I responded to a craiglist add this week. Add was for 300+ discs mostly newer titles $10-30 each. I send the late 1999-2000 list and asked if any was within this collection.seller said she definitely had the matrix and a few more from the list i sent. the seller was an hour away from me i really i didnt want to drve for a copy of jurassic park. i wanted that matrix copy and $10-30 was more than reaonable. i aske on the phone once more if she realy had the matrix on laser for $10. she said she was looking at it as we spoke. so i drove all that way nothing never than a few 1997 titles and the matrix on dvd. she sad she was sorry she mistook it with mimic(my a@@).of course i drove back with nothing. i told her thos are all $1-2 lds

Dishonest is kind of strong wording in this case, wouldn't you say? Sounds more like uninformed, plenty of that to go around. If anything you may blame yourself for not being a bit more inquisitive about exactly what was in this collection, to her it's just the movie title wether on DVD, VHS, BR or LD. Also, what do you expect off of Craig's list, if she knew anything about the value of the LD's she had she wouldn't be selling them for that price on Craig's list. That's the risk you take with Craig's list. Both lemons and great scores with the uninformed or plain lazy.

Elvis

I didnt want to make my post longer than it is with too much detail but believe me I asked her many times,even explained what a laserdisc looks like. I told her i dont want no dvd,cd,bluray but 12" vinyl like but in silver. I even told her the matrix is among the last laserdiscs and rare that is the only reason I am making this trip. She might have been uninformed at first but I educated her (which risked buying this ld cheap). She lied to me over and over saying she is looking at it as we spoke its in great like new condition. And she knows the difference between ld and dvds. I think she just wanted lure me in hoping after I drove all that way I would buy a few lds. She even admitted no one else replied to the add. She also tried to sell me her 55" lcd tv. This is plane wrong and dishonest. Wasted my time and gas

plenty of dishonesty everywhere, but theres also plenty of lack of knowledge. My mom went on amazon to get me a few LD's for easter ghost was one of them, listing was for the widescreen version, i got the fullscreen one lol

it really was "foolscreen" lol

Yeah, that's a shame. Some shady folks out there, especially on Craig's list. Doesn't cost them anything and there is no seller credentials.

Elvis

Should also add for Craig's list the folks who's time is more valuable than the items. This is where you can make the big scores. Now if you can just get through the dishonest and uninformed.

Elvis

I usually email the people a few times, let them tell me what they are selling and go from there. If it is a ways away, like 40 or more miles, they will know exactly what they are selling me or I dont go. I have gotten many decent deals on craigslist and have been burned a few times. That is the fun of the game. Anyone knows what the 91 looks like on a friday afternoon, called a guy in the OC, asked him if he had the discs, said he would hold them for me. Called him in the morning, said he was holding them for me, called him at noon to double check, said yes. Drove to the oc from the inland empire on a friday afternoon on the 91 freeway, which is a certain type of hell. Got to the place, called him and told me he sold them an hour earlier. Was furious, a week later, I bought my awesome collection there so I cant complain. THey are all stories.

Maybe on your way there, she checked it out a little and held that LD back for a later sale on ebay or whatever other place, and grabbed the DVD to feign ignorance.

Well, I finally got The Matrix on LD, did you ever get one?

Yes never pays to educate the seller too much! Best to play dumb and arrive and see what's there. Then you can cherry pick the best of the crop and make it look like you are doing them a favour when you pitch them a low offer!!

Yeah, some people think that's inconsiderate, but I never have a problem with paying what a person will accept and knowing I got it for a good price.

Contrary to the "fairness" police, everyone has the same opportunity to take time and research something they own to find out what is the right price for a sale. Not everyone wants to bother doing that and not everyone is smart enough to do that.

All other things being fair, the laziness or wisdom of another is out of your control, so you either take the deal or automatically pass it on to the next person who will take it.

Few years ago I purchased several laserdiscs on Amazon, half were in fine condition but I've had a few that were disappointing. Couple had bad creases, one or two were listed as brand new and they were opened, and couple had hole punches. I tend not to shop there for laserdiscs anymore.

Mark

It is hard to sell laserdiscs on Amazon, starting with the lack of a media category; you have to list them as a DVD with a note in the title that says "THIS IS A LASERDISC" "NOT A DVD" etc. Then buyers rarely read what you've written, anyway, buy something, and get upset that it's not a DVD.

The other problem is matching the item. Because any seller can change the page, it might read "Widescreen" when you list, and yet become "full screen" before you've sold it. (If that's a bad example, apologies.) You are supposed to match by UPC, but sometimes multiple versions carry the same UPC.

The big difference, though, is that if you buy something on Amazon, you have the right to return it within 30 days for ANY reason. Granted, if you have opened it, there is a condition change & you will have to pay restocking fees and return shipping, but it is still returnable.

There are too many dishonest people out there, but more often sellers are ignorant. I know my way around the selling side, but right now I'm looking at selling off the laserdiscs & I do NOT know my way around those! Plus, I can make mistakes just as any human in any endeavor. i.e. I put some discs up on ebay, thought I had looked carefully at all of them, then after listing I found that there were scratches on one disc; if I hadn't seen it while I could revise the item, it could have been a real issue with the buyer, but sometimes it seems I'll miss seeing a flaw if the light is not glaring enough when I examine the item.

So don't assume that all miscommunications are attempts to cheat. I hear from sellers who assume that all the time about buyers -- i.e. "It was in perfect condition when I shipped it but they claim it arrived damaged!" -- and I think it is an invalid assumption about either party. Stuff happens.

(Don't mind me -- just the opinionated newb here.)

-- Debra