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On the day of PlayStation 3's launch, it was a scalper's paradise online. Though a number of auctions were suspiciously high, it wasn't uncommon to see machines with ending bids between $2,000 and $3,000 -- likely well-worth the time spent in line over the course of several days. Since then, however, so many have flooded the market, they've driven the price down to something more based in reality. As of this morning, there are 20,639 listings for PlayStation 3 machines. The newest auction to end has a starting bid of $2,300 and has absolutely no bidders. The one immediately below, however, is currently ending in a few minutes, yet has 15 bids, pushing the price to $1,125. Based on our most recent search (since then, most of these auctions have ended), taking into account the 23 auctions that actually had bids placed on them, the average bidding price was only $958. Would you be willing to wait in line for days on end for a potential $400-500 profit? Not to mention profit margins appear to be dwindling at a rapid pace, even if they are ending hundreds above retail. Chances are the prices will continue to trickle down, never quite reaching actual retail. Whenever the mythical second shipment shows up, however, scalpers could be in for a bit of a surprise -- if Sony can deliver the units soon, that is.
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