This week is the dreaded much anticipated Amazon Prime Day. For two days, Amazon discounts all sorts of stuff and people buy and buy. Well, that’s how I see it. Here’s what Amazon says:
1. What is Prime Day? Prime Day is Amazon’s deal event exclusively for Prime members, featuring personalized deals and top brands. The event came to life for customers on July 15, 2015, as a way to celebrate Prime members on Amazon’s 20th birthday.
2. How can I prepare to find deals on Prime Day? Join Amazon Prime to participate fully in Prime Day. Explore all the benefits of Prime Membership. Some additional ways to prepare include: Check out Prime exclusive member deals and get exclusive discounts on thousands of items when you shop as a Prime member.
3. What is included with Amazon Prime? Membership allows you to access all the Prime Day deals for members, as well as exclusive benefits such as 2-Day Shipping, Exclusive Member Deals, Prime Video, Buy With Prime, Amazon Music, Prime Gaming, and more.
4. When is Prime Day? Prime Day is July 11 & 12, 2023.
5. Where can I find the best prime day deals? The best Prime Day deals can be found on the Amazon Prime Day page.
Now, whether you like or loathe Amazon, AAR relies on the affiliate dollars we earn through the site. On average, AAR gets 4% of whatever readers buy when they arrive at Amazon via our links. We only get affiliate income when an item is purchased on the same visit that was begun via our link. So, basically, if you click on one of our book links and go to Amazon, if you then put stuff in your cart and buy it all at the same time, we get our cut.
The problem, for AAR, is that we sell books, many of which readers find through our Steals and Deals. The math isn’t great for us–for every 1.99 book bought with our link, we get eight cents. So, even though we sell hundreds of books, we get very little affiliate income via that. Where we do get money, bigger money, is when, after clicking through from AAR, you buy something more expensive. Someone, in the past month, bought an $800.00 printer using our links. We got $19.00 from that–the bounties can go down and, rarely, up depending on what Amazon is offering that month. Compare that to the $8.00 we got from selling fourteen copies of Fourth Wing.
I share all this to ask that you consider using our links this week for Prime. If you do so, we win. Yes, you are supporting Amazon and if you don’t want to do that, no worries. But if you are buying there this week, we’d be super grateful if you’d link from us. Every little bit helps!
Thanks!
I want to order a new Kindle during Prime Day and am having a hard time deciding between the Kindle 2022, Paperwhite and Oasis. Currently, I have a nine year old Voyageur. The Oasis is lighter than the Paperwhite but it’s wider and I wonder if it is awkward to hold? The new Kindle 2022 is lightest of all but has a smaller screen. I would love to hear if other readers have a favorite? Thanks.
I like the Paperwhite better than the Oasis.
Like you Kayne I had a Kindle Voyager that I loved. Unfortunately, it gave out about a year ago. I chose the Paperwhite to replace it and I have to say the Voyager was a MUCH better product.
If you opt for the Paperwhite, you will miss the power button on the back, the beveled back and the lighter weight of the Voyager. The Paperwhite just doesn’t fit or balance in the hand as well as the Voyager. Also, navigation on the Paperwhite drags. It doesn’t boot up as fast, settings appear more slowly, and pages don’t load as quickly. It doesn’t interfere with page-turning so much (I just tap or swipe a little sooner) but navigating the rest of the interface will take longer. Also, it doesn’t come anywhere close to holding a charge as advertised. I generally read at least several hours per day and used to go several days without charging my Voyager, but the Paperwhite needs charging at least as often as my Voyager. I have always kept my Kindles in airplane mode except when downloading material but if you keep yours connected the Paperwhite will need charging every day.
The Oasis may not suffer these issues. I carry a fairly small purse and the Voyager and Paperwhite are the perfect overall size – both slide neatly into my bag. The Oasis is too large to fit, and since I’m almost never without a “book”, it was a non-starter to consider it. If you choose the Oasis, please report back about how it compares to my beloved Voyager.
