My broker gives me free Level II quotes, but I've never used them. Do they really give you an edge?
Quote from hajimow:
I always put fake sell or buy orders when I want to manipulate a stock and it works. Not on very active stocks. I do it on stocks with 500K average volume. So Level II shows reality and manipulation.
Quote from ProfitTakgFool:
Even on liquid stocks fake orders show up frequently. I used to trade an ETF a while back and it was just blatantly obvious when the fakes appeared. Always in multiples of 1000 and stacked every 10 cents or so.
So, the answer is, no it won't give you an edge because everyone has access to the same semi-useless information. To find an edge you have to be able to do something a little different than everyone else. You need a window into the market world that only a relative few can access. This edge can something as simple as your perception of what's really happening vs. everyone else's.
Quote from hajimow:
I always put fake sell or buy orders when I want to manipulate a stock and it works. Not on very active stocks. I do it on stocks with 500K average volume. So Level II shows reality and manipulation.