|
|
Post by nightowl on Jul 15, 2008 8:44:50 GMT
In my search for a new telly I ventured onto Ebay for the first time. WOW!  I can see how people become addicted to it!  I've always avoided it till now. Thought it would be scary. It is!! I've frightened the life out of myself bidding on a couple of TVs . I didn't get them cos it was all happening too fast for me I couldn't understand how they were topping my bids so fast!! Now I realise they pre-bid a higher figure and Ebay does it for them Feel a right idiot  for not reading the instructions properly Must try that next time, and there WILL be a next time - can't wait!! ;D |
|
|
|
Post by Jasmine on Jul 15, 2008 8:56:40 GMT
It is addictive - some folk set their alarm clocks for strange times of night so they can give the highest bid just before an items time runs out! ;D
|
|
|
|
Post by Plocket on Jul 15, 2008 10:10:06 GMT
I LOVE E-bay but am very cautious. I don't bid more than I can afford and am extra careful about reading reviews because I don't want to buy from someone iffy. I don't buy expensive things either. With regard to buying a new television Nightowl, don't forget to check out return policies and guarantees just in case something goes wrong with the TV.  |
|
|
|
Post by Spruance on Jul 15, 2008 13:19:29 GMT
I have been a member of eBay for four and a half years but like Plocket I am extremely cautious and would think nothing of trawling back through all of the available feedback to try to get a mental image of the seller. The most expensive item I have bought is a Sony Freeview box, and that was because that particular model had been discontinued. I would have preferred to buy from a store but that wasn't an option. Once you are happy to go ahead with the purchase, you need to be aware of tactics NO. Some people use computer programmes which outbid rivals at the last minute but I have rarely been unlucky in auctions I have participated in, and without paying through the nose either. If I find something that I want to bid on, I will place it on my Watchlist (in My eBay) and just keep an eye on it. About ten minutes before the auction ends, I revisit the item and keep refreshing the page to display other bids, but won't yet bid myself. Normally I would aim to make my first and usually only bid around 30 seconds before the auction ends. Less if I dare.  I always bid the most that I am prepared to pay for the item, and include an odd figure for the pence, i.e.outside the pattern of bidding. So if the auction is running £9.50>£10.50>£11.50 etc I would bid say £20.71. You only need to outbid rivals by one penny so just because (in this example) I have bid £20.71 does not mean that this is what I will have to pay. It could be as little as £12.51, i.e. one penny more than the next bid in the natural sequence. EBay makes this calculation for you. Then all you need do is pay. I use my PayPal account as that is the most convenient option. Make sure that you are able to pay for the item in the manner specified, i.e. don't bid on a PayPal only auction if you can only pay by cheque. I always pay immediately as then that can't be used as a later excuse for late delivery. Oh, and bear in mind that eBay auction or not, the goods must still be fit for the purpose intended. I hope this helps NO. |
|
|
|
Post by MamIDdau on Jul 15, 2008 14:10:31 GMT
I would also like to add that, just because it's on Ebay, it doesn't mean it's cheaper than the shops. I was looking on there a while back for Charmed DVDs and they're still selling them at the RRP (over £40) and people are actually bidding on them when you can get them for £15 from Amazon... |
|
|
|
Post by nightowl on Jul 16, 2008 8:47:54 GMT
Thanks for all the advice Spru, (and P) I have already set up my Paypal a/c, but don't know if I can use it yet cos not had the "money-into-and-out-of-my-bank" rigmarole yet I realise now that I have lost on all my bids so far cos someone else had put in a higher bid earlier and it was topping mine much faster than I could keep up with!! On one item nobody bid anything till I started with 2 minutes to go, then it went crazy and I couldn't keep up!!! ;D Don't know if it's my computer that's slow, or me!  Some of the carriage costs are outrageous!! I keep thinking "Why can this guy send it for £9.95 from Scotland say, and that guy wants £25 to ship it from the next county, and won't allow collection?" I'm learning lots, very quickly!! ;D |
|
|
|
Post by Plocket on Jul 16, 2008 9:02:06 GMT
If you set it up that Paypal automatically charges your bank or credit card then you don't have to credit Paypal at all.
As Spruance said, don't worry about keeping up with bidding. If you put in the maximum you are prepared to pay the E-Bay will do the bidding for you. Obviously it will stop bidding for you when it reaches the maximum you are willing to pay.
