Regarding traceability, I buy silver online through my bank (in Canada). Such transactions could not be any less anonymous, however once I have that metal in hand, that's where the trail ends. There's no record of when or how or to whom I have traded it, or for what.I've used JMBullion to much success. Great customer service and easy delivery. One aspect of this that I would encourage you all to think bout is what happens if gold is banned again in this country. Believe it or not, Gold ownership was once banned within this country. When societies rapidly deflate their currency, capitol controls (which is what a ban on gold ownership is) are always necessary due to Gresham's Law.
Any investor in PM's does so because of their philosophy regarding what currency is, and how to preserve wealth. And this philosophy usually has a longer-term mindset. So, what is the stance of our own government in the long term? Will capitol controls come back to this country as we move toward a fiscal dominant minatory environment (for information on what that is, Lyn Alden is phenomenal: https://www.lynalden.com/full-steam-ahead-all-aboard-fiscal-dominance/)
And if that happens, will the government go after people who have invested in Gold? In that case, buying cash for gold now is a solid way to hedge against the predations of our own government. Yes, I currently use the internet but as our fiscal environment rapidly changes, I'm going to start looking at purchasing PM's in a manner that cannot be tracked. Maybe I have a tin-hat on... But I wouldn't put it beyond our wicked government to look at online purchase history in the future. So all that being said, the TLDR version is I think its great to purchase online right now, but shifting toward a cash-buy only strategy is increasingly become attractive to me.
JM Bullion has good prices however through my bank, once I account for exchange rate etc (plus I get free shipping) it's as good or even slightly better, if particular items are on sale.