BidBlink

[Classified]

Jun 25, 2010
Amazon Gift Card $50
Order Placed
Jun 24, 2010
40 Free Bids
Order Placed

May 15, 2010
Amazon Gift Card $10
Order Placed

May 15, 2010
40 Free Bids
Order Placed

May 14, 2010
40 Free Bids
Order Placed

May 10, 2010
Amazon Gift Card $10
Order Placed

Apr 09, 2010
Starbucks Gift Card $25
Order Placed

Apr 09, 2010
40 Free Bids
Order Placed

Mar 31, 2010
Amazon Gift Card $10
Order Placed

Mar 26, 2010
Jamba Juice Gift Card - $25
Order Placed

Mar 26, 2010
40 Free Bids
Order Placed

Mar 10, 2010
Bath & Body Works Gift Card $25
Order Placed

Feb 27, 2010
Amazon Gift Card $10
Order Placed

Feb 26, 2010
Amazon Gift Card $50
Order Placed

Feb 26, 2010
Amazon Gift Card $10
Order Placed

Feb 25, 2010
Amazon Gift Card $10
Order Placed

Feb 15, 2010
Amazon Gift Card $10
Order Placed

Feb 15, 2010
Apple iTunes Gift Card $15
Order Placed

Feb 14, 2010
Wal-Mart Gift Card $50
Order Placed

Feb 07, 2010
Target Gift Card $50
Order Placed

Feb 07, 2010
The Cheesecake Factory Giftcard - $25
Order Placed

Feb 07, 2010
Amazon Gift Card $10
Order Placed

Feb 02, 2010
100 Free Bids
Order Placed

Feb 02, 2010
40 Free Bids
Order Placed

Feb 01, 2010
Apple iTunes Gift Card $15
Order Placed

Jan 19, 2010
Starbucks Gift Card $25
Order Placed

Jan 16, 2010
Apple iTunes Gift Card $15
Order Placed

Jan 13, 2010
Amazon Gift Card $10
Order Placed

Jan 12, 2010
Amazon Gift Card $10
Order Placed

Jan 11, 2010
Apple iTunes Gift Card $15
Order Placed

Jan 07, 2010
Amazon Gift Card $10
Order Placed

Dec 29, 2009
Amazon Gift Card $10
Order Placed

Dec 29, 2009
Amazon Gift Card $10
Order Placed

Dec 28, 2009
Amazon Gift Card $10
Order Placed

Dec 25, 2009
Amazon Gift Card $10
Order Placed

Dec 25, 2009
Amazon Gift Card $10
Order Placed

Nov 06, 2009
Amazon Gift Card $10

[kat2u]

Scotty,
BidBlink was the first PA site I started with. I do have to say that they are legitimate. I've won many things, some at a fairly decent price and they were always delivered in a timely manner. There are alot of bidders as you described who overbid on auctions. I think part of the reason is the negative bids or bids back aspect. People don't really figure it out they just see the negative balance and think they are going to come out ahead, which in most cases doesn't happen or the return is very minimal. I'm sure it happens routinely on other sites too, but most sites don't give you the count of bids the winner used to win.
This site has one of the highest amount of jumpers I have seen on any site. In fact, since this was my first site I started bidding on, I thought that jumping was completely acceptable in the PA world. It took a member here at PAW to explain to me why it is not.

[Duster]

Scotty,

I have been on Bid Blink since December 2009 and I have won many items. It is one of the first sites I tried and is still around. I have won some items with one bid although that is the exception not the rule. I have received many good deals but I have done my share of buy it now too. They have some of the fastest shipping with most items coming within a week of winning it. I am not crazy about the bonus bids but it is the way it is there.
I agree with what Kat2u says about the folks that over bid. I think they are trying to build a "reputation" which does work for some. The over bidding is part of the site.
Also, when looking at the winners check the price they paid in addition to how many bids it took to win. If the starting price as $5.99 and they won the item with 5 bids but only paid $.99 they jumped in late into the auction. Sometimes it can be misleading with how many bids they won an item by without checking the price they paid versus the starting price. It is one way to see who the jumpers are.
There are good deals but patience and studying bidders and their way of bidding helps a lot. It is really a worth while site, I have experienced what you have but each day is different with a different group of bidders. Hope to see you around winning on Bid Blink in the near future.

