Who has experience buying books from ebay?

<p>I'm worried about getting scammed. One book I need for Chemistry Fundamentals II is Chemistry: The Central Science. My bookstore sells the book for well over $200. However, I found the book on ebay for about $53. So I ordered it off of ebay. However, I've been looking around and found some fishy things. Most books for sale off of amazon and ebay are around the hundreds. However, there are always a couple sellers who sell the book ULTRA cheap. Like between $40 and $70. They're usually out of the US too. They have 99% or 100% positive feedback, with tons of great reviews. But, I was wondering if the reviews could be fake. So far, every time I check the account of the reviewer, it turns out they've only ever reviewed ONE item--the textbook I happened to be looking at.
So has anyone else here ever bought from a seller like that on ebay? I'm worried now that I made a bad choice. It seems too good to be true.
OH, and has anyone here ever bought an access code from ebay? Like myMathLab or mastering chemistry? I see tons of those, also with excellent reviews.</p>

<p>I’ve bought a half dozen books of ebay. I’ve never had a problem. I’ve had the same “too good to be true” feeling sometimes. The book was always cheaper around 100 dollars. It has always come in the condition stated. I wouldn’t be too worried.</p>

<p>they’re called international editions. Most of the time, they’re carbon copies of the books you use in class, with the exact same contents. The only difference is that they’re softcover and use cheap materials. no problem.</p>

<p>Wow. Thanks so much. I didn’t know there were “international editions” exactly the same as the originals.
Have you ever bought any access codes off of ebay, like myMathLab? Can I use the same code for any class, like if I got a code for myMathLab, does it matter whether I’m in Calc 1 or Calc 2?</p>

<p>You should check to see if it may be an earlier edition, or a reprint of an earlier edition with a new cover and sku number. Often earlier editions are very similar, with just a few pages changed or maybe an additional chapter, especially for subjects that don’t really change. You wouldn’t want to buy an earlier edition for a class such as computer programming for instance.</p>

<p>If it is that cheap, it is probably an international edition with the only difference being cover design and that it’ll probably be a paperback book rather than hardcover. That’s how all but one of my chemistry books are that I’ve gotten from ebay.</p>

<p>I wouldn’t suggest buying a used access code when you can just get it from the company site (for like 70 bucks)and still save money in the long run.</p>

<p>Also, you probably aren’t going to be able to sell that book back since it is an international copy.</p>

<p>I would say trust the feedback and reviews, but be a little on edge if you want someone with experience… some may only have a small percent of seller feedback due to just starting out…
And if things don’t work out make sure you complain, get your money back… or file a complaint with ebay if they don’t give it back.
Never had issues buying college books on ebay.</p>