Dehydrated Mango Slices - 200 Gm - Product Review

We all love mangoes. How good it'll be if its available during off seasons as well. But unfortunately its not. So one has to look for alternatives to enjoy mangoes when its naturally not available.

I have a craving for mangoes. I love this sweet little yellow fruit since my childhood. And now, I was so very much eager to have it that i decided to buy aam papad or dehydrated mangoes instead to satisfy my need for it.

So, I recently bought "Dehydrated Mango Slices - 200 Gm" from Amazon India.

I searched a lot but couldn't find any good aam papad online so bought this very product from Amazon.

Now this post is a review about this product.

Well, the package arrived on time. And the packaging and the product covering was good enough to impress me. But the worrying factor was the product inside the transparent packet. First of all, it never looked how it was shown in product image on Amazon. On trying to cut the dehydrated slide from outside the packet (the plastic covering was not too thick) with my thumb nail, but i was unable to do so. Each slice was so hard to cut through easily. Imagine how hard it'll be to bite and consume ? i know its dehydrated so its suppose to be hard but not that hard. This was way too extreme to easily bite through it seems.

I decided to open the packet to experience the taste of it. On immediately opening the packet, it gave a peculiar, hard hitting pungent smell, that was highly irresistible. I just could not stand it. It was way too extreme. Now i have tasted / had dehydrated mangoes before. Those were mainly bought from offline markets. But they never had such a smell. So i was clueless as to why it had such a dark smell. First thoughts - Is it expired but it didn't looked like.

I ate a piece of it. It took no time for me to judge this product as a complete waste of money. My very first bite turned out to be the last one from this package. No I wasn't dead eating it. Just that i could not think of having it anymore. It was way too bad taste-wise. Not only hard to chew but also without taste.

Now this product is Organic with no adulterants / sugar added but it didn't seemed natural to me.

I was taken by the kind of positive reviews customers has given for this product on Amazon, so i purchased this product. But after experiencing it first hand, i realized i could have searched for a better product somewhere else online or maybe offline in local stores.

I spoke to Amazon Cc and told them about my experience. They were kind enough to give me the complete refund and even asked to keep the product as it is perishable as they wont initiate pickup for it.

Note: At the time of writing this review, I bought this product from Amazon for Rs. 199 for 200 grams.

Now, I started searching for a better product and found these "Fresho Signature" aam paapads on bigbasket. Bigbasket has its own brand Fresho under which it sells aam papads.

I bought a 50 gms packet to try it out for Rs. 65. To my pleasant surprise, aam papad from Bigbasket rocked. It was sweet and sour at the same time, thus making it worth consuming. It has a peculiar smell but not strong enough to hold you back. It wasn't too hard to chew either and my kids loved it whereas they hated the dehydrated mango packet brought from Amazon. This Fresho aam papads / dehydrated slices from Bigbasket do not have any added preservatives and is 100% natural but does contain sulphurless sugar. And its expensive when compared to Amazon product but completely worth the value.

So i think, anyone whose looking to buy aam papads / dehydrated mango slices from Amazon, may skip this product and look for better options (I already suggested one offer from Bigbasket).

Views expressed here are completely personal to give buyers an idea about the products.

Thanks

Orpat OEH-1220 2000-Watt Fan Heater (White) - Product Review

This Post is a product review of "Orpat OEH-1220 2000-Watt Fan Heater (White)" bought from Amazon.

I bought this heater as my room during winters gets real cold that makes it unbearable to sleep at night.

Let me share Pros & Cons about this heater based on my experience of using this product now for a while.

Pros:

• It has 2 Heat Setting knob (1000 Watt & 2000 Watt) basically to warm up the room at a faster pace like the knobs we have in ceiling fans. So basically these are the modes at which the heater works. 
• it has a safety mesh at the front which makes it easy to use and handle even while the machine is running.
• The first knob when you start the machine turns on the fan. This does not heat up the room. it's just the normal fan.
• It is ideal for small rooms like 10x10 or 11x11. Placing it in a hall or larger room will not warm / heat up / regulate the room temperature effectively and quickly.
• it's effectively for rooms measuring upto 20x20 ft. 
• 25-30 minutes it takes the heater to warm a small size room on knob 1
• 15-20 minutes it takes to warm the room on knob 2
• it has a cool touch body. The hot element (copper wire) inside the machine is well guarded. So chances of getting shock or burned while handling the device are minimum.
• It does not occupy much space
• Portable. Can be easily packed and unpacked and kept anywhere in the room.
• You can move the machine easily even while its running.
• Light weight.
• it has a safety and thermal cut-off to prevent any shocks / sparks during long usage at high temperature.
• The heat from the machine is not prickly
• ISI marked
• it comes with a 1m wire

Cons:

• it does create noise(low) while the machine is in use. But the noise is not too disturbing or loud and one get used to it.
• Avoid using it too close to skin sensitive people / kids / infants
• Long hour usage may dry up the air in room. Better to keep a bucket of water (half filled) to maintain room moisture.
• it does not have the regular plug to plug in. It comes with a 15 amp plug. So make sure you have those wide power switch boxes (15-16 amp) and not the normal switch boards to plug in the device.