[Kate]

Bidblink is legit. If they shill bid, they are VERY bad at it! I have gotten too many good steals. Some people do overbid, but that happens on any penny auction site you go to. People just get carried away like Jonathon had mentioned and do not want to lose, and some people are trying to build a reputation. I have won many items and received them all... tonight I won 3 in a row and got awesome deals. You just have to bid at the right time and know who not to bid against and you will be fine. I watched the site for almost a month last year before I started bidding. The auctions in the evening tend to be a little more difficult because everyone is home from work... I usually have good luck on the ones earlier in the afternoon. I like the addition of the 50 bonus bids to some auctions. I recommend the site... don't let a few people overbidding scare you away.

[bidblink]

Scottyboys,

Your feelings are shared by many others for all penny auction sites; not just BidBlink. In looking at your history on BidBlink, you have bought one bid pack. To form an opinion off of buying the cheapest bid pack, on any penny auction site, is probably a little premature.

You could have won ten things with that bid pack on your first try and you would have left the most positive reviews about how great BidBlink is and how you can't believe how easy it is to win. But, that didn't happen on your first try and you came to a conclusion that BidBlink must be a sham. I've seen many others come to similar conclusions about many penny auction sites.

Fortunately, we all have a right to an opinion even if it differs from the majority.

Unfortunately, it is extremely hard to change someone's opinion especially when it involves asking them to give it another try by spending more money. With that being said, if you found another site where you got lucky on your first try and you like that offering, then stay with them.

What you don't see in the # of bids placed is the number of "promo bids" users received which didn't cost them anything. Similar to how you used a promo code to get 100% extra Bonus Bids, so do other users. And some users buy bid packs greater than the smallest pack. In fact, for the auction that formed your entire opinion of BidBlink as a whole, the winner of the auction placed half of their bids with these promo bids that any user could obtain through the use of the promo codes we hand out. Also, many users average their winnings which means they may win an auction for 1 bid and another for too many bids. But overall, they win. Again and again and again.

All I can say is that people do, for a fact, get great deals all the time and when they don't they can use our buy now opportunities. If you can get the ability to get the same great deals (or better) and still reduce your losses when you don't win, then by all means, don't use BidBlink and continue to use the other sites.

Others will still continue to use BidBlink and get great deals.

Best of luck on whatever site you choose.

And be sure to leave positive comments about the sites you do like on their site forum.

If you have any questions feel free to email us through [email protected]

Regards,
Ryan Smith
BidBlink

I have not ever made a $500 investment to start out. Most of the time it is $20 and the rest are free bids or cheap bids. Hey maybe I was quick to judge, but the bottom line is that you have people that are willing to throw 192 bids in the trash on a $10 card. That lets me know my chances of winning anything of value are slim. This was not the first auction site that I have played and I am invested heavily in another site that has treated me pretty good until now and the pattern I see here is the same. Have a good day.
Classified, have you won anything without sacrificing more than one bid on this site. I would like to hear from real people that won, without much fight. I can watch names on the screen win all day long and as soon as I bid on some cheap card that I think would be an easy win the crazy person with deep pockets that has something to prove comes out and takes all the bonus bids that I just bought and makes them useless ahhhhhh swipebids all over again.

[Kate]

I see there is an iPad today for the first time! I am already at my limit for the week... wish it was on a Saturday so I would have a chance to bid. Good luck everyone!

