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In comparison to some, I don't shop online that much. I do purchase quite a bit off of Ebay, but generally stay away from so many of the online stores out there. However, Amazon.com is one company that has gotten much of my business!

You First Visit

The site is massive, yet simple to navigate. When you register, you are given a password so that you don't have to enter payment or address information every time you wish to make a purchase. If you are already a customer, click on the gold treasure chest on the homepage to see if you qualify for a discount based on past purchases.

The Stores

You can find nearly anything you desire at this online store. This is the 21st century's answer to "one stop shopping." I was awarded a $150 gift certificate to Amazon.com from a phone company for switching over, and at first I thought, "So, how many books will $150 buy?" Once I came over to the site for a look around, I felt like a kid in a candy store! Amazon is about so much more than books!

Books

Have you got something specific in mind? Great, simply type this into the search engine. Just wanting to browse? Simply go through the thirty-five categories to find something of your interest. They have everything from nonfiction to science fiction, to more specific categories such as large print and books written in Spanish. Once you choose your category of interest, you will be given a subcategory list from which to choose a topic of interest. Under nonfiction you have such choices as current events, holidays and crime. On this page you will see a grouping of top sellers and books that the folks from Amazon recommend. They'll even show you related magazines and new/future releases!

I have bought books from Amazon.com and was quite pleased with my purchases. They all arrived in a timely manner and were just as described. The best part was that I was looking for something specific (for me it was a book about writing my own cookbook) and I was able to browse from the comfort of my own home and did not have to go to a huge book warehouse like Books-a-Million which I find in spite of its size, does not have the best selections. Here, you make no unnecessary trips, and the product is delivered right to your door.

Electronics

Amazon also offers more electronics on their site than I've ever seen in one brick and mortar store. You may purchase anything from Palm Pilots to Portable CD players. They also have Audio equipment, Camera and photo equipment, cell phones and service, computers, software and all of the gadgets in between.

We purchased a portable CD player through Amazon.com, and while it arrived on time and was packed carefully, it began to malfunction soon after our purchase. Amazon.com replaced the item when confronted with the problem.

Home and Garden

One of my favorite spots to venture into is the kitchen shop! They have many different types of kitchen gadgets to choose from, and some other household items as well.

We purchased a table cloth, a Teflon coated skillet and some ice cream bowls from this particular store. I was happy with the table cloth and the skillet, but never actually received the ice cream bowls. They sent me an email stating that they were out of stock and finally, that they would not be getting anymore. This perturbed me a bit since I'd seen these bowls elsewhere, and had not purchased because I thought they were on their way from Amazon.com, but this certainly can't really be a convincing "fault" of the company.

Services

They are constantly adding new items to the site, and this is one of them. I haven't tried out any of their services personally, but I just went to the restaurant site and they do have it up and running. The only problem is that they only have a few major cities (like Epinions) and have left out some rather important ones, particularly Charlotte! There is a message below the cities that says there are more to come, so I will have to keep my fingers crossed for now.

In this area, you can have recommendations given to you by others who've been there (copying Epinions, eh?) and if your city is listed, you can look up restaurants and get copies of menus for them and even make reservations!

Sell Your Stuff

Seems like everybody has an auction going on and Amazon.com is certainly no different. You can put your wares up for sale or auction here under quite a few different categories such as books, music, videos, DVD, Video games, electronics, kitchenware, tools and outdoor living.

I have not used these services personally, so I cannot comment on how fast things sell or the quality in comparison with the descriptions. I am an Ebay gal.

Little Perks I've Found

Ever since Blue Mountain started charging for the really good e-cards, I've been looking for a new place to get them. You can get a few really adorable ones here in all of the basic categories!

They also have a little area called "Friends and Favorites." This is a place to put up your picture and tell a bit about yourself. You can even post a "wish list" so that people looking to get you something can go there for ideas. You can also search for friends or family of your own to view their wish lists. From here, you may also write reviews about the products you've purchased and make up lists to help other buyers make decisions.

Did you know you could also have a wedding registry online? All of my family lives out of state, so if anyone ever registered online, this is the place I'd go. It makes it so much simpler than going to some obscure store where they live, especially if they don't allow the registries online. Oh, and they also have a baby registry, which I hope to be able to make use of very soon!

If the person you need a gift for doesn't have a "Friends and Favorites" listing, or a registry here, you may still purchase a gift certificate. Honestly, there is really something for everyone here.

Shipping

What can I say? Having to pay shipping and handling charges sucks, no matter how you look at it. However, unlike Ebay, the charges here are always the same and are fair. And they don't combine to save on shipping. If a part of your order is ready to go, they send it out and wait to ship the other. Even though I have ordered three or four separate items, they shipped them to me separately based on availability for the same price. That is more than fair.

I love this store. It's just about the only place I go for online shopping, and there is a good reason they are the biggest and the best.