Overall, this a very good product as it heats up room pretty quickly. The heat from the machine is strong to regulate a small room / hall / space effectively.

Warranty:

It has a 1 year Warranty.

Price:

It's not too expensive. I have bought this product twice from Amazon. First time i bought this for 1000 bucks and later for 839. So one can set price alert if planning to buy it in near future. I have seen this product being sold for as low as 750 bucks on Amazon. So keep a price trigger running for this product,

Recommendation:

It's a value for money product. A must have product during winters to beat the cold. 

Save Money When You Buy Online

Last couple of years there has been a surge in buying products online and with more power in Technology sector, this trend will only increase in coming years.

We all love to buy online. It adds more to our happiness when we see discounts on our favorite products and save few bucks (kind of a "high five" moment, isn't it ?).

Do you know there are few money saving hacks that one can apply to buy products at much cheaper price. if you are a frequent online shopper, you can make a killing by applying these hacks.

I've see people buy online now and then. It has become a modern day religion to buy stuff online.

Imagine how helpful it will be for parents who end up paying lot on baby products in first few years of infancy. I know the hole diapers, powders and other baby products can make in parent's wallet.

So here are few tricks that you can use to save money while buying products online.

1. Use Price drop alerts through Cheapass:

You can set instant price alerts here if you are panning to buy products online. Mention the URL of the product (taken from ecommerce website) you want to buy and set it up against your email address. You will receive a signup email with details of the product you have set the alert.

Everytime there's a price drop, Cheapass will trigger an alert in your inbox. Open the email and check the product price. if you think this is within your buying range, click on the product and buy the product from respective store.

I use the same cheapass alerts to buy Pampers Newborn to Small, Pampers Active baby and other baby products online.

You can use these alerts for any product which you think has tendency to undergo price reduction.

Tip: Always check the discount you are getting for the alerted product. for eg: Incase of pampers, you will see the discount how much you are getting. for eg: if you have bought pampers newborn to small (46 pack) few days back for 420 and today you are getting it for 407, site will show the discount percentage being offered. Make sure the discount is somewhere between 20-25%. Consider that a fair deal to buy the product. Similarly you can set your own discount margin.

Refer below screenshot.

Just imagine how much money you could save in long run by using these price drop alerts. 

2. Signup on CouponDunia:

If you are planning to buy diapers or any other product online, it's better to visit CouponDunia website first and then gets redirected from there to specific ecommerce website (store).

Signup on CouponDunia and search store wise. Look up for product or product category of your interest.
for eg: if you are planning to buy diapers from Amazon, mouse hover on "Top Stores" in Main navigation bar on CouponDunia website and click on "Amazon". Use (CNTRL+F) to search for "diaper" on the page and once found click on either "Activate Deal" or "Get Code". System will automatically redirect you to Amazon sire wherein you will see all the diapers listed. Select the product you intend to buy, add it to cart and buy the product.

Every purchase done through Coupondunia will fetch you cashback.

You can recharge your mobile using the same cashback or transfer it in your bank account. You can also refer CouponDunia to your friends and earn money.

So next time you plan to purchase any product online, visit CouponDunia first and then gets redirected from there to the respective store.

3. Use Payback points:

You must have seen BigBazaar, ICICI Bank promoting Payback at their outlets / sites, asking customers to signup for free. Next time you come across something like this, signup for it, it's free.

Why you should signup:

First of all, it's free.

If you are an ICICI Bank customer and you have a payback card linked to your bank, every transaction done using your ATM debit card, will fetch you payback points. Now the points credited may not be too high in number but if one keep accumulating them for long duration, you can earn a lot. And thus, you can use the same points to buy products online from various stores. So one must signup for payback.

I generally use my payback points to do shopping on Firstcry.com

Here's a screenshot of payback points i earned (circled in green) using my icici bank's ATM card in last 1.5 years.

I was able to buy 13 boxes of Similac Infant Formula Stage 1 - 400 gm on firstcry without even paying a single rupee from my pocket. Isn't that AWESOME !!!

So next time you do any transaction using your ICICI bank ATM card, make sure your account is linked with an active payback card / account.

You can also mention your payback number or phone number everytime you purchase anything from firstcry. You not only earn points for online transaction using your ICICI bank's netbanking or debit card but also earn payback points for buying the product from firstcry.com, so it's double the bonanza.

4. Dont buy products offline.

If you are getting the product online with hefty discounts and paybacks and cash rewards, dont make efforts buying it offline.

Parents especially, if you ask for Pampers Newborn to small (46 pack) diapers in any chemist store, they will sell it for atleast 450+ to save on their margin. Same product you get online on Amazon at 417 or 407. I have thrice purchased it on Amazon at Rs. 382.

