Wii-U thoughts so far

[equalsign]

^ $25 down for Powerup Rewards members (vs $50) is a pretty decent perk considering the price.

I'm waiting to see if Amazon does any deals. Now that they charge state tax, they aren't as enticing with those bigger purchases.

I really hope Amazon puts up preorders soon. No tax and free shipping would be fantastic. I did preorder the deluxe edition at Gamestop today just in case Amazon doesn't sell it.

Amazon purchases are not tax free and never have been. You are supposed to add up your out-of-state and online purchases at the end of the year and then pay a "use tax" on them. I do not know of a state without a "use tax."

These "use taxes" are only reported by about 2% of the population. I doubt even 10% know about them. What Amazon really did was allow for very easy tax evasion.

[ZeroAX]

Amazon purchases are not tax free and never have been. You are supposed to add up your out-of-state and online purchases at the end of the year and then pay a "use tax" on them. I do not know of a state without a "use tax."

These "use taxes" are only reported by about 2% of the population. I doubt even 10% know about them. What Amazon really did was allow for very easy tax evasion.

That's what you get for having the stupidest way to handle VAT in the entire world. The VAT should be included IN the price and the seller (in this case amazon) should be the one responsible for making sure it gets payed to the government.

[gtmtnbiker]

I do not know of a state without a "use tax."

Alaska, New Hampshire, Oregon, Delaware, Montana.

[equalsign]

I do not know of a state without a "use tax."

Alaska, New Hampshire, Oregon, Delaware, Montana.

Good to know .

[BoringSupreez]

Could be out 5 years from now. So, sold for launch or sold at some point down the line?

Some point down the line unfortunately .

I remember Alan Wake was announced before the 360 even came out, and look how long we had to wait. "Some point down the line" is not very exciting to me at all.

I think I'll wait and see what happens. If Wii U has the fans that the Wii had, man those first months were a struggle to find one.

First few months? More like the first year and two months.

I don't think the Wii U is going to remain elusive for as long as the Wii did. However, anyone that wants to own one in 2012 should preorder now because it's definitely going to be hard to find at retail until after Christmas.

[D.D.D.]

Amazon purchases are not tax free and never have been. You are supposed to add up your out-of-state and online purchases at the end of the year and then pay a "use tax" on them. I do not know of a state without a "use tax."

These "use taxes" are only reported by about 2% of the population. I doubt even 10% know about them. What Amazon really did was allow for very easy tax evasion.

That's what you get for having the stupidest way to handle VAT in the entire world. The VAT should be included IN the price and the seller (in this case amazon) should be the one responsible for making sure it gets payed to the government.

True that. It's not hard to include taxes in the price - and some countries even list the tax-included price on the sticker/advertisement. I like knowing what the total cost is going in and if I can get a discount, I know it's a real discount.
But, I'm not saying that I didn't enjoy the "tax-free" Amazon shopping while it lasted.

[ZeroAX]

- and some countries even list the tax-included price on the sticker/advertisement.

That's how it is in every country I have visited so far (except the US, but I was there in the 90s and a kid so I didn't really pay attention to this stuff)

[MrPopo]

The reason Amazon doesn't want to collect tax is not just the competitive advantage it gives them over brick and mortar. The tax code in this country is FUCKED UP. In addition to sales tax at the state, county, and city level, the tax law changes depending on if goods are sold in the city vs. out of it, in the county vs. out of it, or in the state vs. out of it. Sure, you could eventually program in all the tax laws and throw a good algorithm at it to determine the tax that needs to be assessed (and eat the difference if an inventory shortage requires you to ship from a different building and assess a higher tax) but no one at Amazon WANTS to.

[ZeroAX]

The reason Amazon doesn't want to collect tax is not just the competitive advantage it gives them over brick and mortar. The tax code in this country is FUCKED UP. In addition to sales tax at the state, county, and city level, the tax law changes depending on if goods are sold in the city vs. out of it, in the county vs. out of it, or in the state vs. out of it. Sure, you could eventually program in all the tax laws and throw a good algorithm at it to determine the tax that needs to be assessed (and eat the difference if an inventory shortage requires you to ship from a different building and assess a higher tax) but no one at Amazon WANTS to.

....and I thought my country was a bureaucratic mess.

[MrPopo]

Yeah, when I was interviewing the various groups at Amazon to see what group I'd want to be in (they'd already extended an offer) we had a dinner with a bunch of employees, and I ended up sitting across from one of the tax guys. He gave me a run down of just how much his job sucks :p