Best way is to enter the most you want to spend and let it ride. Unless it is free shipping, factor the shipping into your top bid. If you win great, if you lose another one more then likely will come along later.
Maybe this won't work for you, but when I am bidding on something, I usually bid just once near the end of the auction. Then I check My eBay> bids/offers periodically.
Thanks for reporting this. If you look at the item and the bid history can you let us know how close to the end you were outbid. If you were outbid in the last seconds the notification may have not gone out. If you were outbid with more time let us know and we will look into it.
