Article 14 of 283

Subject:      Re: WARNING: about OnSale.com, Auctions are rigged!
From:         mobro@peernet.net (mobro)
Date:         1997/04/01
Message-Id:   <33426629.7843541@netnews2.worldnet.att.net>
Newsgroups:   misc.forsale.computers.discussion,misc.forsale.computers.memory,misc.forsale.computers.modems,misc.forsale.computers.monitors,misc.forsale.computers.net-hardware,misc.forsale.computers.printers,misc.forsale.computers.storage
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Phil,

While there IS a trick to getting the lowest successful bid. I am astounded by
the foolish bids that approach retail prices. We can't control that! At that
rate Onsale, Inc. needn't rig anything. The fools rush on in, throwing thier
money away.

I have had extensive experience with Onsale, Inc. and thier vendors. I won a
motherboard, CPU & fan from Vircom, Inc. ( a closely associated vendor, if not
a subsidiary by now) after which I was told they were unable to fulfill my
order as they were out of stock on the CPU's. Meanwhile, they were still
auctioning the same items two weeks later. I bitched a little. I got the
items.

Next, I ordered three network interface cards ($4 each!) shipping was charged
as three times $8. I bitched a bit louder this time. The three cards shipped
for $8 total. Great network cards, BTW.

After successful bid on a tape backup drive, I emailed shipping instructions
to Vircom/Onsale. Shipment "went out before instructions were received". A
very minor inconvenience. Good merchandise, though.

'Winning' a motherboard/CPU/fan and video card, in two auctions, from Vircom,
I emailed them with specific details about delivery and insisted on one
shipment and fee. They sent two packages at $8.95 and $9.95 shipping fees. I
bitched to both Onsale, Inc. and Vircom as before. Vircom credited $9.95. Once
again, good merchandise.

Lastly, in a protracted effort to win one of the Logitech Pagescan Color
scanners, I finally snagged one! The auction page stated Computer Geeks, Inc.,
the vendor, would charge "approx. U.P.S. Ground rate" for shipping and the
vendor offered a one-year warranty on this refurbished item. Item shipped, at
nearly twice the U.P.S. Ground rate, with invoice that stated "180-day
Computer Geeks warranty". I bitched repeatedly to Onsale, Inc. and Computer
Geeks, Inc. to finally get the one-year warranty. The shipping charges remain
inflated, with Computer Geeks stating that they " do not charge handling fees"
that they shipped "at OUR Ground rate". I will get the shipping excess back,
as a matter of principle, from the bank.

Over all, I feel Onsale, Inc. has been running an automated auction site with
little followup on the extended charges for shipping and a less-than-candid
approach to the vendors' misrepresentations. They have stated, in each of the
above instances, that a computer  'glitch' produced the shipping costs. I can
only imagine the hundreds, if not thousands, of consumers who have not bitched
at Onsale, Inc. and got taken in one form or another.

Onsale, Inc. is about to go public with an Initial Public Offering of stock
shares and I hope they'll get thier act together if only to impress the
analysts. 

I am not so certain I could recommend Onsale, Inc.'s auction site to the
uninitiated. This is guerilla-warfare purchasing and I wonder if the very
favorable prices are worth the rabid defense of the other costs and issues.

There, I feel... lighter now. Thank you, Doctor. Same time, next week?

mobro