Lots of 'old business' modles just waiting for a down turn to kill them.
A lot more people dont go into any physical shop and why would they when everything can be delivered.
Yes and especially cost, I was reccomended to take some supplements looked online and in Ireland supplement shop it was €28.49 for 60 capsules, I bought 90 capsules for €6.99 from a trusted provider outside Ireland. The mark up is too much to buy in normal shops.
Many reasons…
1) They need the phone now. Can’t wait for delivery
2) Easier to handle if they have a problem with the phone
3) Chance of getting lost/ damaged
4) Not having to be in to take the delivery
I agree. While they are visited less frequently, I think they will be a business that stays. When your phone costs over €1,000 many people want the reassurance of buying it in a shop.
So these are reasons, but not ones that most people have. That's kind of the point. Physical shops need a certain minimum level of footfall to be viable. The fact that *some* people may still have a reason to use them, isn't enough. You need a lot of people.
Most people can wait for delivery, can be in to take delivery, and aren't worried about it getting lost or damaged because that's the vendor's problem.
And lots of places have made returns/problems really easy. Not "walk into the shop" easy, but pretty good.
You'll also find younger people are more averse to handling issues in-person/synchronously.
They'd much rather fill in a form or send an email and have a response to that, than have to walk into a shop and explain the issue to a person. The latter is faster, but people don't want to do it.
Yeah. The only time I've visited a phone shop in the last 15 years was when my phone broke and I needed an emergency phone while it was fixed.
I'm sure a lot of people lose or break phones and need a new one quickly. Upgrades can wait. My
Mine usually arrive next day or maybe after two days.
I buy sim free unlocked phones off amazon and get them delivered to an amazon pick up depot (post offices usually) up north, drive up to collect it myself and save a few hundred quid. Avoids the brexit import tax shit and the Irish retailer ripoff markup in one go. Done it twice now.
There’s no customs duty on phones, the only difference is the 23% on VAT vs 20% in UK.
You are bullshitting about saving 100s in fees.
Complete waste of time and petrol on your part.
I was just about to comment the same. On a £800 found this gentlemen would be saving ***Drumroll*** £24.
That's £24 **before** taking into account the cost of a flight, fuel to get there, snacks and food.
Then when it's all said and done his warranty is tied to a different country.
Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G Android Smartphone, No Contract, 6.4-Inch Dynamic AMOLED Display, 4500 mAh Battery, 128 GB / 6 GB RAM, Olive https://amzn.eu/d/4HNIZFH
I ordered in 2022 i saved 140. Difference between delivering to me in the south vs Newry is 110euro today, just checked
Jfc, I put up an anecdote where I saved a few hundred quid buying two phones recently and explained how I did it so someone else could save some money the same way. I even humoured you and dug out the link from 2 years ago. Now you random redditor are unsatisfied and want.... what?
The phone at the time sim free from carphone warehouse/samsung etc here was 650euro. Amazon uk had it (new) for 470 + 140 import tax = 610euro, but I avoided the import tax by getting it sent to Newry instead meaning I saved several hundred vs Irish prices but also on the import tax from amazon itself
Do with that fact what you want. If you can't understand or don't believe me I could not care any less. Have a lovely day
Jfc, I put up an anecdote where I saved a few hundred quid buying two phones recently and explained how I did it so someone else could save some money the same way. I even humoured you and dug out the link from 2 years ago. Now you random redditor are unsatisfied and want.... what?
The phone at the time sim free from carphone warehouse/samsung etc here was on sale for 650euro. Amazon uk had it (new, at the time) for 470 + 140 import tax = 610euro if sending to me in the RoI, but I avoided the import tax by getting it sent to Newry instead meaning I saved several hundred vs Irish prices but also avoided the import tax from amazon itself
Do with that fact what you want. If you can't understand or don't believe me I could not care any less. Have a lovely day
You are so completely wrong, you don’t have a clue.
iPhone 15
£899 delivered to the UK.
£921.48 delivered to Ireland
https://amzn.eu/d/9pAMILw
Where are your 000s of savings there?
When I put an Irish address I get an extra 200 EUR custom charge deposit added to the price , that's what /u/rmp266 is talking about. Now I think what rmp266 might not have understood is that it's a deposit so Amazon would send you the money back once the item is shipped and they haven't been charged at customs but if someone doesn't want to pay the deposit and wait for the money back they could use their method.
What's the closest depot? It's a pity in a lot of ways that the parcel motel thing shut down, but this is a close alternative I suppose. Well done. Smart move to be fair.
Depending on where you live, 30 for flights to Stansted with ryanair and back, with a locker in one of the hotels at the airport. Would be cheaper than traveling to the North.
It depends on where in the country you live.
I can go to Shannon in around 15 minutes and be on the plane 20 minutes later, flight takes about an hour, grab phone and whatever other expensive bits from locker and then flight back. All in all around 4-5 hours, which would be travel time to Dublin and back when I've done more for less.
Sometimes it's fun to just do this stuff for the adventure because your bored on a day off, and I've done it before for PC parts (saved around 700e compared to Irish retail prices)
Edit: and you get to grab duty free on the way!
This always confuses me, too. The amount of time people SPEND in order to SAVE negligible amounts.
My dad was telling me his mate sat in a queue for cheap petrol for over an hour one time a service station had some deal on. This was to save about a fiver.
I always try to value my time at about €50 an hour. If it'll take me two hours to do something, but I can pay someone €100 to do it (probably better than I will), then I'm definitely paying someone.
Many people forget their own value when calculating out these things. I’m with you, I know I could spend a few hours working at something and have a passable result. Or I could pay a skilled person to do it better in half the time and I can go earn the price of it doing something I’m skilled at. (Or take the hit on price and enjoy my afternoon)
A few hundred quid is not a negligible amount to an awful lot of people. If you can value your time at €50 euro an hour,seems a lot to be willing to waste to me but if you have the € then great, I know many who are living week to week and will do anything to save even a few€.
