Ridicolous prices

[6]

shillard and amiduffer - My Amiga, pc and sound equipment tech just gave me an A3000 which he says is in great shape.  Haven't tested it yet, but still,...free.  You gotta know the right people for the right price.

be seeing you
6

[adz]

As much as I detest the idea of agreeing with Shillard, he has hit the nail on the head. We have reached a point where Amiga hardware is worth what people are willing to pay, not what you think its worth. I'm not saying I like it, but it's something we are all going to have to accept.

[Ami_GFX]

I wouldn't say what something sells for on Ebay indicates it's "fair market value". I've bought and sold lots of stuff for both far more and far less than it's "fair market value." I recently bought a rare book on Ebay that I have been after for more than a year. It usually sells on Ebay for $35-$40us on Ebay. I paid $17 for it with no sniping--bid a day and a half before the auction end and was delightfully surprised to see an item won email in my inbox. The seller told me he had paid $90 for it on Ebay the year before and was surprised it sold for so little. I recently sold one of my guitars that was appraised at around $1000 for $400. I wasn't that disappointed because I had followed some auctions of this guitar and the bids never went much over $400 in spite of the appraised value and most of the sellers had set their reserve prices and expectations too high and none of them sold. I got a realistic market value for my guitar and since this was about 4 times what I paid for it and I wasn't playing it all, I was satisfied with what I got.

I've seen a lot of high end Amiga gear listed at high prices and relisted several times with no sale--lots of seller fees for Ebay and nothing for the seller. I've also seen items listed for 99 cents go for astounding prices. There is an element of chance and just timing things right that makes things happen on Ebay. 2 days ago I bought a DKB megachip 2000 for $28 buy it now--shipping included. One just sold for $51 this afternoon--shipping not included. I've seen them sell for well over $100. I would say that the $51 is closer to the fair market value and I was just lucky enough to be online when one came up at a below market value. I don't think it would have lasted more than an hour at that price. Sometimes there are the right fools with the right amount of money to spend when you list things. It can favor both buyer and seller. A few months ago, there was an A1200 with a buy it now price of $37 and a minimum bid of 9.99. I quickly clicked on the buy it now button but someone had already put in the minimum bid. I just laughed, you idiot, you just made the seller at least a hundred dollars.

Point being that just because something sells for one price one day, doesn't mean it will sell for the same price the next day. There are always those who will try to manipulate the price and perceived value of an item to their advantage one way or the other and there will always be sellers with high expectations and just due to chance and human nature, they won't always be dissapointed. I was discussing this recently with and acquaintance who has worked as an Auctioneer and he said that live auctions weren't that different from Ebay in this regard and that some days things went real high and that some days there were bargains to be had.

[LoadWB]

Far too many people let eBay set the standard.  First off, eBay can be manipulated -- it's not legitimate, but it happens.  And secondly, there are other markets than eBay.  When I see items end for prices higher than dealer pricing, I get a chuckle.

Look back through the forums here and you'll see plenty of Craigslist posts of Amiga equipment for MUCH better than eBay pricing.  Granted, some are more as well.  Unfortunately, I don't see much on this side of the Mississippi much, all of the good stuff seems to be in Cali.

[skurk]

pyrre wrote:
the good old DATAKOMPANIET...
They were the best (and since 1998 the only) Amiga dealer in Norway. But since 2000 they have not updated their amiga part...

That's true.  I live nearby Datakompaniet's store, last time I were there (buying a 10cm A600 IDE cable) they said they've withdrawn from the Amiga market.  To their defense, they know a lot about Amiga hardware and are very helpful and friendly.

(Speaking of expensive stuff, how about an PCXT equipped A2000 for €620? [Norwegian text only])

[mrmkl]

The level of prices and standard of living in Norway is quite high indeed. I think you would get VAT discounted ("sett eks mva" on the web page)if exporting from Norway? This would be the case when exporting from the EU, and propably in many/most countries where VAT is applied.(?)

[Ami_GFX]

Here's another ridiculous ebay auction price.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=010&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&viewitem=&item=200114855906&rd=1&rd=1

It looks like this is Lightwave 3d 7 for the Amiga--the seller wasn't clear about this and there is a photo of the floppies with a big number 7 on it. It went for $214.50. The last copy of Lightwave 3d for the Amiga--Toaster free version--I saw on Ebay went for around $70. It was version 5. The same seller had a copy of version 6 for the PC and didn't get his $59 minimum bid. A new sealed copy of Lightwave 3d 9 for the PC can be had on Ebay right now for a $280 right now and there is a copy of version 8 for less. I've bought two A2000 Video Toasters with lightwave 3d included for less.

Personally, if I was going to spend that much money on something Amiga related, I would want some hardware for my money. Software alone wouldn't do it for me. But to each his own and this sort of " I'll have it at any price" attitude favors me as a seller and I want buyers like this--preferably 2 or more bidding against each other--when I list something for sale at auction.

And I wouldn't say this auction is the last word on what a copy of Lightwave 3d for the Amiga is really worth or it's "fair market value". The next seller who tries to sell a copy for $200 minimum bid based on the results of this auction is likely to be disappointed. I should mention that the starting price was 9.99 and the seller didn't seem to have excessive expectations for this auction.

 :-o  :-o

[Seaquest]

I just bought 3.1 roms for my A3000,received them yesterday
Have got hold of a brand new A1200 from them aswell
around xmas06

They are very helpfull:-)