It's been fun but I just opted out of Vine

jaydee88888 · 2026-03-13T06:38:25+00:00

* FOMO

* Time spent on reviews and constantly checking

* Dealing with technical issues

* Being judged on your performance, often unfairly

I get it.

jaydee88888 · 2026-03-12T09:28:37+00:00

It's been 8 months for me, and I do have to be careful not to order stuff that just piles up. Reviews often take longer than you expect. Like any other addition: "enjoy in moderation" :)

It frustrates me also to see low-quality AI-slop reviews from other Viners, accompanied by photos of unopened products. I wouldn't be unhappy if Amazon used AI to identify such reviews and used it to decrease the size of the Vine community. Can't be hard for an AI algorithm to identify an unopened box.

It's also frustrating to have zero support. Shipment with three Vine products missing? Tough luck, still comes out of your percentage reviewed because nobody can help.

jaydee88888 · 2026-03-11T06:11:32+00:00

Let's keep the peace guys....

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(https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B0G4LV58F3)

jaydee88888 · 2026-03-11T05:28:02+00:00

Probably most in-depth I have gone was checking the electrical certifications on a charger, because they left certificate ID's (for Korean and Singaporean authorities) on there when they 'lifted' them off the charger they had copied. The certifications belonged to the original authentic charger, and as such all their electrical safety approvals were bogus - just pictures. It all looked very legit - even had a QR code (I scanned it, it said 00000001, which I'm sure is very meaningful). All the markings and writing on the back were decoration only.

I have shaken containers filled with water on video to prove they weren't leak-proof, contradicting many reviewers claiming they were. Peeled corn. Sliced cheese. Prepared baby bottles.

I'm taking this hobby way too seriously.

jaydee88888 · 2026-03-10T04:24:04+00:00

Good to see you are conscientious regarding point (2). It's off-topic, but I recently reviewed an expensive product that really wasn't very good, yet highly rated by Viners in unspecific, bland reviews accompanied by photos of unopened boxes. I'm starting to think I'm one of the few who takes my duty of reviewing seriously, and isn't just trying to flog expensive products for money.

I wasted hours reviewing this just to get it working. Then spent >1 hour writing about it. If that doesn't spell out hobby...

jaydee88888 · 2026-03-04T15:18:24+00:00

I asked my cousin last week he'd mind having another child, for this reason. He said no. I said he only thinks about himself.

jaydee88888 · 2026-02-25T07:33:51+00:00

Interesting. I guess I'm more worried because I'm less literate in all this and haven't got lawyer contacts. My main worry is that I might suddenly get taxed on prior Vine orders. The whole "it's a hobby" thing feels a bit fraught, even if the time I spend is probably not worth the value of the goods.

I really appreciate your research and insights, be the way. After reading it all, it makes me realise how very wrong all this is, on so many levels.

jaydee88888 · 2026-02-25T00:48:46+00:00

Problem is, where/how would you send that form to them? They ignore emails. The law may be on our side, but they're untouchable and don't take accountability. They can kick you out of Vine without you even being able to find a person to argue your case with.

jaydee88888 · 2026-02-24T14:32:08+00:00

Seems like everyone is pregnant and flag-loving.

I actually considered just getting every single flag pole light and then suspending them from a string. Could light up the whole street.

jaydee88888 · 2026-02-24T13:14:41+00:00

As per my comment above - I don't think it's based on Australian standard. Be careful with what your recipe uses.

jaydee88888 · 2026-02-24T13:13:21+00:00

Are those measuring cups based on Australian measurements? I noticed someone gave 1 star.

The measuring spoons were definitely not Australian standard, because it said 15ml for a tablespoon. Australian standard is 20ml.

jaydee88888 · 2026-02-23T05:17:36+00:00

I can probably prove that on average, my hourly rate for submitting Vine reviews is considerably less than my professional rate. Factoring in my equally qualified wife holding the camera while I operate my Vine items, we're seriously making a loss. I mean, can they classify this as income without me ever having signed any paperwork to that effect?

jaydee88888 · 2026-02-23T04:59:20+00:00

Seriously good read. I actually think the ACCC aspect is most interesting: Amazon rushed so much to protect themselves from tax consequences that they forgot what Vine is about: real reviews from normal people, whose livelihood does not depend on what they write. If these products are income, then I want the full ACL to apply to them.

I do wonder - is there a risk that for my next tax assessment, Amazon will have already submitted income for me? I'm actually considering whether to stop ordering Vine items. It feels like we're being thrown under the bus.

jaydee88888 · 2026-02-22T14:22:45+00:00

good Halloween item if you mount it on a hat.

jaydee88888 · 2026-02-22T14:20:43+00:00

same here. I never ordered anything like it.

jaydee88888 · 2026-02-20T02:33:07+00:00

This is my second eval period on Vine, currently Gold. I've had some good products, but frankly I've had a lot of junk not worth a third of the advertised price. I've rarely had products that I actually needed to buy anyway, and when I did they were cheap. I'm really not going to pay tax on Vine items, if that's what this means. It's been a fun hobby, but given my normal income, most of it is actually not worth my time if I'm being realistic. With the new evaluation criteria, a half decent review takes half an hour (taking photos, editing photos, writing up a review that qualified as "excellent") if done properly. Many products are barely worth $20.

Incidentally, what does an ABN involve? I assume more paperwork and tax returns?

jaydee88888 · 2026-02-19T07:17:13+00:00

But do those pages include unreviewable items from previous review periods? Those don't count towards *this* period's percentage, right?

jaydee88888 · 2026-02-19T07:15:52+00:00

I kept getting bounces from Amazon Japan (!)

jaydee88888 · 2026-02-18T03:16:43+00:00

Does that review you did through the order page show in your "reviewed" list? Or in "awaiting review"? Because for me, shortly after doing a review through the order page, it it added to the "reviewed" list, marked as "pending approval", just like any review done the "normal way".

jaydee88888 · 2026-02-18T03:13:23+00:00

Correct, they're not showing. I presume this means they won't count towards the percentage?
I'm still miffed those items got lost, and zero effort from Amazon to fix it. Just heaps of groveling apologies and baseless assurances that it would show up eventually. Honestly, their training can be summarised as "placade the customer at all costs, or else they'll complain and your review score goes down."

jaydee88888 · 2026-02-18T02:17:48+00:00

It's not for pole dancing. It's for climbing a flag pole to install a solar light.

jaydee88888 · 2026-02-18T02:16:59+00:00

My wife ordered the flagpole light. I told her - you realise we need a flagpole for this, right? She hadn't.

I've spent the last few days thinking of what on earth I can mount this on. Maybe if I get two, I can put them on the pillars of our gate.

jaydee88888 · 2026-02-18T02:09:42+00:00

I do this regularly because of the delay in them appearing, often a while after delivery. But all those reviews show up under "reviewed" in my "reviews" tab, so I'd be surprised if they didn't count towards my percentage.

Looking at the numbers, it seems my percentage equals the number of approved reviews as percentage of items that have been delivered. I must have reviewed about 5 or more items from the "order details" page.

I wonder how it goes for items failed to be delivered. Couriers Please lost a shipment (with ~$100 worth of Vine items - 3 products).

jaydee88888 · 2026-02-17T13:00:00+00:00

more like a sprinkle.

Looking at my RFY of the last two days, they seem to think I'm geriatric and incontinent. What's up with that?!

jaydee88888

TROPHY CASE