My experience with eBay is that genuine bargains are fairly rare. By that, I mean really low prices for good stuff–like some folks find at moving or garage sales once in awhile. It seems like lots of folks place reserves high enough to ensure that a great bargain can’t be had. I might also add that most of the stuff I have bought at eBay has been somewhat disappointing in some way.
In other words, while I’m sure that many major bargains DO exist, they aren’t that prevalent.
It depends what you’re looking for. You can get some great deals on software, for example. I’m currently the high bidder at $140 for a program that normally goes for $400. It’s new and unused, so it’s a very good deal indeed.
I’ve also bought some of my jewelry-making materials on eBay, and got similarly good deals.
I’ve bought beads and jewelry making stuff on a regular basis as well and have made several good deals.
I recently purchased a SPECTACULAR antique tapestry for a very good price.
Mostly, I purchase clothing. I’m currently rebuilding my wardrobe and for my size (I’m tall) and what I’m looking for - I find outstanding deals on a regular basis.
The answer to this question is found by asking another:
Why do people auction items in the first place?
That one’s simple: in order to get the highest possible price. That’s because as long as there are multiple bidders, there’s always ones who’s willing to pay just a bit more than the others. There’s even a phenomenon called “The Winner’s Curse,” describing how the winner of an auction tends to overpay (Think Alex Rodriguez).
So, by it’s very nature, eBay favors sellers over buyers. You can get bargains by bidding on items no one else wants, but if there’s any action at all, you probably won’t do all that much better than buying the item on sale.
My experience is varied. I bid on a poster for “Love’s Labour’s Lost” and was able to pick it up fairly cheaply – since no one else was bidding. I bid on a DVD of “Galaxy Quest,” and saved about $3 from what it would have cost in the store. Nice, but not exactly a fantastic bargain, and the only way I got the item was that I put in the bid one minute before bidding closed.
I also put a bid on a fake Swarovki crystal figurine. It went for well over $20, and I lost, but I got a genuine Swarovski of about the same size online for $20.
Ultimately, you have to be careful and shop around.
I’ve gotten some great deals on stuff that it would have been difficult for me to find elsewhere -
Old books - I bought 4 copies of a book I’d looked for since about 1980. Got each for less than $5 (including shipping), got all w/in about 3 months of looking (rather than the decade or so that I’d searched for them before). In addition, was able to purchase copies of old books that my So wanted, for cheap.
Clothes. Got some really cool old bowling shirts for my son, also a dynomite ToysRUs associates shirt with Geoffrey on the back for like $5.
Other odd antique kind of things, some out of print sheet music, too.
My tips: Have your top price in mind (include shipping costs in that). don’t get caught up in the ‘gotta have it’
keep in mind most things come around lots of times - the Toys R Us shirt, I got out bid on at first (that one went for $30+) I paid $5 - the books for another example (it was Patrick Dennis’ Little Me) Like I said, I got 4 copies 2 hard cover, 2 paper back (one hard cover had the dust jacket) and never paid more than $5 for any of them, I’ve seen them go for as high as $60 (w/o discernable difference - as in not a first edition, not autographed etc.)
I’ve had luck looking for books, especially out of print books. Like wring, I’ve had some books I’ve been looking for forever. The only thing I look for is books, so I can’t comment on other things.
I’m not looking for low prices when I go there, I’m looking for things I can’t find (or don’t want to spend days driving around to find) anywhere else. Every time I have looked in eBay for something rare or discontinued I have found it, and paid less than I would expect to pay to a collector (the only other place where you might find something considered to be “rare”).
I recently activated an old cel phone, and discovered I had lost the battery charger. The manufacturer wanted $29.00 for a new one, Radio Shack was asking $19.95, but I bought a branded replacement for $4.95
I’ve gotten some good deals, especially on autographed things. I got an autographed Joe Nieuwendyk puck for only $13, and a Ken Dryden puck for $14, both with certificates of authenticity. If you buy either of these pucks in a store, they’re about $50-$70. On the other hand…I just sold my old TNT video card for $47, which is quite a bit over true market value. Hey…the buyer got what he wanted, and I got rid of what I didn’t need. Works well. As far as cheap new things…hard to get great deals.
Sure…I sold stuff there that gave people a great price. But then I probably got the item for free or much less than I sold it for.
recently, I bought Photoshop 4.0 for the Mac, new at the store here for $10.00 I sold it with buyit now for $75.00 on ebay, thats when people were getting $129 for it there. So there are 2 sides to each story.
I also got ripped for $35.00 recently, sigh, thru paypal.
I got a copy of Mafia vs. Ninja for $13.50 (Great Condition)
I also got a set of plates from Applebee’s for $5.00 (Only bidder)
Whenever I try to get something recent or popular, the price always goes too high. You just have to keep trying on the same item. Someone is always selling.
I’ve gotten good deals on eBay with stuff where my only alternative is to buy new; also with some old stuff that not too many people are familiar with. I generally don’t buy computer hardware there because the prices usually approach what you can find at www.pricewatch.com. As others have pointed out, software is a different story (although it’s probably safe to say that the majority of software being sold on ebay is either illegal or somewhat grey).
I suppose it depends what you’re after. I picked up some great golden age comics for around 2/3 book value. I’ve also picked up some out of print CDs that I couldn’t find anywhere else fairly cheaply (under $10 incl. shipping). However, I’ve sold some items that went way higher than I expected. So some people are obviously willing to pay more than market for some items. From what I can figure, some of these people pay more simply because it is convenient; no hassle, just send money and it comes to your door. Great if you can afford it.
There are excellent deals to be had on horse equipment. Especially on wierd sizes or colors. However, the biggest name brands generally go for close to true value. The real deals are to be found on items which are made by reputable, but lesser known brands, because fewer people find those items when they are searching. In other words, if you know a lot about what you’re buying, yes, good deals are possible.
I have been buying new DVDs from a company in Canada for much less than I can get them here in the US. Example: I recently bought (via a Dutch auction) From the Earth to the Moon for $55. The cheapest I’ve seen it here is $89.95! Amazon.com has it for $79.95. Even after factoring in S&H (ranges from $4-10 depending on # of discs), I’ve saved a bundle.
I have found a ton of collectible stuff that I couldn’t find locally.
I’ve bought 2 things on eBay: a digital camera for $20 less than the lowest price in town, and a Vostok Amfibian watch. I got impatient on the watch, and used Buy it Now and paid full price (not quite $40, after shipping), still cheaper than any other place that had 'em.
I have seen many many times of people buying like digital cameras on ebay, way over the price they are at surplusdirect new.
This is the trick. They buy from surplusdirect or surplusauction first & then put on ebay with a reserve that gives them some profit. If then they can sell it on ebay, they take their profit, if not, just return to surplusdirect. sigh
