On getting ripped off on eBay again

Tesco, tossers that they are, sold me a freeview plus box last year. It was in the clearance section at the time, and was basically a freeview box, but with the addition of being able to record your favourite stuff automatically, sans Sky+. It had a recording capacity of 80 hours, and you just choose your favourite stuff then when you do get an evening of vegging in front of the TV, you can just watch your recorded stuff, even without the adverts. This is a good thing. The problem was, freeviews was switched on 11.5 months after I got the box, so when I did get the chance to record I found it didn't record properly, missing 1 second in every 5. This was not only frustrating, it was also unwatchable. So, after arguing with Tesco (I didn't have the receipt, and would be able to find it now anyway), I decided to cut my losses and just buy another box.
Having a quick glance on the land of the misdescription and broken technology, eBay, I see a BT vision box. Not knowing anything about these boxes, I gather they use a card like a Sky box, which then streams video via their broadband service into the box. It also works as a freeview+ box, again coming with a hard drive. It was cheap (£27.99) and so I got one. Surprise surprise, it didn't work. You plug it in, and it comes up with an error. After a bit of research, it turns out the error is basically it's not plugged into a BT Broadband connection. I don't want it to be, so I contacted the seller.
"This box will never work as a freeview box unless it's plugged into BT."
"Yes, and? I said that."
"No you didn't. You said 'Freeview viewing is subscription free. 14 day TV guide, will stream BT on demand with the right viewing card.' That's not the same thing."
"Well if you want a refund, you pay the additional £9 to return it, along with the £9 you've already paid to get it to you. That's £18. If you don't like it, tough. I have 200+ positive feedback, and all my customers are happy."
So, I did the obligatory leaving of negative feedback. I'll cut my losses (I'll probably get £30 - £40 for the drive), but again eBay just said "phone him, and beg him to come to an arrangement." I'm not begging anyone for anything. I then bid on another real one this time. We'll see how that goes.