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batting1000

macrumors 604
Sep 4, 2011
7,451
1,840
Florida
Because many of the components are used? That's like the difference between buying a new car and a used car.

Better get rid of all the Apple products you own now because their components have been used. Might as well get rid of any other electronics you own while you're at it and buy new ones because their components are used too.
 

KingArthurVI

macrumors regular
Original poster
Dec 17, 2011
242
23
Penang, Malaysia
Hey guys, I just came back from the Genius Bar and got a replacement mini, however it came out of a brown cardboard box and I have no idea of knowing whether it's a new or refurbished one. Is there any way of knowing? I did see that the outside of the box had the words "Mainland (China)" printed on it, and the Genius swapped my old mini into the box and sealed it with my name.
 

batting1000

macrumors 604
Sep 4, 2011
7,451
1,840
Florida
Hey guys, I just came back from the Genius Bar and got a replacement mini, however it came out of a brown cardboard box and I have no idea of knowing whether it's a new or refurbished one. Is there any way of knowing? I did see that the outside of the box had the words "Mainland (China)" printed on it, and the Genius swapped my old mini into the box and sealed it with my name.

Don't worry about it being a refurb or not. It will work as good as new because Apple ensures that it does. You still have the original warranty if you need it.
 

Fruit Cake

macrumors 6502a
Mar 31, 2012
597
20
I found with them if you cannot demonstrate the issue, they won't replace it for you no matter how much troubleshooting you do. I had issue with weak wifi where the wifi died maybe 5-10m outside the router. I had 2 other iPads that didn't have the issue along with countless other devices that worked fine. Did DFU etc with no luck. T rule out the router I setup the iPad as hotspot to see what range I could get.. Sure enough, it didn't get very far either.

So I took it in, explaining everything, explained I was 2hrs away from apple store. Guy didn't give a crap, sent me home without a replacement. I had to call apple care to get "authorization" with a note to "direct him" to replace it without question.. Did all that, plus the hassle of going to the store 2hrs away again, and the replacement was fine.

They definitely aren't as pleasant to deal with as they used to be, and you do need to demonstrate the fault without a doubt to them that it exists.
 

mrkjsn

macrumors 6502
Jan 10, 2010
265
0
Better get rid of all the Apple products you own now because their components have been used. Might as well get rid of any other electronics you own while you're at it and buy new ones because their components are used too.

:rolleyes: how does that even make sense. We are talking about getting a replacement for something you bought new with a new item. If I wanted to end up with a refurbished product, then Apple should discount it to reflect a refurbished price. Point is, if I bought one and had it less than a month, it's unreasonable to get a refurbished replacement. Not sure what your post even mean....
 

batting1000

macrumors 604
Sep 4, 2011
7,451
1,840
Florida
If you're so worried that the components are used, as they were intended to be, demand a new one. As far as I'm concerned, as long as it all works and looks new, it's fine. If I have issues within my warranty, I can just get another. You're acting as though the components are ruined or something once they're used even know they're meant to be used. Does the processor run slower if its been used? You just sound ridiculous.
 

ZBoater

macrumors G3
Jul 2, 2007
8,497
1,322
Sunny Florida
It's pretty much what I said.

No, you said, and I quote:

...They don't thoroughly test new ones like they do with refurbished, thus leaving more room for error. ...

The posting on the Apple website talks about refurbs being tested, not that they are tested just like, more, or less than new ones.

That statement of your has no basis on fact and is speculation. Pointing to an Apple statement that says refurbs are tested is not "pretty much" what you said.

Try again.
 

batting1000

macrumors 604
Sep 4, 2011
7,451
1,840
Florida
No, you said, and I quote:



The posting on the Apple website talks about refurbs being tested, not that they are tested just like, more, or less than new ones.

That statement of your has no basis on fact and is speculation. Pointing to an Apple statement that says refurbs are tested is not "pretty much" what you said.

Try again.

I don't see why they wouldn't treat it like a new device though. Of course it's not being manufactured as one but why should it be tested / treated / checked differently than a new device? Remember, this is Apple we're talking about here.
 

SR71

macrumors 68000
Jan 12, 2011
1,602
365
Boston, MA
No, you said, and I quote:



The posting on the Apple website talks about refurbs being tested, not that they are tested just like, more, or less than new ones.

That statement of your has no basis on fact and is speculation. Pointing to an Apple statement that says refurbs are tested is not "pretty much" what you said.

Try again.

