Have I missed something???

[bbcmicro]

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Sinclair-Spectrum-48K-Computer-Rubber-Keys_W0QQitemZ130081188887QQihZ003QQcategoryZ4193Q QrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
What makes this so special? £52, ~$100 for a humble ZX Spectrum!
:0 :0
have I missed something?

I was saving up for one too (not that one in particular, certainly not now!), and I only paid just over 1/4 of that for a ZX81 in its box. It's anomalies like this that drag up prices of things that really aren't that rare, so I can't even afford the bottom rung class of V. computers, which is a pain. Spectrums sell for more than they are worth on eBay, with the exception of donations or swaps on here is the only place where I can computers older than a PII

I realise after posting that this is sort of a rant. Sorry.

[CP/M User]

Not sure about being a rant - though perhaps it needs to be moved to the Vintage Computer discussions, funny there was only 8 bids and the thing went for £52! They have the boxes and all that which is good - though it doesn't really mention what games/software it comes with (if any), not sure if any of the luggage which came with it would bump up the price.

ZX81s though are perhaps more common than a ZX Spectrum I would have though which is why I place it cheaper though a Jupiter Ace would cost you.

[carlsson]

The unit does look to be in fine condition, about as good as the broken ZX Spectrum I traded away last year. Its box though had gone missing in the past decade. I agree that £52 seems like a fluke. It probably takes more than one item to increase the general expectations.

My mother subscribes to a weekly family magazine which features a bit of antiques evaluation: readers submit pictures of their porcelain, furniture, paintings etc and get a short evaluation in the magazine. In the latest issue, they had spoken to some collector/shop owner specializing in antiques. They asked what she thought would be the future collectable items and without hesitation she mentioned old 1980's computers and video games! Someone claimed that already today on online auction sites, computers and video games, both vintage and newer, is by far the largest category. It amazes me a bit.

[bbcmicro]

I can see where she is coming from when she says that computing and video game categories are the largest and are therefore the ones to invest in, but doesn't that mean a rarity is much harder to find, and a tiny proportion of the computing section is vintage. Vintage computing is outnumbered by computing in terms of items for sale in each section (eBay) by 220817 to 1171 (At the moment). Things these days are not produced in small enough numbers to make them valuable in the medium term.

I know that the auction was a fluke, but there seems to be an increasing trend in them!


:(

[bbcmicro]

This sums up my feelings exactly

http://www.binarydinosaurs.co.uk/Museum/museum-wow.php

[carlsson]

On the topic of BBC Micro (the computer, not your alias), it says "In nearly every school" as a sign of its rarity. This is of course true for the UK market, but just go to mainland Europe and the rarity status of the various models will increase by a factor of ten, if not 100. I know from the avid collectors that I hang around with in Sweden, of which some people own or has owned every possible console or home computer there was, often boxed or prototypes, that Acorn BBC is yet a rare possesion. They may have basements full of machines you never heard of before, but no BBC. Part of that may be because shipping with Royal Mail is bloody expensive so it doesn't make sense to buy any units from the UK market - after all, it is not so rare that it is worth the shipping expenses, but uncommon enough not to already show up regularly on the domestic Swedish market.

I suppose an imported, boxed ZX Spectrum showing up in e.g. the USA or Japan may be just as collectable if it is rarely seen on those markets. Only those systems that had a world-wide representation (IBM, Commodore, to some extent Apple and Atari, Nintendo and Sega of course although they issued different systems for each market) can have a fair rarity rating that applies to whereever in the world you are. Yes, and of course those systems that are rare everywhere, but it is trivial to mention.