Re: What is an Apple II worth?

[fortran@earthlink.net (Edward Franks)]

My glass typewriter shows Rubywand typing...
> Stefan Miganowicz writes ...
> > 
> > What is the original Apple II worth?
>  ....
> 
>      If you mean one of the pre-II+ Apple II's with the original-design
> motherboard, its value does seem to be on the rise. A 'mint condition' model
> might fetch a good price on eBay-- say, a few hundred dollars. The situation
> with on-line bidding is so weird that there is no such thing as a standard
> price for such items.

	eBay tends to be weird only when a you have the case of an item 
showing up once in a great while (for example, a Sega Master System 
Ultima IV).  You get people paying more than normal to grab something 
simply due to scarcity.  If a particular item shows up on a regular basis 
(say, an Apple ][ Ultima IV), then the prices tend to stabilize around a 
particular amount.

	Then you have the eternal case of the uninformed buyer paying too 
much for something 'cause they either fell in love with the item, got 
caught in the fever of a bidding war (gotta be high bidder syndrome), or 
believe the sales spiel of the seller.  Which then can lead to uninformed 
sellers thinking everyone else will pay that high price for their item.  
:(

	On the other hand, sometimes a high price motivates people to put 
their copies up for sale thus driving the prices down to a more 
reasonable level.  (For example, the above mentioned SMS U4, which now 
commands less because more people are selling theirs.)

	Whether we like it or not, eBay _is_ setting market prices.  We 
are now seeing small dealers using eBay to reach customers across the 
country (it has made a noticeable impact on the US Post Office according 
to my local Postmaster) instead of just their local geographic areas.  
All of this is going to give tight-fisted collectors some heartburn.  It 
is a lot harder to pick up a real deal when you are competing with people 
across the world.

-- 

Fortran Dragon -==(UDIC)==-
Hidalgo Trading Company: <http://home.earthlink.net/~fortran/>
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