Ebay -- Engadget Mobile

iPhone 3GS prototype scooped up at airport, now on eBay

by Darren Murph, posted Jul 3rd 2009 @ 12:44PM

Seriously folks, what's up with these prototype iPhones falling out of nondescript white vans and ending up on eBay in the shadiest of manners? Just months after we saw an original iPhone prototype (ancient OS included) pop up on The 'Bay, now we've got one of the world's first iPhone 3GSs on there as well. According to the highly ranked eBay seller, the "guy" he "got it from" actually stumbled upon it at an airport, and rather than doing the nonsensical thing of hitting up lost and found, he decided to make the most of the sudden opportunity. According to the new owner, an Apple Genius has confirmed that it is an iPhone 3GS, but due to its prototype nature, they can't help him get past the "Connect to iTunes" screen. In other words, it's an incredibly rare brick. If that sounds like just the thing to complete your collection, you can visit the road to overpaying through the read link below.

[Via ElectricPig]

Palm Pre hits eBay prior to official launch: just $900 and a fistful of shame

by Darren Murph, posted Jun 5th 2009 @ 10:51AM

Look, if this were one of those elusive GSM Pres, we might be able to understand this. But seriously -- $899.99 for a Palm Pre that you won't get until launch day anyway? 'Course, there are those certain folks that are born everyday, but we couldn't caution you enough to steer clear here. After all, lines won't even be a problem come tomorrow, right guys? On another note, how did some chap from Encino end up with five of these gems? White panel van delivery or something?

[Via GadgetVenue]

Google's altruistic Ion giveaway instantly rewarded with blind greed

by Chris Ziegler, posted May 28th 2009 @ 7:03AM

Call it a sign of the times, call it a Google I/O attendee who just didn't really like the Ion, call it an overabundance of Western-style capitalism, call it man's almost instinctive need to generate profit -- whatever the case, one of the 4,000 specially-branded Ions given away at the conference this week is now available to the highest bidder. Never mind the fact that it's an I/O special edition, though -- outside of this particular device, we're not sure where you can find a 1700MHz 3G HTC Magic at any price, so we're sure this is going to be worth plenty of cold, hard cash to plenty of people who aren't in San Francisco at the moment. Oh, and don't worry if you miss out on this one; we'd be shocked if there weren't others in the pipeline.

[Via TmoToday]

Keepin' it real fake, part CCXIII: Magic trick goes awry on eBay

by Darren Murph, posted May 20th 2009 @ 9:59PM

Sigh. Where to begin? It looks like a Magic, it smells like a Magic, but the perfectionist in us fully understands that it's absolutely not a Magic. The self-proclaimed followup to HTC's G1 has itself an impostor, and that very shammer is parading around on eBay for the low, low price of $122.99. Granted, that doesn't buy you an HTC logo, Android or 3G, but hey, it just might fool a few folks on the subway. Take it from us, though, it's totally not worth the risk of embarrassment.

[Thanks, Jeremy]

iPhone prototype surfaces on eBay, aims to fetch a pretty penny

by Darren Murph, posted Mar 9th 2009 @ 7:42PM

Okay, so we'll go ahead and crush a few dreams up front -- there's nothing here that proves this isn't some funky KIRF iPhone or just an ad hoc or jailbroken app making things look completely funkadelic. Now that our skepticism is out in the open, we'll be honest and say we really, really hope this is legitimate. According to the eBay description, this here iPhone prototype was constructed a few months prior to the real iPhone's release, and it actually powers on, makes calls and receives SMSs. It sports a totally beta plastic matte screen, and the software is obviously pre-release. Oh, and the best part? The auction winner also scores a second beta phone that won't turn on (yet), but we're sure the right tweaker could fix it up into the most amazing secondary phone the world has ever seen. Forget all that bad economic news you've been hearing -- you best bring the bring the bank if you're thinking seriously about claiming this.

[Via iLounge]

AT&T-branded E71x relegated to eBay

by Sean Cooper, posted Jan 10th 2009 @ 3:59PM

Remember that black AT&T branded E71x we saw some time back? Well, it came and went in an eBay auction yesterday -- yeah, we're kinda bummed we missed it, too -- with some lucky soul getting the win for a cool $370. The rumor mill seems to have stopped turning on this one, but we're really hoping to hear something new soon because the itch is just about killing us.

[Via Symbian-Guru]

Mysterious pink iPhone 3G hits eBay, cue onslaught of rumors

by Jacob Schulman, posted Jan 2nd 2009 @ 3:11AM

Say wha'?! An iPhone in a hue other than black, white, or silver? While a red model has been rumored since before the 3G even launched, we've never thought about a pink one -- let alone one hitting eBay. The text on the back of the device convinces us that this isn't a simple ColorWare job, but there aren't any photos of the back of the packaging either. Our take? Some OEM in Asia whipping up custom colors. But hey, Macworld's just under a week away, so who knows?

