Are Amazon Prime Day deals usually genuine or inflated?

Question

ive been looking at this ninja creami thing for ages now because my kids keep asking for homemade ice cream but honestly it feels so expensive for a kitchen gadget and im really bad at figuring out when things are actually worth the price. im in ohio and money is a bit tight right now especially with a big car repair coming up next month so im trying to be really careful where I spend my extra cash. i have about $160 set aside for this and i was told to wait for prime day in july because apparently everything goes on sale then and that sounds like the perfect time to grab one.

the thing is i keep reading these posts online from people saying that amazon isnt actually giving you a deal most of the time. they say the prices get bumped up like a week or two before the sale starts so when the 'prime deal' hits it looks like you're saving fifty bucks but really you're just paying the normal price from like a month ago. i have no idea how people even know that or how to check it for myself? i feel like a complete dummy asking this but i dont want to get tricked into thinking im getting a bargain if im really just paying full price. like do they actually lower the price below what it normally is throughout the year or is it all just fancy marketing stuff to make people panic buy things they dont need?

i saw this one blender i wanted too and it said it was 'on sale' for $89 but then i went to the local target down the street and it was literally $85 without any sale tags at all so now im super suspicious of everything on the site. im just a total newbie at this whole online shopping game and usually i just buy things when i need them but since this is a bigger purchase for me i wanted to be smart about it. is there a trick to knowing if the prime day price is actually the lowest it has ever been or if it's just inflated...

zqpprmdizz · Accepted Answer

ngl, you're right to be suspicious. I've seen them jack up prices right before the big day more times than I can count. Being really cautious is smart, so maybe try this:

Check camelcamelcamel to see the actual price history over the last year.

Compare with Target or Walmart because they usually match the deals without the fake inflation. dont get caught in the hype... the creami often drops to $150 regardless of the sale name.

rhlluerfdi · Answer

Building on the earlier suggestion, its just honestly ridiculous how these companies operate now. I saw your post today and really felt that frustration because we work way too hard for our money just for retailers to play games with price tags. Its such a scam... you wait for months to buy something special for the kids and then find out the 'deal' is actually worse than the normal price was back in the spring. Drives me crazy. I had issues with a similar kitchen gadget recently where the quality was just total garbage for what they charged. Companies just dont care about us anymore, they just want that quick sale. Unfortunately, it feels like everything is just cheap parts and fake marketing these days. Its so exhausting trying to be smart with your cash when you have real-life stress like car repairs to handle. You're totally right to be suspicious tho, the whole system feels gross lately.

inptlfnnjz · Answer

Just saw your post. Honestly, the marketing is designed to be confusing so dont feel bad. The trick is using a browser extension like Keepa or this price alert tool to see the actual price history right on the page. It shows you a graph of the last few months so you can spot those fake markups instantly. Definitely check other retailers like Kohls too, they sometimes have better coupons for Ninja stuff.