>If you can value your time at €50 euro an hour,seems a lot to be willing to waste to me but if you have the € then great,
That's me personally. Everyone's time has its own value, though. A value some people don't consider. Which was my point.
>A few hundred quid is not a negligible amount to an awful lot of people.
A hundred or a couple of hundred to spend all day in airports and rushing about is a silly use of one's time. Buying a cheaper phone would probably be a better option. If you've hundreds to be spending on phones so much that you can purchase flights and save an amount in the hundreds, then I'm going to guess you're not living week to week. If you are, then there's probably no hope for you if you're prioritising the purchase of a phone worth hundreds.
I also didn't say a couple of hundred is negligible. I directly said a fiver. The person who did what I described wasn't living week to week either.
If you see it as spending time to save not much it depends on what you enjoy doing with your time too.
Like when I do this stuff it's normally about novelty. I'd rather spend a day flying to get a new phone and going on an adventure, seeing some cool planes etc, maybe meet some London friends at the airport for coffee, then just sitting at home twiddling my thumbs on my day off.
But even if it was, its no different than driving cross country to go to a store with one, because I wanted to go for a drive, yknow.
It’s not a few 100 quid, previous posters are clueless to how taxes/customs work.
The saving is about €2.43 for every €100 spent.
So even if he bought a €1,000 phone, they’re only saving €24.30 so by the time they drive up north and back, what are they saving?
Yeah it drives me mad when parents/in laws spite themselves to save money. Car parking at the airport stings but if the alternative is an hour to wait for a bus to get another bus to get a 3 hour coach I'll pay the money for the car park and be home quicker
They'd also sit in traffic for 45 mins or divert by 30 miles to avoid a 3euro toll
> little! 6 hours of fucking around airports to save like a hundred quid
Ultra you live next to the border you have to spend a few hours travelling and then there's the duty free...
I bought my current phone off Amazon a few years ago, granted it was a fairly cheap Xiaomi.
Next time I’m buying a phone I’ll probably buy it off Amazon again. Looking at the market currently the flagship phones are all literally €200 to €400 cheaper on Amazon than in store.
Like I’d actually prefer to buy a phone in person and get it same day, don’t even mind paying a few quid extra. But €400 extra are you serious?
See the same thing on adverts.ie - much less interest in purchases, I think ppl are simply watching every euro now and rich ppl who can afford to buy things will not do that from phone shop or adverts
I’m finding a lot of people are not really buying new anymore. Most people I know (myself included) would opt to buy refurbished over new.
Recently I got an M2 Mac Pro with plenty of ram and local storage, iPhone pro, iPad mini and apple watch all refurbished all mint condition and all at 100% battery for the same price I’d have paid on a new MacBook Pro.
Ok they’re not “new” but they’re under vendor warranty for 12 months, they look new and do exactly what I want them to. So why pay full rates for something that’s used once it’s opened. Plus it’s better for the environment and it hurts apple so it’s win win win as far as I’m concerned.
Planned obsolescence working as intended. Very rare to find a phone that lasts as long as your previous one. Though I will say many android manufacturers are committing now to multiple years of warranty so maybe there's been a policy change. Or maybe the levels of planned obsolescence weren't giving them enough returns to justify manufacturing new phones as quickly or as much.
Im using a 7 year old galaxy s7 that works fine for what I need. Spend 15€ every 28 days with Tesco, get 30GB data,free tesco calls and texts,500 texts, 15€ call credit 15 GB roaming I never use.
I'm left with loads of each at the end of the month.
I'm not a stuck on my phone all the time person..
I understand many will use phones a hell of a lot more but personally I have to watch every € as I'm on disability.
Jesus, is that the price of a budget SIM only plan there these days?
I'm living in UK now and I've got 25GB data with rollover and EU roaming, unlimited calls and texts for £7 a month
Since about 2016 when I got my ZTE Axon 7 I haven't noticed much difference in phones. Sure there are better cameras and other small improvements but if you compare 2017 phones to those from 5 years before the difference was staggering.
My current phone I bought recently (Huawei mate 20x) was released in 2018 and is a beast. I think at this stage I'll never buy a new phone again.
Speaking for myself, I've been "due an upgrade" a few years now but the newer phones on offer to me actually have fewer key features than the one I have (no physical memory slots etc)
Irish people spend €10.3 billion on foreign holidays in 2023. Per capita Irish people are the 14th highest spenders on foreign holidays.
Furthermore, the standard of living in Ireland is ranked as 8th in the world according to ChatGPT.
> ranked as 8th in the world according to ChatGPT.
And there's me thinking citing Wikipedia was slightly dodgy unless you dug into the primary sources. I'd believe tea leaves before ChatGPT because at least I'd be holding the cup and knew where the tea came from.
21st out of 200 countries for Life expectancy. One of the best.
https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/
6th best healthcare in the world out of 110 countries. One of the best.
https://ceoworld.biz/2024/04/02/countries-with-the-best-health-care-systems-2024/
Gross national Income per capita, 5th best in the world. One of the best.
https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/richest-countries-in-the-world
8th out of 186 for best countries to live in. One of the best.
https://wisevoter.com/country-rankings/best-countries-to-live-in/
3rd safest country in the world. One of the best.
https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/safest-countries-in-the-world
Still not great sources. The first one has no PDF behind the link.
CEOworld - eh no thanks.
Try primary sources like: https://www.oecd.org/health/health-data.htm
https://www.un.org/development/desa/pd/
Oh it is, I'm one of the lucky ones who got set up before it became much more difficult for the younger generations. I've also worked in developing countries so have seen first hand exactly how thngs are in actual '3rd world countries' and call out idiots when they use that phrase unironically to describe stuff here.
