I loath the term "rare" simply because the use of it is sadly not rare on EBAY. Put the "rare" label on it and you can deceive more buyers. Seriously. I hate that word. "Rare" in my book does not mean "hard to find." Rare is "an unlikely find" to me. I might be willing to put a "rare" tag on something that crops up on EBAY perhaps once a year. Seriously. I am very, very conservative about the use of that word, mainly because it is used as a weapon all to often against would-be buyers, trying to reap more cash from them than is ethical. And remember, "them = us" a lot of the time. All of us buy or have purchased on EBAY at some point. Without EBAY, where would this site and our vintage Mac community be today. Think about it. So I support EBAY sellers, but I wish them to stay honest and ethical too. Disagree with my feelings on the use of "rare" if you like, but I shall not be dissuaded.

Now with that said, perhaps it is best to not talk about the 512KE in terms of "rare." I like to think of it in terms of "value." There is more value in a Mac Plus than there is in a Mac 512k; hence the Plus should fetch more on EBAY. Yet, a Mac 128k or even a Mac 512k have something that neither the 512KE or the Plus (or any future compact Mac) have: the original 64k ROMs that started it all. There's value in that, folks, even if you wish to argue the inferiority of 64k ROMs versus 128k ROMs. That's why I personally would pay more for a Mac 128k or 512k than a 512kE or Plus any day.

It's all about VALUE.