looking into it, theres a couple ebay auctions ending fri night that i need to win, parts for a customer's vehicle, but ill be traveling for holidays and unable to bid at close.

found auctionsniper.com and betting theres plenty of similar sites. any of you guys used em before?

comments/advice/etc? makes me nervous that i have to give em my password an all, but i figure i can change it for this, then change it after.

12/21/2005 11:30:30 PM

it's good as long as it's free.

12/21/2005 11:33:43 PM

i think its a buck an auction or so. almost free.

12/21/2005 11:39:23 PM

i thought they had like 5 free snipes, or they used to.

it works pretty good, as long as the other person isn't using it too.

12/21/2005 11:42:23 PM

I use it whenever I'm serious abouit buying shit on ebay that doesn't have a "buy it now"

12/22/2005 12:38:09 AM

yep use it if you want to win.

12/22/2005 12:40:27 AM

I swear to god, this shit is stupid.

Bid what you're willing to pay.

12/22/2005 1:48:42 AM

Auction sniping became pointless the moment eBay introduced the proxy bid.

12/22/2005 4:41:19 AM

I've used http://www.snipeswipe.com/ before fine.

12/22/2005 8:40:38 AM

use Auction Sentry, it costs money but can be found through other channels

12/22/2005 8:45:59 AM

^^^[No]

Most people don't bid their "highest and best" offer when proxy bidding. I hate you snipers btw...

12/22/2005 8:50:14 AM

someone explain to me - what does this mean? It bids so you win no matter what?

[new] to me

12/22/2005 9:06:23 AM

no it snipes for you

you choose a bid and it places that bid at the last possible second, thereby preventing anyone from mulling over your bid and choosing to outbid you

kinda dumb, but that's the psychology, and sniping works

12/22/2005 9:44:22 AM

I use eSnipe. Dirt cheap and never let me down.

12/22/2005 9:51:51 AM

the only reason im looking at it is i physically cant watch the end of the auction, and if you enter your max bid well in advance, anyone else interested just drives the price way up until the end.

12/22/2005 12:10:01 PM

Also it keeps people from outbidding you by mere cents.

12/22/2005 12:27:36 PM

Ebay is riddled with snipers, i cant win anything becuase folks will snipe me by 50 cents of my max bid at the last like 30 seconds.
Cant recommend a service, but go for it.

And let us know how it works out.

12/23/2005 1:33:45 PM

there are 2 ways to bid on an ebay auction:
1. enter your absolute highest bid, hope that no one else wants it even a hair more than you and don't check back until it's over. this only works if your bid is TRULY the most you would pay for that item. not a cent more.

2. wait until about 5 seconds are left then enter your absolute highest bid. You'll either get the item for a bit more than the other person's highest bid or they'll get it for a bit more than yours.

Posting more than one bid for an item is setting yourself up for a fall. You'll eventually get caught up in the rush of the bidding war and pay more than you wanted/the item is worth.

Now between the 2 methods above sniping is gonna save you money. If you post your bid while there's still time left, there are gonna be people who keep bidding little by little till they find you max bid and then bid the next increment up. And even if they don't outbid you, they've still driven your cost up.

That said, people who use automated sniping programs are "cheating" the competition and are dickholes in general.

12/23/2005 3:54:42 PM

what if someone else is sniping, too?

12/23/2005 5:22:35 PM

^put in 3 seconds instead of 5 and make sure your internet connection doesn't suck

12/23/2005 5:33:13 PM

if someone else is sniping, then whoever was willing to pay more will get the item.

12/23/2005 9:45:16 PM

I think I use bidsniper or whatever... it works just fine. I've used it like five times (my free snipes).

12/24/2005 9:48:13 PM