So there's no point of buying products offline.

Also, online saving saves time. Busy parents dont have to go out of the house and can spend more time with kids if they purchase things online.

5. Use Paytm / Mobikwik wallets:

This is my favorite. Use wallets. These wallets generally keep coming up with different offers now and then. Make full use of these offers. for eg: Firstcry has tied up with Paytm & mobikwik that if you transact on their sites using their wallets, the wallet companies will give you money back for the transaction done.

I recently bought formula feed from firstcry using my Mobikwik wallet. I immediately received 150 rupees cashback which i can use it in my next purchase.

You can use these wallets while buying stuff from Bigbasket as well.

You can install the following wallets on your mobile and make full use of them:
Payzapp
Mobikwik
Paytm
Payu
Pockets

6. Subscribe to Store Alerts / Newsletters

One can subscribe to email alerts / newsletters from different stores. Amazon, Firstcry keeps sending emails about various promo codes running every day / week on their site. Using those codes, one can avail great discounts.

7. Install HONEY Chrome Extension

This is a must for all those who generally do online shopping from their desktops instead of mobile. 

Install HONEY chrome extension in your chrome browser and next time you plan to buy any product online and are on Checkout page, click on "Honey" extension in chrome browser, it will search for the best code that can be applied on your cart to make some savings.

I have regularly been applying HONEY recommended codes to save few bucks on babyoye and firstcry sites.

8. Checkout Lightning deals from Amazon

Amazon keeps coming with lightning deals where the product is available only for few minutes at discounted price. Make full use of this opportunity.

I generally buy under Lightning deals in mornings at around 7 IST to get the cheapest products.

9. Buy during Big Billion / Big Bonanza sale

Stores like Amazon / Flipkart keeps coming with big billion / bonanza sale wherein products are available at dead cheap price. Make full use of these. Prepare a list of items to buy and once the sale is ON, make a killing.

These are my money saving hacks which i regularly use to save few bucks. I hope you enjoyed the post.

I would like to know what are your thoughts and views about these and if missed anything. Would love to see more hacks to saving my money while online shopping. 

Take Care

Checkout the Post: Mobile Apps for Pregnant Ladies & New Moms

Amazon V/s Flipkart

You often buy stuff online from various e-commerce websites. But how often do you compare the products on different portals before making the final purchase? Do you compare the prices for the same product (of same quality, same supplier) available at different websites? How was your experience with regards to post sales service and how was the delivery service?

I run through a thousand questions like these before deciding upon which website to opt for before buying the product.

You must be wondering who has time to think of all these questions if i am getting my product at best price on any website. Well, i was of the same attitude till flipkart left me fumed, frustrated, annoyed twice for buying products which were available at much cheaper rates on Amazon India and with a better service.

So, this post is a review is on how Amazon Rocks and flipkart still has a long way to go to even think of competing against Amazon.

A while back i bought Sony VAIO laptop battery from Amazon. The product was available (in stock) on Amazon for 2399 and the same product on flipkart was for 2799 and Out-of-Stock.

The above is just an example to tell how flipkart is looting its customers of their money by selling the same products but at a much expensive rates. And this is without considering the delivery charges flipkart applies on the products purchased.

I recently bought 2 different books (240 each) - One from Amazon and other from flipkart on 10th oct 2015.

The delivery was scheduled for 14th oct 2015. To my surprise, the Amazon delivery was done on 12th Oct 2015 without shipping charges. I was impressed. This was without taking express service. Cool, isn't it. Flipkart delivered the product on 15th Oct 2015, so they were late by 1 day from their committed scheduled date.

Many a times, the product available on flipkart is not available for my pin code. And i never faced this issue on Amazon. So, Amazon wins interms of price, scheduled delivery, shipping charges, stock availability and pin code availability hands down over flipkart.

Amazon gives more lucrative offers (discounts) for Customers using HDFC or other Banks credit cards / debit cards which i generally don't see on flipkart. And, at times, the product is out of stock / not available on flipkart.

If you ordering too many items, Amazon wins over flipkart because they club all things together to deliver it under one shipping on request. Flipkart delivers each item individually with delivery charges added for each individual item. Isn't this illogical?

If you haven't, try the post sales customer service of flipkart. Most of the time, they'll either hung up on you or won't have answers to your questions. So you'll end up cancelling the order for the product purchased. Now try the service of Amazon and you'll realize how Amazon always keeps its customers at top priority.

You may find a product cheaper at Flipkart (not true as per my experience) over Amazon, but make sure you consider the post sales service, delivery timings, shipping charges, availability etc. into account before buying it from flipkart because remember, Amazon may occasionally charge you high but they'll make sure it is in best of customer's interest.

P.S: If you are interested in reading more about Amazon v/s flipkart, click here.

Thanks