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craigslist, ebay, and other selling sites...

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Is it just me, or do sites like eBay and Craigslist seem like they are losing touch with reality?

I happened to be browsing ebay when I came across a nice iPad. It was a 16 gig WiFi model, gently used, with a screen cover. The bidding was at $450, but the reserve was jot yet met. ***? They are new at any Apple store or best buy for $499.

Craigslist is often even worse... macbook 13.3 inch white... (so $999 if you don't have a student ID.) And the seller wanted $900.

Regardless of how awesome the condition is, the items are still used, and cannot command 90% of the original retail value.

Is there something here that I am missing?
 

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I don't think it's Ebay or Craigslist themselves, but the people posting the for sale listings there. I have seen old Power Mac G4 Digital Audio's with a 667Mhz G4 with a Buy It Now price at $300. The machine is worth $50 tops.

With some products at least, some people who are posting the listing have lost it for sure anyway!
 
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I use Kijiji a lot, and see stuff like this all of the time. Especially with music gear.

For example, a Squire "Affinity" Series guitar (Strat/Tele), retails for about $175 CDN new..

People there will post them for $200+

Like, do these people not do their homework, or is it just blind ignorance to the fact they think they will get all, if not almost the entire MSRP, because it's "like new?"

I typically just shrug it off, but it does urk me and makes me wonder how some people have the audacity to think they could ever get the full price they paid for anything they're selling, regardless of condition.
 
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You are missing folk's valuing the worth of their goods. Auction sites can only accept the ads, not make people see common sense alas.
 
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I don't blame the sites, of course, because it wouldn't be right to censor sellers' content. I think it is a bit funny.

I don't really like buying used electronics- warranties, shiny new machines, and fresh operating systems do it for me something fierce... but I'll consider it if the price is about 50% of retail. When I resell electronics or components, I price them as low as I reasonably can. A hdd that retails at $100 should fetch about $50 if its used in perfect operating condition, period.

Sentimental value may pluck your heartstrings, but I couldn't care less that you got this computer your freshman year and used it to take pictures of the girl you were in love with. Boo. Hoo.
 
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I read a good article on this a while back on a gun forum. The gist was that the economy being in the toilet is partly to blame. People are selling things to buy other things. Where before people were happy to get something, anything, for a used item, now folks really NEED to get x amount out of it to afford a new item or pay bills. Three years ago, it wasn't noteworthy enough to even mention throwing a $2800 full custom house 1911 on a credit card via Paypal. These days, everyones ad seems to say "Cash, no trades please. Funds needed for another project. Paypal add 3.5%." Money is tight, but people are still use to buying new things. People also want to keep more cash in case they get canned. Also, these days it's tougher to buy a $200,000 house with a crappy credit score, $1500 and $10,000 on your Discover Card. Bottom line, used stuff is worth more because it costs less than new. Increasingly, that difference in cost is growing smaller.
 
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Barnum-PT%20Barnum.jpg


This man is Phineas Taylor Barnum and he had a saying that applies to people who pay those kind of prices!
 
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While I agree that there is rampant over-pricing on these sites, you also have to credit Apple with the ability to hold some resale value (vs. their PC counterparts). It takes at least 3-4 years for a mac to depreciate to the 50% level that was mentioned here. It is a very rare thing to find a "shiny new" mac at half the price. I have been that lucky, so I know it CAN be done, but it takes someone on the other end of the deal that is horribly under informed as to the value of an Apple computing product. Now please don't think that I am trying to defend guys that are trying to sell G4 lamp shades for $400, cause I am not. These people are either trying to price gouge someone, or they are as misinformed about computer value as the ones selling too cheap. But the fact is that market demand is what drives ACTUAL selling prices (not crazy "but it nows"). If people consistently pay 90% retail after a computer is a year old, then at some point you have to consider that the value of the machine.
 
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Is there anyone here that would buy a macbook for $900 on Craigslist rather than for $999 at an Apple store? I feel like I would rather save a little bit longer and get exactly what I wanted.

I like buying things used, in general, because it is cheaper and better for the environment, but... I don't know. I'm probably just ranting because I can't manage to sell a macbook, but watch iPad ads on cl go up and down everyday for 95% retail...
 
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Is there anyone here that would buy a macbook for $900 on Craigslist rather than for $999 at an Apple store? I feel like I would rather save a little bit longer and get exactly what I wanted.

I like buying things used, in general, because it is cheaper and better for the environment, but... I don't know. I'm probably just ranting because I can't manage to sell a macbook, but watch iPad ads on cl go up and down everyday for 95% retail...

The iPad seems to be holding ALL of its value. I sold a 32gb 3g on eBay this week for $710. Only accessory it had was a $5 silicon skin from Hong Kong. $19 under retail. Amazing.
 

