My friend in Virginia wants to send me her older HDTV and I live in Montreal Canada.?

I figure the value of the item is around $500 so should she mark it as gift or post the old receipt and how much will Canadian customs charge me? And how do they decide its value since it is used. Are their duties and taxes or just taxes or any other fees? I'm going around in circles on the Canada Customs web site and can't seem to find a straight answer. And should she ship it by USPS instead of Fed Ex or UPS etc...?