[Kate]

Anyone else having issues getting won items? I won a $50 Amazon card on June 29 and still haven't gotten it. Usually with gift cards, especially Amazon, I get them 5-7 days after winning them. I've never had to wait longer than 7-8 days for any wins on there honestly. I emailed Bidblink twice in a 3 day span asking them about it, but still haven't gotten a response back to either message which is weird as well... usually they write me back within a day. Hmm.

[Kate]

Anyone else having issues getting won items? I won a $50 Amazon card on June 29 and still haven't gotten it. Usually with gift cards, especially Amazon, I get them 5-7 days after winning them. I've never had to wait longer than 7-8 days for any wins on there honestly. I emailed Bidblink twice in a 3 day span asking them about it, but still haven't gotten a response back to either message which is weird as well... usually they write me back within a day. Hmm.

Finally got an email back and they resent me the card. Must have gotten lost in the mail. Thanks for the continued great customer support Bidblink

[coolguy451]

Glad you received a response. I have always received my cards, even though sometimes a card might take longer than others.

One thing that still surprises me on this site is the willingness of people to bid way past the BIN price. I mean, in 2 days I have bid on 2 of these type of auctions and it is more annoying than anything. When it is clear someone is over the BIN but keep going it makes me want to jump in the auction more just so they have to pay more---and I still get the item for cost + shipping. Does anyone else like bidding against these people just to make them pay more?

[Kate]

Glad you received a response. I have always received my cards, even though sometimes a card might take longer than others.

One thing that still surprises me on this site is the willingness of people to bid way past the BIN price. I mean, in 2 days I have bid on 2 of these type of auctions and it is more annoying than anything. When it is clear someone is over the BIN but keep going it makes me want to jump in the auction more just so they have to pay more---and I still get the item for cost + shipping. Does anyone else like bidding against these people just to make them pay more?

I know what you mean... I get this mindset of "I'm not letting a newbie jump in this auction after I've already used 75 bids and let them win with 20"... not really on Bidblink too much but definetly on other sites. I have only gone over the retail price on Bidblink once (never on any other site I use) and it was by 40 cents I think. I understand there are people trying to intimidate, make a name for themselves, etc... but in the end they are the ones that look silly when their savings is $0.00 and they spent $100 on a $25 giftcard... then they have to pay another $2 for shipping. When I see that happen, I just have to shake my head, chuckle a little, and be thankful it wasn't me!

[coolguy451]

Just in case you read this Ryan I sent an email 2 days ago and I would appreciate a response. Thanks.

[kat2u]

Scotty-
Back in May I won a $25 Bath and Body Works card for one bid. It was one of those nights where I quickly checked the site and saw that there was no bid on the card, so I just threw one bid on it before I signed out. The auction wasn't for another 2 hours. I was very surprised when I saigned on later and had seen I won the card. Something like that is a rarity I realize, but obviously it does happen. I see a few bidders who use that strategy quite often although I've never really paid attention to whether it pays off or not.
I must add that I usually buy smaller bid packs just because of my available disposable income (which I feel is put to better use elsewhere rather than the penny auction world). It has been increasingly harder to win on the site as there is an influx of new users over recent months and I it is common practice for me not to "jump" in after an auction has been going on for awhile. But I still utilize the site and have recently won an auction for an Amazon Kindle with the final buying price including shipping for less than $50 so it is not impossible to get an awesome deal.

[Southerngal1]

Scotty-
Back in May I won a $25 Bath and Body Works card for one bid. It was one of those nights where I quickly checked the site and saw that there was no bid on the card, so I just threw one bid on it before I signed out. The auction wasn't for another 2 hours. I was very surprised when I saigned on later and had seen I won the card. Something like that is a rarity I realize, but obviously it does happen. I see a few bidders who use that strategy quite often although I've never really paid attention to whether it pays off or not.
I must add that I usually buy smaller bid packs just because of my available disposable income (which I feel is put to better use elsewhere rather than the penny auction world). It has been increasingly harder to win on the site as there is an influx of new users over recent months and I it is common practice for me not to "jump" in after an auction has been going on for awhile. But I still utilize the site and have recently won an auction for an Amazon Kindle with the final buying price including shipping for less than $50 so it is not impossible to get an awesome deal.

