BEST EBAY TOOL EVER!!!!!!

[crtrrss]

Hi!    I found a tool for eBay called GIXEN the other day. IT IS AMAZING!!! You just enter the item #, put what you want your max bid to be, and it will automatically bid a little bit higher than the last person until it reaches your max bid. I already won a phenom X4 using this for $23. I didn't even to have to stay up until the item ended!!

http://www.gixen.com/index.php

[rablack97]

Bud eBay does that for you already....you put in a max bid and it bids on your behalf incrementally up to your max....

Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk 2

[Howard_Casto]

Bud eBay does that for you already....you put in a max bid and it bids on your behalf incrementally up to your max....

Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk 2

You are new to eBay aren't you?

Yes it does that and since the bidder can bid at any time, they'll just run up the bid way before the auction ends, and either make you pay waaay more for the item or out bid you.
For ages now, what you do on ebay is "snipe".  In other words you place your maximum bid at the last possible second so other bidders physically can't respond due to a lack of time.  I'm not familiar with gixen, but automated tools that help you snipe are quite common.

Just for the record, I don't fool with all of that nonsense..... I mostly do the "buy it now" auctions only because sniping is too much work.

[rablack97]

Been ebaying for years and I know about sniping....was just letting him know that tool isn't a big deal....

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[DaveMMR]

I've never felt comfortable giving out my ebay login info to 3rd party services that snipe for you. So, like Howard, I stick with Buy it Now auctions or, if it's something I really want, I'll have a reminder through my phone to alert me when an auction is almost over. If it ends in the middle of night - I'll just bid my absolute maximum as late as possible and hope for the best.

As an occasional seller, I hate the practice of sniping. It discourages "impulse" bidders (instead they "watch" and sometimes forget about it). And it often ends up going for lower than it could have been if any one person isn't bidding their absolute maximum.

[Howard_Casto]

Yeah it really ruined ebay imho.  Back when the service was new you couldn't snipe... nobody had a fast enough connection.  But now people who actually want/need something are stepped on by people that usually just want to get something cheap enough to where they can re-sell it. 

EBay's watch alert could really be improved though.  I'll put something on watch and I'll get an alert sometime of the day the auction ends... which is great if I happen to check my email at that time, otherwise I get it too late.  They need an alert system that bugs the crap out of you for days leading up to the end.

[AtomSmasher]

EBay's watch alert could really be improved though.  I'll put something on watch and I'll get an alert sometime of the day the auction ends... which is great if I happen to check my email at that time, otherwise I get it too late.  They need an alert system that bugs the crap out of you for days leading up to the end.

I don't know if EBays official app does this, but I use one called Pocket Auctions and it sends an alert to my phone when any item I'm watching is 10 minutes away from ending.  I've found this to be extremely useful.

[brad808]

EBay's watch alert could really be improved though.  I'll put something on watch and I'll get an alert sometime of the day the auction ends... which is great if I happen to check my email at that time, otherwise I get it too late.  They need an alert system that bugs the crap out of you for days leading up to the end.

I don't know if EBays official app does this, but I use one called Pocket Auctions and it sends an alert to my phone when any item I'm watching is 10 minutes away from ending.  I've found this to be extremely useful.

Official app does send a notification. You can even specify the number of minutes before auction end to be reminded.

Edit :this is the android version I'm referring to. Not sure of iPhone or any other os.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus

[DaveMMR]

The iOS version of the eBay app does indeed send an alert to you when a watched auction is about to end (assuming you turned notifications on).

[ChadTower]

I've been using eSnipe for many years now.  Works well.  Small charge but I usually save by using it so no biggie.

[dgame]

I got fed up with the shill bidding and shill sniping years ago so now I only use Buy it Now. 

[SNAAKE]

I stopped bidding years ago too

its too much headache knowing they are people out there abusing the system with "ebay sniper". I use buy now too. usually there are good deals on whatever I am trying to buy.

[crtrrss]

If you are a seller who has an auction with a sniper, get another account and push the it snipe to the limit! Most snipers choose normal amount like $1, $5 or $10 so bid just under those amounts

[yotsuya]

You know that's against the rules, right?

