Is ebay a good source for tech deals?

[Belac F]

Hey guys, I'm looking to build a new rig for cad design, gaming, etc. I was looking at a 3700x and 1080 on ebay, both at ~ $100 discounts (Canadian) and both with 40 - 50 product ratings. I'm a little more concerned about potential mining on the graphics card, but would these be safe options in general? How good is E bay's buyer protection guarantee? 

 

Also, I'm looking to sell my old PC and a monitor, is eBay a good way to do it, especially with all the quarantine? Is there any other buy and sell apps / sites in Alberta you would recommend? 

 

Also my PC is styled after linus's OG xbox build. how much would the awkward form factor hurt the amount i can sell it for?

[LienusLateTips]

Facebook Marketplace will get you better deals if you're willing to take the risk of no buyer protection.

 

DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT sell on ebay if you don't plan on doing this somewhat professionally. eBay is a PITA for sellers, randomly taking and holding your money, and siding with the buyer even if they're clearly wrong. I'd use Facebook Marketplace/Craigslist/Kijiji instead.

 

I don't think the discounts are worth it, because you don't really get a warranty.

[Belac F]

3 minutes ago, LienusLateTips said:

Facebook Marketplace will get you better deals if you're willing to take the risk of no buyer protection.

 

DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT sell on ebay if you don't plan on doing this somewhat professionally. eBay is a PITA for sellers, randomly taking and holding your money, and siding with the buyer even if they're clearly wrong. I'd use Facebook Marketplace/Craigslist/Kijiji instead.

 

I don't think the discounts are worth it, because you don't really get a warranty.

thanks. Im currently debating between a used 1080 for 390 CAD shipped or a new 5700 for 440 CAD. Would the 5700 be better because of the warranty and (hopefully) longevity? or would the better performance and lower cost of the 1080 be better? My parents are kind of controlling with money spending so im trying to keep it under what i can sell my current rig + a monitor for. 

[Boomwebsearch]

14 minutes ago, LienusLateTips said:

I don't think the discounts are worth it, because you don't really get a warranty.

 

21 minutes ago, PeterFile said:

Hey guys, I'm looking to build a new rig for cad design, gaming, etc. I was looking at a 3700x and 1080 on ebay, both at ~ $100 discounts (Canadian) and both with 40 - 50 product ratings. I'm a little more concerned about potential mining on the graphics card, but would these be safe options in general? How good is E bay's buyer protection guarantee? 

 

Also, I'm looking to sell my old PC and a monitor, is eBay a good way to do it, especially with all the quarantine? Is there any other buy and sell apps / sites in Alberta you would recommend? 

 

Also my PC is styled after linus's OG xbox build. how much would the awkward form factor hurt the amount i can sell it for?

 

From my experience, I would recommend using PayPal when buying items on eBay, since you are less likely to get scammed out of your hard earned money and will have PayPal work with you to resolve the issue along with eBay if needed. Never have been a seller on eBay, so I can't comment if it would be good for selling your old computer hardware or not. Although in the past, many sellers have posted some item, then a few moments after I buy it, the sale will be retracted or you could get a card that is illegitimate (different model than promised). If you want most guaranteed longevity, then go with a new card.

 

What CAD software are you planning to run on your system?

[Fasauceome]

1 hour ago, LienusLateTips said:

DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT sell on ebay if you don't plan on doing this somewhat professionally. eBay is a PITA for sellers, randomly taking and holding your money, and siding with the buyer even if they're clearly wrong. I'd use Facebook Marketplace/Craigslist/Kijiji instead.

I don't necessarily agree here, having more than my fair share of buyers who tried to scam me out of a sale. Assuming you have some proof documenting that the product works as described before shipping it out, they often will back down from refund requests. While a persistent scammer will abuse the purchase protection, this has only happened once of the dozens of items I've sold. 

 

True, local markets are far superior for sellers, and if you're selling a legitimate product, it's what I recommend.

1 hour ago, PeterFile said:

thanks. Im currently debating between a used 1080 for 390 CAD shipped or a new 5700 for 440 CAD. Would the 5700 be better because of the warranty and (hopefully) longevity? or would the better performance and lower cost of the 1080 be better? My parents are kind of controlling with money spending so im trying to keep it under what i can sell my current rig + a monitor for. 

The difference of only $50 CAD, up to you. The performance difference swings slightly to the 1080's favor (in gaming, but some workloads may be quite the opposite), but like you mentioned, warranty support is at least somewhat valuable. I personally don't min used hardware, but that depends on the value of customer support to yourself.

[Belac F]

5 minutes ago, Boomwebsearch said:

What CAD software are you planning to run on your system?

Blender and fusion 360, but in as im hoping to study engineering in uni a year or so from now I might end up using more industrial solutions.