I have tried the site recently. I spent more than 1 bidpack and did not win, because of everything stated above, BUT I was able to buy my auction, and actually save money. Say it was an Amazon $50.00 card. If you bid enough on a $39.00 bid pack, you can buy that card if you don't win it for around $3.00, so I don't feel it is very much risk if you don't go bid crazy. Good Luck to All and God Bless!!!!!

[cemetery_gates]

This is my first post, so take it easy on me
I've been an active participant of penny auctions since February of this year and have now tried over 8 sites. Overall I would recommend this site (BidBlink). I have won several items, but I ended up using "bid to buy" on more occasions than I would have liked.
The positive aspects of the site are easy to see:
1. Low initial investment ($0.40 a bid)
2. Honest win limit (3) which kind of makes it an even playing field
3. Shipping is prompt, I've received both bid-to-buy and won items in less than two weeks respectively
4. The cost of retail items is generally very accurate to actual retail (which is a problem with other sites)
Now I must unfortunately expose the weaknesses with the site:

1. Because of the low cost of bids, auctions that are more appealing can take FOREVER to end
2. Not a lot of product variety, mostly gift cards. As mentioned above, when the site lists a halfway decent item (i.e. PS3 the auction will last for hours on end)
3. Some suspicious bidders...I won't mention names, but there are users who regularly pay way more than the buy it now price for the auction. I've seen certain users pay over $300 for a $50 gift card, and spend 450 bids to win a 100 bid pack (this is sad but true, and only a few examples). I don't know if these individuals are severely addicted to gambling and can't stand to lose, or if there is something else going on... If you join the site, you will soon learn who these individuals are. Just look at the ended auctions to see how much a person paid/saved. I personally can't see paying more for the price of the item, let alone hundreds of dollars more-just doesn't make sense.
4. My final complaint is the "bonus bids" that the site offers are completely worthless-you'll end up spending more for the bid to buy for a $50 gift card + 50 bonus bids. You pay for the bonus bids, but they can't be used towards the buy it now price. As a rule, I generally avoid these auctions.
I spent around $1000 on the site and won/used bids to buy around $1200 worth of merchandise/gift cards, so it's definitely a site to check out, develop a strategy, etc.
Hope this helped!
-Jason a.k.a. cemetery_gates

[coolguy451]

This is my first post, so take it easy on me
I've been an active participant of penny auctions since February of this year and have now tried over 8 sites. Overall I would recommend this site (BidBlink). I have won several items, but I ended up using "bid to buy" on more occasions than I would have liked.
The positive aspects of the site are easy to see:
1. Low initial investment ($0.40 a bid)
2. Honest win limit (3) which kind of makes it an even playing field
3. Shipping is prompt, I've received both bid-to-buy and won items in less than two weeks respectively
4. The cost of retail items is generally very accurate to actual retail (which is a problem with other sites)
Now I must unfortunately expose the weaknesses with the site:

1. Because of the low cost of bids, auctions that are more appealing can take FOREVER to end
2. Not a lot of product variety, mostly gift cards. As mentioned above, when the site lists a halfway decent item (i.e. PS3 the auction will last for hours on end)
3. Some suspicious bidders...I won't mention names, but there are users who regularly pay way more than the buy it now price for the auction. I've seen certain users pay over $300 for a $50 gift card, and spend 450 bids to win a 100 bid pack (this is sad but true, and only a few examples). I don't know if these individuals are severely addicted to gambling and can't stand to lose, or if there is something else going on... If you join the site, you will soon learn who these individuals are. Just look at the ended auctions to see how much a person paid/saved. I personally can't see paying more for the price of the item, let alone hundreds of dollars more-just doesn't make sense.
4. My final complaint is the "bonus bids" that the site offers are completely worthless-you'll end up spending more for the bid to buy for a $50 gift card + 50 bonus bids. You pay for the bonus bids, but they can't be used towards the buy it now price. As a rule, I generally avoid these auctions.
I spent around $1000 on the site and won/used bids to buy around $1200 worth of merchandise/gift cards, so it's definitely a site to check out, develop a strategy, etc.
Hope this helped!
-Jason a.k.a. cemetery_gates

Nice post. I agree with everything you said. After experimenting the last month, I found that I had to use the BIN more often than wanted, and each time it was because a user chose to spend more than the BIN price (and in almost every case they spent 2-3 times retail).

