Everyone uses eBay to find the best deals around. And eBay is truly a gift for those looking for bargains. Some deals are good, while some are downright INSANE. I am constantly looking for that incredible deal on anything - whether it is on DVDs, computer software, or iPods. Recently, I have been in the market for a wholesale lot of iPods that I am looking to resell. I check daily, yet I rarely find anything worth pursuing. The largest lot I typically find contains 3-5 products, which is not enough to draw a profit. However, about two weeks ago, I found a lot of (20) 8 GB iPod Nanos. They retail individually for $200 and sell on eBay for an average around $160. Therefore, if I could get each iPod for a price around$140, that would lead to profit. I would be happy making $10-$20 on each iPod, so I would have been pleased paying $2800, or $140 per iPod. However, this person was selling the entire lot for $2000, which means each iPod was $100. I immediately thought that I had found the steal of the century and could not even contain my happiness. After checking the person's feedback (which was 76, with a (97.1% positive rate), I bought the lot. In all honesty, I did not even hesitate for a second. The money was subtracted from my PayPal account, and I simply waited for my items to come. But two days later I received an e-mail from eBay stating that my items were not on the way because they were part of a fraudulent sale. Now why am I sharing this? It's not to simply vent my anger, but it is to give my advice to all those shopping on eBay. Yes, one of eBay's objectives is to provide customers with great bargains, but not every deal is as great as it appears. Therefore, I leave the eBay buyer with this advice: 1) Better safe than sorry 2) Contact sellers before making any significant purchases 3) Never complete a deal outside of eBay 4) Track sales very closely Thanks for reading.