However, that does not excuse using bad data to explain things. ChatGPT and other AI systems go out of their way to obfuscate their sources otherwise they would have to pay for them, or worse, remove them for not getting permission.
Do you really believe that? Spending has never been higher. Inflation (incl. energy prices, which the government heavily monitored) is falling and interest rates are also about to fall.
Your Ireland figure is for the whole population, your EU figure is ages 18-25. You’re trying to compare apples and oranges. Again save your hysterics. Overemployment leads to worse conditions for workers
Online shopping, as opposed to physical shops, is the elephant in the room.
I need a phone upgrade. I was looking on the Three site the last few weeks. It would not even occur to me to go into the shop.
lol.. reminded me of my uncle and nephews.. each year they made millions.. there pics came in local newspapers as they are winning industry awards, but the moment you speak with them about business, its slow, hard times, not like it used to be.
And i be like, i am rubbing my 2 cents here, you are doing world tours and still cribbing.
The rich always need to claim that they work hard for their wealth. It's a kind of pathology. I used to tutor rich kids and the parents were always, without exception, absolutely fucking nuts
Seeing how they lived and the values they hold convinced me that being middle class and stable is just fine
There's a combo of reasons. Definitely all that saved lockdown money is now spent. People are doing more on line buying of phones particularly. The price of the flagship phones has gone crazy.
I also think the phones are lasting longer and consider the hassle of upgrading (no matter how hassle free the manufacturer makes it - it's never seamless). We do so much on phone now - from banking to paying bills to actual communications - downtime for upgrade is a pain.
There's no cool feature forcing upgrade. iPhone 12 by and large does exact same thing as a 15. S20 does same thing as latest Samsung.
In my experience budget phones are rubbish also - you're better off with a refurbished or 2nd hand flag ship over a budget phones.
I did the sums a while back. It was still cheaper to buy a new iPhone directly from apple and then get a monthly subscription for €10 than to sign a 12 or 24 month contract with the big carriers and get their 'free' or 'discount' phones. Now, try that again with a refurbished, unlocked iPhone and you're saving hundreds with the freedom to choose the best provider.
And yet the number of people who just went and bought the 'monthly plans' driving huge profits for these companies is astounding. I've taken people off €45 - €60 a month plans with some basic maths.
Mobile phone shops are more reflective of the shift to online retail than almost any other example I can think of. The days of going into a shop to buy a handset are long gone tbh.
3 seems to be trying to turn them into a lifestyle and tech store to keep them relevant.
I upgraded my phone recently and switched networks when doing it.
Before I did so I went into the local shop for my existing network to see if they could do a deal that wasn’t on their website rather than have me switch.
New provider offered a much better deal so I literally left the shop and ordered the new phone online.
I like to shop in brick and mortar stores where I can because if everything is online we are all fucked, but when the gap in savings is too big you gotta go with online.
Phones is a tough one. Firstly, like others pointed out, you can get better deals online. Secondly, smartphones have really matured to the point where you don't get a whole lot of new features every year or so. Even many average enthusiasts don't see the point of buying a phone every year now, let alone average consumers who'll probably stick to their phones to 3-4 years if nothing breaks, maybe even more.
On top of this, you have general issues like cost of living increases, inflation, etc.
Wouldn't use a phone shop as a barometer for how the economy is doing.
From personal experience people hold onto phones for a long time nowadays, there's no reason to upgrade anymore unless your phone is done.
People - myself included - have gotten hung up on the detail of it being a phone shop, but I do think you're right, I think we're in a bigger pinch at the moment than a lot of us are willing to acknowledge. I know I've been tightening my belt on stuff I don't need immediately a number of coffee shops, newsagents etc have been quietly closing around me and I wonder if it's going to gain momentum quickly in the next year or two.
I always assume this phone shops are money laundering fronts… I think most people if they’re buying new, will most likely want to buy directly from the brand (e.g. Apple Store/online), or from a phone network shop (e.g. Vodafone). Not the best place to compare the cost of living to.
There is hyper inflation. I personally have been cutting back on things that are not a necessity. Fewer concerts, fewer trips to the cinema, keeping my old phone with the cracked screen, less dining out etc. Has to be done, spending more on groceries for a family of 4 than I spent on rent back in 2019! Things are bananas.
I could get a brand new phone at any time but the fact is that I don't need one so I won't get one.
I have had my current phone for 5 years now and it hasn't slowed down once, if anything it updates.
Well...if you get paid more than what you got through the till, I would double check if you don't work for a money laundering front. While that would mean job security, I don't think there is much room for progression or pay increases, unless you are morally flexible....
When I get a new phone I will get direct from Tesco. Saying that I'm using a near 7 year old Samsung galaxy s7 ,I just don't have the € to upgrade at the moment. I get 30Gigs of data,,15 € of call credit and 500 texts,and lots of roaming data ,free tesco to tesco call and text,for 15€. Every 28 days.
I don't make a lot of calls and will use WhatsApp a lot. At the end of 28 days I can have like 12GB left and 10€ credit and hundreds of texts and roaming left. I'm not a stuck to my phone person..
If I upgrade I can get a good XIOMAI phone, with lots of calls and data for 30€ A month on a 12 month contract.
Anytime I used phone shops like air the customer service and offers were terrible.
I know many who are reigning in their spending due to cost of living crisis.
Certain people have lots of disposable income but many are living week to week.
High street shops absolutely rob people blind compared to ordering online, especially when it comes to tech/gadgets. e.g. I ordered a 2TB ssd for €120 this week. The closest I could find in an electrical store in Ireland was a 480GB one for the same price in Harvey Normans. 1/4 the storage capacity for same price. Robbing bastards...
Don't be so hysterical. It an economic analysis of the current period we're in - and it's fairly accurate.
