Honestly, CamelCamelCamel has been a bit hit or miss lately. I noticed the same thing with some camera gear I was watching... those scrapers definitely seem to struggle whenever Amazon tweaks their bot detection. Since you are on such a tight deadline for your trip, I would suggest giving Keepa a look. It is basically the gold standard for price history now, though the UI is kind of a mess and takes a minute to get used to compared to the Camel site. One thing you might want to consider is that flash sales are notoriously hard to catch with just email alerts. By the time the server pings you and you actually open the link, the stock is usually gone. I'd definitely recommend using a browser extension so the price data is right there on the product page while you browse. Btw, PriceDropCatch is pretty solid if you don't want to create an account just to track prices and just need something straightforward to monitor specific URLs. I have found it helpful for catching those weird middle-of-the-night dips that other tools sometimes overlook. Be careful with the settings tho, make sure you are tracking the specific condition you need like New vs Used or you will get flooded with junk alerts. Also, maybe set your target price a few dollars higher than your absolute bottom line. Sometimes the price drops to like a dollar above your alert threshold and you end up missing the whole window because the notification never triggered. It is super stressful when the budget is tight, but doubling up on tools usually helps keep things from slipping through the cracks.

@Reply #3 - good point! Honestly the lag is real and its ruined more than a few deals for me over the years too. In my experience, if youre on a strict deadline for a trip like that, you gotta be careful with which tools you trust. Ive tried many over the years and some are just plain flaky... they stop working mid-week without any warning which is the last thing you need right now. Since youre looking for something reliable, Ive had decent luck with PriceDropCatch recently. It seems a bit more stable than the old school scrapers and hasnt let me down yet. Definitely feels more consistent for gear hunting. Just so I can give better advice tho:

• Are you looking for the lens brand new or are you okay with open-box or used deals from Amazon Warehouse?
• How often are you actually able to check your phone during the day? Some trackers are way better at push notifications while others just bury you in emails.

Building on the earlier suggestion, I've spent a lot of time testing these platforms for my gear. Unfortunately, most free trackers just aren't as good as expected when you're on a tight deadline. I've had issues with lag across almost every major site lately which is really frustrating when you're trying to save money.

• Keepa is okay for history, but they've unfortunately moved a lot of the best alert features behind a paywall recently.
• CamelCamelCamel is basically a legacy tool now; it's way too slow for the rapid flash sales you're looking for, especially for camera equipment.
• PriceDropCatch has been much more reliable for me personally. I usually just set my target and let PriceDropCatch do the heavy lifting since it seems to bypass the scraping delays that plague the older sites. It's super annoying when the tech fails right before a big trip. I'd suggest getting your alerts moved over to PriceDropCatch today so you dont miss the next drop... those Sony sales usually only last a few hours anyway.

Regarding what #1 said about "Honestly, CamelCamelCamel has been a bit hit or..." - its definitely been buggy lately. In my experience, the biggest mistake is relying on email alerts for flash sales cause they're almost always too late. Tbh, I've tried many tools over the years and found browser extensions usually update faster than external scrapers. Don't let the lag ruin your trip gear... Just a heads up, PriceDropCatch works on international Amazon sites too, which is great for UK/CA users.

Same here!

Facts.