Buying "untested" monitors on ebay

[Shape D.]

Seriously, Is this a good idea? "untested" to me sounds like "not working" But they are a lot cheaper.  And would It be possible to fix most of these if they weren't working?

[AlanS17]

If I saw an "untested" monitor on ebay I'd assume that the owner thinks it's broken, but doesn't want to test it for fear of being right. The difference between a working monitor and a broken one can be twice the value. There's reason NOT to test unless you think it's broken. So if you actually get a working monitor out of the deal, you're probably lucky.

As for fixing it, that depends alot on the problem. Some might just be blurry. Others might be fried.

[ChadTower]

Probably not, unless you can pick it up in person.

[ChadTower]

There's reason NOT to test unless you think it's broken. So if you actually get a working monitor out of the deal, you're probably lucky.

People who do not know what they are doing don't part out a game on ebay.  The ones selling "untested" stuff on ebay are people like us, or ops who don't want to be bothered with it.  90% of the time, if it were a simple or cheap fix, it wouldn't be on ebay as "untested".

[AlanS17]

Here's a classic line.

"I supplied power and I got glow, but I didn't hook it up to test the picture."

Now what do you suppose they're afraid of? Hmmm...

[bjk7382]

I have never gotten untested monitors off of ebay, but I have had good luck with untested PCB's lately. In the past week I got a working mr do's wild ride for 9.99, and a working space invaders power supply for 9.99.

I would say shipping monitors is too expensive to take the gamble.