(Insert stupid Blog name here)

sweet!

Do you have a link to the eBay auction?

Do you have a link to the eBay auction?

It's on the front page of AtariAge.

 

But here's a shortcut.

 

And the thread detailing the entire thing.

I'm not sure whether I'm more shocked that someone paid $31,600 for a Atari 2600 cartridge & box (no matter how rare), or that two people were willing to pay more than $17,500 for it.

 

The bidding history is interesting. There definitely were multiple people in a bidding war, with two people making last minute $31+K bids. I suspect neither one expected someone else to bid quite that high, but both wanted it and were willing to risk making a very high bid to get it. Unfortunately for them, but fortunately for the seller, there were two high bidders.

Yeah... it makes you wonder just how high that second bidder was willing to go.

Hey, Air Raid cart looks cool on Artie

 

It's interesting. The price was $12,600 for almost 4 days and only popped over $15,000 in the last minute. The winning bid was actually put in when the high bid was only $16,100. So the winning bid was at least $15,500 more than the highest bid. (What do you bet that it was more than double $16,100?)

 

But this is a great example of high bid sniping. Although it increases your chances you will win the auction, you may end up paying quite a bit more than you possibly intended if someone else has the same idea.

Actually, I hate eBay. Sure, it can be a great place to find stuff, but I hate the actual bidding process. I'm just not wired for it. I hate the whole sniping aspect of it, getting sucked into paying more than you intended, having to sit there over the last few seconds and wonder if you've won or not. I bid on some speakers a few times, and ended up losing all of the auctions in the last few seconds. I felt like, "I've been here all week... where did these jerks come from at the last second?" In the end though, I was glad I lost, because I started bidding more than I really should have. Generally, I've stayed clear of eBay except for a handful of obscure purchases. I much prefer "Buy It Now" when it's available. Even if it's a bit overpriced, it's worth it to avoid the hassle of bidding.

 

Oh, and I eventually found another source for the speakers, where I didn't have to bid on them.

Actually, I hate eBay.

Yep, I hear you. My basic strategy is to bid my maximum in the closing minutes (depending on the end time). (Not a true snipe as I don't wait until the last second.) I never, ever, raise my bid. If I don't get it at my price, I'll just wait until the next one comes along. Waiting until the end minimizes my time of uncertainty and means I can turn around and place a bid on the next one without risking ending up with two of something. I'll also often go with a BiN when the price+shipping(+customs) is similar to the winning cost of completed auctions.

 

It also helps to do some research. I'm amazed at people bidding more than I can buy at retail!

 

I don't use eBay much, but it's often the cheapest place to buy oddball tech items.

That's the method I use - after getting into a couple bidding wars I now put in the max I'm willing to pay, if I don't get it I'll look for another listing. Has worked well so far.