Obscenely Overpriced Vintage Electronics

1. Dig some shitbox-even-at-the-time PC out of a dumpster.
2. Reinstall Windows 98.
3. Take a photo of it and cover it with text and logos in mspaint.
4. List it for thousands of dollars on eBay.
5. Assure customers that this is actually a VERY FAIR PRICE! while listing utterly mediocre specs.
6. ???
7. PROFIT

Dude no way, an Intel 810 onboard GPU???

What other VERY FAIR PRICEs have you seen out there in the wild?

Loomeh wrote: ↑Wed Dec 28, 2022 5:35 pm
400+ USD (on sale btw) for a GameCube bundle

Yeah that is overpriced. Quite literally almost a month ago I bought a GameCube from CeX for £110 with the original box and everything! Still a steep price but better than what i’ve seen them go for on eBay.

One word. Why?

nugg3t wrote: ↑Sat Dec 31, 2022 7:29 amOne word. Why?

Is this a freaking Windows XP Pro license or a damn Windows Server license what the fuck

Over $200 for an Xbox that Has Some Issues With DVD Drive? What a steal

MattKC wrote: ↑Sun Jan 01, 2023 8:09 am

"Only"

here's something from FB Marketplace I found in 2019

MattKC wrote: ↑Sun Jan 01, 2023 8:09 am Screenshot_20221231_173127.png

Over $200 for an Xbox that Has Some Issues With DVD Drive? What a steal

Speaking of Xbox...
someone first gave it a price tag of 1000zł (227 usd) but then must've realised it and set it waaaay low down to 200zł (45 usd). Best thing is that its console only, no games, no game pads, just the console. Also for the EXACT same price you can find a xbox that has 2 controllers, a game, and all of the cables.

Also someone listed "Battlefiel 2042" for 450 usd, but then cut down the price to 40 usd. Even EA sells it for less on sales...

Michael Power wrote: ↑Sun Jan 01, 2023 1:31 pm here's something from FB Marketplace I found in 2019

Lmao I love how it says it was bought new "a few years ago", but it's running (I'm pretty sure) Leopard, an operating system released 12 years before 2019.

This is only 25x what I paid for the computer I was thinking of installing the card in

Michael Power wrote: ↑Sun Jan 01, 2023 1:31 pm here's something from FB Marketplace I found in 2019

I like the idea that most of the preinstalled software has not been launched and is therefore still brand new

Wam wrote: ↑Tue Dec 13, 2022 1:57 pm ??? TWO OF THESE SOLD??

This was exactly my reaction and every time I see something like this I lose faith in humanity. I mean how can someone be that "unsmart" or do I miss something there?

"Laptop for collectors vintage Apple Ibook G4 1,2 Ghz"
"1000 lei" (219 usd as of 1/14/23)
>mfw when you can literally get the same laptop for around 200 lei (43 usd as of 1/14/23) (sometimes even less)

Controversial/offtopic opinion time

Looking back, the iBook G3/G4 were probably the most boring of the early 2000s Apple designs. I don't know what it is, but they just feel really bland and uninspired, even compared to similar looking designs like the iMac G5.

MattKC wrote: ↑Mon Jan 16, 2023 4:53 pm Controversial/offtopic opinion time

Looking back, the iBook G3/G4 were probably the most boring of the early 2000s Apple designs. I don't know what it is, but they just feel really bland and uninspired, even compared to similar looking designs like the iMac G5.

the 14 inch, sure, the 12 inch is adorable and i will die on this hill. the keyboard touching the very edge of the case is so cute to me and just shows how tiny they are, same goes for the 12 inch powerbook g4

Wam wrote: ↑Mon Dec 19, 2022 2:28 pm I once saw this absolutely obscenely painted PowerMac G5 """Bondi Blue""" going for well over double what I paid for mine, somewhere around £300. In the end I believe it went for somewhere around £50 because seriously who the fuck would pay for a PowerMac with such an awful goddamn paintjob.

Somewhat offtopic, but I just saw a much better attempt at this sort of thing:

(source)

While I feel slightly uneasy about seeing a modded G4 Cube knowing how rare/expensive they are, of course people are allowed to do what they want with their things, and again it's a pretty good job.

hi

pizzaboxer wrote: ↑Thu Feb 16, 2023 12:36 am hi
firefox_A6e3T7TOEn.png

wdym it is the normal price for an enterprise product

flatrute wrote: ↑Thu Feb 16, 2023 2:53 am wdym it is the normal price for an enterprise product

true but its just really funny lol (~40% off msrp!)

MattKC wrote: ↑Wed Feb 15, 2023 8:19 pm 330762834_5854157754675396_6441467867724959908_n.jpg

Imagine paying $10,000 for an iMac G3 from the Facebook Marketplace when you can buy them cheaper on eBay.

