This is a guide for Amazon Prime Day 2019. We also have an updated guide for 2020 but read both! They’re slightly different.
The consumerism is strong with this one! Amazon has literally made up a new shopping season akin to Black Friday. Amazon Prime Day was created back in 2015 by the online shopping giant. It’s one of those simple but genius moves by a company as in the first year Amazon saw their sales grow by 60% above the daily average. While Amazon’s operational ethics are questionable and many opt-out from shopping with them for moral reasons if you do want to bag a bargain this Prime Day, here’s what you need to know.
When is Amazon Prime Day 2019?
Amazon Prime Day 2019 starts on Monday, July 15 and will run right the way through Tuesday, July 16. You might be feeling slightly put out by the fact it’s a 48 hour shopping event during the week. I have a few ideas as to why this might be. A lot of people will be using Amazon Prime for the first time during Prime Day and Amazon wants them to experience the speedy shipping that they offer. Offers also change throughout the day, so Amazon probably wants their best people on the job and in the office.
What is Amazon Prime?
Pretty much everyone can shop on Amazon. Our own research carried out in Ireland shows that 34% of people in Ireland shop on Amazon.co.uk.
Amazon Prime is a paid membership that gets you access to special offers and faster shipping. Next questions is usually around what this means for Irish shoppers. Largely, having an Amazon Prime Membership comes with some great benefits even when shopping in Ireland. I pay for a Prime Membership and I’m using it nearly every week. It’s still a bit of a mystery why Amazon doesn’t offer a website specifically for Ireland yet, so to get the most out of Prime you might need to route your orders through a service like Parcel Motel.
Anyway, if you’re thinking of bagging a good deal in this year’s Prime Day sale and you’re new to all of this, you can benefit from a free trial of Prime membership. This is a 30-day trial that won’t cost you a penny. Just sign up for free over on the Amazon.co.uk website and you’ll also be able to access Amazon Prime Music and Prime Video.
What Are the Best Prime Day Deals for 2019?
This is pretty hard to tell right now because we’re still a few days away from things kicking off. Amazon has teased with a few launch offers and hinted at what else might be getting reduced come Monday, July 15.
Amazon Echo Special Offer
If you’ve yet to grab yourself an Amazon Echo, you’ll be able to bag one of these during the Prime Day sale for just €80. This is a first-generation Echo, but it’s still an incredible piece of kit with a cracking speaker. Amazon appears to be positioning this as one of their flagship offers for Prime Day 2019.
20% Off Amazon Own Brand
Amazon has also taken 20% off their own brand everyday essentials. This covers a wide range or products, but naturally, I’m most interested in electronics and accessories.
Amazon Fire TV Stick
This was Amazon’s top seller last year and it’s the one product I’m really after this year too. At little more than €22, the Fire TV Stick is great if you’re a Prime Video subscriber, but you can also install third party apps for additional streaming. Not that I’d be into that craic now at all.
Prime Day Launches
This is a more unusual one this year. For Prime Day 2019, Amazon Prime members will be able to buy brand new products from the Prime Launches range. This is a really impressive range of products too. I’ve had a chance to test out some of the items on show like the:
That’s just three of the products on show, all from the Anker range of companies. I’ve tried out all of these products and absolutely loved them. Is there a better time than Prime Day to buy yourself a robotic vacuum?
Popular Last Year
We can also take a hint from last year as to what’ll sell well this year. As always, even beyond the first-generation Echo being on special offer, all other Echo products are fair game. If you were to ask me what the one product I’m thinking about buying this year is, I’d have to say the Amazon Fire TV stick. This was also the top product worldwide last year, but this year, keep an eye out for bundle deals. You might even spot a bargain that includes the impressive new Echo Show.
In the UK and Ireland, an electric Bosch drill topped the product listings, but from around the rest of the world, there was a lot of different products in demand from water filters to cans of Coca-Cola.
Did you Know you Can Share Your Prime Membership?
This I just learned about. You can add one other adult and up to four kids to your Prime membership. This means if you can’t watch the offers changing, someone else will be able to look for themselves and grab their own favourite deals on Prime. You can also share digital content around the household too.
If you’re a Prime member, read more about how to create an Amazon Household.
Will Amazon Deliver to Ireland?
Delivery to Ireland can be straight forward or quite complicated, depending on what you’re buying. For most products, you’ll get Prime member benefits like free and fast delivery without any hassle. But then, from time to time, you’ll find a seller that won’t ship to the Republic of Ireland. Hell, sometimes they won’t even deliver to Northern Ireland despite the fact that’s in the United Kingdom.
The problem is often related to lithium-ion batteries in electronics not being permitted in the hold of cargo aeroplanes. As a result, the old Parcel Motel trick won’t work either because the virtual UK address they give you is located in Northern Ireland. The workaround here is to use An Post’s AddressPal service instead. Back when this service launched, the big benefit of using this service was their virtual US addresses. They now also offer virtual UK addresses and theirs is based on mainland UK. So if needs be, that should get you nearly everything that you want delivered to your local post office.
That should be nearly everything you need to know about surviving Prime Day in Ireland. While Amazon Ireland might never happen officially, we can still cash in on some bargains this Prime Day. Have a question I’ve not answered? Pop it in the comments below and we’ll come back to you.
Check PriceSpy.ie
My final tip is one that actually stands 365 days a year. You should always check PriceSpy.ie before you make a gadget purchase. PriceSpy basically scans popular websites for a wide range of products and lets you compare prices. So that great deal you’ve spotted on Amazon for Prime Day, take a second and check it’s not cheaper in D.I.D. I always check the site before I buy to make sure I’m getting the best deal for myself!
