High cost of ATARI on ebay..

[+slx]

My children will likely toss my collection. Sad to think about, but the likely outcome.

 

Well, at least one of my kids has an Atari on his desk and knows how to program it and the others at least play Atari in emulation. Maybe they'll keep at least some of my stuff when I have played my last game.

 

You'll never now what becomes fashionable in collecting. I wouldn't buy Ataris as an investment, either, though.

[ClausB]

Because I enjoy the challenge of repair (and I'm cheap), I have tended toward the low price untested lots, and have lucked into working units more often than not. But there seem to be fewer of those these days on eBay and Craigslist, or else I'm looking less often.

[Wrathchild]

The whole "for spares or repairs" also sometimes being overpriced might come under this category too

[+kheller2]

I tend to try to procure the "lot" of misbehaving/for parts/broken/I have no idea stuff. I have a backlog of 15 1050s to refurbish. I would like to start making intro kits for new folks, 1050 + DOS disks, 800XL, power and cords. Its a wild dream I know.

[xrbrevin]

untested hardware without cables/PSUs is also often way overpriced. i think they must want to keep it!... well they can!

[256 colors]

LMFAO the price of this thing and it's untested too with no returns

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Atari-800xl-Bundle/113237979375?hash=item1a5d8270ef:g:sUsAAOSw4n1bk9VP

[xrbrevin]

hehe, i feel like offering 30 quid just to "reality-check" them

[Mclaneinc]

I think the saying "I'd buy that for a Dollar" comes to mind...700 notes for that......That large rack of bacon just flew over my head...

 

Untested just screams, ignore me

[Mclaneinc]

hehe, i feel like offering 30 quid just to "reality-check" them

 

And then write back and say you didn't see the "no returns" thing and drop it to 25.00 just as a nice proper thump back in to reality...

Edited September 14, 2018 by Mclaneinc

[+slx]

untested hardware without cables/PSUs is also often way overpriced. i think they must want to keep it!... well they can!

 

I suspect PSUs are sometimes deliberately left out to make the "can't test for lack of cables" story more plausible. If you read "untested" as "doesn't" work and bid accordingly you can only get positive surprises.

[Mclaneinc]

I don't blame people trying to not send PSU's in some cases, the 800XL one is a ton weight and shipping takes a massive hike, some people just don't mention the PSU which for me is a bit iffy but that just might be me...

 

But yes, for the more devious a claim that there's no PSU so no test is very naughty but as you say it adds plausibility to the story..

 

For them I offer a genuine product from Morrisons supermarkets here in the UK..

 

I think they deserve it..

 

(slightly rudeish word but safe) (has to be its on Morrisons shelves at the moment, seen it with my own eyes..)

 

https://tinyurl.com/ybqrgf57

Edited September 14, 2018 by Mclaneinc

[scitari]

I agree with your assessment. In addition to increasing rarity and nostalgia those seeking Atari hardware and software are in the prime of their careers with extra $ in their wallets. A perfect storm! I agree that the bottom will fall out of this market. The question is when! 5 years? 10 years? 20 years? My guess is it will be hot and heavy for at least 10 more years before the crash.

 

It is sad to think we are all putting together these awesome collections that will have no value and no interest when we move on to the great 8-bit paradise in the sky.

 

I am very lucky to have put together the majority of my collection back in the early 2000s when it was easy to come by and dirt cheap at thrift stores and flea markets. I recall paying $10-20 each for boxes of hardware and software.

 

I too have noticed that for some Atari items, the price has been on the rise, but like many have opined, that trend is on borrowed time. I'd venture that most of us seeking 8-Bit Atari stuff are in their 40s, 50s and early 60s. We all found our way back to retro computing out of nostalgia. We didn't all get here at the same time, but I'd guess most of us that are coming have arrived. As we all compete for the same stuff, the higher price is warranted by the surge in demand. But here's the kicker, once we all have what we came for, guess what happens? Prices will eventually plummet as there are no more Atari kids (they aren't making them anymore). My children will likely toss my collection. Sad to think about, but the likely outcome.

