Re: [NTLK] Why I don't buy from Knowledge Navigator (Example #3)

On May 5, 2006, at 1:03 PM, Newt Gwen wrote:

> I have a same kind of Story but with Electronic Cafe. One month ago,
> they wanted to charge me $47.55 to send me a small 4Mo eMate memory
> upgrade.
>

Did that 47.55 total include the shipping? That's fair market value,
I'm afraid. I just completed my own purchase of a 4MB memory upgrade
from Electronics Cafe. No complaints, everything went smooth and the
chip was packed in anti-static wrap. I've been watching for one of
these (at the $40 price point) for about 2-3 months now and finally
scored one. Total cost (to me): $35.57 ($27.50 bid + $13.07 shipping -
$5 off eBay coupon from Harrah's expiring 4/30/06)

Here's the thing, if someone wants to charge $20.00 for shipping, let
them. As long as it is presented in the auction in a clear and concise
manner, I can then judge "fair market value" for myself. Why KN would
offer a Buy It Now for $29.99 (+ a $5.00 extortion fee) at the same
time give you the same deal (or worse) if you bid on it, doesn't make a
lick of sense.

EC will set the starting price at $0.99. This seller, essentially, is
allowing the market to set the price. And, people are buying his items
left and right. KN's auctions, on the other hand, are always set twice
as much as he should be asking (READ: 2x more than what I'm willing to
pay for) and I (and others) continue to buy elsewhere. His loss...my
point.

> They never try to speak with me and only send dispute mail with eBay.
>

I too, was a little worried about EC's reputation and feedback history.
But, at the same time, I can understand his position. eBay can be a
tough place to do any large amount of business and yet, still retain an
unsoiled reputation.

>
> Like you can imagine, I didn't pay :(
>

oh...

Sorry to hear that.

> Newton is a good business actually. I don't know why, but it was
> difficult to seal something 3 or 4 years ago but now, everybody wants
> a Newton and all the accessory at any price :(

Actually, you're not too far off base here. I've seen a dramatic
decrease in the availability of Newton parts and accessories on eBay.
Just a year ago, I can remember, search results for "Newton 2100" would
yield 3 or 4 pages. Now, only one page. I'm sort of glad I finally
purchased an eMate 300 and a (beat up) 2100 (to play with) this last
year. Prices and availability probably won't be getting any better, I'm
sure.

Kind Regards,

Ron

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