MattKC wrote: ↑Sun Feb 12, 2023 7:01 am snip

Yeah no as semi-rare as G4 cubes are, and as much as this mod has completely ruined any and all value it had, the execution is pretty damn nice so I'm not complaining

(I say this, do we actually know if Cubes are rare? Or if they're just perceived as rare and therefore expensive...)

Wam wrote: ↑Sun Feb 19, 2023 4:17 pm (I say this, do we actually know if Cubes are rare? Or if they're just perceived as rare and therefore expensive...)

I suppose we don't really know, rarity is I think ultimately a function of supply and demand, which is hard to quantify for something like this.

We do know the Cube sold poorly enough to be discontinued after only a year, with the apparent sales figure being less than 150,000 units. Tim Cook called it "a spectacular failure" and even Steve Jobs admitted it was "overdesigned and overpriced", so that does at least suggest that supply is on the low side. But that story/awareness/legend alone obviously contributes to its perceived value (and therefore the ability for sellers to hike prices up and for people to bid higher), and its hard to tease apart which "market forces" are responsible for what.

Here's an interesting one: macbook pro retina 15-inch late 2013 & my art


Not exactly obscenely overpriced, technically the computer only went for $50. However, the shipping cost is extremely high, so the buyer didn't actually get a great deal. What exactly is going on here? And what's up with that intriguing title? Let's see what he has to say about it in the description:

yuyanag-5372 wrote: I'm selling my old macbook and my artwork as a pair. Based on my quick search, this kind of MacBook Pro tends to cost $200. So the price of this item mostly comes from the artwork.

I see, so from what I can tell, he set the shipping to a flat rate of $200 because he concluded that's how much the MacBook was worth. Therefore, the money from the auction is actually for his "artwork" rather than the computer. I guess in a roundabout way it makes sense, if the art is the main item for sale, the MacBook is the shipping cost because it's effectively a very expensive box.

So what is this artwork then? As a discount Markiplier myself, I do appreciate a good letter E, but let's see what he actually had in mind:

yuyanag-5372 wrote: Now you are curious about it?

“This keyboard does not work as intended” is an interface that lets the interactor contemplate atypical input method. When one of the keys is typed, an alphabetical character or a commonsymbol appears on the display, yet it is not linked to the input. Such “useless” interactionreminds the viewer of how effectively common interfaces–for example, mouse andkeyboard–are designed. In addition, the glitch effect represents software bugs, adding a little extra oomph in relation to Internet culture.

...Uh, right.

Here's a more visual demonstration that he provided:


So the letter that appears on the screen is different from the letter that you pressed. It's a key logger that doesn't work, basically, but I guess a very meaningful one? Really makes you think. I just hope he didn't remap Cmd+Q as well.

I guess if people can splatter some paint onto a canvas and call it art, we can call this art too. However, there's something odd about the geography of this listing. The location is listed as Austria, however the MacBook is Japanese - at least, according to its keyboard - and, perhaps most strangely of all, it only ships to the United States (and is all listed in USD). It doesn't ship to Austria, Japan, or indeed any other country, only specifically the US.

He doesn't state what postal service he'd be using, but the lowest shipping cost I could find to ship something approximately the size and weight of a 15-inch 2013 MacBook Pro Retina from Linz, Austria to the United States was €51.68, or about US$54.85, which means not only did he actually make nothing from his artwork, he also didn't even make the full $200 he thought the MacBook was worth. The artwork technically ended up being -$4.85.

...Sounds about right, honestly.

MattKC wrote: ↑Wed Mar 01, 2023 7:53 am He doesn't state what postal service he'd be using, but the lowest shipping cost I could find to ship something approximately the size and weight of a 15-inch 2013 MacBook Pro Retina from Linz, Austria to the United States was €51.68, or about US$54.85, which means not only did he actually make nothing from his artwork, he also didn't even make the full $200 he thought the MacBook was worth. The artwork technically ended up being -$4.85.

So the $200 flat rute rate is merely a suggestion? I have never used eBay before so I do not know how that works...

flatrute wrote: ↑Wed Mar 01, 2023 8:57 am So the $200 flat rute rate is merely a suggestion? I have never used eBay before so I do not know how that works...

No, flat rate shipping must be paid. The shipping cost, whether flat rate or calculated, is a mandatory inclusion of he overall cost.

MattKC wrote: ↑Wed Mar 01, 2023 9:00 am No, flat rate shipping must be paid. The shipping cost, whether flat rate or calculated, is a mandatory inclusion of the overall cost.

I took a reread and if I understand correctly that "art" has its price somewhere between -4.85 USD to -150.00 USD? If so...

MattKC wrote: ↑Wed Mar 01, 2023 7:53 am However, the shipping cost is extremely high, so the buyer didn't actually get a great deal.