[harryk]

There are certain risks with eBay as with all platforms but if you do things right and by the book there's no reason to universally steer away from eBay. I've sold many items on eBay and while I've had a few hiccups and annoying buyers I've never had a truly bad experience and never been successfully scammed. Unless it's something I don't want to ship (i.e. big or heavy) I always list on eBay and typically sell faster and for a higher price than if I were to try local only.

 

@OP if you're interested in using eBay to either buy or sell, read some of the numerous online guides about how to effectively use eBay and get a great deal, there is some technique to it

[atxcyclist]

I've done a lot of buying and a little selling on eBay over the last 21 years I've been on there, here are a few things I've learned about both:

 

• Always sell older items with the disclaimer that it's used and no warranty is offered, if not you will get burned by unscrupulous buyers, I speak from personal experience unfortunately
• Always make sure that you're only selling to a country or countries you want to deal with fees and taxes with, being in the United States I only offer items for sale to US residents for this reason
• Make 100% sure the items you're selling can be sold legitimately. Software and/or licenses can be tricky in some places, make sure eBay won't pull your ad in your region for this
• When buying, read the fine print extensively, because the few condition levels on eBay are often up to interpretation by buyers, some see a laptop with a dead screen as simply used, and not broken/for parts
• Always be aware of the payment methods you will take when you sell things, and make sure you are good with the payment methods allowed on auctions you're buying. This isn't a huge deal, most sellers offer even credit card processing without a Paypal account, but there are occasionally some that want a money order or personal check. Out of principal I never send personal checks to random people, too easy to steal account and routing numbers
• eBay can manage outgoing shipments well, and at least in the US there's typically a discount for originating shipments through eBay, so use that especially on cheaper items with high shipping as it will help your profit

 

I could list dozens of other little things, but eBay really is a good platform if you're aware of the few but sometimes significant pitfalls of the system. I've had a ton of good luck buying and selling computer parts on eBay, in fact it's been my go-to place for low buck builds for friends and family members that are fine with a few generations old tech; Some of the deals are outstanding if you have the patience to watch auctions consistently.

[it_dont_work]

Spent 15 years selling on ebay, never had a problem with buyers or having money sent through to me directly from paypal, that said I do have a seller account and a very high seller rating. 

 

ebay is only really good for selling stuff dirt cheap, otherwise listing can sit there for months. Tech deals anything 'vintage' is not really worth it usually high prices and little buyers. 

[juandeag2k]

Its rare to get insane deals on ebay but not impossible. However, you're much better off looking at your local classified ads.

[Lord Vile]

On 4/3/2020 at 11:57 PM, Belac F said:

Hey guys, I'm looking to build a new rig for cad design, gaming, etc. I was looking at a 3700x and 1080 on ebay, both at ~ $100 discounts (Canadian) and both with 40 - 50 product ratings. I'm a little more concerned about potential mining on the graphics card, but would these be safe options in general? How good is E bay's buyer protection guarantee? 

 

Also, I'm looking to sell my old PC and a monitor, is eBay a good way to do it, especially with all the quarantine? Is there any other buy and sell apps / sites in Alberta you would recommend? 

 

Also my PC is styled after linus's OG xbox build. how much would the awkward form factor hurt the amount i can sell it for?

Depends on the deal, I’ve sold parts and bought from eBay. Got a 6600K for like £60 off when it was current gen which was great cosnit just didn’t come with the box and I’ve sold a RX580 during the mining craze and a Vega 56 more recently and both were fine along with a couple of coolers.

 

Also ex mining cards are fine to buy, remember they’re nearly always undervolted for power efficiency because you’re not actually using much GPU resources.

[dizmo]

The CPU would be fine since you still have a warranty, but I wouldn't spend a ton on an out of warranty graphics card. Grab a 1070Ti instead, they're significantly cheaper. 

 

Alberta uses Kijiji. I wouldn't bother selling a monitor on ebay, way too easy to have something go wrong and there a pain in the ass to ship. FB Marketplace is an option but get ready for low baller city. 

 

If it's awkward you're better off selling it piece by piece. Unless you find a person who really likes the style, it's going to be a hard sell. 

 

On 4/3/2020 at 5:04 PM, LienusLateTips said:

Facebook Marketplace will get you better deals if you're willing to take the risk of no buyer protection.

 

DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT sell on ebay if you don't plan on doing this somewhat professionally. eBay is a PITA for sellers, randomly taking and holding your money, and siding with the buyer even if they're clearly wrong. I'd use Facebook Marketplace/Craigslist/Kijiji instead.

 

I don't think the discounts are worth it, because you don't really get a warranty.

You'd get a warranty with the cpu. 

3 hours ago, juandeag2k said:

Its rare to get insane deals on ebay but not impossible. However, you're much better off looking at your local classified ads.

It's not rare at all. Just have to take the time to look.