Amazon Prime Day primer: what you need to know to about the July 12 shopping event

Prime Day: no, it’s not the annual celebration of prime numbers. Nor is it the anniversary of Optimus Prime and his fellow transformers’ awakening on Earth in 1984.

It’s the second-annual online shopping bonanza offered globally by Amazon on July 12.

The retail giant is promising subscribers of its Prime membership service 100,000 deals worldwide, across “nearly all of its departments and categories,” according to Amazon, and new savings opportunities as often as every hour throughout the day.

But is it worth it for Canadian consumers to purchase a Prime membership, or sign up for a free 30-day trial, so they cash in on these deals?

According to Kyle Prevost, co-founder of the finance blog Young and Thrifty, that depends on several factors, including their individual financial situation and spending habits.

In Canada, for an annual fee of $79, Prime members get early access to so-called lightning deals — which are short-term promotions that expire after a period of time or when all the available discounts have been claimed — unlimited photo storage, free two-day shipping, discounted one-day delivery for as low as $3.99 per item and same-day shipping in major cities such as Toronto and Vancouver for a flat-fee of $6.99 per order.

In Prevost’s case, he said it was “definitely worth it” to have a membership when he was a student so he could access the aforementioned discounted shipping rates, but now that he’s teaching high school business classes it’s more “break-even.”

Canadians missing out?

However, it is important to note that, as Prevost says, the benefits offered to Amazon Prime members in Canada pale in comparison to those available to our neighbours to the south.

In addition to the features that are available to Canadian subscribers, U.S. Amazon Prime members get free same-day delivery on more than a million products, free two-hour shipping and one-hour shipping for $7.99 through Prime Now in more than 25 cities, access to more than 800,000 free eBooks, plus access to an expansive archive of online video and music streaming offerings.

“The main thing that Canadians miss out on is the Amazon video and TV library, which is a pretty huge deal,” Prevost told Yahoo Finance Canada in an email.

“Basically, in the U.S. a lot of people just use Amazon’s streaming service instead of Netflix if they are a Prime member. Also, the American Amazon music-streaming platform offers a ton of value to musicophiles."

Amazon Prime’s video streaming service has gone to bat with major players such as Netflix and YouTube, and has generated the third most traffic out of any comparable service, according to the Global Internet Phenomena Report released last month.

It has also produced critically acclaimed content such as “Transparent” and “The Man in the High Castle.”

For many Canadians, even the basics of a Prime membership aren't accessible, as one- and two-day shipping is not available to many rural areas.

Instead, Amazon offers these customers free standard shipping, but often the difference between that and free “Super-Saver” shipping is only “a few days,” according to a post on Young and Thrifty.

Despite its drawbacks, Prevost says Prime membership in Canada is still a potential boon for people who treasure not having to make in-person purchases and shop frequently, as well as for its free photo storage, which he says is cheaper than its competitor Dropbox.

Smart shopping

But for Canadians who already have memberships, what does Prime Day, which Amazon considers bigger than Black Friday, really offer?

Amazon has promised that it will have three times as many laptop units up for grabs compared to Black Friday and Cyber Monday combined.

In an email to Yahoo Finance Canada, Amazon said the following promotions will be available to Prime members in Canada.

• $70 off the Kindle Voyage, which is currently offered at $299.99

• The Kindle Paperwhite will be on sale for $99.99, down from $139.99

• Up to 70 per cent off on select headphones from Sennheiser and other brands

• Up to 55 per cent off select Hasbro toys and games

• Up to 50 per cent off select Puma clothing, shoes and bags

• More than 45 per cent off the Seagate Backup Plus 6TB Desktop External Hard Drive

• 35 per cent off select AmazonBasics products

• More than 35 per cent off a GoPro HERO Session Camera bundle

• 25 per cent or more off select VIZIO Smart TVs

Earlier this week, the online retailer also offered a sneak peek of a few other Prime Day deals, which included:

• 60 per cent off Nygard slims leggings

• iRobot Roomba 880 vacuum cleaning robots for less than $700

• 15 per cent off CanaKit Raspberry Pi 3 computer starter kit

• 20 per cent off Maritime Naturals vitamin c serum

• 20 per cent of the Segway miniPRO

Meanwhile, U.S. users will get perks such as members who place their first-ever Prime order will receive $10 off and an additional $10 coupon later in the month,

But Prevost recommends that best way for Canadian shoppers to take advantage of Prime Day is to remember that “an item is only a deal if you actually want to buy it.”

“Don’t get sucked into purchasing something just because it says ‘sale’ on it,” he said.

“Buying something you’ll never use at a discounted price still isn’t a very good way to spend money.”

However, he admits it is never too early to start thinking about gift ideas for the next special occasion.

“Amazon’s Garage Day Sale?”

Amazon is also doing its best to assure customers that its second kick at the can will be bigger and better.

Last year, the company faced widespread criticism online that its deals fell short of expectations, even though it produced “record” sales.

The two main critiques were that the offers were less-than exciting, with some noting that they ranged from household products to a huge barrel of lube, and that many products sold out in a matter of seconds.

However, Amazon is assuring its customer that this year will be different.

“Building on the success of Prime Day last year, we are increasing the number of deals, and, at the same time, increasing the volume of inventory behind those deals, making this the biggest Amazon event ever, exclusively for Prime members,” the company said in an email to Yahoo Finance Canada.

The online retailer also says 10 times more sellers and small business will be involved this year compared to last.

However, the company cautions the deals will likely still disappear quickly.

“Even with this massive selection, we know many of the Prime Day offers will sell out, so members should join Prime on or before July 12,” Greg Greeley, vice-president of Amazon Prime, said in a press release.