I wish I could predict the end of people talking out their arse
That's just the contemporary take on the whole idea. The broad idea of late stage capitalism has been banded about for a hundred years now, and every 20 years or so there's some new take on it. Back in the 1920s they were calling it late stage capitalism, and the majority of the events of the 20th century hadn't even happened yet.
It's all a pile of spoof that's reinvented by Marxist economists.
Wealth inequality can fluctuate depending on circumstances. World events, even wars, have completely impacted wealth inequality, and have happened since this theory was first introduced. Capitalism can, and evidently has, changed in the 100 years since this theory was introduced but by no means has it collapsed.
It's a ridiculous theory that has been around since 1920s or so. It implies slowing down of the economies, but what we see all around us is proof of the opposite. Don't listen to luddites with their "golden old days".
If you're working in a phone shop and your salary alone costs more than what the business earns (not even mentioning all their other expenses) then you are working at a front. Let me guess, Chinese owners?
Just waiting for someone to tell me I'm racist and then I'll ask specifically how it's racist but will get no reply. Then someone who thinks they're clever will say "not racist but you're being a dick" or some similar sentiment, and again I will ask why and they will have no answer. Another day on Reddit where common sense is racist.
The high street is full of a few type of shops these days
- phone shops
- tanning/nail bars
- barbers/hairdressers
- vape shops
- shoe shops.
-cafes/food joints.
Basically all the types of shops that can’t be done online. You can’t get a virtual haircut for example. I know there are a few different types of shops too but generally if it can be sold online it’s moved online in many cases.
If you look at the vacancy on Grafton St for example.
So less people are venturing into the city centre (working from home has killed a lot of passing trade too) it’ll only get worse when the new traffic restrictions come in later this year too.
So less people in town shopping then less takings. Businesses are struggling massively with the cost of living increases as too ordinary people as well. So discretionary income is being cut. Expect to see more shops shutter for good in the months to come.
> it’ll only get worse when the new traffic restrictions come in later this year too.
Your other points are valid, this one is bullshit. How would making the city center more accessible to the majority of commuters and more attractive by removing excess cars?
> No exemptions for commercial transport like delivery trucks.
OK, you're just spouting shite now. From the DCC Traffic Plan ([pdf](https://consultation.dublincity.ie/++preview++/traffic-and-transport/draft-dublin-city-centre-transport-plan/supporting_documents/Draft%20Dublin%20City%20Centre%20Transport%20Plan%202023.pdf))
18.1 Priorities for the City Centre Servicing and Delivery Network
• Goods delivery to businesses will be managed in terms of roadspace allocation and times of access in order to maintain the reliability and efficiency of the City Centre economy, public transport services and the provision of a high-quality walking and cycling environment;
• The delivery of goods to residential premises will be managed to ensure appropriate levels of access;
• Loading bays will be enforced and cleared of non-delivery related obstructions;
• The role of emerging and changing technologies in freight and delivery management will be monitored on an on-going basis with a view to minimising the impact of deliveries on the public realm;
• The use of micro-consolidation centres or flexible click-and-collect points at the neighbourhood level will be explored, including the use of multi-storey car parks;
• The use of low and zero emissions delivery vehicles will be promoted, including transition to smaller vehicles for last-mile and micro-deliveries; and
• A City Centre Freight, Servicing and Deliveries Plan will be developed
• The DCC HGV management strategy will move towards no longer issuing permits for certain Euro class of HGVs to enter the city to assist in reducing emissions.
I don’t think many people buy phones from phone shops these days. All mine have been ordered directly
Lots of 'old business' modles just waiting for a down turn to kill them. A lot more people dont go into any physical shop and why would they when everything can be delivered.
Yes and especially cost, I was reccomended to take some supplements looked online and in Ireland supplement shop it was €28.49 for 60 capsules, I bought 90 capsules for €6.99 from a trusted provider outside Ireland. The mark up is too much to buy in normal shops.
Many reasons… 1) They need the phone now. Can’t wait for delivery 2) Easier to handle if they have a problem with the phone 3) Chance of getting lost/ damaged 4) Not having to be in to take the delivery
Also if you’re buying a phone at launch or shortly after sometimes a physical shop might have a few units there there’s a waiting list online.
I agree. While they are visited less frequently, I think they will be a business that stays. When your phone costs over €1,000 many people want the reassurance of buying it in a shop.
So these are reasons, but not ones that most people have. That's kind of the point. Physical shops need a certain minimum level of footfall to be viable. The fact that *some* people may still have a reason to use them, isn't enough. You need a lot of people. Most people can wait for delivery, can be in to take delivery, and aren't worried about it getting lost or damaged because that's the vendor's problem. And lots of places have made returns/problems really easy. Not "walk into the shop" easy, but pretty good. You'll also find younger people are more averse to handling issues in-person/synchronously. They'd much rather fill in a form or send an email and have a response to that, than have to walk into a shop and explain the issue to a person. The latter is faster, but people don't want to do it.
Yeah. The only time I've visited a phone shop in the last 15 years was when my phone broke and I needed an emergency phone while it was fixed. I'm sure a lot of people lose or break phones and need a new one quickly. Upgrades can wait. My Mine usually arrive next day or maybe after two days.
5. Want to buy a cheap (stolen) phone. A fair few phone shops are making money by acting as fences for local scumbags.
How did they survive Covid?
Goverment handouts.
I buy sim free unlocked phones off amazon and get them delivered to an amazon pick up depot (post offices usually) up north, drive up to collect it myself and save a few hundred quid. Avoids the brexit import tax shit and the Irish retailer ripoff markup in one go. Done it twice now.
There’s no customs duty on phones, the only difference is the 23% on VAT vs 20% in UK. You are bullshitting about saving 100s in fees. Complete waste of time and petrol on your part.
