Wii U eBay resale / sellout / availability discussion

I don't know why you guys are saying you "hope the scalpers get burned." They have brand new systems. They can simply return them to the original retailer if they don't sell at an acceptable price.

I've already flipped one for a $70 profit and I'm putting another on eBay this afternoon. *shrug* Capitalism bitches, deal with it!
 
ImpassionateGods said:
I just can't fathom why anyone would pay above the asking price just to get this thing a little bit early. You can walk into a store and buy one right now! Nintendo isn't going to stop manufacturing their brand new console. These people are just throwing away their money.
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A lot of places you can't. Every Target, Best Buy, GameStop, Meijer, and Sam's Club around me all sold out within 30 minutes of being open yesterday. Also I think a lot of people look at how long it took for the original Wii to be prolific on store shelves and assume that there is going to be shortage of Wii U's for sometime.
 
Baller said:
I don't know why you guys are saying you "hope the scalpers get burned." They have brand new systems. They can simply return them to the original retailer if they don't sell at an acceptable price.

I've already flipped one for a $70 profit and I'm putting another on eBay this afternoon. *shrug* Capitalism bitches, deal with it!
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I blame the people who buy them personally.
Their traitors to the cause.
 
grimshawish said:
I blame the people who buy them personally.
Their traitors to the cause.
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This time of year I'd assume it's a good portion of parents buying them as Christmas gifts and not the hardcore gamer. Parents a lot of times don't have the time or desire to be diligent about calling stores and figuring out when they'd get shipments in, whereas the hardcore gamer is more likely to be willing to dedicate the time to do so and wait it out instead of paying higher prices on the resale market.
 
marcurius said:
I hope each and every one of these flippers, here and elsewhere, get scammed by the buyer. Good job taking advantage of people.
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I was second at the midnight pre-order at Wal-Mart I wait there for 2-3 hours AND Since I was able to get my pre-order plus 2 more I let everyone ahead of me in line. There was still a few pre-orders remaining. . .
I'm Entitled to all my Wii U's
 
ScreenSplitter said:
But there's a screenshot directly above contradicting that War.
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No, he's not being contradicted by that screenshot. You can offer a product on eBay for any price you want, doesn't mean anybody is buying.

Auctions complete for prices much lower than that, there's evidently only small profit (if any profit at all) to be made from selling Wii U consoles.
 
netBuff said:
No, he's not being contradicted by that screenshot. You can offer a product on eBay for any price you want, doesn't mean anybody is buying.

Auctions complete for prices much lower than that, there's evidently only small profit (if any profit at all) to be made from selling Wii U consoles.
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I posted about 25 posts up or so an auction the ended yesterday where someone paid the Buy It Now price of $700 and that was on launch day where they could have gotten one from a store. I'm sure those are few and far between, but there are people making decent money if they find the right buyer.
 
bkfount said:
I imagine many of these people are also offering their flips on craigslist, hoping to fish whoever they can. You get fewer eyes, but no fees.

It's the day after release, and before Black Friday. If people can't sell their wiiu's in December for more than they are now, then they have a problem.
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A week or two from now will be the time to see if demand is outstripping supply. Wii sold out quickly, but it didn't really start exploding until after Thanksgiving when people started realizing what it was all about after playing Wii Sports. I doubt NintendoLand will inspire the same rampant desire, but we shall see.
 
Heavy said:
Well the PS3 was 500 and 600 bucks. I've no doubt the Wii U will have more hype into the holidays than PS3 did.
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I disagree. I was able to sell PS3's for $1500.00 dollars--and no bullshit bids, either. I sold them at the price.

Wii U won't touch those prices.
 
Got the Shakes said:
I posted about 25 posts up or so an auction the ended yesterday where someone paid the Buy It Now price of $700 and that was on launch day where they could have gotten one from a store. I'm sure those are few and far between, but there are people making decent money if they find the right buyer.
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I didn't mean to contradict your report - I'm just pointing out that the people making bank on Wii U scalping are few and far between at this point, considering better than expected launch availability and current eBay prices.

And, as mentioned before: I'm seeing a race to the bottom on retailer pre-order prices in Europe, not an indication of a console that is going to be supply constrained.
 
If wii u ebay prices don't go higher after thanksgiving i'll probably return my system to best buy. I pre-ordered right when it was available to make sure i could get one if i was more excited for Wii U upon release, but with all these negative impressions going around i'm less enthusiastic than before.

or maybe i'll keep it Xo
 
Idiots sell the same day.

I'm hoarding mine till mid december...

jingle-all-the-way-original1-540x390.jpg
 
Akkad said:
I recently sold a couple of items on ebay for $81, after ebay and paypal took their cut I was down to about $70 before shipping, the fees are fucking bullshit.
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When I factor out the prices I get back compared to gamestop's trade in values, it's worth it in the end.
I'm not ragging on Gamestop, just their trade in values
 
I might get one that I'll sell right before Christmas. Would love Nintendo for life if I made enough of a profit to buy the PC I want.
 
Son/Daughter. I know you wanted a overly marketed product X for Christmas, but I couldn't get you one this year.

