Can you give me some buying tips for a MacBook Air 11 inch from eBay?

[Hieveryone]

I'm in the market for a MacBook Air 11 inch.

I was thinking of buying one from eBay, or any other store you suggest.

Can you please tell me which year's model I should buy, and what specifications I would need?

All I'm doing is browsing the web, watching youtube, calculator, and so on.

 

[casperes1996]

Honest suggestion is just not to. For the prices you'd be able to find it at, I really don't think it's worth it. Any specification is relatively bad, but worst of all is the screen, which really matter. It's the window to everything you do on a computer.

 

[michaelsviews]

I'm in the market for a MacBook Air 11 inch.

I was thinking of buying one from eBay, or any other store you suggest.

Can you please tell me which year's model I should buy, and what specifications I would need?

All I'm doing is browsing the web, watching youtube, calculator, and so on.

Not sure of the dollar amount you want to spend but you could go HERE or goto apples site and refurbished. But ebay hmmm not sure but if it were ME I'd make it my last choice. Based also on what your need's are did you consider maybe the 12" ipad? Goto a local Apple store or authorized sales and play with it and see if may it'd work for you?

 

[MarvinHC]

I would look at Apple's website for refurbs:
http://www.apple.com/shop/browse/home/specialdeals/mac/macbook_air/11

Should you decide on buying somewhere else, I would not go any older than mid 2013. In that version the battery life improved significantly.

Don't let previous posters talk you out of it, yes the screen is not the best in the world, but I prefer the 11" Air over the MB Retina every day. An iPad is a nice toy but can IMHO not replace a proper laptop - just not as ergonomic to use.

 

[casperes1996]

Don't let previous posters talk you out of it, yes the screen is not the best in the world, but I prefer the 11" Air over the MB Retina every day. An iPad is a nice toy but can IMHO not replace a proper laptop - just not as ergonomic to use.

But what about a 13" rMBP then? I couldn't personally justify the Air at this point.

 

[MarvinHC]

But what about a 13" rMBP then? I couldn't personally justify the Air at this point.

Not in the same league when it comes to portability as the 11" Air.
I have never personally owned a 13" retina but I often read about complaints about choppy/lagging user interface? I still do not understand that fetishism around the retina screen. When I go from my 15" retina to my 11" Air I miss the size but really don't get upset because of the lower resolution. But in the end I use my Air so much more because of it's portability.

 

[casperes1996]

Not in the same league when it comes to portability as the 11" Air.
I have never personally owned a 13" retina but I often read about complaints about choppy/lagging user interface? I still do not understand that fetishism around the retina screen. When I go from my 15" retina to my 11" Air I miss the size but really don't get upset because of the lower resolution. But in the end I use my Air so much more because of it's portability.

Well, what is clear here is that you and I value very different things, and the OP really needs to decide what he/she values the most. Personally, I don't find the portability difference that big, and with all of the Iris models of 13" MBPs UI has been fluid.
When it comes to screen I'm practically on the other end of the spectrum. When I look at a computer, be it Apple or not, that doesn't have a hi-DPI display, my eyes physically begin to hurt within seconds.

 

[mlemonds]

'11 had a speed jump
'13 had a battery jump - Thanks PBG4

 

[MarvinHC]

Well, what is clear here is that you and I value very different things, and the OP really needs to decide what he/she values the most. Personally, I don't find the portability difference that big, and with all of the Iris models of 13" MBPs UI has been fluid.
When it comes to screen I'm practically on the other end of the spectrum. When I look at a computer, be it Apple or not, that doesn't have a hi-DPI display, my eyes physically begin to hurt within seconds.

Agree, we have different perceptions regarding the screen.

In any case, OP asked for 11" so I guess portability is important, and no offense but there are worlds between the 11" Air and the 13" Air (and the 13" pro is even heavier).

 

[elf69]

I just bought a 11.6" air myself from ebay.

i5 4gb with 64GB ssd.

no problems and looks like new, only 18 battery cycles.

 

[PBG4 Dude]

'11 had a speed jump
'12 had a battery jump

The battery jump wasn't until 2013 (2012 owner here). The 2012 model got USB3, Thunderbolt and asymmetrical (Quieter) fans.

 

[merkinmuffley]

I wouldn't do this. Ebay is fine for things that don't cost much, but not a place to buy something pricey. Find what you want at the Apple refurb store, or look around on Craigslist and find one you can touch prior to buying.