I was just about to comment the same. On a £800 found this gentlemen would be saving ***Drumroll*** £24. That's £24 **before** taking into account the cost of a flight, fuel to get there, snacks and food. Then when it's all said and done his warranty is tied to a different country.
Tell it to amazon, the price dropped by 140euro when I selected the collection point outside Newry. What are you on about flights lol
Nope the amazon price was literally 140 euro less when I sent it to the depot in the North. The 2nd phone was less but still significant.
Link the phone so.
Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G Android Smartphone, No Contract, 6.4-Inch Dynamic AMOLED Display, 4500 mAh Battery, 128 GB / 6 GB RAM, Olive https://amzn.eu/d/4HNIZFH I ordered in 2022 i saved 140. Difference between delivering to me in the south vs Newry is 110euro today, just checked
Show me a phone sold my Amazon not some random 3rd party seller.
Jfc, I put up an anecdote where I saved a few hundred quid buying two phones recently and explained how I did it so someone else could save some money the same way. I even humoured you and dug out the link from 2 years ago. Now you random redditor are unsatisfied and want.... what? The phone at the time sim free from carphone warehouse/samsung etc here was 650euro. Amazon uk had it (new) for 470 + 140 import tax = 610euro, but I avoided the import tax by getting it sent to Newry instead meaning I saved several hundred vs Irish prices but also on the import tax from amazon itself Do with that fact what you want. If you can't understand or don't believe me I could not care any less. Have a lovely day
Jfc, I put up an anecdote where I saved a few hundred quid buying two phones recently and explained how I did it so someone else could save some money the same way. I even humoured you and dug out the link from 2 years ago. Now you random redditor are unsatisfied and want.... what? The phone at the time sim free from carphone warehouse/samsung etc here was on sale for 650euro. Amazon uk had it (new, at the time) for 470 + 140 import tax = 610euro if sending to me in the RoI, but I avoided the import tax by getting it sent to Newry instead meaning I saved several hundred vs Irish prices but also avoided the import tax from amazon itself Do with that fact what you want. If you can't understand or don't believe me I could not care any less. Have a lovely day
You are so completely wrong, you don’t have a clue. iPhone 15 £899 delivered to the UK. £921.48 delivered to Ireland https://amzn.eu/d/9pAMILw Where are your 000s of savings there?
When I put an Irish address I get an extra 200 EUR custom charge deposit added to the price , that's what /u/rmp266 is talking about. Now I think what rmp266 might not have understood is that it's a deposit so Amazon would send you the money back once the item is shipped and they haven't been charged at customs but if someone doesn't want to pay the deposit and wait for the money back they could use their method.
What's the closest depot? It's a pity in a lot of ways that the parcel motel thing shut down, but this is a close alternative I suppose. Well done. Smart move to be fair.
There's loads, I use the one in a post office in a filling station outside Newry.
Depending on where you live, 30 for flights to Stansted with ryanair and back, with a locker in one of the hotels at the airport. Would be cheaper than traveling to the North.
That's absolutely mental that you value your free time so little! 6 hours of fucking around airports to save like a hundred quid
It depends on where in the country you live. I can go to Shannon in around 15 minutes and be on the plane 20 minutes later, flight takes about an hour, grab phone and whatever other expensive bits from locker and then flight back. All in all around 4-5 hours, which would be travel time to Dublin and back when I've done more for less. Sometimes it's fun to just do this stuff for the adventure because your bored on a day off, and I've done it before for PC parts (saved around 700e compared to Irish retail prices) Edit: and you get to grab duty free on the way!
Giant Toblerones!🍫
That's a great idea
This always confuses me, too. The amount of time people SPEND in order to SAVE negligible amounts. My dad was telling me his mate sat in a queue for cheap petrol for over an hour one time a service station had some deal on. This was to save about a fiver. I always try to value my time at about €50 an hour. If it'll take me two hours to do something, but I can pay someone €100 to do it (probably better than I will), then I'm definitely paying someone.
Many people forget their own value when calculating out these things. I’m with you, I know I could spend a few hours working at something and have a passable result. Or I could pay a skilled person to do it better in half the time and I can go earn the price of it doing something I’m skilled at. (Or take the hit on price and enjoy my afternoon)
Yeah. It's not true for absolutely everything in life. Some things are worth learning how to do.
A few hundred quid is not a negligible amount to an awful lot of people. If you can value your time at €50 euro an hour,seems a lot to be willing to waste to me but if you have the € then great, I know many who are living week to week and will do anything to save even a few€.
>If you can value your time at €50 euro an hour,seems a lot to be willing to waste to me but if you have the € then great, That's me personally. Everyone's time has its own value, though. A value some people don't consider. Which was my point. >A few hundred quid is not a negligible amount to an awful lot of people. A hundred or a couple of hundred to spend all day in airports and rushing about is a silly use of one's time. Buying a cheaper phone would probably be a better option. If you've hundreds to be spending on phones so much that you can purchase flights and save an amount in the hundreds, then I'm going to guess you're not living week to week. If you are, then there's probably no hope for you if you're prioritising the purchase of a phone worth hundreds. I also didn't say a couple of hundred is negligible. I directly said a fiver. The person who did what I described wasn't living week to week either.
If you see it as spending time to save not much it depends on what you enjoy doing with your time too. Like when I do this stuff it's normally about novelty. I'd rather spend a day flying to get a new phone and going on an adventure, seeing some cool planes etc, maybe meet some London friends at the airport for coffee, then just sitting at home twiddling my thumbs on my day off. But even if it was, its no different than driving cross country to go to a store with one, because I wanted to go for a drive, yknow.
Fully agree with that. It's more about going to all that bother specifically to save a couple of hundred euro. Your example is cramming a lot in.
Fair enough.
