Ebook Buying Addicts' Support Thread - Page 113

DrNefario · 03-13-2013, 09:16 AM

I might have tricked myself into more spending.

A few weeks ago, I reported to HarperCollins that some of their books were missing from Amazon, and then I felt obliged to buy one of them when they put them all back up. Now, this weekend, I reported some lower prices to Amazon. They seem to have responded today, and dropped the prices on both books. I now feel that I ought to repay them by buying at least one, although they haven't actually matched Google's prices. I do want both books, but I don't really need them just yet. The only reason I didn't just buy them from Google is that I don't have an account with them.

I will resist, for now. (But what if they go back up?)

Dr. Drib · 03-13-2013, 03:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DrNefario

I might have tricked myself into more spending.

A few weeks ago, I reported to HarperCollins that some of their books were missing from Amazon, and then I felt obliged to buy one of them when they put them all back up. Now, this weekend, I reported some lower prices to Amazon. They seem to have responded today, and dropped the prices on both books. I now feel that I ought to repay them by buying at least one, although they haven't actually matched Google's prices. I do want both books, but I don't really need them just yet. The only reason I didn't just buy them from Google is that I don't have an account with them.

I will resist, for now. (But what if they go back up?)

They seem to listen to you. Tell them not to raise the price too soon.

Don

jersysman · 03-13-2013, 05:59 PM

I'm saving up for purchasing the Georgette Heyer books I do not have. I hope that they do a sale again this year.

Synamon · 03-13-2013, 06:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jersysman

I'm saving up for purchasing the Georgette Heyer books I do not have. I hope that they do a sale again this year.

There are a few Heyer books on the list for the 90% off code at Kobo at the moment.

/not helpful for this thread

jersysman · 03-13-2013, 06:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Synamon

There are a few Heyer books on the list for the 90% off code at Kobo at the moment.

/not helpful for this thread

Thanks, Synamon!

bookaho!ic · 03-15-2013, 04:33 AM

hee hee bought 2 in 24 hours one from the code list fryom Synamon and another from 99p list on the site. so £1.25 for two books yay (oh and about 30 new freebies but they dont count)

patrickt · 03-15-2013, 06:18 AM

I recently wrote a 2-star review of a book with a good story, good characters, and horrible writing. "I bade him bring a chair to the end of the booth." Then I checked the details on my "purchase". The book was free. It still cost me a few hours reading.

I celebrated by buying a couple of books by Walter Mosley that actually cost money.

Rev. Bob · 03-15-2013, 08:48 PM

I've been spending the last year or so trying to curb my tree-corpse addiction, simply due to lack of space. I started out fairly sensibly, deciding not to buy new books just because they looked interesting; they had to be either part of a series I was already reading or from an established author that I know I like.

I've pretty much kept to those rules with physical books, but at the same time I've been switching most of my hardback/trade purchases over to ebooks as the prices come down to make that reasonable. (Yes, $12.99 for an ebook is steep, but not when compared to the HC's $15 street price or $26 list price.) I've been a bit more experimental with my ebook purchases, due to the low-price and no-space factors. In fact, I bought two dozen ebooks to replace the unwieldy trade paperbacks, which then went to the used-book shop to help offset the conversion cost. Another six-book physical series magically turned into a single-ebook omnibus in the same way, more than paying for the conversion.

The biggest thing keeping me from going full-on electronic is the mass-market pricing, which makes NO SENSE. Eight bucks for an ebook, or the same eight bucks (maybe less) for a physical book that I could trade in later? Give me the p-book every time. On the other hand, if I saw that same ebook for about $6 or lower, I'd be all over that format.

At least Amazon's "helping" with the discontinuation of their 4-for-3 paperback deal, which is how I've gotten most of my MMPBs for several years. That one change has really made me start delaying purchases of new MMPBs and/or looking elsewhere for them. I mean, if I'm paying full retail, I might as well support a local bookstore, right?

pdurrant · 03-16-2013, 04:54 AM

I agree that having the ebook price the same as the MMPB price is ridiculous. Some publishers understand this, some don't.

DianNC · 03-16-2013, 03:29 PM

I finally figured out how to use Amazon's Whispersync (buy a book, get the audiobook at a reduced price).

This is probably not a good thing for my book budget...I bought two books yesterday and have a few more lined up.

