"Mike Czuhajewski" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> made an utterance to the qrplist gang
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Forgive me but I must get this out of my system first: eBay eBay eBay, eBay!
(Note--I can do that since this is not going to [EMAIL PROTECTED], where any
mention of eBay, regardless of context, instantly gets one's postings put on
moderation. Hopefully that is not the case on qrplist or the qrp-l group on
Yahoo. If it is, I apologize for the forbidden reference and it won't happen
again.)

Gotta love eBay and the actions of people. I present this concluded auction
for your inspection: eBay # 7552181013. This was for a set of 3 each Philips
SA602A chips, surface mount, still in the strip. There were 12 bids from 3
people, location unknown but presumably in Australia like the seller. These
3 chips finally went for AU$29.80, and the eBay converter indicates that
it's about $22.46 in US dollars. The item description said, in so many
words, that it was no longer being produced, and indicated that they were in
the hen's teeth category down there.

That's almost $7.50 US each for a chip that is listed as currently available
from stock at DigiKey in SMD at $2.25 each  in quantity of 1 (382 pieces in
stock at this moment) or $1.152 each if you buy a lot of 2500 (quantity of
5000 on the shelf right now). They also have the 8 pin DIP for $2.25, with
1526 awaiting orders.

They may actually be difficult to obtain down under; electronic parts are
not always as readily and cheaply available elsewhere as they are in this
country. I am well aware of that. But the Philips web site lists "Product
status" as "Full production." Or at least it did when I checked it a few
minutes ago, and also said the same when I checked it while the auction was
still running. That's kind of hard to reconcile with "no longer in
production." The URL is

http://www.semiconductors.philips.com/pip/SA602.html

This is one of those cases where you don't know whether to laugh, cry, or
walk away mumbling to yourself :-) As is always the case on eBay or in any
other transaction anywhere, caveat emptor. [I think that's from the Latin,
meaning "empty the cave," or, "get those dang dinosaur bones out to the
landfill now before the ants come!"]

Or maybe one of those cases where egos flare up and you get into the mode of
"that SOB isn't going to outbid me THIS time no matter how much I have to
pay!!!" That's hardly unknown in auctions :-)

PS--A few months ago, someone on eBay was offering a strip of 30 of exactly
the same thing for an opening bid of $30. I bid that amount, no one else
touched it, and a little over a week later they were in my mailbox :-) And
two and a half bucks for shipping, no less.

73 and queue our pea DE WA8MCQ

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