Buying a notebook on eB*y & General Questions

[sygyzy]

I am looking to buy a notebook computer. Preferbly a Dell or Sony. I was looking on eb*y and there are plenty of Vaios for over $1000 off retail. What do you guys think about this? Surely they can't all be scams. Please post your experiences, stories, warnings, etc. Pros/Cons. Why shouldn't I buy from there? etc. I would appreciate any and all notebook buying tips. Even recommendations on models. I am looking for P3 700 Min, 14.1 LCD TFT (I think that's the good one right), DVD, 64-128, 10-20GB. I am not sure if I left anything else out.

Thanks a bunch!

 

[corkyg]

My experience with E-Bay is not great . . . I was so put off by it that I only went back once. The bid process sucks . . . I researched the item and knew exactly what the wholsale cost was . . . and made a rational bid./ At the last minute, some shill bid the full MSRP . . . and that was that. I ordered the same device, brand new from Buy Com for $50 less that what was bid on E-Bay.

My second experience was better . . . as soon as I bid . . . I got an e-mail from the seller who said, that if I really wanted it, he would withdraw it from E-Bay and sell it to me direct. That worked, and we both got a good deal. That was over a year ago and I have not darkened E-Bay's door since . . . probably never will. It's hell to bid against idiots.

 

[lagvoid]

i would only consider buying it IF it is extremely cheap or if its from a real company. i dont personal because if u are not satisfied and the seller doesnt agree with you all you can do is leave a bad comment.

 

[MinniePin]

I personally wouldn't buy a laptop from Eb*y. As Corky stated, it's hell to bid against idiots. Pluse there is always the chance that you can get ripped off. One of my coworker just paid $1800 on a bid that he never received... Anyway, it's your $$$ and you can spend it wherever you wish. this is just my 2 cents.

 

[pm]

For that kind of money, I would personally insist on an escrow service. My personal experiences on e*bay are mixed - although I have never been ripped off. Personally, I really like buying and selling on the FS/FT forum.

 

[nippyjun]

Eb@y is only good for selling, not for purchasing. You will pay too much. You may see $1000 off right now, but look at completed auctions to see what the final prices are. Also, I only recommend buying from eb@y if the item is hard to find.

 

[Toad]

Check their rating and use your best judgement.

I think Eb*y has some kind of insurance policy with Lloyds of London or something for more expensive purchases. I'm sure you can still get screwed though. And leaving a bad comment isn't much consolation if you're out $1500.

 

[Toad]

BTW, why can't I say Eb*y???

 

[chiwawa626]

these bitchy forums why can i motherfuckin use the word e*ay, this is a bitch

 

[chiwawa626]

why isnt bitch outlawed...i think calling someone a bitch is worse then using online auction slurs at them

---

I have a suggestion. Maybe you should drop the profanity, and ask forum related issues in the proper forum.

AnandTech Moderator

 

[loogie]

dick.

 

[Toad]

LOL

 

[borealiss]

i've had bad experiences on e-bay when i was looking for a laptop. in all honesty i would not get a laptop from e-bay. too many things can go wrong, and if the laptop is out of warranty, then you're up a creek. you have no history of the treatment of the laptop either. idiots outbid you at the last minute and stuff. if you are bent on buying one from there, then make sure they at least include pictures of the laptop working, running word, dvd's, and whatnot. make sure that they include pictures of the lcd on and off, and of the laptop chassis from all angles, including pics of the keyboard. if they do not include pics of the actual laptop and instead it's a picture from the manufacturer's website, then forget it, or at least email them to provide them for you.

 

[Workin']

It takes a certain mix of desperation, bravery, and cunning to make e-bay work for you instead of against you. There are a lot of idiots out there, both sellers and buyers.

I have bought 2 laptops through e-bay. One from a company and one from an individual. Both are excellent, like-new older machines that I got for next to nothing. I've also bought many computer parts via e-bay for a small fraction of their retail price. Like a brand-new 3Com PCMCIA NIC for $7, brand-new 3Com 56k PCMCIA modem for $15, etc.

But you have to be careful, and if the item description is not perfectly clear, e-mail the seller to answer your questions BEFORE you bid. And be sure to get clear photos of the ACTUAL item, not a similar item or a mfg.'s photo. If the seller has over 100 positive ratings (with no or just a few negatives) I personally would not worry, but it's a judgement call on your part no matter what. For an item that costs more than you can afford to lose, I would insist on escrow. E-bay does sort of protect you against fraud (with a $25 deductible, I beleive), and if you pay using PayPal or BidPay they also offer similar protection.

From what I've seen, current-generation gear (i.e., like what you are looking for) ends up costing about what you would pay if you just went out and bought the thing at the store. Plus the whole bidding thing can be a pain in the rear end. If you are not there during the last few minutes of the auction, some jerk-off is likely to snipe you and win the auction by maybe a penny. It can happen like this: you are the current high bidder, and the current bid amount is $100.00. Your maximum proxy bid amount is $105.00. There's 30 seconds left in the auction, and a sniper comes through and bids $105.00. You are still high bidder because your proxy bid was in first. But then the sniper puts in a last-second bid of $105.01, and he wins the auction and pays $105.01, and you lose by 1 cent, and want to go on a killing spree. I would argue that sniping is the only way to get decent deals on e-bay. I guess all is fair in love and war (and bidding).