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Hey folks...if you think some sellers on Craig's List or e-Bay are trying to sell their stuff for too much $$$...there is one simple solution...IGNORE THEM!!!;)

Just ignore them & move on. Either someone really really dumb will buy from them...or eventually they will have to lower their prices to get their stuff sold.

About a month ago I bought two "2008" Macbooks in 3 days on Craig's List...one for $350 & one for $400. You just gotta wait for the deals to surface!:)

- Nick

p.s. FYI...the Macbook was for my wife. Bought the 1st one for $350...then saw the 2nd one (a better model) 3 days later for $400. Then sold the 1st one.:)
 
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See, the iPad is still a very new device, which is high in demand, AND an Apple product. I can see these fetching near-MSRP prices easily..

Remember when the PS3 first came out? Same thing happened.. It'll drop with due time just like everything else does.

I'm the type of buyer who waits a year (or more) for the manufacturer to work out the kinks, and of course, for the price to drop. Only because whenever I've purchased a "new" device, it typically drops in price or goes on sale just weeks later.

I think it really depends on what's being bought/sold, and how popular said item is.
 
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It's funny, Sometimes I see people that don't have a clue what their computer is worth post it on Craigslist (Example: PowerMac G3 with 64 MB of Ram) For $100!!! Then another person that doesn't have a clue how old the computer is/has no idea what Ram even means, just probably sees the Apple logo and thinks it's "cute" will Buy it for $100! *sigh* The power of ignorance I suppose.
 
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You just gotta wait for the deals to surface!:)

Very true. I check CL 3 or 4 times a day, and I check a 200 mile radius. You gotta move quick on the good ones. In the past 5 months, I have picked up my current 15" MBP i5 ($800) and my GF's 13" Unibody 2.4ghz ($450), and my 32gb wifi iPad ($390). I have also found several very nice deals for friends and family. Some people just assume that because it is an electronic device, that it depreciates very quickly. Most of the time this is a correct assumption. Finding these deals is a very rewarding hobby.

Pigoo....would I be correct in assuming that you didn't resale that first MB for $350???
 

pigoo3

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Pigoo....would I be correct in assuming that you didn't resale that first MB for $350???

Yes I was able to sell it for more than $350. I think that it's true market value was closer to $600...so selling it for more than $350 was not too difficult.

- Nick
 

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Yes I was able to sell it for more than $350. I think that it's true market value was closer to $600...so selling it for more than $350 was not too difficult.

- Nick

Good thing you did not tell me about that $350 MB. I would have driven you crazy to sell it to me for $350 as I am flat broke but still using my ibook! Oh well!! :D
 
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Who's dumber, the person ripping you off, or the person buying from him? If I know something will sell, why wouldn't I ask for a premium???? If you have a problem with it, look elsewhere! Simple as that!
 

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One of the best cl ads today - a 15" apple studio display that is between 8 and 11 years old - only wants $300 for it.
 

pigoo3

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Good thing you did not tell me about that $350 MB. I would have driven you crazy to sell it to me for $350 as I am flat broke but still using my ibook! Oh well!! :D

I'm sure we could have worked something out. $350 for around a two year old Macbook is pretty darn good (IMHO)...the real "kicker" to the deal was it still had about 11 months of Applecare left on it.:)

When I got it the battery was dead...and the the top-case & display bezel had some small cracks (maybe that helped getting it for $350)...so I immediately took it to the Apple Store...got the top-case & display bezel replaced...and I got a brand new battery.

Then 3 days later I came across a $400 Macbook (same vintage)...but it had a faster processor, double the ram, came with a external display adapter, Speck hard case, gray restore disks, and the original box! So I had to sell the first one after doing all the Apple Store repairs.

A 2 year-old Macbook would have been a nice upgrade from an iBook (although I believe you have a pretty nice iBook)!:)

- Nick
 

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One of the best cl ads today - a 15" apple studio display that is between 8 and 11 years old - only wants $300 for it.

Had to laugh when I read your post!;)...I see those sort of ads all the time on CL. IMHO, most of the time they're from "professional sellers" who know exactly what they're worth ($10-$20 if you're lucky)...but I guess they're in no hurry to sell them...so they keep reposting them.

I "stupidly" purchased 7 real nice 21" CRT monitors about a year ago for $5.00 bucks a piece. These are the kind of real nice Sony, NEC, Viewsonic, Mitsubishi 21" CRT monitors that 10 years ago would have cost $1500-$1800 bucks. They are perfectly awesome monitors...with great display quality. A 10 year-old 21" monitor is certainly MUCH more useable than a 10 year-old computer!:)...just BIG & HEAVY!:(

Long story short...occasionally I'll post them for sale on CL for $10 dollars each...and I normally get absolutely no e-mails for them...none...zero!:( So a person selling a 15" apple studio display for $300 (although it has the Apple & different design appeal)...can't be doing much better.

- Nick
 

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