[Thanks, Gav]

AT&T BlackBerry Curve 8900 on eBay, not cheap

by Laura June, posted Nov 8th 2008 @ 2:05AM

So, the BlackBerry Curve 8900 AKA Javelin (with black trackball) has been spied on eBay with a starting bid of $2,500. In the words of our intern Jacob, "What a bargain." C'mon: it's got a black trackball.

[Thanks, jojo]

Motorola to prevent secondhand AURA sales on eBay?

by Darren Murph, posted Nov 3rd 2008 @ 12:31PM

We'll be completely straight-up with you: we don't believe this for a second. Okay, maybe for a nanosecond, but not a full-on second. An unnamed source close to Motorola has reportedly informed Register Hardware that in order to maintain the AURA's appearance of exclusivity, buyers will be required to "sign into a contract that states they can't sell it on eBay." As if that wasn't preposterous enough, this so-called "source" also added that "if an AURA owner wants to sell their phone after they've bought it then they'll only have one option: to sell it back to the manufacturer." Even if this does miraculously prove true, we can't imagine Moto actually doing anything should someone decide to sell, and besides, there's always ~~Yahoo! Auctions~~ the flea market, right?

AT&T Fuze shows up again, this time courtesy of eBay

by Chris Ziegler, posted Oct 27th 2008 @ 12:57PM

We can't help but wonder who these mysterious individuals are who get pre-release gear from carriers and manage -- somehow -- to sneak it onto ginormous, hugely visible auction sites without getting into any hot water. Not to say we're complaining; after all, how else would we have the opportunity to see the Fuze's ~~retail box~~ guide book (strangely devoid of AT&T branding) and get a second confirmation that there's going to be a big ol' AT&T logo slapped on the upper right corner of the face? Not to mention that this gives all us peasants the opportunity to scrape up and count the dimes that've collected underneath our couch, hoping beyond hope that we somehow have enough cash to place a bid. We never do, but we can dream.

[Via wmpoweruser.com]

AT&T BlackBerry Bold pops up on eBay, box and all

by Darren Murph, posted Oct 21st 2008 @ 7:03PM

It's hard to say how this happens, but yet again, we're seeing a not-yet-released handset up on eBay for those willing to pay the earliest adopter premium. So far as we can tell by the photo above and the one after the break, this here is a real deal AT&T BlackBerry Bold -- the same one you've been waiting months upon months (upon months) for. The current auction price is pretty steep, but if you've got a great feeling about buying a high-end handset that's not yet available to the public from someone with a feedback rating of 2, have at it.

[Via BlackBerry Forums, thanks Vin]

Continue reading AT&T BlackBerry Bold pops up on eBay, box and all

One man's trash is another's treasure: 75 pounds of Verizon crap for sale on eBay

by Chris Ziegler, posted Sep 18th 2008 @ 9:55PM

And yes, it includes a Verizon-branded cowbell.

[Thanks, Tim]

Pre-owned iPhones fetching crazy prices post-iPhone 3G launch

by Darren Murph, posted Sep 13th 2008 @ 8:09PM

This little phenomenon has been going on ever since lines were wrapped around buildings as consumers waited impatiently for the iPhone 3G, but even now, original iPhones are fetching wild prices on the secondhand market. In a weird twist of economics, Apple's iPhone actually maintained the majority of its value even after its successor hit the market. Why, you ask? Put simply, first-gen iPhones purchased from eBay or other pre-owned resellers arrives sans an AT&T contract, and of course, it can be (relatively) easily unlocked to work with some other carrier. PSA: if you're still sitting on your old iPhone for no apparent reason, now would probably be an excellent time to test the market.

[Image courtesy of IFOAppleStore]

BlackBerry Javelin gets photographed, put on eBay

by Donald Melanson, posted Sep 11th 2008 @ 1:26PM

RIM's BlackBerry Javelin hasn't exactly been making itself shy over the past few months, but if you're still not Javelin'd out, you can dive into a fresh new batch of pics courtesy of BlackBerryForums member fr0zen and, if that's still not enough, you can also now buy the very same phone on eBay. Considering that the bidding has already topped the $2,000 mark with six days to go, however, we're guessing most will simply choose to bide their time with the pics available at the link below, which also helpfully includes some comparisons with a few other familiar phones.

Read - Blackberry Javelin on eBay
Read - BlackBerry News, "Stunning Photos of the Javelin Emerge!"

[Via CrackBerry.com, thanks Anderson]

BlackBerry Kickstart 8220 surfaces on eBay, trigger fingers get itchy

by Darren Murph, posted Aug 30th 2008 @ 8:36AM

Not that you won't be able to buy this thing from carriers here shortly, but there's just nothing quite like being the first on your block to own a new handset. For those with cash to burn and an insatiable desire to play with RIM's forthcoming Kickstart 8220, look no further than eBay. Up for auction right now is an unlocked version of the aforesaid mobile, but it looks as if the final bid will end up well over a grand. Good luck (being patient).

[Via CellPhonesMarket, thanks ghengis]