[Mellow Yellow]

Capitalism at it's best!

 

[KMan]

So I'm chedking out ebay for a new HR monitor and came across some more "not so bright bidders"

http://www.performancebike.com/shop/profile.cfm?SKU=14298&subcategory_ID=4115
$80 and add a 20% off coupon - $64

http://cgi.ebay.com/NIB-Polar-S150-...201732211QQcategoryZ30108QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Some people!!!!

KMan

 

[Bikehigh]

Obviously the current high bidder is inexperienced, but you guys do understand that this auction is being held for an item in Australia, the bidding is in Australian dollars, and the current high bidder is in Australia. Right? The Performance Bike price and coupon is worthless as a comparison.

 

[KMan]

???

I knew the "item" is in Australia - currency is converted to US $$. How do you know where the bidder is from?

KMan

Obviously the current high bidder is inexperienced, but you guys do understand that this auction is being held for an item in Australia, the bidding is in Australian dollars, and the current high bidder is in Australia. Right? The Performance Bike price and coupon is worthless as a comparison.

 

[shiggy]

Also tough to buy an out-of-stock item from Performance.

 

[Bikehigh]

I knew the "item" is in Australia - currency is converted to US $$. How do you know where the bidder is from?

KMan

If you look at the member profile, you'll see his/her location in the upper right corner, and in the case of the winning bidder, it says Australia.

http://feedback.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewFeedback&userid=nottinghamforestrule&iid=7201732211

 

[oddestfellow]

That is still $105 US Dollars. People get carried away sometimes on ebay. I sold my 10 year old Thule fairing on there and the winning bidder ended up paying more for it than what they would have paid for a new one! I ended up covering the shipping cost because I felt bad for the guy. I was just hoping to get $20 for it - but he paid close to $50!

 

[johnnychimpo]

At least they are probally bidding on a real item and not a scam. Try to find any Trek fuel models or any other fully out there and see all the scams.

 

[SHIVER ME TIMBERS]

I love the bidding "frenzy" of ebay

 

[nogearshere]

i am so excited i think i am going to bid 500 rubels.

gosh i hope i win...i cant win a race...i cant win the lottery but i am kicking arse at this game called ebay!!

 

[meloh1]

I dunno. Looks like he paid pretty close to the average price for a Polar S150 in Oz. Take a look at completed auctions. Maybe they can buy it cheaper from the US but shipping and duty (if there is any?) may put the price higher. There must be a reason these things are selling for this price because lots of them have sold to lots of different people. I can't believe they're all dupes.

 

[Anonymous]

Another 5 min I'll never get back.

 

[Some Guy]

Maybe they can buy it cheaper from the US but shipping and duty (if there is any?) may put the price higher.

It is generally cheaper to import stuff here from the US than it is to buy it locally on ebay. Buying from online shops in the US is generally a dead loss as they charge far too much for postage and often insist on using UPS or Fedex. Some ebay sellers ship USPS at reasonable rates though. The reason USPS is a must is that couriers will charge you duty (AU$45 + 15%) regardless of the item value. With USPS it has to be over (iirc) AU$800 before you get hit with customs.

Warranty returns are a pain in the arse when you have bought from the US. Airmail Aus-US takes between one and two weeks. The final thing to watch is the ~2% fee you pay for the currency transfer.

As you can see, there is a lot of complexity and pitfalls involved in buying from overseas, which means many people will happily pay more for an item if it comes from a local seller.

PS: If you haven't figured it out already, I'm an aussie who buys a lot of stuff from overseas .

Now I look at that auction, the buyer probably was being a bit silly. The US seller has listed the item on ebay Australia, but the item is in the US (or maybe south east asia). Either way, they'd most likely be better off doing a worldwide search for the item.