I'm not sure if this helps -
Quoted from:
http://pages.ebay.com/help/buy/automatic-bidding.html When you place a bid, you [can] enter the maximum amount you're willing to pay for the item. The seller and other bidders don’t know your maximum bid.
We’ll place bids on your behalf using the automatic bid increment amount, which is based on the current high bid. We'll bid only as much as necessary to make sure that you remain the high bidder, or to meet the reserve price, up to your maximum amount.
If another bidder places the same maximum bid or higher, we’ll notify you so you can place another bid. Your maximum bid is kept confidential until it is exceeded by another bidder. ``````````````````
What appears on the ebay auction is your bid at only enough to stay on top, until you may be outbid. If you bid $200, and the auction closes at $150, you not only win, but you pay only the $150.
I have no knowledge of the other bidding tools. There are no bells & whistles or clicks & tricks to make ebay's automatic bidding work. You enter a bid as usual, but at the maximum you are willing to pay. The ebay software will only show your bid at just enough to stay on top of other bidders, unless you are outbid. In that case, the final price exceeded what you were willing to pay anyway.
I suppose the downside of this is a self defeating shill effect. Other bidders may see your instantaneous oneup-manship and wonder, "Who the H--- is this Bill fellow, who apparently lives on top of his computer 24/7?"
