I feel that I have been ripped off. UPDATE: DRE Fix.

[oxtsu]

GaH! This jerk sent me two controllers all right.. two PS1 dual shocks. What a piece of %$#@! this guy must be. That's it. I'm leaving neutral feedback with negative comments on the 89th day after the transaction. That'll teach him to not rip people off on shipping.

Still, I got an original memory card with it. Not bad considering 107 would buy me a core refurb system, and I paid 111 for the whole enchilada.

But still... this kind of people make me sick.

Did you ask the seller during the auction about his vague controller description, whether he would object to you picking up the goods locally, and about reducing the shipping charge if not allowing local pickup?

I do think he should have gave a better description of the goods. Just saying. His giving a bad one with no pics of controllers should have been a green flag to skip his auction. It is ebay. Good luck to you in the future bidding, Specineff.

[Samudra]

GaH! This jerk sent me two controllers all right.. two PS1 dual shocks. What a piece of %$#@! this guy must be. That's it. I'm leaving neutral feedback with negative comments on the 89th day after the transaction. That'll teach him to not rip people off on shipping.

Still, I got an original memory card with it. Not bad considering 107 would buy me a core refurb system, and I paid 111 for the whole enchilada.

But still... this kind of people make me sick.

Did you ask the seller during the auction about his vague controller description, whether he would object to you picking up the goods locally, and about reducing the shipping charge if not allowing local pickup?

I do think he should have gave a better description of the goods. Just saying. His giving a bad one with no pics of controllers should have been a green flag to skip his auction. It is ebay. Good luck to you in the future bidding, Specineff.

Oxtsu is right.

I didn't look through the auction when I wrote my general comments concerning your post, but now that I see the whole auction I see you cannot blame (only morally) this man for the controller scam (what else to expect from a man charging 15.00 shipping?). It was you not being vigilant while reading the auction.
Also the 15.00 dollar charge is displayed openly.

Yet a neutral feedback to inform other people (new to eBay) will do good.

[dave4shmups]

Erm, I'm gonnna have to side with Specineff on this one. I read the description as well, and this guy says that the PS2 comes with:

"2 sony joysticks analog controllers not pictured because they were too hard to fit in close up picture."

Whaa? That's crap, this guy could've EASILY squeezed 2 DualShock2 controllers into those photos; it's not like we're talking about the PS2 Neo Geo stick here!

This was obviously an excuse to avoid putting in pictures of the real controllers, and this guy is obviously trying to rip people off. It's no wonder he refused Specineff's offer to pick this up in person, because then Specineff would've seen that he was getting two incompatible controllers.

Why should Specineff have asked about the controllers?? Anyone else would've assumed that that "2 sony joysticks analog controllers" were DualShock2's as well, IMO.

This guy deserves, at the very least, a bad feedback, if not a fraud report. And Ebay really needs to do something about retaliatory feedback; it's hurting their entire accountability system.

[Specineff]

He will get his bad/neutral feedback all right on the 90th day of the transaction's end, allright. What can you expect from someone who plays mainstream crap (note I say crap, not mainstream games, as there are good non-niche games) only? I had eye twitches when I saw all his saves on the memory card.

About the Dual shocks, I'll trade them in at a store and get a used DS2. I am playing my Metal Gear Solid 3 with pressure-sensitive controllers no matter what.

[Ganelon]

So what about the 90 days? Read my post again. He'll likely return with negative feedback within a week. It would probably be better just to email him about it and see if he'll do something about it.

Anyway, both of you are responsible for this situation IMO. You for not contacting the seller about pickup options before the end of the auction and the seller for blatantly avoiding discussing the controllers. The shipping price, while excessive, was clear.

[beatifik]

the moral of this story:

ASK QUESTIONS BEFORE BIDDING.

sure the seller is shady, but you didn't do your part as a consumer. you have to investigate all purchases, especially those that don't have all the facts spelled out in front of you.

did you get "2 sony dual shock joysticks?" yes, you did.

did the seller charge you $15 for shipping? yep, sure did.

everything is spelled out in the auction. you got what you paid for. sorry man, i know it sucks, but this is the ebay sellers do shit. ebay gets shadier and shadier, so learn from this mistake, and ask questions before bidding. and if the seller doesn't answer your questions, it probably means that they're trying to pull a fast one on you.

and i hate to do this, well maybe not so much, but i'm going to have to resort to this old mom-ism:

Q: you know what happens when you assume?

A: that's right, you make an ASS out of U and ME.

and spec, i don't mean anything personal by this, so please don't take it the wrong way. i've dealt with you in the past and have nothing but good things to say about you as a customer.

[Specineff]

So what about the 90 days? Read my post again. He'll likely return with negative feedback within a week. It would probably be better just to email him about it and see if he'll do something about it.

Anyway, both of you are responsible for this situation IMO. You for not contacting the seller about pickup options before the end of the auction and the seller for blatantly avoiding discussing the controllers. The shipping price, while excessive, was clear.

Ok. Then it's no feedback for him at all.

At least I didn't get it for a bad price, and the controllers work and I can trade them for a used DS-2.

Regarding the shipping, if you ask 15 for shipping, it's because it's what it costs.

Look at it this way. If you order something off a reputable merchant, and they quote you 8 dollars for shipping, yet you get evidence it only cost them five, do you have a legal right to fight the 3 dollars for misrepresentation of goods and services? (Not that I'll do it to this guy. He's getting his zero feedback and that's it). Of course you do. At Macy's, we refund even 2 cents to a customer, because if we didn't, we could end up with 500,000 bucks worth of unreturned change every year. And how would we explain that to the IRS or the government?

