Shopping for a MSX2 on ebay: Which of these are a better deal?

i dont know very well each of them .
they dont have Floopy right ? it is not a big a deal no oneuse them anymore , it can helps from times to times.
I would care for video output , depending on your tv/monitor set.
I would care cosmetic state.
I would care for the possiblity/dificulty of expanding their internal ram , they are both 64kb right ?

it is 105 DOLLARS ... not euros , that makes 80 euros , you can count 20 euros for games in bundle , the computer is then 60 euros , boxed : in europe you can find philips with 128kb + floppy cheaper but sony's tends to cost an extra 5 or 10 euros.

I think sony looks much nicer...

i correct myself: 105 euro for a turboR... Run for it !!
I, too at first thought it was a Turbo R because of the "FS-A1" bit, but it seems to be a "normal" MSX2?

Is that a store? How people get so many used stuff?
I looked to all lots too and see many with no bids at all.
By the way, is this kind of stuff available in (from) US? I know there're far less fans and users of MSX than in other places (Japan, Europe, Latin America...).

I would care for video output , depending on your tv/monitor set.
I would care cosmetic state.
I would care for the possiblity/dificulty of expanding their internal ram , they are both 64kb right ?
These are both fairly basic, and compact MSX2's without floppy drive (no biggie if you own a SD or CF interface), and limited expansion options (partly due to limited space inside).

Both have RGB output for video, besides the usual composite video. I own a HB-F1 II, which I suspect to be very similar to HB-F1, and it has S1985 engine IC inside. AFAIK the Panasonic FS-A1 has this same MSX engine. Read: RAM expansion should be relatively easy up to 256K, and perhaps 512K depending on keyboard configuration (!, a mapper address signal shared with a keyboard signal that's sometimes used, sometimes not).

The Sony has CPU speed & autofire controls, the Panasonic doesn't, I think. The Sony looks better IMHO, the Panasonic is a bit smaller (both with external power brick, which you do need since it's not a single DC voltage). Apart from that they're pretty comparable.

And yes, >100 US$ + shipping is too much for a basic MSX2... perhaps that's why sometimes no-one bids? Tip: ask seller to test all keys before placing a bid. The keyboards on these machines are very difficult to repair / replace. If they're not 100%, you want to know before bidding.

Is the price really that bad though? I've been scouring ebay for months and these have to be the cheapest MSX2 units I've seen so far. Though, I do wish the shipping from Japan didn't cost an arm and a leg. Should I just keep waiting for a better price then?

You might want to check out Japanese Yahoo auctions - just enter "MSX" in search box & put page/URL through Google translate.

It's easy to find cheap MSX2's in Europe, for example in the Netherlands around ~40 Euros for a Philips NMS8250 or similar. But shipping to the US will be expensive, and for the 8250/55/80 should be very well packed (original box?) since otherwise you have a chance the weak plastic front is broken on arrival.

Therefore Japan may be a better source - equally expensive shipping (I assume), more choice in models & normally configured for 110V / 60 Hz. Figuring out payment / shipping details, browsing Japanese sites & communication with Japanese seller may all be difficult, but if you can manage it, you'll probably find a better deal there than 100+ US$ for an MSX2.