Aputure Amaran Halo AHL-HN100 LED Macro Ring Flash Light 95 CRI for Nikon

Having a little to spend on camera gadgets, I always go to my favorite online stores to look for discounted products, luckily for me Miniinthebox was offering 15% discount for purchases above $40. So I added my sought after camera gadget into my cart and went to the checkout page. The discount plus a coupon for $4 enabled me to get the "Aputure Amaran Halo AHL-HN100 LED Macro Ring Flash Light 95 CRI for Nikon F951" (which usually sells for around $60) for only $46.73. It even included free expedited shipping. The item arrived in our doorstep in less than 3 business days. I could have been so happy if not for the $22 import duties and taxes that I had to pay. I have ordered so many items before and I never had to pay these taxes. Apparently, it depends on how the item is declared. And because it was declared as electronics, I had to pay it. I sent the seller an e-mail stating that they should have something in the payment page that would warn users about import duties. I also told them that I could have paid less if I bought it locally. Their reply did say they have it in their web site and it was just in another page. Maybe because I have been their customer for a long time, they were nice enough to reimburse me half of the taxes I paid ($11) which made me feel better.

I have an idea on how to use it. However, I still need to start reading the manual to learn how to properly use it. I can already imagine my wife telling me "ROI, ROI, ROI...". It means (Return on Investment) I have to be able to maximize the usage so that it is a money well spent.

Combining Shoppers Optimum Coupon and In-store Bonus Points

I have been saving a coupon for 8,000 bonus points if I spend at least $75 at shoppers. One day I read in the newspaper that it is 20x the points that day if you spend $50 or more. I figured, if I can claim both the coupon and the in-store bonus points, I could reach 95,000 points easily. I headed to a store near our place after I got off form work. I made sure I had $75 worth of eligible items before taxes. I asked the cashier if after qualifying for the in-store bonus points I can still use the coupon. The cashier said if the register accepts it, then it should be good. So the cashier tried and sait the coupon was accepted but I had to wait for a week before the points will be credited. So I went home feeling happy because of the transaction. A week has passed and I did not see the bonus point added to my rewards points total. So I called customer service to find out what happend. The customer service agent told me that both coupons can't be used at the same time and if I do, I will only get the in-store bonus points. Too bad!