[Howard_Casto]

It doesn't mean people don't do it. 

I've found that sellers are even bigger jerks than buyers in a lot of cases.  Like I'll be winning a auction with no reserve at a really low bid and the seller will pull the auction 5 minutes before I win.  If you don't want to sell it for a low price... maybe... JUST MAYBE... you should use a frikkin reserve!

[crtrrss]

Or start the bidding higher

[MonMotha]

Yahoo Auctions Japan has a nice solution to "sniping".  The auction doesn't end until at least about a minute or so after the last bid.  That is, if somebody bids last second, the auction is extended for a another minute or so to let things settle down.

The result?  A lot less sniping, and it's far less effective.  I like it.  If only I didn't have to use a deputy service to buy stuff of of it with outrageous fees...

[crtrrss]

Penny auction sites use the same solution

[Samstag]

I don't use ebay anymore but when I was buying I always used auction sentry to automatically place my bid a few seconds before the auction close.  Most of the time I don't get the win, but it's a good way to avoid the emotional bidding wars.  It has a feature to group auctions for the same type of item so you can have it keep sniping multiple auctions and stop when it wins one.

Combating snipers as a seller is easy.  Start your item at $.01.  That generates so much early interest that your stuff will more often than not sell for more than it's really worth.

[hypernova]

Combating snipers as a seller is easy.  Start your item at $.01.  That generates so much early interest that your stuff will more often than not sell for more than it's really worth.

Or you can sell your item for a penny.  It's a dual-edged sword, so you'll need to acknowledge the risk.

[Gray_Area]

I must not be bidding on anything seriously interesting to the average consumer. Thank the lourd.

I use ebay mostly for stuff I don't want to go to the store for, think - and know - whatever retail price is ludicrous, or they just have the lowest price on the item...although Amazon sometimes beats 'em out.

[crtrrss]

Amazon all the way! I mainly use amazon for most items. I also have a prime account so I get free 2-day shipping

[DaveMMR]

Combating snipers as a seller is easy.  Start your item at $.01.  That generates so much early interest that your stuff will more often than not sell for more than it's really worth.

Or you can sell your item for a penny.  It's a dual-edged sword, so you'll need to acknowledge the risk.

Yeah, I've done that. Overestimated the demand for a couple of items and ended up selling them for a penny. And I never padded my S&H (even when it wasn't regulated) so that stung a bit more. Will never, ever do 'penny auctions' again. 

[selfie]

I use hidbid and have done for a few years without issues.

While I do like to be the last bid, I will always put my max bid in the sniper and only ever bid once. I got over being outbid in the last second ages ago.

As a seller it kind of sucks but if there are two people that want your item regardless of when they bid you still get what they are willing to pay.

My biggest hate with ebay is when you get a real bargain and the seller decides after the auction that it is no longer for sale as they didn't get enough for it. Sure you get you money back eventually but I wanted the bargain. I've lost count of how many times that has happened to me.

[yotsuya]

I use hidbid and have done for a few years without issues.

While I do like to be the last bid, I will always put my max bid in the sniper and only ever bid once. I got over being outbid in the last second ages ago.

As a seller it kind of sucks but if there are two people that want your item regardless of when they bid you still get what they are willing to pay.

My biggest hate with ebay is when you get a real bargain and the seller decides after the auction that it is no longer for sale as they didn't get enough for it. Sure you get you money back eventually but I wanted the bargain. I've lost count of how many times that has happened to me.

I've only ever had that happen once- I won a control panel for really cheap, paid, and the guy never sent it. I opened a dispute and was refunded. Never got a single reply from the seller. But I've never had anyone tell me they weren't selling it.

[Gray_Area]

My biggest hate with ebay is when you get a real bargain and the seller decides after the auction that it is no longer for sale as they didn't get enough for it. Sure you get you money back eventually but I wanted the bargain. I've lost count of how many times that has happened to me.

Yeah, that's totally gay.