Tada. No more scalpers. Wow, that was hard.
 
sillymonkey321 said:
If wii u ebay prices don't go higher after thanksgiving i'll probably return my system to best buy. I pre-ordered right when it was available to make sure i could get one if i was more excited for Wii U upon release, but with all these negative impressions going around i'm less enthusiastic than before.

or maybe i'll keep it Xo
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I was hyped, but all the negativity killed a lot of it. I preordered early too, just so I could get one for myself, but the embargo stuff meant none of the flaws were really out when I picked it up.

I'm feeling serious buyer's remorse, especially since I usually wait a year on hardware for some of the very reasons people are hating on this.
 
Heavy said:
Well the PS3 was 500 and 600 bucks. I've no doubt the Wii U will have more hype into the holidays than PS3 did.
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Last gen I did the console flipping thing, and I sold a launch 60GB ps3 for 2.5x the purchase price.. I was surprised that 1) it was a legit buyer, and 2) I actually got that much for it..

The auction ended, he had sent the money, I had shipped it, and by the time it had gotten to him, auctions were down around retail prices because no one was buying the damned things. I lucked out, and counted my lucky stars.

I flipped ONE xbox 360, made about $200 profit, and basically called it quits.. Back then I was working at an EB living paycheck to paycheck, now, I have a great job and steady income, and won't even think twice about 'flipping' when the next gen stuff comes out.
 
Baller said:
I don't know why you guys are saying you "hope the scalpers get burned." They have brand new systems. They can simply return them to the original retailer if they don't sell at an acceptable price.

I've already flipped one for a $70 profit and I'm putting another on eBay this afternoon. *shrug* Capitalism bitches, deal with it!
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That's not capitalism. It's arbitrage.

As I predicted here, demand for the the Wii U is unremarkable compared to last gen, and the tiny premium over retail price on ebay reflects that.

Microsoft and Sony are going to have to bring a lot more to the table to get enough people to spend $300-400 in this economy.
 
I was able to pick up a Wii U yesterday afternoon walking into Best Buy for another reason. Selling it to a friend at cost for her kids Christmas present. I am tempted always by new system releases but this next generation it's going to be Xbox only for me until down the line at price drops.

Hoping that Xbox and PS3 releases meet the demand like the Wii U pretty much has... Although honestly I see no way in hell this will happen as they will be true next gen consoles and people will be hyped. Fanboys or not most everyone sees the Wii U as your 2nd gsming platform. Sucks for resellers but the way EBay is with chargebacks these days your easy money isn't always easy. They side with buyers 8 times out of 10 and it's the sellers burden to show proof against a claim. This from someone who sold 3 PS2's at launch for $700-800 each on Yahoo and EBay when they were seller friendly. $200 profit on a 360 was my last release day resell, Ebay is to unkind and Craigslist a hassle.
 
DrEvil said:
I flipped ONE xbox 360, made about $200 profit, and basically called it quits.. Back then I was working at an EB living paycheck to paycheck, now, I have a great job and steady income, and won't even think twice about 'flipping' when the next gen stuff comes out.
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This! I was young as shit and broke but camped 10 hours with a friend for PS2 launch. Used every last penny to my name and bought 3 ( his and my GFs got 1 each). 2 for $800 and sold my used one for $700 a week later and the guy drove 3 hours to get it. Better job But waited 6 hours with a friend for 360 to flip all this in freezing cold. Pre-orders and smarter people it doesn't seem worth it now days.. Small profit and wait till chargeback scams start popping up in a few days. Bye bye profit and investment...
 
The Best Buy I got my Deluxe at yesterday still had both versions in stock today when I was returning my Pro Controller (it sucks). Either Nintendo is getting better at stocking launches, or this thing has no hype whatsoever out of the gate, but that should change as Black Friday gets here and the masses descend upon the stores.
 
Darko said:
not even worth it .... it cost around 400 with tax here... plus ebay fees... $20-$30 a console... no thanks
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Very true. I was thinking on selling mine if it went past $700. By the looks of it, I would rather enjoy the system than make $50 to $100 profit.
 
$hady said:
Sucks for resellers but the way EBay is with chargebacks these days your easy money isn't always easy. They side with buyers 8 times out of 10 and it's the sellers burden to show proof against a claim. This from someone who sold 3 PS2's at launch for $700-800 each on Yahoo and EBay when they were seller friendly.
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I'm hearing nothing but horror stories these days with eBay favoring scammer buyers. I sometimes sell hard-to-find Japanese consoles and offer signature confirmation at my expense just to be safe. Last year I bought four PS Vitas and sold three of them, with plans to keep the fourth if it didn't sell. It did, at $480, but then the buyer completely disappeared. eBay has a system you can use to report non-paying bidders, but if you give the buyer the maximum amount of time to respond to you, and he doesn't, eBay will close the case automatically -- in the buyer's favor! Which means that eBay still takes their 9.1% even though no money changed hands between buyer and seller, and the product is still in the seller's hand!

I searched high and low for a customer service telephone number, finally found one, and after a ton of negotiation, got eBay to refund the fee they took on a nonexistent sale. Kept the Vita -- and I really do like it!
 
