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Are "new" (or refurbished) Air's "better" than older ones?

P

PresidentPalmer

macrumors newbie
Original poster
May 23, 2008
1
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I've read various opinions on this - but is there any kind of information or consensus?

Has Apple changed anything in the air from a hardware perspective that consistantly makes the new air (and refurbished ones), better than the older ones.

Is the fan better or does the machine run better. I understand that there have been no official hardware updates - but is that true?

I'm trying to decide between buying a used mac air or a refurbished one from Apple. The used on is cheaper and from a trusted source - so the issue is more one of whether Apple has done anything to improve upon the build since the product was released.
 
ive got no info to back it up, but seeing as the air is such a new product i really doubt there has been that much change if any to the air
 
Yes refurbished ones are the best.

This is because the problems that could happen, did happen, and so your safe that these problems were fixed.

Of course, then again, it might just be a return by one of those guys who return 10 or twenty because they're neurotic.
 
I bought my MBA back in early February and so it is one of the early ones. No problems with it, have been enjoying it enormously.

Before buying ANY computer it is important to consider what you expect it to do, what you want to do with it, and most importantly, what it is designed to do. I'm sitting in my bedroom typing away on my MBA right now, using it for catching up with email and forums. When I'm ready to do some serious post-processing (editing) of the many digital photos I shot today, I'll be using my Mac Pro for that function. My expectations of my MBA are vastly different than my expectations of what the Mac Pro can do....and I use each of them accordingly.
 
I seriously doubt anything has changed, but I have no problems with my Air. Surely if they were "better" something would have changed in the manufacturing and we would have heard about it somewhere on this site.
 
I seriously doubt anything has changed, but I have no problems with my Air. Surely if they were "better" something would have changed in the manufacturing and we would have heard about it somewhere on this site.
 
mac jones said:
Yes refurbished ones are the best.

This is because the problems that could happen, did happen, and so your safe that these problems were fixed.

Of course, then again, it might just be a return by one of those guys who return 10 or twenty because they're neurotic.
Click to expand...

that applies to any refurbished item though. and i believe that refurbished machines only have a 90 day warranty as opposed to a 1 year warranty on a brand new machine...
 
mac jones said:
Yes refurbished ones are the best.

This is because the problems that could happen, did happen, and so your safe that these problems were fixed.
Click to expand...

You think? I had 3 refurb Macbook Pros and gave up in the end because 2 were DOA and the 3rd died shortly after the first few days. Never buy a refurb again.

On the other hand, I know lots of people say they've had good experiences with refurbs.

You just can't say they're best though.
 
It's not like when there were problems with the early MacBooks and people could tell the quality by the week of the build. The Air doesn't have the same documented issues and any problems people are having are individual cases and not systemic to the design and manufacture. Given that there are no improvements or modifications that Apple has made prior to a rev. B being announced that you would see. As stated refurbs are a good idea b/c if someone did receive one DOA or with significant issues, it was replaced and the unit went through severe QC prior to being sold as a refurb, almost guaranteeing that it should be less prone to problems than an otherwise new production unit. The only downsides to refurbs are 1.) the plain packaging (no cool Apple box) - which means if you mean to sell it/eBay it you can't sell it as used or new, as it was refurbished, and 2.) it could possibly arrive with cosmetic defects like scratches to the outer case. I bought a Mac Mini 1.66 Core Duo SD refurb in 2006 and saved $150 and still got a printer rebate deal. It was a great deal and a nice holdover machine until I bought my aluminum iMac last summer.
 
heads up said:
that applies to any refurbished item though. and i believe that refurbished machines only have a 90 day warranty as opposed to a 1 year warranty on a brand new machine...
Click to expand...


Apple gives 1 year warranty on refurbished machines the same as a new one. And my take on it, I buy and sell a lot. I have had 2 Apple refurbished machines go back the same day for different issues that were obvious in quality. One of them a screw was almost out of the hinge and scratched the hell out of the 17" Macbook Pro when I opened the lid
 
is it possible to even tell if they are refubished?
Apple would not resell dented/scratched computers would they?
 
