What's with the online auctions?

[garyr]

I am a bit flabbergasted (sp?)..

Been looking for a lens (used for a reasonable price), so of course I start with eBay.....watch a few, bid as high as I am prepared to go, and then folks come along and bid more (for a used lens without warranty or postage), than it costs to get a brand spanking new one, delivered and insured and warrantied ?

Is it just me, am I missing something, or are some people nuts?? (yes, the exact same lens even down to the IS notation ) Perhaps I am just not seeing the additional value added to a used lens that will go through Auspost without proper packaging

Cheers
Gary

[Geoff]

Gary - it is not just you. Sadly, some people are nuts when it comes to buying on ebay. I *think* that it comes down to the human nature and desire to 'win' - and some people get carried away during the bidding process. It has had me wondering in the past too.

[losfp]

Well, the item goes to the person willing to pay the most.

If that amount happens to be higher than the lowest price available elsewhere, then the seller celebrates, and the buyer deserves everything they get for not doing their research

Whenever I've bid on eBay, I've decided up front exactly how high I am willing to bid. Then in the closing hour or so, I will bid exactly that amount (eBay's software will only bid for you the next available price until you hit your limit) and never re-bid. If someone is willing to pay more than me, then good luck to 'em.

[Atorie]

I can vouch for this.. just last week I had a buyer purchase my three month old apple bluetooth keyboard, which was in very good condition but it was not new and only had 7mths warranty left, and no original box. Apple online store sells this item for $99.00 with free shipping (which I divulged in the item description).. My keyboard had a starting bid of $40 plus $10 shipping... the 'winning' buyer bidded $95 for the keyboard which including the shipping was $105... i didnt make any sense to me.. but hey i got lucky.. ebay is happy as they get a higher selling fee and the buyer just doesn't seem to care that they paid more 2nd hand than new..... it's a strange, strange world.

[avkomp]

some people just dont know the value of what they are bidding on, or are carried away with the experience and go overboard with pricing.

I saw a second hand wimberley head go last week for the same price as a brand new one which is also a later model. madness.

I ran across a guy once who was coming to collect some goods from me but he arrived 2 hrs late. the reason was that he had seen one item across sydney for $10 cheaper so he went and got it.
so it cost him 2hrs plus in time, 40km worth of fuel also, but he saved 10 bucks. probably cost him 100 in time and effort but he couldnt see that.

Steve

[Trieu]

Everything that everyone has said so far is true, but also in some cases, they may be fake bids to enduce real buyers to push more and get a higher price for the item.

Be very careful when bidding for an item and all the other bidders are new, or have no feedback. Chances are that they have just registered (themselves a new name) in order to bid for their own item to obtain a higher price.

Doesn't happen all the time, but it does happen.. this is just my own humble experience.

[Marty]

I have sold extensively on ebay for myself and other sellers.
I was also suprised at the high amount people would pay for a used item.
One buyer told me their reason.......
They live in very remote location where it would take a few hours drive to get to the nearest 'local' supplier, therefore they were prepared to pay the extra.
I just sit back and watch the bids.......
Marty

[optogamut]

I've got my old Coolpix on ebay right now. Here's hoping someone goes a little crazy! It's going towards my D70 after all.

[Geoff]

Everything that everyone has said so far is true, but also in some cases, they may be fake bids to enduce real buyers to push more and get a higher price for the item.

Be very careful when bidding for an item and all the other bidders are new, or have no feedback. Chances are that they have just registered (themselves a new name) in order to bid for their own item to obtain a higher price.

Doesn't happen all the time, but it does happen.. this is just my own humble experience.

Good avice there Trieu

[JZA70-mel]

the only thing is if the fake buyer wins, eBay will still want the commission on the sold price!

[shakey]

I think it depends upon how much time and energy (and pre-existing knowledge) that someone wants to put into the purchase.

I occasionally do this.

For example I'm looking at a Sigma 10 - 20. Here are the prices.

Birddog (Grey market)....... $690 (excl GST) (per list, not sure if current price)
Teds...$749 (incl GST)
Discount Digital Photographics (Grey Market) ....$699 (incl GST) plus $18 shipping
CR Kennedy emailed price match...$717 (incl GST)...free shipping
Camerastore.com.au.....$679 (incl GST) plus $16 shipping
Adorama(Grey)......$684 (incl shipping)
DigitalRev (Grey)......$655 plus $60 shipping
Chinaarts (Grey).....$610 plus $65 shipping
Keaphoto-oz (Grey)......$655 plus $40 shipping

The last three are HK based ebay shippers...aftersales service unknown

If I lived in Sydney I would be emailing birddog with an order but since I don't, and I can claim the GST back, and get a local warranty I thinking of going with Camerastore.com.au.

If you can't claim GST back birddogs prices would seem hard to beat and you have the peace of mind in dealing with a trustworthy person.... except when it comes to April 1st that is ..

[ghost]

I am reasonably experienced with eBay in both buying and selling. Selling is easy, choose your price put it on and see what happens (but beware of idiots and NPB's).

Most of the posts here in this thread look accurate to me.

Buying is a bit of an art but easy if you keep your cool and follow a few simple steps:

1. Research. Do your research, know what you would pay for the item from your local retailer and the warranty attached. Ask the seller for the warranty information and be exact. Don't settle for a Hong Kong warranty because it won't work. Be wary of sellers who are'nt upfront with the info.

2. Once you know what is a fair price and your limit STICK TO IT! There is always another auction for the same item. (But see point 5 below).

3. DON'T BID until the end. I only ever bid on any item with less than 2 minutes remaining. If the item is hot (lots of activity) and still within my "stick to it price" I will only bid with 15 seconds to go.

4. Always put your "stick to it price" in as your bid, don't put a cheaper price in. The automatics will take care of that for you. At least you'll know you gave it your best shot and won't be upset that someone has picked it up for less than you were willing to pay.

5. Last but not least, never put in a rounded off figure. If your "stick to it price" is $250.00 put in $251.25 or $252.75.

Anyway for what it's worth there my tips. Good luck.

[MATT]

For those that have sold on ebay a question?

the only thing is if the fake buyer wins, eBay will still want the commission on the sold price!

What if the buy falls through and you dont sell you stuff? Does ebay still want their money??

What is ebays commision on say a $500 lens?


Cheers
MATT

[Catcha]

For those that have sold on ebay a question?

the only thing is if the fake buyer wins, eBay will still want the commission on the sold price!

What if the buy falls through and you dont sell you stuff? Does ebay still want their money??

What is ebays commision on say a $500 lens?


Cheers
MATT

Deal falls through you just relist, probably cost you like $3 to list something at the start depending how far you want to go. If it doesn't sell you can relist it which may be free, 3rd time it will cost you. But no comission will be charged it you can't sell it, on the cost of the ad

[petal666]

What is ebays commision on say a $500 lens?

$15.63 + listing fee.