Black Friday

Decided to try out the mobile android app for Ebay. I've lost the last three bids for used G1 phones. I want to have at least a small sample of hardware to test on. At least one older generation phone. I'm new to Ebay and keep getting outbid at the last moment. So with my shiny new Ebay app I set about searching for a phone.

I quickly find a number of G1 phones and I like how the interface shows bids in red that are nearly over. I scan a few pages to get an idea of the price range that they are going for. It seems like many are still going for over $100. I see one at $66 that has just 10 minutes left. I put in a bid with $70 as my max. The timer counts down in real time, which gives me reassurance that i will be able to put in a last minute bid. I get an email 3 minutes later that I've been outbid. Hrm. I was hoping to see that in my app. I decide to wait for 3 more minutes and then bid. The price is now $71. I bid a max of $75. Two minutes later I'm outbid. Less than a minute to go. This is where you have to decide what your limit is. I almost let it go. I set my limit at $75. But i check the other bids and many are going for over $120. So with 30 seconds to go I bid a max of $80. The price changes to $78. Then at the last moment the other person puts in a bid of $79... But I win with my $80! Wooot!

My first Ebay item that I've won. Very cool. I'm smiling and justifying my purchase to my wife. "I can deduct it!" I assure her, not really sure myself. I think I can. In any event, I'm glowing. I contemplate going for another older phone just for the fun of it... Nawww.