Thank you both for sharing your thoughts. The Kindle 2022 is an interesting option because it’s even lighter than the Voyage and Paperwhite and a little smaller in size and It has newer technology since it came out last year. It’s $99 right now but it will be fun to see how much it goes on sale for on Prime Day!
Be careful about the lighting (and charging) required for the Kindle 2022. . . Significantly less built-in lighting. But again, if you decided to try it, would love to hear what you think of it!!
I was a longtime Voyage reader. I bought the l kindle paperwhite kids because it comes with a cute cover (green forest) and no ads. I love it and do not miss my Voyage at all. You can adjust the warmth of the lighting and the battery lasts forever. Just remember to cancel the free kids unlimited subscription within the year so that doesn’t renew. It often drops to around $105 on sale.
You don’t notice the increased weight? There have been a number of positive reviews for the kids version but it is significantly heavier than the Paperwhite for adults.
And BTW Amazon does NOT make it easy to compare devices . . . yes, you can ask for a device to be put into a table for comparison purposes but they change the names of the devices at the top of each column in the table! Why? Argh!
I’m still using my 13 year old kindle keyboard. It’s like the energizer bunny and keeps on ticking. I bought a paperwhite several years ago so I’d have a backup for the day when my KK died. I tried using the paperwhite for a while, but I never liked the backlighting. I’m like Goldilocks, I guess. It’s either too bright or too low. Never could get it just right. My husband bought some small reading lights that mount on the wall at either end of our couch for when I read in our den. I can then direct the light so that it’s directly behind and the perfect brightness for reading on my KK. My KK is showing signs of its age, though! Doesn’t keep its charge as long and has a tiny hairline crack next to where you plug in the charger cord. I suspect one of these days it will stop charging and I’ll have to use the PW or buy another type of eReader. I’ve thought about getting the Oasis, but I’ve heard they don’t hold a charge as long, especially if you read for long periods of time on them. I like that there are buttons, but they look like they’re heavier than what I’m used to. I don’t yet have arthritis, but my hands always feel stiff so I don’t want anything heavier than my KK to hold. Long story, short, good luck with your choice!
@Dabney — can you direct me to the donation link? If I don’t order much this week I can send a small donation.
https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=JDAD25XL8SN88
I’m looking for an air filter this week. We’ve been hit hard by wildfire smoke. Hopefully there’s a good Prime deal on a good brand and I can order it here.
Thanks!!
Question for you Dabney: If I wanted to help out the site by using links from the site to get to Amazon to buy other things, do I have to purchase the book that initiated the link? For example, if I clicked on the link of a book I already own just to activate the affiliate dollars, then I fill up my cart with all sorts of other things, can I delete the book before checking out and AAR still gets the 4% of the total $$ in the cart? Because if so, I’ll always make sure to go to Amazon via AAR when I’m buying stuff.
I think so yes. Put everything in the cart and then take out the book. I can check–if you ever do it, send me one of the things you bought and I can see if it went through.
There is also a link to the Amazon site near the upper left hand corner of the AAR homepage that is not a book link, but a direct link to Amazon. That’s the link I use since I don’t find many books on sale I want that I don’t already own.
I wasn’t planning to buy much. Remind me of that when the boxes arrive with several paperbacks… a Blu-Ray… Lidocaine patches… a Lord of the Rings hardcover… and a Mr. Spock lunchbox. 🙂
I also tried using Bookshop.org to “do the right thing” — but their search feature is terrible. 😐 If I’m looking for a book in a particular genre, I want to be able to filter it by category, format, language, etc.
They also, despite us having signed up, never end up giving us any $$ for purchases. It’s irksome.
Aaaaaaaaa!!! 🙁
Does the site get more if we buy a paperback or hardcover instead? Sometimes, the trade paperback editions (and even the hardcovers) are cheaper than the ebooks.
We get whatever the percentage is per sale.