macker123
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posted on July 7, 2002 06:07:08 PM new
I am wondering if anybody uses a web enabled phone or pda to look up prices when they are out buying for eBay.
I am seriously looking into getting a web enabled phone so when I am out garage saling and tempted to buy an item I can instantly see if it is worth the money.
I am curious if anybody does this??
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gravid
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posted on July 7, 2002 06:42:22 PM new
I was set to do that with a lap top and then they dropped the Ricochet service here and there was not a similar service I wanted. I have e-mailed my wife and had her do the search for me and mail it back to my phone or Motorola two way pager lots of times.
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Libra63
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posted on July 7, 2002 06:54:33 PM new
Why waste your money. What sells on ebay today might not sell tomorrow.
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holdenrex
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posted on July 7, 2002 07:25:47 PM new
I've considered it for auctions, but not yard sales. Yard sales are all about making snap decisions based on your own experience and covering as much ground as fast as possible.
Such a device might be more useful at an auction, since there's more time to kill. Even then it's more useful to go to the preview and do the research at home. I'll check out the goodies, take notes, then go home and check out the stuff on ebay to see what it's selling for so I can establish caps on what I'll bid.
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sanmar
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posted on July 7, 2002 07:41:04 PM new
I buy & sell china & use a laptop to ID patterns that I can't find. I sell a lot ot Replacements Ltd. & rely on them for info on unknown patterns. I carry a digital camera & send pictures within munutes.
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revvassago
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posted on July 7, 2002 07:44:43 PM new
We use cell phones, and always have someone at home to do searches.
Beyond that, we fill our car with all our reference books and price guides.
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Libra63
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posted on July 7, 2002 09:55:17 PM new
You guys are really serious ebay sellers. I just go, buy what I like and go home.
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macker123
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posted on July 7, 2002 10:03:48 PM new
I am more looking at this for larger items. Any small priced items I just buy up at garage sale, flea markets etc. But there is always a few big items that I am not sure I think this would be perfect.
I also do alot of buying rare videos at pawn shops and I usually take a chance and buy $500 worth and hope I find a few gems(usually double my money with this method), this way I will only buy the videos I know are great.
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pelorus
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posted on July 8, 2002 05:28:13 AM new
I have often wanted to do the PDA thing at yard and book sales, but wonder if I might begin to rely too much on that and too little on gut instinct. Instinct is what gives me the real ADRENALINE RUSH. Oooh, I'm feeling it right now!
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godfatherstoys
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posted on July 8, 2002 08:26:07 AM new
I use a notebook computer and cell. Mostly for referance but now and again for bringing a person back to reality. like last week when I went to a home to purchase a toy collection but the people were "antiques roadshow" goofs who thought every toy was worth $500 or better. A quick hit to eBay with photos showed many of their one-of-a-kind toys were common and not getting the $9.99 opening bids. I just tipped my hat and left them a hankie to cry in.
Tim
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quickdraw29
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posted on July 8, 2002 08:42:04 AM new
I've been thinking about getting one too. No more taking chances and getting stuck with duds, and no more driving back hoping it's still there.
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Libra63
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posted on July 8, 2002 09:23:01 AM new
First you better make sure eBay is still there.  I don't go to garage sales as everyone there is an ebay seller. I don't go to estate sales because the people running the sales do ebay. Everyone does ebay. I do just fine at the thrift stores and they are air conditioned.....Bought an item at the Goodwill for 49cents put it on ebay last night and it already has a bid of $6.50 and probably will go higher. I am trying my darndest to start my auctions low to get people interested. So I lose on a few and make on others.
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gravid
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posted on July 8, 2002 09:34:34 AM new
I just go, buy what I like and go home
I have found that if I like something has nothing at all to do with what it will sell for. I can do as well buying at random almost. My biggest thing is almost anything for buck or less can be resold OK. So many small key fobs pocket knives union pins etc for 25¢ I get $5 to $10 for.
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holdenrex
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posted on July 8, 2002 10:16:58 AM new
Libra, I have the opposite problem. Around here, the ebay sellers practically make the thrift stores their second home. They watch the back door as the workers roll out new inventory. The rule is they can't touch it 'til it hits the shelf, so they'll follow the cart until the item is displayed, then they'll snarf it up. I generally notice some of the stuff that hits thrift stores are the rejects from the previous day's yard sales - sometimes you even find the old yard sale price tags on the stuff. On top of that, most of the thrifts around here have priced themselves out of the buy-for-resale range.
OTOH, I still find great bargains at yard sales. Many, many people are not clued into ebay, or the stuff they are overpricing based on the last fad (e.g., Beanies) while the stuff that is currently hot sits out at a quarter. Also, at this time of year in my area, there's more yard sales around than all the dealers can hit on any given morning, so a lot of good stuff is out there
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