The one thing that I think needs to be changed is the auctions with the bonus bids. As you said they are worthless and they really do not help win auctions like mentioned previously. Since I can't choose when they are used, all that happens is I burn through a lot of them when I face one of these users going over BIN, losing them and getting nothing in return. This would be okay with me if I didn't have to pay retail for the bonus bids, but unfortunately many auctions being run these days have these bids and you are forced to pay retail for 50 or 100 of them (paying $.40 each for them when they have a value of 0). I hope the site reconsiders and either goes back to just including them on auctions for free (maybe reducing the # to 25/50) or removing them from auctions all together, so I can go back to bidding on a $50 card that actually costs $50.

[Kate]

Ummmm.... wow! Auction: Discounted Acer 10.1-Inch Onyx Blue Netbook | BidBlink

[kat2u]

Kate-
There was one tonight too. $50 Amazon + 50 bonus bids all for the cost of 896 bids, what a steal!
The bonus bids are usually what screw me. The first auction I bid on after buying the bid pack consists of all bonus bids therefore not eligible toward the BIN if I don't win.

[Kate]

WOW..... what a DEAL!
Auction: Discounted 100 Free Bids - Sold for $0.00!

[kat2u]

Can you believe it?! Even with 102 bids back they are $442.42 in the hole!
I would think that somewhere between the first and last bid they would have had enough to use the BIN feature and pay nothing.

[justbereal]

Can you believe it?! Even with 102 bids back they are $442.42 in the hole!
I would think that somewhere between the first and last bid they would have had enough to use the BIN feature and pay nothing.

Kat2u,
Adding to what you said, still going on is an auction I was in on early for an $50 MX card and 50 bids. It is now at -$16.00 and still going and only two bidders have been involved since -$2.00. Gaybriella and Bid Winner. It seems ******ed OR is a "Bot" malfunctioning. Either way, it's not 2 bots so I don't understand why one person doesn't give up and bid tomorrow. The same item will be for auction then too. Your thoughts?

[Kate]

Kat2u,
Adding to what you said, still going on is an auction I was in on early for an $50 MX card and 50 bids. It is now at -$16.00 and still going and only two bidders have been involved since -$2.00. Gaybriella and Bid Winner. It seems ******ed OR is a "Bot" malfunctioning. Either way, it's not 2 bots so I don't understand why one person doesn't give up and bid tomorrow. The same item will be for auction then too. Your thoughts?

I can't believe how many bids the "winner" of that card used. The amount they spent could have paid my car payment, car insurance, electric bill and cell phone bill for 1 month. I don't get it. I guess they are trying to build a "reputation" so bidders will not bid against them in the future. I know I won't bid against that person, so I guess it works in a sense. I haven't had very good luck on the site lately because of the influx of new bidders, plus people way overbidding.

[coolguy451]

I can't believe how many bids the "winner" of that card used. The amount they spent could have paid my car payment, car insurance, electric bill and cell phone bill for 1 month. I don't get it. I guess they are trying to build a "reputation" so bidders will not bid against them in the future. I know I won't bid against that person, so I guess it works in a sense. I haven't had very good luck on the site lately because of the influx of new bidders, plus people way overbidding.

The overbidding has led to too many BIN's for me (meaning too many "free bids"), and so for now I have stopped bidding here. I keep an eye on the site because I like it, but I ended up losing money after all was said and done with my last bid pack.

