipping is a good deal in and of itself, but only if you do a lot of online ordering from Amazon. And you have to keep in mind that they offer free "whenever" shipping on orders over $25, so unless you need fast shipping all the time, you can probably get free shipping for most of your orders, anyway.
I've read a couple of excellent books from the Amazon First and the Kindle Lending Library, but lately the Amazon First selections have not seemed very interesting, and most of the Lending Library things are not really first-quality. Anyway, they are convenient but not really needed, because I can get a large number of books, audio books, and e-books from my local public library, and the library-affiliated Overdrive (electronic books, audiobooks, and streaming video) service... all totally free.
Amazon's music streaming service is easy to use, and there is a lot available, including some excellent playlists. But... have you tried Pandora, or one of the other free music apps? Or just the radio? There are occasional ads, of course, but I've found Pandora's content to be excellent and I love the way you can build your own custom "stations." And, again... it's free.
But for me, the real deal-breaker is the marked reduction in the quality of their Prime streaming video offerings. I prefer to watch TV on my tablet, because I have a small TV and my eyesight is bad. I can hold my tablet and see quite well. Comcast's tablet app now actually works... most of the time (I was shocked that they finally got it together, actually.) I can watch my new telenovela (La Sombra del Pasado, on Univision), and my new favorite comedy, Fresh off the Boat (ABC), plus my secret vice, General Hospital (also ABC) on my tablet, free of any charge beyond my Comcast monthly basic cable subscription. I'm more of a reader, but I could watch a lot more Comcast programming if I wanted, or get a $7.99 Netflix subscription and watch just about anything. Netflix has an immensely better library than Amazon Prime. You can also watch Hulu on a computer to see many of the recent TV shows... you need to pay for HuluPlus only if you want to watch on a tablet or have a bigger archive available. In addition, I'm gradually discovering how much older TV programming is available on Youtube. Last night, for example, I watched an episode from the final season of the Inspector Morse series on Youtube... free of charge.
My Amazon Prime subscription doesn't end until next January, unfortunately. So I guess I'll catch up on Downton Abby and Parks and Recreation. But unless things change, I won't be renewing. It just isn't a good deal for me any more.
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