Mark-up on Isee 2 Diamond?

[Jambazi]

Hello Everyone!

Thanks for the great information. I did a search on Isee 2, and can''t find a good answer to my question. So, here goes...

What''s a reasonable mark-up on a diamond that''s rated by Isee 2? I know the retailer probably has to pay for the cost of the machine, etc. Anyway, here are the specifics:

1.038 carat
SI1
G
Fluorescence: Inert
Table 56%
Crown Angle 34.6%
Pav Angle 40.8%
Crown Ht 15.0%
Pav Depth 42.8%
Girdle 0.9 - 1.7
Total depth 61.2%
Polish/Sym Id/Id
6.51 x 6.53 x 3.99
AGS grading, 000

Dealer wants $6950 for it.
HCA has Excellent x3, and VG for spread

Scored 9.8 on the Isee 2 machine.

Price seems a little high to me, but it is after all a GIA Class I diamond, Holloway 1.3 (TIC range).

I like the dealer, he seems like an honest guy, but I was wondering if he had room to go down on the price a little. What do you all think?

Thanks for all your help!

 

[valeria101]

Why are you focused on the ISee2 diagnostic? The instrument does combine tests for more features than the others I know of, but it does not strike me as either indispensable or irreplaceable...

 

[Jambazi]

I'm not focused on the Isee 2 per se. I was looking for a diamond that was a GIA Class I (American Ideal or Tolkowsky standard), and this local dealer had one but that also happened to be an Isee 2 rated diamond.

I'm sure I can find others out there that meet the same specifications which don't have the Isee 2 grading. It's just that this stone I saw was very beautiful, and I'd like to buy it but not if the dealer is charging an unreasonable premium just because of the Isee 2 grading.

So, my original question remains: is this a fair price for this diamond? Or has it been unreasonably marked up just because it scores well in the machine?

thanks,
Howie

 

[Rank Amateur]

What is a GIA Class I diamond? Does this stone have a GIA lab report? The numbers read more like an AGS report.

Is it an ISee2 brand diamond? If it is, I presume the vendor doesn't have much leeway in terms of price. If the ISee2 score is important to you, you might just have to pay that $1500 premium because few dealers have chose to pony up the big $$ to get the ISee2 - even if it is not an ISee2 branded stone. If this is a bricks and mortar store carrying significant stock you (justifiably) pay a markup for that as well.

I could stomach paying 5% to 10% more for a high ISee2 score, but it looks to me that this is more like 30%. (You'll never know the actual vendor cost for a stone, so don't get fixated on it.)

R/A

 

[elmo]

Extra markup on a Isee2 *branded* diamond? Definitely. Probably more than than on some of the internet "brands" here. They consistently cut a very nice stone - you pay for that and you pay for the branding.

Extra markup at a local b&m? Definitely. It is the rare bird whose in-store pricing even comes close to what the full-service internet vendors charge.

Extra markup on an *unbranded* stone that scores well on Isee2? No way, Jose. At least not more than what any other killer unbranded ideal sells for.

 

[Rhino]

Hi Jambazi,




I also am a retailer of the Isee2 branded diamonds and am a participater in the "Isee2 Project" in which we have a tutorial on our website concerning such.




The price you are being asked is not uncommon considering you are going to a B&M environment and receiving the "face to face" service enjoyed from that atmosphere. Having the Isee2 technology at your disposal and the help and expertise of the local retailer to assist in the picking is also a plus.




The one facet (

) of our tutorial which we did not finish however concerns the product and let me just say for the record that these guys cut a MEAN product.

The stones we have personally inspected from Isee2 and have sold have not just received excellent scores via Isee2 analysis but also display precision crisp H&A's, excellent LightScope and BrillianceScope analysis as well. The product is not offered via the net (which is why you do not see any on our website) but is geared solely to the bricks and mortar environment.




Your best bet is to compare other local B&M's, compare what is being offered for the money and as long as you are happy with the service, price, etc. go with your gut. As a consumer I would value that info in helping to make the comparisons and a 9.8 is no slouch.

Peace,

 

[mdx]

Is the Isee2 device only available to stockists of "Isee2 branded diamonds"?

Johan

 

[Jambazi]

Rhino,

Thank you very much for those helpful comments. I have one other concern about the diamond I'm looking at, though. The date on the AGS report is Aug 02. That's about 18 months old, and the Isee2 "birthdate" is even older than that (yes, it's branded, and has the special serial number and logo).