I thought ebay was taking measures to put a stop to this?

Either way, I don't hold it against people for trying to make a profit off of this. *shrugs*
 
Baconsammy said:
The Best Buy I got my Deluxe at yesterday still had both versions in stock today when I was returning my Pro Controller (it sucks). Either Nintendo is getting better at stocking launches, or this thing has no hype whatsoever out of the gate, but that should change as Black Friday gets here and the masses descend upon the stores.
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why would BF change things if it has no hype?
 
Just refused a UPS shipment of a Wii U Deluxe set. I guess I should have tried to slang that shiz on eBay...but it seemed that the supply was pretty good. No longer interested in the system. Will wait for Mario Kart.
 
sk3tch said:
Just refused a UPS shipment of a Wii U Deluxe set. I guess I should have tried to slang that shiz on eBay...but it seemed that the supply was pretty good. No longer interested in the system. Will wait for Mario Kart.
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Nah. I'm not sure how kindly stores look on refused shipments, but if you couldn't return it locally and didn't want it, ebay wasn't a great option. Lot of risk for almost no profit. This way you can sleep easy at night knowing you won't get scammed out of 400 bucks because you were trying to make a measly 50 dollars profit.
 
What's the best way to avoid charge backs on eBay?

I have read that people can randomly file a charge back on any purchase they make for up to a year.

I got some extra Wii U swag that I want to put on eBay (along with some other gaming items) but I am downright terrified that some scammer is going to claim the boxes I sent him were empty. I've read enough horror stories that I believe it's at least a little bit possible.
 
I just got one off of ebay, got me for $100 over MSRP but it had local pick up and I can get it tonight so I went for it.

Not bad, I dont have to wait in line or anything and the guys going to make about $60 after sales tax and ebay/paypal fees.
 
1-D_FTW said:
Nah. I'm not sure how kindly stores look on refused shipments, but if you couldn't return it locally and didn't want it, ebay wasn't a great option. Lot of risk for almost no profit. This way you can sleep easy at night knowing you won't get scammed out of 400 bucks because you were trying to make a measly 50 dollars profit.
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Cool. Yeah, if you refuse a shipment you will get a full refund...often times you get your S&H refunded as well. The benefit is you do not have to pay to send it back (or in my case, drive to Best Buy to return it and deal with that B.S.). So, win win.
 
CrashPrime said:
What's the best way to avoid charge backs on eBay?

I have read that people can randomly file a charge back on any purchase they make for up to a year.

I got some extra Wii U swag that I want to put on eBay (along with some other gaming items) but I am downright terrified that some scammer is going to claim the boxes I sent him were empty. I've read enough horror stories that I believe it's at least a little bit possible.
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I'm not sure there's much you can do. American Express was notorious for this (maybe still is). Someone could file a chargeback and they'd side with the buyer no questions asked (as long as they didn't abuse it too often to raise red flags).

From a seller POV, if you want any hope of protection, you need to do signature confirmation. Without that, you're pretty much screwed unless the buyer grows a conscience and retracts his lies.
 
1-D_FTW said:
I'm not sure there's much you can do. American Express was notorious for this (maybe still is). Someone could file a chargeback and they'd side with the buyer no questions asked (as long as they didn't abuse it too often to raise red flags).

From a seller POV, if you want any hope of protection, you need to do signature confirmation. Without that, you're pretty much screwed unless the buyer grows a conscience and retracts his lies.
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Another option is to launder the money the second you get it and have zero balance in your bank account linked checking account.
 
CrashPrime said:
What's the best way to avoid charge backs on eBay?

I have read that people can randomly file a charge back on any purchase they make for up to a year.

I got some extra Wii U swag that I want to put on eBay (along with some other gaming items) but I am downright terrified that some scammer is going to claim the boxes I sent him were empty. I've read enough horror stories that I believe it's at least a little bit possible.
Click to expand...

From a U.S. perspective, there aren't too many options that I am aware of, especially if you are going internationally via a non-trackable method. Most international eBay scammers know they have a good shot at 2-3 complimentary items shipped via first class international before eBay considers bringing the hammer down. The seller will never have any proof beyond a local hub or two. For the more pricey stuff, make 'em pay the extra $12 for registered or even more for Priority mail int. (trackable and usually some base insurance, depending on recipient's address)

Within the U.S. returns are rarely denied, regardless of any verbiage in your listing. You can do a little buyer pre-screening if you set up buyer requirements on the seller admin side. It will not let you block zero feedbackers ("we were all zeroes at one time," ha ha), though some of the criteria is useful. That is where you truly can block buyers from another region by adding the area to your exemption list, otherwise they can still get through. Or you can just choose no international and remove all. If it comes down to a payment funded by a credit card, you are pretty much beaten. They will give the finger to eBay/PayPal and ultimately the seller.

You can take the money and run, though unless you have no plans of coming back, they will tap into any future PayPal balance until it is paid off or simply threaten to come after you.

And always keep in mind that eBay's cut is on the entire item/shipping + Paypal's 2.9% + .30 per transaction, if you are wondering if it is even worth it. Listing fees will of course vary.
 
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