Hottest thing on eBay? Maybe the iPad 2

By Geoff Duncan March 31, 2011

In a somewhat uncharacteristic move, online auction giant eBay has released data about two weeks of iPad 2 auctions on its U.S. Web site—and, given that iPad 2’s are still hard to find in stores, it’s not surprising the tablet has been doing brisk business. According to Cnet, roughly 12,000 iPads were sold on its U.S. site in the two weeks leading up to the device’s launch in 25 additional countries last week—and while 65 percent of those sales went to buyers in the U.S., some 35 percent went to international buyers. The biggest overseas importers of iPad 2’s offered on eBay were Canada and Russia, with Hong Kong, Japan, and the United Kingdom hot on their heels.

eBay iPad 2 international sales infographic — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Curiously, the most popular iPad 2 models sold were the bare-bones 16 GB version with only Wi-Fi, and the fully tricked-out version with 64 GB of storage and 3G capability. The least common iPad 2 to be sold on eBay was the 16 GB edition with 3G.

The data released by eBay also take a look at the selling prices iPad 2’s have been commanding on the eBay marketplace, and unsurprisingly they’re considerably higher than Apple’s retail prices, with the entry-level 16 GB WiFi-only edition carrying an average selling price of $697, almost a full $200 higher than Apple’s retail pricing. The 64 GB Wi-Fi model commanded average price $264 over Apple’s standard pricing, and the 64 GB model with 3G went for an average of $406 over Apple’s retail price.

In addition to online auctions, eBay has been looking to capitalize on iPad 2 fervor by offering an “Instant Sale” program that enables owners of an original iPad to trade it in to eBay for resale, with proceeds going back to the seller (after eBay takes a cut, of course).

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Geoff Duncan writes, programs, edits, plays music, and delights in making software misbehave. He's probably the only member…

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