I would think most of the early Air refurbs would be cases where users bought them and found it didn't suit their needs rather than for technical issues.

At the same time, I would be very wary of dents. Just like a car body the surface damage might not be fully indicative of what's going on underneath.
 
wordy said:
I would think most of the early Air refurbs would be cases where users bought them and found it didn't suit their needs rather than for technical issues.
Click to expand...

Me, too. Adding to that: since most of the components of the MBA are soldered onto a tiny logic board, I think it's far less prone to QA issues.
 
mac jones said:
Yes refurbished ones are the best.

This is because the problems that could happen, did happen, and so your safe that these problems were fixed.

Of course, then again, it might just be a return by one of those guys who return 10 or twenty because they're neurotic.
Click to expand...

i had four refurbished macbook core duo's. i kept sending them back, not because of nitpicking bc of real problems: one arrived DOA, another with a crack and space in the top case, and two had broken keys.

this was about 7-8 months after they had initially come out. Even so, i still buy used and refurbed. i don't hold a grudge.

In your situation, even if the macbook air had silent upgrades, they would not be seen in refurbished models. my models were from the first half of the year even tho i bought it months after it had been out.
 
Clix Pix said:
I bought my MBA back in early February and so it is one of the early ones. No problems with it, have been enjoying it enormously.

Before buying ANY computer it is important to consider what you expect it to do, what you want to do with it, and most importantly, what it is designed to do. I'm sitting in my bedroom typing away on my MBA right now, using it for catching up with email and forums. When I'm ready to do some serious post-processing (editing) of the many digital photos I shot today, I'll be using my Mac Pro for that function. My expectations of my MBA are vastly different than my expectations of what the Mac Pro can do....and I use each of them accordingly.
Click to expand...

Spot on response!:cool:
 
NC MacGuy said:
I think it's hit or miss regardless. I have an early Feb. model and it's been just fine.
Click to expand...

I agree I also think its hit or miss. Some people with older laptop have no problems but some people with newer MBA have problems and vice versa. I for one bought my MBA last March and I have no problems so far. My MBA is running smoothly like it should.

Also you have to know that the general consensus on how many MBA's are defective cannot be measured by going to forums since most of the people put their complaints online but those who are satisfied most of the time don't write anything at all.

But it doesn't really matter I suppose, If you accidentally bought a defective MBA, you can always return it (14 days), get it replaced or get it repaired through applecare. :apple:
 
Refurbished MBA's are more likely to be better quality because of the rigorous tests that they are summoned to.
 
My boss is a big fan of refurbed machines. He said the MTBF (Mean Time Between Failure) for any machine is determined by the manufacturer. And is usually pretty spot on. Once a machine fails and is fixed, the chances of it failing again are slim to none. True, sometimes you just get a lemon. But statistically speaking, once a machine receives "individual attention" its chances of failing again are slim to none. And he believes that machines that receive 100% inspection are better than a machine that came from a lot that only had a small sampling tested.

Sounds good to me.
 
krye said:
My boss is a big fan of refurbed machines. He said the MTBF (Mean Time Between Failure) for any machine is determined by the manufacturer. And is usually pretty spot on. Once a machine fails and is fixed, the chances of it failing again are slim to none. True, sometimes you just get a lemon. But statistically speaking, once a machine receives "individual attention" its chances of failing again are slim to none. And he believes that machines that receive 100% inspection are better than a machine that came from a lot that only had a small sampling tested.

Sounds good to me.
Click to expand...

I can only assume the three lemons I got in a row were bad luck then... or maybe some of Apple's testing isn't that rigorous?
 
nomad01 said:
I can only assume the three lemons I got in a row were bad luck then... or maybe some of Apple's testing isn't that rigorous?
Click to expand...

Maybe it wasn't. But we know for sure that these three replacements issues lost of costs for them (logistics, re-re-furbishment, etc), so one would assume that they want to put some rigor on it. And maybe they already did.
 
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