By the same token, I could have paid with fake bills or confederated money. I never said I'd send real money, did I? Disclaimers are one thing. Being an outright dick is another.

Also, when you win the item, you are legally bound to pay for the item. The shipping is another matter. Which unfortunately, allows sellers to get off with crap like this.

So don't worry. 107 dollars would have gotten me a core PS2 with one dual shock 2. For 111, I got the system, two regular dual shocks AND a memory card (24 bucks new, 15 used.). So as soon as I trade those things for a real DS2, I'll be happy.

[Specineff]

GGGRRRRR! That crappy PS2 won't read anything on CD: PS2 game or audio CDs!

I've contacted my seller and in case he doesn't give me an answer, I'll try to resolve through PP. So much for a "like new" PS2.

Neon, do you still have that FAQ where it shows you how to realign the PS2's laser?

[Ganelon]

You really have to use your judgment when dealing with American sellers who have descriptions such as like new, mint (and any other good condition), played only once, etc...

Hopefully, that's just a cause of Sony's classic DRE issue with CD-ROMs found in older PS2 systems and not another attempt by the seller to misinform you.

[JBC]

Uhm... American sellers aren't the only ones though. Not that i'm some vagina boy who gets offended at stuff like that. Here's what i think - people in general are total monster assholes and they'll trick you out of your money faster than a lawyer chases an ambulance. Just watch it when dealing with people instead of corporations. On the other hand watch it when dealing with corporations, too since their made up of people. Just watch it. People suck. Lets drink.

[Samudra]

Erm, I'm gonnna have to side with Specineff on this one. I read the description as well, and this guy says that the PS2 comes with:

"2 sony joysticks analog controllers not pictured because they were too hard to fit in close up picture."

Whaa? That's crap, this guy could've EASILY squeezed 2 DualShock2 controllers into those photos; it's not like we're talking about the PS2 Neo Geo stick here! :?

He could, but you think you can take someone to court for that? It is simply misleading only.

This was obviously an excuse to avoid putting in pictures of the real controllers, and this guy is obviously trying to rip people off. It's no wonder he refused Specineff's offer to pick this up in person, because then Specineff would've seen that he was getting two incompatible controllers.

Why should Specineff have asked about the controllers?? Anyone else would've assumed that that "2 sony joysticks analog controllers" were DualShock2's as well, IMO.

It is a very subtle ruse indeed. It would probably have slipped by most buyers. Only a very vigilant or experienced eBay user would notice.

This guy deserves, at the very least, a bad feedback, if not a fraud report. And Ebay really needs to do something about retaliatory feedback; it's hurting their entire accountability system.

No fraud has taken place, so a fraud report is not possible. You can't give someone bad feedback for just being misleading (or just being uninformed) otherwise the whole frame in which to view feedback is gone.

[Specineff]

I know, Ganelon. However Paypal gives you the chance to dispute a charge based on the fact that the item received is significantly different from what it was described. And a PS2 getting a DRE on a brand new audio CD is hardly what I'd call "Like new".

I'll try doing the adjustment trick outlined online. Hopefully that'll fix it.

[beatifik]

before fiddling with the fragile inner workings of the ps2 laser, i suggest swabbing the laser eye with some rubbing alcohol on a q-tip. it's done the trick for me in the past.

[Specineff]

Will do. Thanks for the tip.

As some sort of update, I contacted the seller and he's being nice about it. Whew.

[Specineff]

Well, thank God for whoever found out how to fix those dreaded DRE. I fiddled with the little white gear, and my cruddy PS2 now reads PS2 DVDs (YES! Online gaming, bay-bee!), PS1 CDs, DVD-R, and sometimes the blue Pro-Action replay CD. As long as I can watch some DVD's too, I'll be happy. (Hostage didn't want to work).

Maybe I should just get a big HDD to use HDLoader.

[dave4shmups]

Glad everything worked out for you, Specineff!

If you want the HD so you can play games that require it, and want an easier PS2 to mod/play imports on, like Specineff, then go for it and get a PS2; otherwise, I'd strongly advise anyone to go with the PSTwo.

Sure, you could get a bad power cord if you get a PSTwo, but so what? Then you just mail it into SCEA, and they send you a new one. (And people forget that the XBOX had the same problem in it's beginings.) The PSTwo is the most durable model of Playstation 2, period. There's no shoddy tray to deal with, and as I've said before, they only reason why it should overheat is if it's not properly displayed. Don't put it right next to your TV or monitor, and/or wedge it in between other consoles; you do have to give it more breathing room then the PS2. Trust me, I've owned and played both models.

[dave4shmups]

Uhm... American sellers aren't the only ones though. Not that i'm some vagina boy who gets offended at stuff like that. Here's what i think - people in general are total monster assholes and they'll trick you out of your money faster than a lawyer chases an ambulance. Just watch it when dealing with people instead of corporations. On the other hand watch it when dealing with corporations, too since their made up of people. Just watch it. People suck. Lets drink.

I'm sure they aren't, but I have NEVER been ripped off by a foreign trader or seller on any site, Ebay or otherwise. I have, on the other hand, been ripped off by plenty of American sellers.

[zaphod]

The Datel dscs are VERY finicky, and often fail to boot on perfectly good units.

Long story short, datel managed to figure out how to use disc errors to replicate a ps2 protection track, but it sometimes fails to read properly, because its only a good approximation.

My advice is to steer clear of the slimlines. they are just WAYYY too finicky in my experience.

[Specineff]

That's great to hear, Zaphod! I imagine that if a PS2 can read a black PS1 Cd, then it shouldn't have any problem with an original PS2 blue CD. Glad to hear it's only the crappy datel disc and not the laser being unable to read blue/purplish original ones.