Your List of H!P / Related Goods That You Bought This Year! ~'24 version~

[boinsie]

I guess UF did even update their own webstore with instructions as to how to use proxy buyers (they promoted something different than From Japan, but of course FJ is the best in the biz). I just didn't connect the dots, I guess. A shame, but yeah, their shipping prices (and shipping times, especially for special order items) was pretty ridiculous.

[Pavlova]

Hello Store disappeared? Fuck. Oh well.

and UF-Online? what where is that?

[erilaz]

Hello Store disappeared?

It hasn't disappeared per se. The website's still there and presumably still taking orders for stuff they have in stock, but they don't appear to have updated anything since June.

and UF-Online? what where is that?

http://www.uf-online.jp/

[iceymoon]

this thread seemed the most appropriate for this...

i wish people wouldn't totally dismiss YesAsia. yes, their stuff is overpriced, but often time the free shipping can still make it cheaper! look at this..

Spoiler: show

CDJapan


YesAsia

Amazon.co.jp was a little cheaper than CDJapan (but only by like $5). i only checked them because i also want to get the special edition Ultra Smart PB, but i think Amazon doesn't count towards Oricon so i passed. HMV would have been cheaper without the shipping cost, but with it it was approx. $10 more (plus they don't have the UTB volume). it said i COULD get free shipping, but once i went to checkout it added the shipping cost anyway.. i guess i don't qualify or something.

i've also never had problems with damaged items from YesAsia, though i know other people have (and conversely, i've received a damaged CD from CDJapan while other people have had no problems). the point is that they can definitely be cheaper depending on what you are ordering, so it's worth checking!

[boinsie]

To be fair, with YesAsia you're not getting the posters. ALSO, it appears that you chose either FedEx Express or EMS shipping on CDJapan, which though nice, isn't comparable to YesAsia's Super Saver free crappy shipping. Knock it back to SAL and your comparison isn't nearly as drastic.



So it's a $4 difference, but you end up getting two posters. I think the answer is clear.

Also, jsyk, you don't qualify for free shipping at HMV because you don't live in Japan.

[iceymoon]

it didn't let me choose another shipping method with the magazine (it let you??), but even when i did just the CD's on Air Mail, YesAsia was cheaper. SAL would have been a comparable price, but then such a long wait for shipping..

i forgot about the posters! that is indeed an extra value for people that want them/use them, but for me they just end up squished and/or damaged when i store them as i don't put posters up. maybe one day when they make a cover/poster i really really love i would take advantage of that perk, though. ^-^ i do order from CDJapan sometimes (like when i order just one item, or for their seasonal sales), but usually YesAsia just ends up being cheaper and quicker for me.

ahh that makes sense. HMV would be by far the best choice if they did free international shipping and i would have been using it before now.

[erilaz]

I've found that CDJapan with SAL shipping generally costs about the same as YesAsia, or just a little more. My most recent YesAsia order (3 CD singles and 1 CD+DVD single) came to $76.00. That same order from CDJapan would have cost $76.75 with SAL, $81.80 with registered SAL. I normally buy from YesAsia, but I opt for CDJapan when they have special sale prices (such as Petit Best 10 DVD for ¥1520) or external bonuses that I want.

CDJapan let me use registered SAL for the UTB+ magazine.

[boinsie]

Actually, all of this discussion has been beneficial for me. I had made an order from CDJapan earlier this morning, and its total weight required that it use EMS/FedEx. I obliged because it was a lot of stuff (7 CDs+3 posters, 2 magazines), but now considering that I can get the magazines from YesAsia, the whole order is going to end up being ~$35 cheaper! It'll just be coming in two packages, both with slow shipping (SAL and whatever YA uses ). I'll also get a random gashapon from YA.

[DARC1993]

For me it's HMV first.
If I'm just buying CDs that don't include extras like posters.
Then CDJapan if they have extras.

I only use EMS for shipping and HMV always comes cheaper than CDJapan for the same stuff and same shipping.

HMV always has discounts and CDJapan has the frequent shopper points so they both are about the same for me.

[Echidna]

I loooved YA back in few years, when they had free shipping for Russia, it was cheaper then CDJ and just a little longer than CDJ's registered air mail. plus they gave 5 dollars coupons if you order at least for 50 dollars, so I used them in next order etc.
but then they suddenly delete Russia from list of countries eligible for free shipping, I mailed them, but they didn't give me clear answer for wth they do that.
so now I only use CDJ, their bonus points and affiliate points I got from my own orders can make shipping cheaper (or sometimes almost free ). plus they pack orders better, counts at oricon and have this icons for first press bonuses, so I know if I got it or not. YA never had it.