How concerned do I need to be that this diamond is second-hand (had a prior owner)? Should I ask the dealer to get it re-graded? I've read that you don't want a grading report to be older than 12 months.

Thanks for all your replies, everyone!

Howie

 

[Rhino]

The answer to your question mdx is yes.




Hi Howie,




I understand your concern about the data on the AGS Report but don't let that concern you. These guys are sitting on a stockpile of incredibly cut goodies and from the cert dates they've had them for a little while. It's no biggie as these are not preowned stones. You are (or will be) the first owner and you can of course have your stone checked with any appraiser to confirm no wear or abrasions on the stone. Some of the stones I had purchased (which were .9xct D-G, IF-VS2's) were also dated but not because they were used, just nobody had purchased them yet.




Peace,

 

[AGBF]

Jonathan,

Tell me more about Isee2 diamonds. Can you give us an update on them? Are they still sold only by B&M stores? Who cuts them and where?

Also: how do they compare to Solasferas and Eightstars? (Don''t give me any numbers, please. Just use words. For example, "They are more brilliant" or "They display less color". Thank you for your indulgence! You know I don''t like to talk in the language of geeks and engineers.)

Deb

 

[Sunni79]

If all the fancy certs(except GIA) aren''t as important to you, then you can definately get a better price for a G SI1 stone. That''s just my opinion, I''m no expert.

 

[AGBF]

Christine,

I revived an old thread rather than start a new one. I'm sorry if that was confusing. The original question was posed more than a year ago. I just wanted to get an update on Isee2 diamonds from Jonathan.

Deb

 

[Rhino]

Date: 3/2/2005 8

3:54 AM
Author: AGBF
Jonathan,

Tell me more about Isee2 diamonds. Can you give us an update on them? Are they still sold only by B&M stores? Who cuts them and where?

Also: how do they compare to Solasferas and Eightstars? (Don''t give me any numbers, please. Just use words. For example, ''They are more brilliant'' or ''They display less color''. Thank you for your indulgence! You know I don''t like to talk in the language of geeks and engineers.)

Deb

Hi Deb (hope you don''t mind if I call you Deb but if you prefer AGBF that''s ok too)

In answer to your questions ...

a. Still only sold and offered in B&M''s (as are Solasfera''s & Eighternity''s) Solasfera and Eighternity however do allow us to list and show our stock inventory on our website so people can see and learn about these new cuts.
b. Isee2 diamonds are cut in Antwerp. Each Isee2 diamond is also accompanied by a Provenance Report showing country of origin and the details on the rough from which the finished product was cut from. This is valuable information for those who must know their stone is conflict free (although this is generallly not even an issue anymore from what I know).
c. In terms of aesthetics ... Most Isee2 diamonds we''ve seen and sold do have spot on H&A optics characterized by bold flashes of light (colored or white depending on light conditions). Some have a little stronger scintilation than others but for the most part they are really beautiful stones. A criteria which all Isee2 diamond *must* meet is a minimum score of 9.0.

This guarantees superior light performance in diffuse/ambient light conditions which empahsize contrast/brightness & symmetry (the features the Isee2 measures).

AGBF... let me also take this opportunity to say that''s its good to see you around on the boards. You of all people are perhaps one of my oldest and dearest friends on the forum and you and I share a lot of history together. I always love to read your input as you know how to keep it real.

Warm regards,

 

[valeria101]

Date: 1/31/2004 2:29:20 AM
Author:Jambazi

What's a reasonable mark-up on a diamond that's rated by Isee 2? I know the retailer probably has to pay for the cost of the machine, etc. Anyway, here are the specifics:

H&A & AGS0 & HCA already tell allot about the diamond - I wonder how much room for hair splitting is left between those rounds that pass above these benchmarks ?

No idea how the 7k compares with the price of other ISee2 branded rounds. How this stone compares with other 1 carat G/Si1s with similar pedigree is one $1000 worth question. There are 12 competing ideals listed "by HCA cut quality" on top of this page with quotes from $5300 to $6000 depending on how precise the "ideal" quality is defined (= basically more or less precise H&A pattern among diamonds cut to AGS0 proportions and tested for light return via Ideal Scope).

Even if technical differences might persist among these guys all along the 2k-wide price range, how different can they be ?

This is the "bargain" of the lot

So... maybe that photo shows less detail than the Isee2 symmetry chart. But this is serious magnification - allot less would be discernible without any. IMO at least