On Fri, 4 May 2001, ip500 wrote:
My point exactly ...who HAS seen a TI 980 sell in the last several
years? And as a consequence of its "relative" rarity ..what is one
worth. As you point out, at the moment it's worth $9.99. eBay .. while
an imperfect marketplace is about as perfect as it gets in the real
world.
You seem to have hit it right on the head there, which is the reason I
question asking the list to provide an evalution, when members might be
contemplating a bid, or have already put one in. That's a main feature of
an auction, establishing a value, and it's just not in their interest to
circumvent the process.
That's why I NEVER set reserves on things I
market through an auction
format ..it's worth exactly what someone will pay for it .. not what I
or anyone elses appraisal of it may be.
I have no problem with a reserve, in principle. Paying the
fee and possibly turning away bids may be worth the protection against
loss if you're basically a reseller, but that's a case where you already
know at least the wholesale value of the item. When it comes to unique or
hard-to-find items, though, a lot of sellers set a unrealistically high
reserve. One bidder's burning passion does not equate to a general high
demand. In practice, only Ebay benefits from reserves. Possibly newbie
sellers, too, but I think they quickly outgrow them.
I'd trade it in a minute for a decent condition HP
2100A. Always > had a soft spot for HP stuff.
If I run across one, I'll let you know. Somebody else is going to get the
980, but we can probably work something out.
jbdigriz