It is a bit of a learning curve Nightowl but you'll get used to it.
|
|
|
|
Post by nightowl on Jul 16, 2008 9:30:14 GMT
If you set it up that Paypal automatically charges your bank or credit card then you don't have to credit Paypal at all. It's something they insist on to verify that the bank account is yours (they say). They said to allow 2 days for them to make 2 tiny (pennies) deposits in my bank a/c, and then I have to follow the instructions to return the 2 same amounts to Paypal I hope this is not some kind of scam I've fallen for to get access to my bank account!!!! I'm worried now!!! |
|
|
|
Post by Plocket on Jul 16, 2008 9:51:02 GMT
Oh I remember now! Yes they do that and then you are set up. It's not a scam!
(Well I did join quite a while ago: 19 July 2002 apparently!)
|
|
|
|
Post by Spruance on Jul 16, 2008 11:44:15 GMT
The reason for the disparity in carriage costs comes down to the way that the seller is charged. Carriage costs don't count towards the cost of the item and so some people use the carriage as a fee free way of making extra cash. I forgot to mention yesterday but Comet (the national electrical retailer) also have an auction site, which may be suited to your particular needs on this occasion... www.clearance-comet.co.uk/ |
|
|
|
Post by cjhomebird on Jul 16, 2008 19:46:21 GMT
I would also like to add that, just because it's on Ebay, it doesn't mean it's cheaper than the shops. I was looking on there a while back for Charmed DVDs and they're still selling them at the RRP (over £40) and people are actually bidding on them when you can get them for £15 from Amazon... I buy almost all of my DVD's and CD's from play.com, its brilliant and cheap, and free delivery. Ebay scares me too but i am currently trying to sell some stuff on there. only two days left and no bids yet. CJ |
|
|
|
Post by MamIDdau on Jul 16, 2008 19:47:50 GMT
Amazon has some bargains as well. They currently have a free trial of their 1 day delivery (amazon prime) so you can order stuff worth a fiver and get free next day delivery. I've been getting my money's worth of the free trial ;D
|
|
|
|
Post by cjhomebird on Jul 16, 2008 19:50:36 GMT
Play.com an Amazon are great for books
CJ
|
|
|
|
Post by nightowl on Jul 16, 2008 19:52:26 GMT
Ooh, thanks for that Comet Clearance thing Spru I don't buy books, CJ, even though I read loads. I use the library! And I get all my holiday reading from the charity shops so I can leave them behind There's a holiday tip!  Most resorts now have book swaps in the hotels and other places like travel/exchange offices.  Cut down your luggage weight by taking just a couple of paperbacks and trading them in!! |
|
|
|
Post by nightowl on Jul 22, 2008 12:28:00 GMT
I think my new obsession with Ebay may just have saved my life!! Whilst looking for a telly, and being sidetracked all over the place, I took it into my head to bid on a second-hand but fairly newish cooker. I don't really know why cos my cooker wasn't that bad, though definitely on the slippery slide to knackeredness Anyway, I won it and OH collected it for me last night . He said it wouldn't take him long to connect it up and all would be hunky-dory NOT SO!! Big Scary Problem that we would never have discovered until maybe it was too late!! On pulling out my old cooker, which came with the house when I bought it nearly 4 years ago, and which I have never pulled out since then (yes I am a slob!) , OH found that the live connection was hanging on by 2 frazzled and burnt strands of copper, the connection panel was hanging off the wall, and the whole shebang was a big melted lump of burnt wire and plastic!!! He says it could have electrocuted me or set the house on fire at any moment!!!!  The downside of this "lucky" (??) discovery is that the cable from the main switch to the connector panel was too short to reconnect after the damaged bit was cut off, and needed replacing  . It turned out it was plastered into the wall behind the tiles and a new bit could not be pulled through . OH did not manage to sort it out without breaking the tiles . And cannot get a new connection box thingy until today , so new cooker is still in the lounge, and my kitchen looks like a demolition site But when you think what might have happened if I had not had a sudden urge to bid for the cooker I didn't really need....... Scary!!!!!! |
|
|
|
Post by Plocket on Jul 22, 2008 14:16:38 GMT
OMG that was a lucky escape Nightowl - thank heavens you found out. I'm going to get all paranoid about my oven now because the electrics and things in this house are a nightmare! |
|
I can see how people become addicted to it! 
Most resorts now have book swaps in the hotels and other places like travel/exchange offices. 
Cut down your luggage weight by taking just a couple of paperbacks and trading them in!! 
. It turned out it was plastered into the wall behind the tiles and a new bit could not be pulled through