I'm also basing this off my experiences where I've bought countless "new" products that have had cosmetic and software issues, while all of the the refurbished items I've had have been flawless.
 

Brian Y

macrumors 68040
Oct 21, 2012
3,776
1,064
New products roll off the production line in massive numbers, and have very repetitive testing, which is easy to slip through.

Refurbs are repaired by hand, and inspected by a technician, not some factory worker, at a much slower pace. Which do you think will have had the most thorough inspection?
 

Rodster

macrumors 68040
May 15, 2007
3,177
6
New products roll off the production line in massive numbers, and have very repetitive testing, which is easy to slip through.

Refurbs are repaired by hand, and inspected by a technician, not some factory worker, at a much slower pace. Which do you think will have had the most thorough inspection?

^^^ This

I purchased a refurb iPad 2 (it looks and works like new) and it's going strong and I use it everyday. The above is just commonsense that needs very little proof that these units sent back are not only visually inspected but tested with software diagnostics at the testing facility. Testing the HOME button, checking the screen for lint, backlight bleed, stuck or dead pixels and the reason it was initially returned in the first place SHOULD be part of the certification process.
 

ZBoater

macrumors G3
Jul 2, 2007
8,497
1,322
Sunny Florida
I honestly had thought I'd seen it all here. But to say refurb is BETTER than new just takes the cake.

Ok, I give up. Enjoy. :rolleyes:
 

allapon

macrumors regular
Feb 25, 2012
169
13
Bangkok, Thailand
I just have the same problem as thread starter. I played Galaxy on Fire 2 for a while. Suddenly, apple logo showed up on my screen and it keep restarting. I tried soft reset by hold Sleep/Wake and Home button, Same thing happen. I even tried to restore from recovery mode, it restore but still not boot up.

I just hope that Genius Bar can solve my problem. It seem like the memory problem, which is hardware!!

Update 1 : Finally, I can boot up iPad Mini and it seem like it gonna be fine. I delete app that might cause problem and it should be ok for now.
 
Last edited:

charlituna

macrumors G3
Jun 11, 2008
9,636
816
Los Angeles, CA
Try restoring it and setting up as new.

If you are having an issue like that with those kinds of errors in the log, restoring is the worse thing to do. Why? Because it kills those logs. So unless the issue happens right in front of the technician they could chalk it up to faulty firmware, restore and send you home rather than replace it as it likely should be.

one or even two panics could be software but one to two pages is something they need to see so losing that old data could hurt you in the end.

----------

As in holding the sleep and the home button at the same time? Yeah done that countless of times when the iPad just freezes all of a sudden :( really worried that if they "fix" it it will still be problematic and I have to make an extra trip.

Apple doesn't 'fix' iPads outside of software restores. Any hardware issue is a full replacement.

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Directly from their website: "We test and certify all Apple refurbished products and include a 1-year warranty. All refurbished iPad models also include a brand new battery and outer shell."

http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/specialdeals/ipad?afid=p219|GOUS&cid=AOS-US-KWG

So they do test them for problems.

That wasn't the statement. It was that they don't test and certify new product before it ships out. Or at least not as much.

who knows really but sometimes tells me that they do run some kind of tests even it only on a large sample of the new products. whereas every individual refurb would likely get examined to make sure someone didn't switch a part, et liquid in it that wasn't noticed etc. That might be the source of the myth.

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Hey guys, I just came back from the Genius Bar and got a replacement mini, however it came out of a brown cardboard box and I have no idea of knowing whether it's a new or refurbished one.

There's really no way of knowing. Although the likelihood of returns on the ipad Minis, or rather lack of likely returns, suggests that the odds are more in your favor that it was new. Service parts never come in the same retail box since the ipad, iphone etc is all you are getting so why waste space in the retail box
 

gnasher729

Suspended
Nov 25, 2005
17,980
5,565
That's what I am afraid of. More problems. Is there a way to get them to give me a brand new one?

Refurbished is as good as new. Refurbished could actually be new - someone buys an iPad as a present, the person that it's bought for doesn't want it, and it is returned to the store; it's new but Apple cannot sell it as new. Even if it was used for a few days, it would be newer than your own iPad.

----------

:rolleyes: how does that even make sense. We are talking about getting a replacement for something you bought new with a new item. If I wanted to end up with a refurbished product, then Apple should discount it to reflect a refurbished price. Point is, if I bought one and had it less than a month, it's unreasonable to get a refurbished replacement. Not sure what your post even mean....

You bought it new, but it isn't new. As soon as you unpack it, it isn't new anymore.
 
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