For one thing, it "is" a sealed product. I asked an apple person on the phone a year ago about buying mine on ebay. They said it was like buying anything sealed (like a piece of hardware). They said, if you go to the apple store, you get one off the shelf and buy it. Sooo, they said maybe the ebay seller bought a "clearance lot" of them from a re-seller like best buy or someone. The second one I got on ebay was said by the seller, to have a damaged box. I just got the code in an email. When I registered it I received a confirmation from apple. My warranties have been confirmed several times and several ways.