A friend of mine is looking at getting a smartphone, so he asked me my thoughts on a phone:
http://www.trademe.co.nz/Mobile-phones/Vodafone/Blackberry/auction-244096613.htm
http://www.trademe.co.nz/Mobile-phones/Vodafone/Blackberry/auction-244096591.htm

This is a Blackberry Pearl 8110 for only $199 buy now!

This isn't the only ones this seller has around that mark either, got others for $1NR and others at similar low buy nows such as $300 or so.

hmmm.... because he has a lot of this particular model at various low price points it is clear he must have imported them, thus the most important question to work out is if it is genuine or some random chinese knock off?

Considering that price me tells me you can get it for $800
http://www.priceme.co.nz/Blackberry-Pearl-8110/p-882442325.aspx

I suspect a knock off, unless there is something I don't know as to why Blackberries sell so very cheaply second hand? (although it is hardly second hand, is in new condition)

Haven't had any experience with RIM phones (or buying them secondhand), so I'd like to know others opinions.

I've been skimming over the seller's past sales, nothing strikes me as super suspicious (does have several bad feedback, quite a lot really but as a percentage it is very very low so that should be ok)

Although says a photo of actual product yet the date on the phone is Wed March 1

which is weird as March was a long time ago... and the 1st of march was a sunday this year

nah, I'm probably just being paranoid.

(then again it does say Vodafone NZ on the screen, so it probably isn't just a random photo scrapped off the net like most scammers do)