The Girl With A Mac Blog

eBay Introduces Holiday Deals App

Posted Nov 24, 2009. Filed under Gadget. Leave a comment?

I hope that everyone is preparing for some major shopping on Black Friday. I know I’ve been. If you’re like me and will be up at 4 a.m. check out this website (my mom sent me the link and it seems to have quite a few stores’ ads, including ads for my favorite store- the Apple store!). But if you’re not really the shopping type, eBay has a new iPhone (or iPod Touch) app for you!

The eBay Deals app is designed to direct customers to the better buys on the online auction site, featuring auctions that have no bids, no reserve, less than four hours remaining and free or fixed-rate shipping already calculated into the price. The app allows users to browse across eight categories, including apparel, collectibles, computers, games and electronics. In addition, you can also search through the deals by entering a product name, price range and category. And just in case, you can save your search results to browse through later. If you happen to find a deal that is better for someone else (maybe you found that iPod Touch you’ve wanted forever and want to forward it to your mom, ok so maybe that’s just me), you can e-mail the deal or share it through your Facebook or Twitter.

If you’re not happy with the deals, shaking your iPhone or iPod Touch will clear the deals and give you a whole new set of deals. And if you do find an item you like, all you have to do is tap on it and a listing will pop up where you can decide to watch the item or bid on it. The app features push notifications to alert you if you’ve been outbid and PayPal integration for payment if you win.

This app is available for download through iTunes in 8 languages. And the best part is the app is free!

Personally, I’d rather go to the mall than stare at my iPhone all day looking for good deals. However, the app does have its advantages. It’s nice that eBay is looking out for you and not wasting your time on an item with a reserve set $1000 over your budget or on a 30 day auction. But, from my experience with eBay, you’ll be outbid at the last minute anyways, or end up paying way more than the item is worth after getting caught up in the moment. I’d rather go to the stores with amazing deals, than get outbid at the last minute and end up with no gift for grandma. Yikes.