Anyone trust eBay to buy Macbook?

[lukester]

I went for a deal too good to be true.. the seller had all positive reviews and lots of them. He had about 8 or 9 other Macs for sale too. This 15" late 2014 had a bunch of extra software loaded, such as final cut pro,, which I would like to get.
I made an offer and got accepted, bought using paypal and my credit card. It did not go through.. Called Paypal and they said there was a problem with the seller.. They said you could go outside of paypal but did not recommend it.. I looked at the reviews and many said private.

There are many other slightly used 15" retinas for sale too from other sellers..
Not sure if I should go that route.
thoughts?

 

[simonsi]

thoughts?

Lucky escape.

 

[krishmk]

I wouldn't go private.

 

[Samuelsan2001]

I went for a deal too good to be true.. the seller had all positive reviews and lots of them. He had about 8 or 9 other Macs for sale too. This 15" late 2014 had a bunch of extra software loaded, such as final cut pro,, which I would like to get.
I made an offer and got accepted, bought using paypal and my credit card. It did not go through.. Called Paypal and they said there was a problem with the seller.. They said you could go outside of paypal but did not recommend it.. I looked at the reviews and many said private.

There are many other slightly used 15" retinas for sale too from other sellers..
Not sure if I should go that route.
thoughts?

I bought the one I'm using right now on eBay, I got £300 pound off the retail price and it was brand new sealed in box. I did buy it in cash in person though and checked the machine wasn't on any stolen lists before buying.

 

[steve62388]

I bought the one I'm using right now on eBay, I got £300 pound off the retail price and it was brand new sealed in box. I did buy it in cash in person though and checked the machine wasn't on any stolen lists before buying.

There is no magic global 'stolen list' you can check. That's not to say yours is stolen though, could be an unwanted gift or prize, or just someone avoiding paying VAT, any number of possibilities really. Although anybody legit would most likely post 'why' they're selling at a discount as they have nothing to hide and would want to allay the fears of any potential buyers. Absence of this gives you a reasonable indication it's not above board. The fact you paid cash in person is an indication you knew this, why wouldn't any normal person want to have a traceable transaction for greater protection?

 

[Samuelsan2001]

There is no magic global 'stolen list' you can check. That's not to say yours is stolen though, could be an unwanted gift or prize, or just someone avoiding paying VAT, any number of possibilities really. Although anybody legit would most likely post 'why' they're selling at a discount, absence of this gives you a reasonable indication it's not above board.

Well there is a list of serial numbers available (can't remember where now but I did my due diligence), the seller had a number of new macbook pros for sale I have no idea where they came from but I couldn't find any evidence that there was an issue.

 

[0007776]

I wouldn't trust ebay for something that expensive. Also if you are getting it with software already loaded and it doesn't come with the original disks you might as well just get a computer without it and pirate it when you get the computer as legally you are in the same spot. Definitely don't go outside ebay to pay as that is just asking for trouble since then you have 0% chance of getting your money back if/when you find out that something is wrong.

Well there is a list of serial numbers available (can't remember where now but I did my due diligence), the seller had a number of new macbook pros for sale I have no idea where they came from but I couldn't find any evidence that there was an issue.

There might be people who have posted their serial numbers of stolen machines online that you were able to check, but there isn't any one list you can check. If someone is selling several new computers for less than retail it is pretty safe to assume that they are stolen, one you can explain, but not much more than that.

 

[steve62388]

If someone is selling several new computers for less than retail it is pretty safe to assume that they are stolen, one you can explain, but not much more than that.

Or avoiding collecting VAT, which is illegal but not what most people would consider 'stolen' in the traditional sense.

 

[Studflower]

Brand new factory sealed machines would be fine since apple has great customer service.

However, I wouldn't touch a used macbook on ebay. There are way too many things that can go wrong for the amount of money spent. Can you trust a stranger to be perfectly honest about spilling a little bit of water on the keyboard? What about their usage patterns? Did they use their laptop on top of a blanket? Are they honest about the little graphical glitch that the GPUs been showing for 2 months? Etc etc...

I'm not saying sellers are always or very likely dishonest... I presume most sellers are honest people. But do you want to take the chance??

Why not just save up another couple hundred and buy certified refurb from apple? Or brand new from an online retailer like adorama?

Also, is the software even transferable to your apple ID? I don't even think pre-installed software is worth anything (most likely pirated)

 

[0007776]

Also, is the software even transferable to your apple ID? I don't even think pre-installed software is worth anything (most likely pirated)

No it isn't, so even if it was purchased legitimately by the original owner it has the same legal status as pirated software as far as the person who purchases it is concerned, and if they don't care about that they are still better off buying a cheaper machine without the preinstalled software and pirating it themselves.

 

[z31fanatic]

The software installed are probably trial versions. A lot of sellers do that to fool you like you are getting software for free.

 

[frazzm737]

There is no way that I would buy a MBP on EBay or any similar site. I have heard too many horror stories. You should look instead at Apple's refurbished computers. They will come with Apple's warranty and be backed by Apple service.

 

[lukester]

There is no way that I would buy a MBP on EBay or any similar site. I have heard too many horror stories. You should look instead at Apple's refurbished computers. They will come with Apple's warranty and be backed by Apple service.

Is there that much difference in a mid 2014 retina and the 2015 model, 15" MBP?
If I bought from B&H I could get what I want on a 2014 512 gig SSd etc, for 1999.00 compared with $2349.00 for the 2015.. thats a bit of coin..

 

[eyoungren]

I guess it just depends on how old your machines are. I've bought PowerBook G4s, iBook G4s and my first MBP off eBay since 2009. Any problems I had were because I didn't necessarily have enough money to make purchases outside of the "For parts or repair" category.

But my 2006 17" MBP only cost me $189 and my 2003 17" PowerBook only cost me $70. Both came in near perfect condition.

And I've had lots of great buys from business liquidators. My son's 1Ghz Titanium PowerBook G4 DVI was $25.

Still, on the bottom end there's always someone trying to rip you off (offloading junk not worth the cheapie price they are charging) just as they are when going after late model Macs. But that hasn't stopped me yet.

 

[z31fanatic]

As far as buying from eBay, hell yes. I've had very good experiences. I have bought all my Macs on eBay.
I have bought a late 2013 13" rMBP, mid 2012 13" cMBP, three 13" Macbook Airs, and my current Mac, a mid 2014 15" rMBP. Never a single issue.
You just have to know who you are dealing with and you will be ok.

 

[ECJ]

Yes, I would in a heart beat after I do some research. I have bought this current 2015 15" rMBP ($500 of retail, no tax or shipping), my last 2013 rMBP and my wife's MBA from eBay without any issue. Also I've sold all my previous Macs on eBay. I only had an issue once back in 1998 where a guy just didn't ship the Mac. PayPal refunded my money and I bought it from someone else.

 

[gordian]

Lots of deals to be had on eBay but you're right to be skeptical of doing it privately. PayPal buyer protection will cover you but best to cover yourself too and do it through eBay.