Update on Coinbase referrals, iPhone 6S’s, and Staples iPads

I wanted to follow up on some previous posts in case you were on the edge of your seat (I know, I know, I still owe you a recap on the 20K Challenge and the Sphero BB8s.)

Coinbase $75 Referral

So this has been quite a nightmare.  Originally, Coinbase was offering a $75 referral program for people who joined, and I would give people $50 once they paid out.  A little more than half of you did this with no problem.  The other half has had quite a number of issues, which I haven’t fully pinpointed yet.  One person didn’t verify their phone number, so they didn’t qualify.  Other people had bought $100 of bitcoins, but by the time the transaction completed, the bitcoins were worth say $98.  That may have triggered non-payment.  Then to make matters worse, they changed their referral program on 9/30 and so if you still had a pending $50 out, if it cleared after 9/30, then you only got $10.  It’s clearly bait-and-switch marketing.  If I sign up during the $75 promo, that’s what I should get, not the new shittier promo because transactions take forever to clear.   So I should have contacted all of you by now; if not, send me an email.  I’ll send you the $10 that they sent me for the referral; I know it’s not the $50, but it’s better than just the $10.  Once the dust settles, I’m clearing out my account and never using them again.

iPhone 6S

So from my iPhone 6S preorders, in the last post on how to unload them, remember I had bought 4 x 6S Plus 64GB Rose Gold and 1 ATT 6S 64GB Rose Gold (for my $650 ATT credit.)  I had sold 2 Plus’es in the last update.  I was going to return the other 2 to Apple, but the Vietnamese buyer messaged me and wanted 1 more.  I told him I still had 2 left, and so he asked his coworker, who decided they wanted 1 too.  At this point, I was selling them for $950, which is a $20 profit and the SPG points.  Plus, it was saving me a trip to the Apple store to return.  Anyway, I met him up and sold him the 2 phones.  The next day, he messaged me saying that 1 of them was actually a regular 6S and not a 6S Plus.  DOUGH!  I had forgotten that my wife ordered 1 6S and 1 6S Plus.  So I met with him that night and refunded his money.

Eventually I posted the 6S on CL for $850 ($30 profit), and after 3 days, I got a bite and the guy offered me $820 for it (break-even.)  I wasn’t going to do it unless he met me close to my house, which he did and it saved me a trip to Apple and at least I banked 820 SPG points.

The ATT 6S went on CL for $800 (for $20 below cost).  I got no bites after a couple of days.  I then listed it on eBay.  I unfortunately wasn’t targeted for the ‘sell your phone for $5 promo,’ and so I had to pay the full FVF.  I listed it for $888.88 (I saw a completed BIN at this price and thought it was genius) which would net me around $800 after fees ($650 with the Citi credit.)  I shipped it in a padded flat rate envelope and made sure to get signature confirmation to protect myself.  Done deal.

iPad Airs

Also last week, I said I had bought 6 Apple iPad Airs at Staples (4 with Apple Pay, 2 from the Ink $30 offer.)  I had them all listed on eBay.  Well, the gray 64GB sold the fastest at $520.  Then the 16GB Gold ($420), then 16GB Gray ($420) and 16GB Gray ($420) again.  There was no love on the Silver 16GBs.  I shipped them all in a padded flat rate envelope with no signature confirmation (not needed since under $750.)  Anyway, I sent the 2 Silver ones to FBA last night just so I can move them faster.  Shipping them to FBA cost me about $1 each since I was shipping all those JBL speakers to the same warehouse. If they sell for the same $420 on FBA, I should net $394. However, on eBay, I only net $375, so the increased FBA return risk is costing me roughly $20