 

[sracer]

I wouldn't do this. Ebay is fine for things that don't cost much, but not a place to buy something pricey. Find what you want at the Apple refurb store, or look around on Craigslist and find one you can touch prior to buying.

That is generally good advice, however I would be far more comfortable dealing with a wholesaler on eBay than with an individual on Craigslist.

Using a handful of good practices, eBay can be a great place to get a great deal.

Here are a few guidelines that I've developed for myself over the years (started using ebay in 1997):

• Depending upon the item and the description, avoid "0" feedback sellers. If it is a one-off type of thing and the description explains a bit about the "why" of selling it, I'll more likely take a chance.
• The lower the total number of seller feedbacks, the higher their positive percentage needs to be. (eg. feedback=30, percentage=100%; feedback=32,000, percentage>= 95%)
• Avoid auctions where "stock" photos are used.
• Watch out for auctions with exorbitantly high shipping charges. That is often an indicator that the seller is playing a psychological game of having a lower closing bid but overall higher out-of-pocket cost to the buyer.
• Avoid auctions where the seller says "as-is" and claims they haven't actually tested the device. (Showing a working unit can dramatically improve the closing high bid so not showing it is a good indicator that the device is dead)
• Avoid auctions where there is little to no detail in the description. No, stock boilerplate info doesn't count.
• Don't become emotionally attached to any particular auction. Set a high bid for yourself and stick to it.
• When at all possible, snipe. There are quite a few "shills" out there who will run an auction up for the seller. Posting a bid with your high bid gives them the chance to run you up to your high bid. Determine your high bid, and wait.... When something I've been watching is still under my high bid amount and there is less than 1 minute to go, I'll post my high bid then.

These may be overly cautious but they have worked perfectly for me. In those 20 years, I've done a lot of buying and never been scammed. Your mileage may vary.

 

[MarvinHC]

That is generally good advice, however I would be far more comfortable dealing with a wholesaler on eBay than with an individual on Craigslist.

Using a handful of good practices, eBay can be a great place to get a great deal.

Here are a few guidelines that I've developed for myself over the years (started using ebay in 1997):

• Depending upon the item and the description, avoid "0" feedback sellers. If it is a one-off type of thing and the description explains a bit about the "why" of selling it, I'll more likely take a chance.
• The lower the total number of seller feedbacks, the higher their positive percentage needs to be. (eg. feedback=30, percentage=100%; feedback=32,000, percentage>= 95%)
• Avoid auctions where "stock" photos are used.
• Watch out for auctions with exorbitantly high shipping charges. That is often an indicator that the seller is playing a psychological game of having a lower closing bid but overall higher out-of-pocket cost to the buyer.
• Avoid auctions where the seller says "as-is" and claims they haven't actually tested the device. (Showing a working unit can dramatically improve the closing high bid so not showing it is a good indicator that the device is dead)
• Avoid auctions where there is little to no detail in the description. No, stock boilerplate info doesn't count.
• Don't become emotionally attached to any particular auction. Set a high bid for yourself and stick to it.
• When at all possible, snipe. There are quite a few "shills" out there who will run an auction up for the seller. Posting a bid with your high bid gives them the chance to run you up to your high bid. Determine your high bid, and wait.... When something I've been watching is still under my high bid amount and there is less than 1 minute to go, I'll post my high bid then.

These may be overly cautious but they have worked perfectly for me. In those 20 years, I've done a lot of buying and never been scammed. Your mileage may vary.

If I may add to this: look at the selling history. Some sellers prop up their 'reputation' by seller a lot of cheap stuff and all of a sudden comes an expensive MacBook etc.
Also, for a higher value items I usually go for face to face transactions - you can filter ebay auctions by distance from you, so make sure it is not too far away.
(FYI I started using Ebay in 2002, so a bit later then sracer but I was also able to collect quite some experience, mainly positive but you find the occasional scammer)

 

[Fancuku]

Bought and sold on eBay at least 50 laptops/desktops with about 20 of them being Macs. If you know what you are looking for and are patient, you can strike good deals on eBay on Macs.

I would look at 2013 or newer models because of the improvement in battery life.

 

[capathy21]

Look on swappa.com

I've bought and sold numerous Apple products on their site. Always smooth sailing and fair pricing.