Early Tuesday morning, core systems were selling for as little as $650, a notable markup from their $299 retail price, but not outrageous by eBay standards. Premium systems (with a wireless controller, hard drive and cables for high definition TVs) were selling for closer to $1,000, a $600 markup from their $399 in-store price.

By mid-morning, though, one premium system sold for $3,050, with well over a dozen following suit, coming in between $3,000 and $4,000. By mid-afternoon, one buyer was so eager to own one of the new systems paid $5,100 for a hard-drive enabled machine and a copy of “Need for Speed: Most Wanted” - and the eager beaver will have to wait another two weeks before the console is shipped, according to the seller.

Posted: 11|24|05 at 8:58 am. Filed under: Auction News.