I'd be surprised if you haven't encountrred this in this thread, I see this all the time: an old vintage electronic has an exquisite deal like $50 but the shipping is $1000.

My going theory is that they swap the actual price and shipping price around, or they just choose a generally low price and make the shipping obscenely high to make up for it, and hope somebody buys the thing without checking shipping. I can't imagine it works often but I also can't imagine why I've seen it so many times

On another note I actually DMed Matt about something that's relevant to the thread, some years ago.



While trying to find the listing again, thinking it would have never sold and the seller wouldn't have given up...I was met with the surprise of a lifetime.

They built a similar computer, and somebody actually bought it

lol_xD wrote: ↑Wed Mar 01, 2023 3:41 pm On another note I actually DMed Matt about something that's relevant to the thread, some years ago.



While trying to find the listing again, thinking it would have never sold and the seller wouldn't have given up...I was met with the surprise of a lifetime.

They built a similar computer, and somebody actually bought it

There is absolutely no way someone had the idea to put a motherboard from probably late 99 and just plotted it in a modern PC case. even the fans work

minimiscus wrote: ↑Wed Mar 01, 2023 10:03 pm There is absolutely no way someone had the idea to put a motherboard from probably late 99 and just plotted it in a modern PC case. even the fans work

is that not what matt did with a motherboard from '04?

lol_xD wrote: ↑Thu Mar 02, 2023 4:57 am is that not what matt did with a motherboard from '04?

...yeah

Anyone interested in this majestic example of a rare computer kill switch that will stop your hackers from hacking your computer when it's turned off?

andreizabest wrote: ↑Sat Mar 11, 2023 6:00 pm Anyone interested in this majestic example of a rare computer kill switch that will stop your hackers from hacking your computer when it's turned off?
Capture2.PNG

...but why does it have Br*t*sh flags on it?

Not vintage. Anyone interested in a 1500£ dirty Wii U display unit.

Ipod Classics have been so expensive, ive been looking into buying one but jeez, $60 for a 2005 ipod lmaooo. thanks dankpods

MattKC wrote: ↑Tue Dec 13, 2022 2:43 am

1. Dig some shitbox-even-at-the-time PC out of a dumpster.

I pulled a PC out of the dumpster just two weeks ago with those exact specs I kid you not.

Expensive? Sure. $12,000 expensive? Hell no. Man pulled some pokemon games out of the attic and thought he'd be rich.

LOL mans found his Pokemon collection and really thought "I'm gonna buy a CAR with this"

Ethanator611 wrote: ↑Sat May 13, 2023 2:38 pm Screenshot_20230513-103325_Chrome.jpg

Expensive? Sure. $12,000 expensive? Hell no. Man pulled some pokemon games out of the attic and thought he'd be rich.

it literately says "12345" i almost think its fake. maybe one of the gameboys/games is rare? I dont know that much about gameboys and rarity.

Wish I had taken a screenshot but one time on Ebay I saw someone attempting to sell a Gameboy Color for 300 dollars. It wasn't professionally restored or modded or anything like that, just a standard Color. Didn't even include peripherals to my knowledge.

I assume they must've fat-fingered the price because I haven't been able to find it listed again.

I have a habbit of browsing for vintage stuff every day, and I see crazy prices all the time. And the funny thing is that those ads hang in there for litterly years, there are some ads that have been up every since I even started collecting. It's obvious they are either waiting for an idiot or don't really want to sell. Just recently someone listed a 486 motherboard for 450 euros. I can get an entire working system and monitor for that have money left over

Wam wrote: ↑Tue Dec 13, 2022 1:57 pm ??? TWO OF THESE SOLD??

It's possible the seller had made the listing for something like $1, "sold" 2 to himself from sock accounts, then multiplied the price by 1500 to make it look like he sold two.

Edit: Found the listing on Ebay and it says 2 more have sold. Despite that, there are none in his feedback page. You'd think if you were dumb enough to spend $1500 on a beige doorstop you'd be easy to convince to give positive feedback.

There's an entire website of these! https://www.dkoldies.com/

You really do got to love the Great British Pounds US Dollars, that's my favorite currency!

nugg3t wrote: ↑Thu Nov 23, 2023 6:45 am Screenshot 2023-11-23 at 12.45.15 AM.png

The barely legible red text in Arial Black is legitimately the cherry on top, LOL

I don't even know if mid-2015 counts as vintage but someone decided to charge $34k for a Pebble Time Steel.

why they gotta insult me at the same time?

Sorry but these are rookie numbers. Get into vintage synthesizers, guitars, and hi-fi audio equipment

MattKC wrote: ↑Tue Dec 13, 2022 2:43 am

ebay.png
Screenshot_20221212_181544.png

if i unserstand correctly ... this is not something special, but litterally just a PC but with weak specs ?