I should have just left well-enough alone!

BelleZora · 03-16-2013, 04:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DianNC

I should have just left well-enough alone!

Yes, but where's the fun in that?

Quake1028 · 03-18-2013, 04:36 PM

Well, I did it. I had held strong up until yesterday at 2 books for the year so far. But, the Amazon daily deal got me. All 4 books (3 released, 1 pre-order) in the Hangman's Daughter series were 99 cents. I had 5 random cents left over from a GC, so one was only 94 cents. Bad news, 4 more books on my TBR. Good news, with them being so cheap, my average per book for the year is only $1.48. and I have spent less than $9 total ($8.89). I can live with that.

pdurrant · 03-18-2013, 04:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Quake1028

Well, I did it. I had held strong up until yesterday at 2 books for the year so far. But, the Amazon daily deal got me. All 4 books (3 released, 1 pre-order) in the Hangman's Daughter series were 99 cents. I had 5 random cents left over from a GC, so one was only 94 cents. Bad news, 4 more books on my TBR. Good news, with them being so cheap, my average per book for the year is only $1.48. and I have spent less than $9 total ($8.89). I can live with that.

It's for offers like that, that we resist buying ebooks at other times.

I have bought four books this year that I should probably have passed on (Life of Pi, 1227 QI Facts To Blow Your Socks Off, Thieves of the Hundred Gates and The Masks of Time) and I added one freebie to my TBR that I shouldn't have done (Starborne).

Unfortunately, even without those, my bought books this year are 42, with an average cost almost exactly $3.

On the plus side, I have read 50 books, and discarded one unread from my TBR, for a net reduction this year so far of four books.

I could have doubled my reduction if I'd just been a bit more resolute!

I shall do better in the rest of the year.

DrNefario · 03-19-2013, 09:18 AM

Well, of the two books I thought I might have to buy from Amazon, earlier in this thread, the prices dropped again, and one of them became cheaper than at Google Play (although I haven't checked back there, maybe there was a price war?) and I bought it.

I don't think I'm very likely to make a net gain on my TBR this year. I have been reading a lot of pbooks lately, though, so the value of the books I have read is way more than I have spent. I'll take that as some consolation.

mikaelalind · 03-19-2013, 05:05 PM

I am not doing so good with my e-book purchases for the last 5 weeks. Why? I have had 7 (!) autobuy authors with new e-books. And add to that books that have been on my wishlist for a long time is discounted to 2.99 or less.....
And then there was the Allromance 50% off sale on Valentines day....

But I don't regret anything. I would have bought them anyway, which means I am saving money in the long run. But I think I'll turn off my CC card now.

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03-13-2013, 09:16 AM	#1681
DrNefario Wizard Posts: 2,099 Karma: 11315768 Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: UK Device: Kindle, Kobo Touch, Nook SimpleTouch	I might have tricked myself into more spending. A few weeks ago, I reported to HarperCollins that some of their books were missing from Amazon, and then I felt obliged to buy one of them when they put them all back up. Now, this weekend, I reported some lower prices to Amazon. They seem to have responded today, and dropped the prices on both books. I now feel that I ought to repay them by buying at least one, although they haven't actually matched Google's prices. I do want both books, but I don't really need them just yet. The only reason I didn't just buy them from Google is that I don't have an account with them. I will resist, for now. (But what if they go back up?)

03-13-2013, 05:59 PM	#1683
jersysman Wizard Posts: 1,747 Karma: 3761220 Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Pennsylvania Device: T1 Red, Kindle Fire, Kindle PW, PW2, Nook HD+, Kobo Mini, Aura HD	I'm saving up for purchasing the Georgette Heyer books I do not have. I hope that they do a sale again this year.

03-15-2013, 04:33 AM	#1686
bookaho!ic Evangelist Posts: 463 Karma: 5575734 Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: UK Device: kobo Aura H20 2nd Ed	hee hee bought 2 in 24 hours one from the code list fryom Synamon and another from 99p list on the site. so £1.25 for two books yay (oh and about 30 new freebies but they dont count)

03-15-2013, 06:18 AM	#1687
patrickt Wizard Posts: 1,221 Karma: 8381518 Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Oaxaca, Mexico Device: Paperwhite 4 X 2	I recently wrote a 2-star review of a book with a good story, good characters, and horrible writing. "I bade him bring a chair to the end of the booth." Then I checked the details on my "purchase". The book was free. It still cost me a few hours reading. I celebrated by buying a couple of books by Walter Mosley that actually cost money.

