I need to write a piece on how much I love Amazon Prime. I promise, I'm not being compensated for what I say (especially because part of it will be slightly negative).
A couple of years ago, one of my roommates told me about Amazon Student. He told me that it was essentially Amazon Prime service, but free for students for one year. Because I order stuff from Amazon somewhat frequently, I thought that free 2-day shipping for a year would be AWESOME! So I signed up for my free trial, and I liked it so much that I continued using the service for half-price (because I am a student).
Amazon Student now only has a six-month free trial, but six is better than none. It entitles you to free 2-day shipping on nearly everything Amazon sells, as well as some things that other people sell that is "fulfilled by Amazon." After the six-month trial, you have the option to continue receiving free 2-day shipping for $39 per year, which is a savings of $40! In addition to the 2-day shipping benefits, you also get unlimited Amazon Prime video streaming.
Amazon Prime has a lot of television shows and movies that you are able to stream to Kindle Fire, smart Blu-ray players, smart TVs, Roku, iPad, iPod, iPhone, Xbox 360, Playstation 3, Wii, and Wii U. This means that you can stream movies just about anywhere, and if you're at home, you can watch on the big screen. Some months they get bonus movies for you to watch that are not normally in the Prime collection. For example, this month has a bunch of James Bond movies available to stream for free!
I love the television and movie selection of Amazon Prime, but it doesn't have everything that your Hulu Plus or Netflix subscription has. Additional shows can be rented or purchased, but those options aren't exactly free. I sometimes feel like the selection is lacking, but I can usually find something good to watch. I just honestly wish it had a more robust selection.
Something else I dislike about Amazon Prime Instant Video is that you cannot watch on any Android devices other than Kindle Fire and Kindle Fire HD. If you own one of those devices, great! But you still can't watch on your Android phone.
Also, browsing shows and movies on an Xbox 360 really only gives you part of the story. You cannot search very well because it lacks a decent method of text input. Browsing for shows and movies on the Amazon website is a little better, but it's missing some filter features that would really help. I would like to be able to filter my browsing by MPAA rating (so I can search for all PG-13 action movies or something like that). I would also be able to be able to see more genres and sub-genres when browsing. I'd like to be able to ignore children's television shows and movies while browsing as well.
While it's not perfect, I'm still a big fan of Amazon Prime. I order lots of stuff from Amazon now. For instance, I had a date last night and I needed a table cloth. I had realized this on Tuesday, so I ordered a tablecloth for under $9 and had it shipped to my door just in time for the date. How about that? I also get my text books, pens, videogames, movies, books, car parts, and just about anything else I desire in two days.
If you're hesitant about Amazon Prime, try the six-month free trial! You can't go wrong - IT'S FREE.
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