[justbereal]

I can't believe how many bids the "winner" of that card used. The amount they spent could have paid my car payment, car insurance, electric bill and cell phone bill for 1 month. I don't get it. I guess they are trying to build a "reputation" so bidders will not bid against them in the future. I know I won't bid against that person, so I guess it works in a sense. I haven't had very good luck on the site lately because of the influx of new bidders, plus people way overbidding.

For others to see, here was the final of that auction


Price: -$27.72
Time Left: Ended
Winner: Bid Winner
Retail Price: $70.00
Start Price: $6.99

Bid Winner won with 1339 bids and saved 0%
Bids (1339): $535.60
Price: $0.00
Bids Back (70): -$28.00
Total: $507.60
Savings: $0.00

[Kate]

This one made my jaw drop a little bit...

Auction: Discounted 100 Free Bids - Sold for $0.00!

I guess they are a newbie that aren't sure what they're doing? Hmmm

[coolguy451]

I guess they are a newbie that aren't sure what they're doing? Hmmm

Or Today, they just bid 4 fun

[Kate]

Or Today, they just bid 4 fun

Ha! Nice one coolguy ;) Well I don't guess they think the way I do because my "having fun" doesn't involve losing enough money that could have paid my car payment and insurance! Oh well... wonder if they will be back.

[cemetery_gates]

Hello HeveanSent,

I have run into you on several occassions. I totally agree with your statements pertaining to this site. You may have seen a previous post I had regarding the positive vs. negative aspects of this site. I have found that the negatives outweigh the positives and have thus left the site in search of greener pastures. I got some decent deals, a few incredible ones, and about a 55% Buy it Now ratio (not too bad, but not great). I do watch from time to time just to see how much people are spending and if the same individuals who spend and lose more are still bidding. These overbidders simply don't make any sense. I am such a dork I made a spreadsheet and found that a certain user has spent considerably more than what they've won back over a 1 1/2-month period (I'm talking over a $1000 loss). This was just one user, there are several others whom I intend to research.

I am more than willing to pay retail prices for items I really want (most of the time I spent my $ on gift cards-but I did go "all in" for 8-10 big ticket items (as big as this site offers anyway), but I found too many power over-bidders (a.k.a. people with limited brain capacity and large bank accounts which they most likely inherited and will have blown in coming years). If you are an individual who is willing to spend over 4,000 bids (at $0.40 a piece = $1,600) for a $50 gift card + 50 bonus bids then you have a serious mental condition and may need to be hospitalized; perhaps even wear protective head gear assuming you ever leave the chair you sit and bid in.

Just trying to inform the users of this site (and express my exasperation),

Jason a.k.a. cemetery_gates

[kat2u]

I do not want to get into a debate about "jumping". Everyone has a different thought on that subject. But now that 1/2 of the auctions no longer offer BIN and this site is LOADED with jumpers it's starting to make me rethink coming back here. I can't afford to "piss away" bids with the risk of getting nothing in return. And I can't afford to spend $400 on a $50 gift card because BIN isn't offered and someone wants to jump in once I (and others) have invested 100+ bids.

[innit2winnit]

I've been checking out BidBlink for a little while. I noticed some strange behavior and wanted to know if it's indicative of anything suspicious. I'm not throwing out accusations or blame, just trying to figure out what's going on.

Today there was an auction for a Amazon gift card worth $50 + 50 bonus bids. The auction was won by user MADKING and the final price was $-8.32 as evidenced by Screenshot 1.

I went to look at the Deals section, which outlines all the auctions of the day. To my surprise, that crazy auction is not listed there as of the time of my posting. Instead, there is an auction for a $50 VISA card won by WASTEURBIDS, which was not there before. See Screenshot 2.

Screenshot 3 is there to show the time when I took the screenshots (you can see these auctions in the Deals section as they have been already won)

Was the Amazon GC auction replaced by the VISA card auction? If so, are certain auctions "hidden" from view, or do they disappear?