 

I think we are at a turning point though. Spares are drying up and as we buy up the units left on eBay, that leaves fewer in the wild to be discovered. For the near term, that translates into higher prices as we are all chasing this finite supply. I have bought a stupid amount of 8-bit hardware in the last 8 years, but I am at a point that I think I'm content. I'm actually selling off items I have an excess of. So, when a bunch of guys like me stop buying and become sellers, the trend will reverse and prices will fall and probably never recover. If you are under the age of 45, this stuff likely does not interest you.

 

As to paying too much, guilty as charged. When I find a specimen in very nice cosmetic condition, it is worth the premium to me as they are getting harder to find. I'm talking about units that still look like they just came out of the box yesterday. They are out there, but you have to be vigilant and/or lucky. Any time I see "not tested", I assume the worst. I'm pretty careful, but I've been scammed a time or two. The C64 crowd probably will never have to worry about this issue as they made like 17 million of those things. In the end, any item is worth what someone is willing to pay for it.

Edited September 14, 2018 by scitari

[Keatah]

It's not just Atari stuff. But as mentioned before Apple II stuff. There's some joker trying to sell original bagged games for $300 - $800 per copy. Manual scans are online, disk images in multiple formats are online, what's the point? Because original? I guess..

[GreyHobbit]

This was listed at £1199 a few days ago, the price has been dropping steadily... £599 at the minute, bargain!

 

LMFAO the price of this thing and it's untested too with no returns

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Atari-800xl-Bundle/113237979375?hash=item1a5d8270ef:g:sUsAAOSw4n1bk9VP

[rockdoc2010]

Wow! be careful what you ask I rekon. The response on this subject was intense. I actually have two 600xl, three 1200xl an xegs, 65xe and 130xe, three 1050 disk drives, an 822, and two alphacom 422, and three 1020 printers.

I was just gazing at the sales and noticed the crazy prices.

I only really need a couple of items.. psu's, joysticks etc.

I am busy getting into mods and builds like a 1200xl from bare MB up and a 1088xel.

I will probably be one of those sellers within five years time.. fun i should probably sell now!

 

Douglas

[adam1977]

This was listed at £1199 a few days ago, the price has been dropping steadily... £599 at the minute, bargain!

 

 

I last saw it at £849 and thought that was ridiculous! what planet are these people living on

[adam1977]

I don't blame people trying to not send PSU's in some cases, the 800XL one is a ton weight and shipping takes a massive hike, some people just don't mention the PSU which for me is a bit iffy but that just might be me...

 

But yes, for the more devious a claim that there's no PSU so no test is very naughty but as you say it adds plausibility to the story..

 

For them I offer a genuine product from Morrisons supermarkets here in the UK..

 

I think they deserve it..

 

(slightly rudeish word but safe) (has to be its on Morrisons shelves at the moment, seen it with my own eyes..)

 

https://tinyurl.com/ybqrgf57

 

I've never heard of Ghana's Best, wonder if it does what it says on the tin, so to speak?

 

Edited September 15, 2018 by adam1977

[Mclaneinc]

With enough chilli sauce I reckon it could ultrabrite and Atari...

 

What colour is a different question

[Geister]

Craigs list is just as bad..when there's anything at all. Someone in upper Darby (near Philly) is offering a 600XL "New in Box" for a mere $150. Its advertised as ORIGINAL EVERYTHING, all cords and inserts in the box.

 

Odd, I didn't know the 600XL came with a 410 owner's manual and not a 600XL owner's manual.

 

https://philadelphia.craigslist.org/sys/d/atari-600xl-new-in-box/6697128337.html

 

Somehow that RF cable doesn't look familiar (fami-LIAR?)

Edited September 15, 2018 by Geister

[+slx]

It's not just Atari stuff. But as mentioned before Apple II stuff. There's some joker trying to sell original bagged games for $300 - $800 per copy. Manual scans are online, disk images in multiple formats are online, what's the point? Because original? I guess..

 

Some people just have to have "mint in sealed box", even if it's just a plastic baggie. To each his own and while I do like game boxes and original manuals I wouldn't enjoy having a collection that looks like a store shelf. But apparently some people do.

 

If mint boxes are rare it's natural for them to be expensive. That's a specialist niche while the EBay and Craigslist prices commented here are caused by greedy people who have heard that old computers are expensive now. I still wonder if they find suckers to buy those prices, eventually reduce the price or just throw it away.