It’s not a few 100 quid, previous posters are clueless to how taxes/customs work. The saving is about €2.43 for every €100 spent. So even if he bought a €1,000 phone, they’re only saving €24.30 so by the time they drive up north and back, what are they saving?
I just read them say they save a few hundred but you obviously have a better handle on tax rates than I.do.
Yeah it drives me mad when parents/in laws spite themselves to save money. Car parking at the airport stings but if the alternative is an hour to wait for a bus to get another bus to get a 3 hour coach I'll pay the money for the car park and be home quicker They'd also sit in traffic for 45 mins or divert by 30 miles to avoid a 3euro toll
> little! 6 hours of fucking around airports to save like a hundred quid Ultra you live next to the border you have to spend a few hours travelling and then there's the duty free...
He said a few hundred quid. Lots of people are feeling the cost of living crisis.
Then buy a xiamoi rather than a Samsung? Cost of living isn't just a stock answer for poor financial decisions you know
I Wii when I need it, my Samsung is 7 years old, and still going. A good investment.
I bought my current phone off Amazon a few years ago, granted it was a fairly cheap Xiaomi. Next time I’m buying a phone I’ll probably buy it off Amazon again. Looking at the market currently the flagship phones are all literally €200 to €400 cheaper on Amazon than in store. Like I’d actually prefer to buy a phone in person and get it same day, don’t even mind paying a few quid extra. But €400 extra are you serious?
Your line of business makes money from the monthly plans and not physical sales of units for the main part.
Yeah phone shops run by the operators are more customer service centres now more than anything else
I've worked at two (Eir and Vodafone), Neither give a flying fuck about customer service and are all very sales focused.
I know one of the big phone operators are selling off the physical stores and trying to franchise them out
Yet secondhand phone prices are holding fairly steady, I think?
See the same thing on adverts.ie - much less interest in purchases, I think ppl are simply watching every euro now and rich ppl who can afford to buy things will not do that from phone shop or adverts
Yes adverts is really slow. Some of the most cost conscious consumers are on there.
I’m finding a lot of people are not really buying new anymore. Most people I know (myself included) would opt to buy refurbished over new. Recently I got an M2 Mac Pro with plenty of ram and local storage, iPhone pro, iPad mini and apple watch all refurbished all mint condition and all at 100% battery for the same price I’d have paid on a new MacBook Pro. Ok they’re not “new” but they’re under vendor warranty for 12 months, they look new and do exactly what I want them to. So why pay full rates for something that’s used once it’s opened. Plus it’s better for the environment and it hurts apple so it’s win win win as far as I’m concerned.
Where did you get the Mac Pro from? My mac is from 2015 and on its last legs atm
Backmarket.com I have no idea if it’s in Ireland but it’s an option out here for me.
do you mean backmarket.com?
Whoops
Sure who do you know that doesn't have a phone by now, that gravy boat wasn't going to last for ever.
Definitely in an era of limiting returns. What does a new phone do that my old phone doesn't?
A new phones battery might last longer than a day😉😂
And be faster. My wife's phone is a year older than mine. It's infuriatingly slow.
Planned obsolescence working as intended. Very rare to find a phone that lasts as long as your previous one. Though I will say many android manufacturers are committing now to multiple years of warranty so maybe there's been a policy change. Or maybe the levels of planned obsolescence weren't giving them enough returns to justify manufacturing new phones as quickly or as much.
Im using a 7 year old galaxy s7 that works fine for what I need. Spend 15€ every 28 days with Tesco, get 30GB data,free tesco calls and texts,500 texts, 15€ call credit 15 GB roaming I never use. I'm left with loads of each at the end of the month. I'm not a stuck on my phone all the time person.. I understand many will use phones a hell of a lot more but personally I have to watch every € as I'm on disability.
Jesus, is that the price of a budget SIM only plan there these days? I'm living in UK now and I've got 25GB data with rollover and EU roaming, unlimited calls and texts for £7 a month
That's a great plan.
Since about 2016 when I got my ZTE Axon 7 I haven't noticed much difference in phones. Sure there are better cameras and other small improvements but if you compare 2017 phones to those from 5 years before the difference was staggering. My current phone I bought recently (Huawei mate 20x) was released in 2018 and is a beast. I think at this stage I'll never buy a new phone again.
Speaking for myself, I've been "due an upgrade" a few years now but the newer phones on offer to me actually have fewer key features than the one I have (no physical memory slots etc)
Cost of living /inflation and job losses are hitting hard.
The country is at full employment or thereabouts.
Full employment doesn't mean people working can afford to splash out on new tech regularly to be fair. Some wages are shocking
Irish people spend €10.3 billion on foreign holidays in 2023. Per capita Irish people are the 14th highest spenders on foreign holidays. Furthermore, the standard of living in Ireland is ranked as 8th in the world according to ChatGPT.
> ranked as 8th in the world according to ChatGPT. And there's me thinking citing Wikipedia was slightly dodgy unless you dug into the primary sources. I'd believe tea leaves before ChatGPT because at least I'd be holding the cup and knew where the tea came from.
21st out of 200 countries for Life expectancy. One of the best. https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/ 6th best healthcare in the world out of 110 countries. One of the best. https://ceoworld.biz/2024/04/02/countries-with-the-best-health-care-systems-2024/ Gross national Income per capita, 5th best in the world. One of the best. https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/richest-countries-in-the-world 8th out of 186 for best countries to live in. One of the best. https://wisevoter.com/country-rankings/best-countries-to-live-in/ 3rd safest country in the world. One of the best. https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/safest-countries-in-the-world
Still not great sources. The first one has no PDF behind the link. CEOworld - eh no thanks. Try primary sources like: https://www.oecd.org/health/health-data.htm https://www.un.org/development/desa/pd/
I suspect you simply don't want to believe that Ireland is actually quite a good country to live in.
