Amazon USA offers free shipping to Singapore for purchases above USD 125

[lightrules]

i happily tried to buy Canon G15
only to find
"this item can't be shipped to Singapore"

sigh

 

[ray_stinger]

The Sigma 50mm can be bought for $428us on Amazon. Way cheaper than what our local merchants are charging.

 

[trd2970]

The Sigma 50mm can be bought for $428us on Amazon. Way cheaper than what our local merchants are charging.

Not just amazon....many other countries selling lower than sg lol

 

[petetherock]

That applies to most electronics.
It's meant to protect the local distributor..

i happily tried to buy Canon G15
only to find
"this item can't be shipped to Singapore"

sigh

 

[Pinoy]

This is a welcome news.

Too bad the item that I want -- an Onkyo NR-616 AV receiver -- can't be shipped in Singapore still. :nono: It costs "only" US$339.99 (around S$420) in the US but here in SG, it goes for about S$800 or so. :bigeyes: One option I found via a mailer is HopShopGo's Live Quote. Using that service it gives me a shipping cost of $82.25~ (Standard service. "excludes insurance, taxes and duties, fuel and remote delivery surcharges"). Quite tempted but haven't tried this service yet. ;p

 

[trd2970]

Planning to buy some lacie hdds.

 

[daredevil123]

Thanks for the heads up. Moving this to Consumer's corner so more people can benefit from this info.

 

[petetherock]

Thanks for the heads up. Moving this to Consumer's corner so more people can benefit from this info.

Your choice boss... but I wouldn't say consumer corner has higher traffic and more people will benefit actually sir...

 

[UncleFai]

You don't need to try your luck as long as you browse/search via the AmazonGlobal page.

Yup... tried it... just about everything I am interested in "cannot be shipped to your default address."

 

[catchlights]

Thanks for the heads up. Moving this to Consumer's corner so more people can benefit from this info.

Thanks Albert.

Your choice boss... but I wouldn't say consumer corner has higher traffic and more people will benefit actually sir...

is approbate and relevant.

the most high traffic sections are Buy and Sale, KPT and Portrait and Poses, please don't tell me post threads there will benefit more members.....

 

[Ignatius Wang]

Good news for DVD and Blu Ray fans and book lovers.
However if the item is not on the approved list for shipping to SG, you won't be able to enjoy this.
See their T & C for more details..

Hi, thx for the info on the free shipping. I am just wondering: When paying by debit/ credit card, is it cheaper to pay in US dollar or pay using SG dollar?

 

[catchlights]

Hi, thx for the info on the free shipping. I am just wondering: When paying by debit/ credit card, is it cheaper to pay in US dollar or pay using SG dollar?

is there an option for you to pay in Sing dollars?

 

[Ignatius Wang]

is there an option for you to pay in Sing dollars?

yes, there is a "switch currency" option before the checkout page. I found Amazon rate to be about 1USD= approx. 1.33 SGD. My question is whether VISA/ Mastercard/ credit card company exchange rate would be better? I understand that VISA/ Mastercard/credit card charge some admin fee (1.5-2.5%?) for foreign dollar purchase. Anyone have experience to share?

 

[petetherock]

I save more than $50 on shipping, a few more dollars on the FOREX isn't going to bother me. If Amazon makes a few dollars on FOREX, good for them.

All in all, this is a very nice development.

Bear in mind though, that shipping is about 4 weeks from the moment you press order...

 

[kandinsky]

yes, there is a "switch currency" option before the checkout page. I found Amazon rate to be about 1USD= approx. 1.33 SGD. My question is whether VISA/ Mastercard/ credit card company exchange rate would be better? I understand that VISA/ Mastercard/credit card charge some admin fee (1.5-2.5%?) for foreign dollar purchase. Anyone have experience to share?

It depends. Gotta do your due diligence to check out the rates/fees that are relevant to you. If I'm not wrong, usually a combo of visa/mastercard + bank.

E.g., SCB:

Overseas transactions

All transactions effected in a currency other than Singapore Dollars will be converted from the transacted currency into Singapore Dollars at a rate selected by VISA/MasterCard International. All such overseas transactions will also be subject to a Bank charge of 2.5% as the Bank may determine in its sole and absolute discretion from time to time. The exchange rate for such overseas transactions may differ from the rate on the transaction date due to market fluctuation.

Personal Banking - Cards - Learn more - Notification and Updates - Standard Chartered Bank Singapore

Current MasterCard rate for USD > SGD: 1.254

Disclosure:

MasterCard uses multiple market sources (such as Bloomberg, Reuters, Central Banks and others) to develop exchange rates. These rates generally reflect either wholesale market rates or government mandated rates that are collected during the daily rate setting process. The displayed rates are derived from the buy and sell rates included in the MasterCard daily rate setting process and do not include any charges or markups applied by the Issuer. Please note that due to possible rounding differences, the displayed rates may not precisely reflect the actual rate applied to the transaction amount when converting to the cardholder billing amount. The exchange rate that is applied to a transaction is the exchange rate as of the day of settlement which is the day that MasterCard determines the settlement amount to be exchanged between the acquirer and the issuer. The settlement date is therefore typically different from the date of the actual transaction. MasterCard does not provide the exchange rate when purchases are converted from the local currency by the merchant to the cardholder's currency at the point of sale.

https://www.mastercard.com/global/currencyconversion/

Effective rate if you charge purchases in USD to a SCB issued Mastercard: 1.254 + 2.5% = 1.285

 

[Ignatius Wang]

I save more than $50 on shipping, a few more dollars on the FOREX isn't going to bother me. If Amazon makes a few dollars on FOREX, good for them.

All in all, this is a very nice development.

Bear in mind though, that shipping is about 4 weeks from the moment you press order...

true lol, but every dollar is hard earned. This can be seen in the marketplace section (WTB & WTS) where people try to bargain for a few dollars ....

It depends. Gotta do your due diligence to check out the rates/fees that are relevant to you. If I'm not wrong, usually a combo of visa/mastercard + bank.

E.g., SCB:



Current MasterCard rate for USD > SGD: 1.254



Effective rate if you charge purchases in USD to a SCB issued Mastercard: 1.254 + 2.5% = 1.285

thanks for the info.
Seem like paying in USD may be cheaper.

 

[petetherock]

thanks for the info.
Seem like paying in USD may be cheaper.

I didn't get the previous calculations, so how did you figure out charging in USD is cheaper?

 

[daredevil123]

Just bought a bunch of books... Free shipping! Yay!

 

[catchlights]

order some stuffs, saving about US$100 on shipping, but have to wait long long for the shipment to arrive.

 

[daredevil123]

I save more than $50 on shipping, a few more dollars on the FOREX isn't going to bother me. If Amazon makes a few dollars on FOREX, good for them.

All in all, this is a very nice development.

Bear in mind though, that shipping is about 4 weeks from the moment you press order...

Hmm, my estimated delivery date is 14 days from order date. Not that bad I say. It's the 3rd day from the order date, and my package already shipped.