I just got mine refurbished and it appears in perfect condition, and runs perfectly, but I have no idea whether the previous owner stressed it, in which case it may be more likely to break, or may break soon after my year is up. I don't really want to buy AppleCare, but I guess I might if it really is worth it.
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Do refurbished fail more often than new MBP's?
- Thread starter oregon2
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Umm... They do have to actually pass Apple's check-up which is fairly rigorous. In case you look around these forums plenty of people with new cameras have a lot of problems. Some things like hard drive and logic board failures are somewhat completely random.
I would guess that they're less likely to fail, since they've actually been tested and whatnot. But I could be wrong.
I'd say it's a toss-up.
On one hand, they've been repaired and looked over. On the other hand however, how many horror stories have we seen on here about somebody sending their MB in for the same issue 3 times.
I'm cheap, I'd take a refurb if the savings are significantly better than my 6% EPP discount or Amazon.com .
On one hand, they've been repaired and looked over. On the other hand however, how many horror stories have we seen on here about somebody sending their MB in for the same issue 3 times.
I'm cheap, I'd take a refurb if the savings are significantly better than my 6% EPP discount or Amazon.com .
My friend has bought refurbs from apple for a few years now with no problems.
I just bought a refurb and am loving it. noting as gone wrong with it.
I just bought a refurb and am loving it. noting as gone wrong with it.
I've bought four or five Macs refurb from Apple, as well as four refurb iPods. Only one problem, which was quickly taken care of with a repair by Apple. They've been as reliable, if not more reliable (wild speculation here) than buying new. The price savings are worth it.
In the company that i'm part of...
New items ship directly from manufacturing, a couple of those have some defects as they can be missed by the manufacturing QA. The refurbished cards actually are fully tested by our techs. So while refurbished cards are used I have more trust on a refurbished card. But then again certain things I would only buy new.
New items ship directly from manufacturing, a couple of those have some defects as they can be missed by the manufacturing QA. The refurbished cards actually are fully tested by our techs. So while refurbished cards are used I have more trust on a refurbished card. But then again certain things I would only buy new.
I wouldn't worry about it. new/refurbished both have the same warranty and apple will give you the same service if something goes wrong. I bought a refurbished 17" macbook pro and the display had fingerprint smudges from the inside of the display.. long story short, the guy at the genius bar ordered me an entirely new display to have installed.. I respected the great effort and service but ended up returning the notebook in the end.. new products sometimes have worse quality control so I would almost feel more comfortable with refurbished..
edit: I would also use the savings to buy extended apple care if you spent close to $2000 on the notebook.. if you bought a macbook, I would probably not buy applecare but thats just me
edit: I would also use the savings to buy extended apple care if you spent close to $2000 on the notebook.. if you bought a macbook, I would probably not buy applecare but thats just me
My only fear about buying a refurbished Mac would be cosmetic. Something odd like the trackpad wearing, I mean I understand it has to pass I'm sure vigorous tests, but still there is a certain point in which they have to say "it's just a little wear." But that's why Steve Jobs invented Apple Care.
If it's an "Apple certified reconditioned product" sold only by Apple, it will look, feel and perform exactly as brand new. Anything not meeting that standard is replaced. Basically, a refurb is a handbuilt/overhauled machine made in Cupertino complete with a brand new serial number and complete warranty.
I'd prefer a refurb over a mass-produced in a Chinese factory new unit, since the factory defects are just far too common due to bad quality control. They probably inspect only a small percentage of the new machines that go out the door, and even those inspections are probably cursory at best. The refurbs are completely inspected, tested and made like new.
+1.
If you get refurb then you know 100% that your machine has been checked for quality and it will be working 100% when you get it. Plus there have been stories of people getting a refurb with extra RAM, or a better processor in it.
My only concern buying a refurb would be that refurbs mabye more often have one or two dead pixels as a reason somebody sent the machine back ... (something I guess wouldn't be fixed as it is within the specifications?) Not claiming that it really is this way, just my only fear ... Of course, if the screen really has a dead pixel, I think you can exchange it within 14 (30?) days like every product ...
Couple of questions that might be of interest...
1) Does Apple mark refurbished products clearly as such? Either stickers, or if someone checks the S/N or such? Some other manufacturers do, and it could impact resale values down the road.
2) Is the packaging/etc just like a new unit, or can you clearly tell its refurbished based on packaging? Sometimes a refurbished unit can be just a brown box with power supply. Or sticker/etc on box to indicate refurbished?
3) Comes with the regular warranty support and you can add Applecare to it I would assume?
1) Does Apple mark refurbished products clearly as such? Either stickers, or if someone checks the S/N or such? Some other manufacturers do, and it could impact resale values down the road.
2) Is the packaging/etc just like a new unit, or can you clearly tell its refurbished based on packaging? Sometimes a refurbished unit can be just a brown box with power supply. Or sticker/etc on box to indicate refurbished?
3) Comes with the regular warranty support and you can add Applecare to it I would assume?
I have purchased several refurbished laptops from Apple, and my experiences have been the same as the others here! Just as good or better than new!
It will be your decision to buy new or refurbished!
I don't think there are any "specific" markings on the machine, although it might have a different serial # than new machines.
No, it comes in a simple brown box but includes everything you get when you buy new. the outside of the box says, "APPLE REFURBISHED" or something like that.
Yes
Actually up to 3 years. When you see these machines on ebay that have applecare far past when they should (ex. the product stopped selling in '06 but applecare is until '10 then you know it was purchased refurb.Also: A couple years ago I purchased a 2.16 GHz macbook pro refurb, and at first it seemed brand new, but then the screen started flickering, and 2 screws on the RAM compartment were stripped. Im not saying this is common, but it happened to me.
The obviously can't charge you the same price for a refurb as the same computer if it was new, no matter what the issue was. Then no-one would buy refurbs, and they'd have no reason to offer them.
Bought a refurb iMac for my GF a few years back, and while it has held up great over the years it did have a small scratch on the screen that is a little distracting, and 2 dead pixels. She wasn't bothered by it so we didn't try to get applecare to do anything about it though.
Mine's a refurb, and it's been great aside from a screen flicker issue (it's gotten more rare for some reason lately).
very good...
Got a Penryn last fall for a very good price, saving a lot. It came flawless and I think some of the machines have nothing more than a memory card loose or something.
People turn around and return the machines. Legally, they must then be resold as refurbs.
But they are as good as new.
Got a Penryn last fall for a very good price, saving a lot. It came flawless and I think some of the machines have nothing more than a memory card loose or something.
People turn around and return the machines. Legally, they must then be resold as refurbs.
But they are as good as new.