[spacecadet]

I agree that the bottom will fall out of this market. The question is when! 5 years? 10 years? 20 years?

 

Well, people have been saying this for more than 20 years already, so obviously longer than that.

 

I think some of you guys just need to accept that the world has changed. The days when you could get an Atari 800XL for 5 bucks were before Ebay existed. There's now a global marketplace for any individual item. That is a sea change. People used to need to actively seek out someone locally who was actually interested in something that was, at the time, just considered outdated and obsolete garbage. Now they just put a listing up and they have a built-in audience coming to *them* from all over the world for "classic" and "retro" stuff. And that audience is growing all the time - even Ebay used to be a lot smaller than it is now. (I remember buying my old Sears heavy sixer, in the box, on Ebay for $13. But that was in 1998, when most people weren't even on the *internet* yet, much less Ebay. And you still had to pay for stuff by physically mailing a money order to the seller.)

 

Combine that with the fact that nobody's making more of this stuff, most of it's already changed hands from those who don't want it to those who do, and some of it's still breaking irreparably every year (even I dropped my Atari 5200 on the floor and shattered the two clear panels on it), and supply isn't what it once was either.

 

Saying "the people who pay these prices are to blame!" is a little strange too... that's just supply and demand. The value of an item is the price you're able to sell it for. I may remember the days when a box of cereal cost 99 cents, but that doesn't mean a box of cereal is still worth 99 cents today or that I'm going to be able to walk into a grocery store with 99 cents and walk out with a box of cereal. Plenty of people are willing to pay $5 for a box of cereal, so that's what the manufacturers and stores price it at. My desire to pay less doesn't mean anything to anyone; it's irrelevant.

 

This is one of the oldest discussions on this site, and it comes up every few months. I always get sucked in to commenting on it even though it's the same thing over and over, and has been for as long as I've been here. (Which is a long time.) But I do see at least a few more people starting to accept reality, so hopefully it's beginning to sink in.

[_The Doctor__]

BS pharmo bro proves you wrong, want an epi pen?

 

ebay is a joke, it's shot... you have to be careful and talk to people... you can get a deal... you have a cabal of sharks and folks who have been working the system for years and the scams are written about. Buying a used shoe on ebay for twice what a new one in a store or online doesn't seem like a person would do so... think about it...

 

I've shown and provided links proving what gets done how and why.. Not going to re hash post and do it all again... You have to deal with folks in the message/mail section, if they are a d-bag they won't deal. If they are a good person and didn't realize how the system is manipulated and skewed, you can show them how the pricing aids and listings conflate new used and pristine or even Charity auction prices as the going rate... Someone buys a widget for 5000 dollars as a charitible act, the widget is worth 40 dollars... ebay now says the going rate is 5000, or an average of 2000 trending upward etc... many many examples of all sorts of things like this.

 

anyway it is what it is... NICE SHARKY NICE Shark... eeeeeeee

Edited September 16, 2018 by _The Doctor__

[gilsaluki]

There are still some deals to be had. It's unfortunate people are not honest.

[+kheller2]

Craigs list is just as bad..when there's anything at all. Someone in upper Darby (near Philly) is offering a 600XL "New in Box" for a mere $150. Its advertised as ORIGINAL EVERYTHING, all cords and inserts in the box.

 

Odd, I didn't know the 600XL came with a 410 owner's manual and not a 600XL owner's manual.

 

https://philadelphia.craigslist.org/sys/d/atari-600xl-new-in-box/6697128337.html

 

Somehow that RF cable doesn't look familiar (fami-LIAR?)

 

 

I've seen that hockey puck RF cable before.. I don't own one but I've seen them with Atari 600XLs before.

 

But, it's $150 FIRM! Firm I say!

 

I would offer $50, at most. But thats me.

[Tickled_Pink]

It's not much better in the UK. I'm starting to think that the most cost effective method is to buy and repair faulty units. There are FB groups where the prices are more reasonable. People there just want to see things go to a good home ... and because they're part of a community, they don't want to Jack prices up. If prices go up, things are going to cost THEM more in the long run as well.