The upside of online shopping

Aside from being able to comparison shop much faster than one would be able to in the real world, it's also quite easy to pull up an old order from most online stores and print out an invoice.

I received my new 2 gig Ultra-II SD card today (I ordered with next-day air shipping), and Sandisk has a lifetime warranty on the card. Since the 512 meg SD card that failed on me was also a Sandisk, I realized that I should be able to contact them for a repair/replacement. However, they will most likely want to see some proof of purchase, and I doubt I'd be able to find a receipt for something I got two years ago.

Luckily, I remember clearly which online store I got it from--TheNerds.net--because at the time, they royally f***ed up my order by claiming to have the camera I wanted in stock, but only shipping me the memory card. So even though I refuse to do any more business with them, I can still look up my user information at their site. And sure enough, there was the order info, all ready for me to print out. Now I just need to get the model number from the card when I get home, and I should be able to contact Sandisk about a repair.

On a side note, I was able to find a carrying case made by Konica Minolta for my new camera, rather than some generic brand, online, while the many electronic stores I've been to do not seem to carry any Minolta accessories.


The major downside, for me, regarding online shopping, would be the shipping--the cost, the wait, etc.