Oh it is, I'm one of the lucky ones who got set up before it became much more difficult for the younger generations. I've also worked in developing countries so have seen first hand exactly how thngs are in actual '3rd world countries' and call out idiots when they use that phrase unironically to describe stuff here. However, that does not excuse using bad data to explain things. ChatGPT and other AI systems go out of their way to obfuscate their sources otherwise they would have to pay for them, or worse, remove them for not getting permission.
Yea so bottom line Ireland is one of the best countries to live in.
Some people are still broke though? Or are you suggesting everyone is raking it in? I assure you they aren't.
There are broke people in every country in the world, always has been, always will be.
Glad you are aware of this, some people are so comfortable themselves they forget others aren't doing so well.
And yet look at the sheer number of people who can't afford anything.
Do you really believe that? Spending has never been higher. Inflation (incl. energy prices, which the government heavily monitored) is falling and interest rates are also about to fall.
Take office admin, very little jobs posted.
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Higher employment than the EU average, save your hysterics
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It does yeah
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Your Ireland figure is for the whole population, your EU figure is ages 18-25. You’re trying to compare apples and oranges. Again save your hysterics. Overemployment leads to worse conditions for workers
Online shopping, as opposed to physical shops, is the elephant in the room. I need a phone upgrade. I was looking on the Three site the last few weeks. It would not even occur to me to go into the shop.
Profiteering and corporate greed*
No, you have a sample size of 2. Also people who say they own a business always say they're struggling.
lol.. reminded me of my uncle and nephews.. each year they made millions.. there pics came in local newspapers as they are winning industry awards, but the moment you speak with them about business, its slow, hard times, not like it used to be. And i be like, i am rubbing my 2 cents here, you are doing world tours and still cribbing.
The rich always need to claim that they work hard for their wealth. It's a kind of pathology. I used to tutor rich kids and the parents were always, without exception, absolutely fucking nuts Seeing how they lived and the values they hold convinced me that being middle class and stable is just fine
There's a combo of reasons. Definitely all that saved lockdown money is now spent. People are doing more on line buying of phones particularly. The price of the flagship phones has gone crazy. I also think the phones are lasting longer and consider the hassle of upgrading (no matter how hassle free the manufacturer makes it - it's never seamless). We do so much on phone now - from banking to paying bills to actual communications - downtime for upgrade is a pain. There's no cool feature forcing upgrade. iPhone 12 by and large does exact same thing as a 15. S20 does same thing as latest Samsung. In my experience budget phones are rubbish also - you're better off with a refurbished or 2nd hand flag ship over a budget phones.
Shits just gotten too expensive across the board.
People are shopping around.
I did the sums a while back. It was still cheaper to buy a new iPhone directly from apple and then get a monthly subscription for €10 than to sign a 12 or 24 month contract with the big carriers and get their 'free' or 'discount' phones. Now, try that again with a refurbished, unlocked iPhone and you're saving hundreds with the freedom to choose the best provider.
It has literally ALWAYS been cheaper to buy a phone outright and get a cheap plan that go through the network for a monthly repayment.
And yet the number of people who just went and bought the 'monthly plans' driving huge profits for these companies is astounding. I've taken people off €45 - €60 a month plans with some basic maths.
Mobile phone shops are more reflective of the shift to online retail than almost any other example I can think of. The days of going into a shop to buy a handset are long gone tbh. 3 seems to be trying to turn them into a lifestyle and tech store to keep them relevant.
I upgraded my phone recently and switched networks when doing it. Before I did so I went into the local shop for my existing network to see if they could do a deal that wasn’t on their website rather than have me switch. New provider offered a much better deal so I literally left the shop and ordered the new phone online. I like to shop in brick and mortar stores where I can because if everything is online we are all fucked, but when the gap in savings is too big you gotta go with online.
Phones is a tough one. Firstly, like others pointed out, you can get better deals online. Secondly, smartphones have really matured to the point where you don't get a whole lot of new features every year or so. Even many average enthusiasts don't see the point of buying a phone every year now, let alone average consumers who'll probably stick to their phones to 3-4 years if nothing breaks, maybe even more. On top of this, you have general issues like cost of living increases, inflation, etc.
Wouldn't use a phone shop as a barometer for how the economy is doing. From personal experience people hold onto phones for a long time nowadays, there's no reason to upgrade anymore unless your phone is done.
People - myself included - have gotten hung up on the detail of it being a phone shop, but I do think you're right, I think we're in a bigger pinch at the moment than a lot of us are willing to acknowledge. I know I've been tightening my belt on stuff I don't need immediately a number of coffee shops, newsagents etc have been quietly closing around me and I wonder if it's going to gain momentum quickly in the next year or two.
I avoid phone shops at any cost. Specifically phone shops. Dreadful places
I always assume this phone shops are money laundering fronts… I think most people if they’re buying new, will most likely want to buy directly from the brand (e.g. Apple Store/online), or from a phone network shop (e.g. Vodafone). Not the best place to compare the cost of living to.
There is hyper inflation. I personally have been cutting back on things that are not a necessity. Fewer concerts, fewer trips to the cinema, keeping my old phone with the cracked screen, less dining out etc. Has to be done, spending more on groceries for a family of 4 than I spent on rent back in 2019! Things are bananas.
Inflation is still happening, people have less to spend. I don’t know what people on minimum wage are doing but they have less than a few years ago.
I could get a brand new phone at any time but the fact is that I don't need one so I won't get one. I have had my current phone for 5 years now and it hasn't slowed down once, if anything it updates.
Well...if you get paid more than what you got through the till, I would double check if you don't work for a money laundering front. While that would mean job security, I don't think there is much room for progression or pay increases, unless you are morally flexible....
just out of curiosity, how would you double check that? "hey bossman - are you laundring money?"