03-15-2013, 08:48 PM	#1688
Rev. Bob Wizard Posts: 1,760 Karma: 9918418 Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Here on the perimeter, there are no stars Device: Kobo H2O, iPad mini 3, Kindle Touch	I've been spending the last year or so trying to curb my tree-corpse addiction, simply due to lack of space. I started out fairly sensibly, deciding not to buy new books just because they looked interesting; they had to be either part of a series I was already reading or from an established author that I know I like. I've pretty much kept to those rules with physical books, but at the same time I've been switching most of my hardback/trade purchases over to ebooks as the prices come down to make that reasonable. (Yes, $12.99 for an ebook is steep, but not when compared to the HC's $15 street price or $26 list price.) I've been a bit more experimental with my ebook purchases, due to the low-price and no-space factors. In fact, I bought two dozen ebooks to replace the unwieldy trade paperbacks, which then went to the used-book shop to help offset the conversion cost. Another six-book physical series magically turned into a single-ebook omnibus in the same way, more than paying for the conversion. The biggest thing keeping me from going full-on electronic is the mass-market pricing, which makes NO SENSE. Eight bucks for an ebook, or the same eight bucks (maybe less) for a physical book that I could trade in later? Give me the p-book every time. On the other hand, if I saw that same ebook for about $6 or lower, I'd be all over that format. At least Amazon's "helping" with the discontinuation of their 4-for-3 paperback deal, which is how I've gotten most of my MMPBs for several years. That one change has really made me start delaying purchases of new MMPBs and/or looking elsewhere for them. I mean, if I'm paying full retail, I might as well support a local bookstore, right?

03-16-2013, 04:54 AM	#1689
pdurrant The Grand Mouse 高貴的老鼠 Posts: 71,506 Karma: 306214458 Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Norfolk, England Device: Kindle Voyage	I agree that having the ebook price the same as the MMPB price is ridiculous. Some publishers understand this, some don't.

03-16-2013, 03:29 PM	#1690
DianNC Banned Posts: 1,431 Karma: 5222495 Join Date: Jun 2011 Device: Nook Color, Entourage Pocket Edge, iPod Touch 5th Gen	I finally figured out how to use Amazon's Whispersync (buy a book, get the audiobook at a reduced price). This is probably not a good thing for my book budget...I bought two books yesterday and have a few more lined up. I should have just left well-enough alone!

03-18-2013, 04:36 PM	#1692
Quake1028 Guru Posts: 917 Karma: 9155462 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Tampa, FL Device: See signature	Well, I did it. I had held strong up until yesterday at 2 books for the year so far. But, the Amazon daily deal got me. All 4 books (3 released, 1 pre-order) in the Hangman's Daughter series were 99 cents. I had 5 random cents left over from a GC, so one was only 94 cents. Bad news, 4 more books on my TBR. Good news, with them being so cheap, my average per book for the year is only $1.48. and I have spent less than $9 total ($8.89). I can live with that.

03-19-2013, 09:18 AM	#1694
DrNefario Wizard Posts: 2,099 Karma: 11315768 Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: UK Device: Kindle, Kobo Touch, Nook SimpleTouch	Well, of the two books I thought I might have to buy from Amazon, earlier in this thread, the prices dropped again, and one of them became cheaper than at Google Play (although I haven't checked back there, maybe there was a price war?) and I bought it. I don't think I'm very likely to make a net gain on my TBR this year. I have been reading a lot of pbooks lately, though, so the value of the books I have read is way more than I have spent. I'll take that as some consolation.

03-19-2013, 05:05 PM	#1695
mikaelalind Fanatic Posts: 590 Karma: 788068 Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Sweden Device: Sony PRS 505, Cybook Odessey	I am not doing so good with my e-book purchases for the last 5 weeks. Why? I have had 7 (!) autobuy authors with new e-books. And add to that books that have been on my wishlist for a long time is discounted to 2.99 or less..... And then there was the Allromance 50% off sale on Valentines day.... But I don't regret anything. I would have bought them anyway, which means I am saving money in the long run. But I think I'll turn off my CC card now.

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