eBay sniping apps

[0iD]

Do ebay sniping apps actually work? Not that i'd normally use one, but there are a few bits & bobs i want. Recomendations?

[Tobeman]

I've only ever had experience of auctionsniper.com, and worked the once I used it, you get three free snipes

[0iD]

Ta muchly. 4 demanding kids to buy chrimbo prezzies for

[Paul Adams]

Does it make a big difference now with automatic proxy bidding built into eBay?

At the end of the day, if you put in the maximum amount you would pay (and account for P&P) then you will either get the item at up to that price, or you will be outbid in which case someone was willing to pay more for it than you were.

One trick I have noticed people doing is putting in "odd" amounts such as £100.21 - the rule is that the highest and earliest bid takes precedence and there is a minimum bid increase.
So if the auction got to £100 with a minimum increase of £2.50 then you can't bid less than £102.50, but if your proxy bid limit was £100.21 then this would become the highest bid and you would be in the lead (and I think the next bid would therefore have to be £102.71 in this example).

[Dark Horse]

Often people don't put their very highest bid in to start with. If you then bid seconds before the auction ends they don't have the chance to put a higher bid in to beat it. There are a fair few times I've been sitting watching for an auction i've been winning to end when someone nips in with 5 secs to go and a I lose it.

Sniping works well most of the time unless someone has put in a very high bid at the start which can happen with ebay noobs.

[autopilot]

Does it make a big difference now with automatic proxy bidding built into eBay?

Yes, it makes a huge difference. Only noobs rely on the proxy system. It serves only to make the final price higher with a bidding war (and make eBay more money too). Snipping, annoying as it can be for someone who gets sniped, is the only sensible way to use eBay if you want to pay the least amount posible.

If anyone wants to join auctionsnipper, PM me. It's free, you get 3 free snipes and i will get 3 free snipes too.

[tim_n]

hehe

I've sat on ebay, watch syncronised to get that item I want at a price I recon I'll get away with.

I remember getting a bunch of stickers by bidding in the last second. It's pure adrienaline fun - it's the clock, your PC, you browser, ebays server, your internet connection and most importantly you.

The amount of cheering and booing after an especially tight auction!

[autopilot]

Have a look on download.com for a few sniping programs too.