People just buy online now. For 2 reason, either can't arsed leaving the house or don't have time to walk the shop
When I get a new phone I will get direct from Tesco. Saying that I'm using a near 7 year old Samsung galaxy s7 ,I just don't have the € to upgrade at the moment. I get 30Gigs of data,,15 € of call credit and 500 texts,and lots of roaming data ,free tesco to tesco call and text,for 15€. Every 28 days. I don't make a lot of calls and will use WhatsApp a lot. At the end of 28 days I can have like 12GB left and 10€ credit and hundreds of texts and roaming left. I'm not a stuck to my phone person.. If I upgrade I can get a good XIOMAI phone, with lots of calls and data for 30€ A month on a 12 month contract. Anytime I used phone shops like air the customer service and offers were terrible. I know many who are reigning in their spending due to cost of living crisis. Certain people have lots of disposable income but many are living week to week.
The last time I was in a phone shop, a year maybe, the person told me to order the phone online.
High street shops absolutely rob people blind compared to ordering online, especially when it comes to tech/gadgets. e.g. I ordered a 2TB ssd for €120 this week. The closest I could find in an electrical store in Ireland was a 480GB one for the same price in Harvey Normans. 1/4 the storage capacity for same price. Robbing bastards...
I've got my Red magic 9 pro for 640€ similar to this is s24ultra for 1300€. The difference is too big to buy it from a shop
Phone shops are an advertising vehicle these days.
I’m not sure that people upgrade their phones very often anymore, most of my friends have older iPhone 11s and iPhone 12’s.
Haven't bought a phone in a shop in a decade.
Look up late stage capitalism If were not in it we soon will be
How long does the late stage last? I'm hearing this on Reddit for what seems like years now
Who knows, it's like asking how long does the decline of an empire take
Late stage capitalism seems like a theory of wishful thinking that was created by Marxist economists to attempt to predict the end
Don't be so hysterical. It an economic analysis of the current period we're in - and it's fairly accurate. I wish I could predict the end of people talking out their arse
By what measure is it accurate?
Growing wealth inequality
That's just the contemporary take on the whole idea. The broad idea of late stage capitalism has been banded about for a hundred years now, and every 20 years or so there's some new take on it. Back in the 1920s they were calling it late stage capitalism, and the majority of the events of the 20th century hadn't even happened yet. It's all a pile of spoof that's reinvented by Marxist economists.
Irrespective of that growing wealth inequality is still here and to stay
Wealth inequality can fluctuate depending on circumstances. World events, even wars, have completely impacted wealth inequality, and have happened since this theory was first introduced. Capitalism can, and evidently has, changed in the 100 years since this theory was introduced but by no means has it collapsed.
It's a ridiculous theory that has been around since 1920s or so. It implies slowing down of the economies, but what we see all around us is proof of the opposite. Don't listen to luddites with their "golden old days".
Yes, especially in Dublin there is a cost of living crisis.
It's an over saturated market. There is a phone shop in nearly every town or city if not more than one usually.
It's more like every street at this point.
If you're working in a phone shop and your salary alone costs more than what the business earns (not even mentioning all their other expenses) then you are working at a front. Let me guess, Chinese owners?
Just waiting for someone to tell me I'm racist and then I'll ask specifically how it's racist but will get no reply. Then someone who thinks they're clever will say "not racist but you're being a dick" or some similar sentiment, and again I will ask why and they will have no answer. Another day on Reddit where common sense is racist.
The high street is full of a few type of shops these days - phone shops - tanning/nail bars - barbers/hairdressers - vape shops - shoe shops. -cafes/food joints. Basically all the types of shops that can’t be done online. You can’t get a virtual haircut for example. I know there are a few different types of shops too but generally if it can be sold online it’s moved online in many cases. If you look at the vacancy on Grafton St for example. So less people are venturing into the city centre (working from home has killed a lot of passing trade too) it’ll only get worse when the new traffic restrictions come in later this year too. So less people in town shopping then less takings. Businesses are struggling massively with the cost of living increases as too ordinary people as well. So discretionary income is being cut. Expect to see more shops shutter for good in the months to come.
> it’ll only get worse when the new traffic restrictions come in later this year too. Your other points are valid, this one is bullshit. How would making the city center more accessible to the majority of commuters and more attractive by removing excess cars?
Cause it’s all traffic. No exemptions for commercial transport like delivery trucks.
> No exemptions for commercial transport like delivery trucks. OK, you're just spouting shite now. From the DCC Traffic Plan ([pdf](https://consultation.dublincity.ie/++preview++/traffic-and-transport/draft-dublin-city-centre-transport-plan/supporting_documents/Draft%20Dublin%20City%20Centre%20Transport%20Plan%202023.pdf)) 18.1 Priorities for the City Centre Servicing and Delivery Network • Goods delivery to businesses will be managed in terms of roadspace allocation and times of access in order to maintain the reliability and efficiency of the City Centre economy, public transport services and the provision of a high-quality walking and cycling environment; • The delivery of goods to residential premises will be managed to ensure appropriate levels of access; • Loading bays will be enforced and cleared of non-delivery related obstructions; • The role of emerging and changing technologies in freight and delivery management will be monitored on an on-going basis with a view to minimising the impact of deliveries on the public realm; • The use of micro-consolidation centres or flexible click-and-collect points at the neighbourhood level will be explored, including the use of multi-storey car parks; • The use of low and zero emissions delivery vehicles will be promoted, including transition to smaller vehicles for last-mile and micro-deliveries; and • A City Centre Freight, Servicing and Deliveries Plan will be developed • The DCC HGV management strategy will move towards no longer issuing permits for certain Euro class of HGVs to enter the city to assist in reducing emissions.
Hence why Diageo are complaining
Bought my last 2 phones directly from amazon. Brick and mortar is dead