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Does Apple have iPhone 5s refurbished units yet?

J

Jason1978

macrumors regular
Original poster
Sep 18, 2013
248
0
What are their general way of doing business for a phone that is 3 days old being replaced? I just dont want a refurbished phone but they probably dont even have any right now right? Dont know how it works. And please dont ask why I dont want a refurbished phone please :p
 
Chances are slim, but you're still able to return it so you should get a new one.
 
Jason1978 said:
What are their general way of doing business for a phone that is 3 days old being replaced? I just dont want a refurbished phone but they probably dont even have any right now right? Dont know how it works. And please dont ask why I dont want a refurbished phone please :p
Click to expand...

Apple has a separate limited stock for exchanges (from my past experiences during the first few weeks during launch).

Good luck
 
paulyeo said:
Apple has a separate limited stock for exchanges (from my past experiences during the first few weeks during launch).

Good luck
Click to expand...

i had an issue with my launch day 5s, and they couldn't help me when i wanted to exchange. i had to return and hunt down another.
 
siurpeeman said:
i had an issue with my launch day 5s, and they couldn't help me when i wanted to exchange. i had to return and hunt down another.
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it all depends on the stores exchange inventory, colors, carriers, sizes.

ive had great luck during the iPhone 5 launch when I had to exchange it four times that first week.
 
paulyeo said:
it all depends on the stores exchange inventory, colors, carriers, sizes.

ive had great luck during the iPhone 5 launch when I had to exchange it four times that first week.
Click to expand...

Best Buy has horrible customer service, so thats my reason for going through Apple. Hope they come through for me. :eek:
 
paulyeo said:
it all depends on the stores exchange inventory, colors, carriers, sizes.

ive had great luck during the iPhone 5 launch when I had to exchange it four times that first week.
Click to expand...

Yet another good reason why im returning mine. give it a couple months to fix the hardware issues too then ill buy back. For such a premium product shouldnt be getting this many problems.
 
So one apple rep told me chances are I will receive a refurbished and 2 of them said chances are I wouldn't. I just can't believe how hard it is to get a phone that is free of manufacturing defects. I understand the refurbished units are almost new but my phone is only 4 days old. I would just like a new phone like the one I got. How hard is that to ask for? This whole phone experience has been a joke. It's not apples fault it is best buys fault really.
 
Here's my experience:

Bought a gold Verizon 5s device only on Oct 7 (using it on T Mobile fyi).
Went home and starting to setup the iPhone noticed there was a tiny but defn nick on the front gold bezel part.

Drove back to the Apple store 1.5 hours later and of course couldn't do an exchange bc they sold out of all the gold 16 gb Verizon 5s...doh!!!

The sales guy went to the back and said they could do a one time warranty swap and I got another new gold 16 gb GSM model 1533. The swapped one was in a plain white box (not retail packaging).

I doubt it was refurbished but phones ready for warranty/defects for the Genuis Bar.
 

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Akack said:
Here's my experience:

Bought a gold Verizon 5s device only on Oct 7 (using it on T Mobile fyi).
Went home and starting to setup the iPhone noticed there was a tiny but defn nick on the front gold bezel part.

Drove back to the Apple store 1.5 hours later and of course couldn't do an exchange bc they sold out of all the gold 16 gb Verizon 5s...doh!!!

The sales guy went to the back and said they could do a one time warranty swap and I got another new gold 16 gb GSM model 1533. The swapped one was in a plain white box (not retail packaging).

I doubt it was refurbished but phones ready for warranty/defects for the Genuis Bar.
Click to expand...

The supervisor that I spoke with earlier said more than likely they will replace the touch id or replace the phone with a new one. So your saying that chances are high for new phone?
 
Akack said:
Here's my experience:

Bought a gold Verizon 5s device only on Oct 7 (using it on T Mobile fyi).
Went home and starting to setup the iPhone noticed there was a tiny but defn nick on the front gold bezel part.

Drove back to the Apple store 1.5 hours later and of course couldn't do an exchange bc they sold out of all the gold 16 gb Verizon 5s...doh!!!

The sales guy went to the back and said they could do a one time warranty swap and I got another new gold 16 gb GSM model 1533. The swapped one was in a plain white box (not retail packaging).

I doubt it was refurbished but phones ready for warranty/defects for the Genuis Bar.
Click to expand...

One time warranty swap huh? Is that new? I've never heard of limits imposed on warranty claim swaps.
 
I don't know about "refurbished" units, but elsewhere on this forum you'll find someone who dropped their 5s in a toilet. They say it still works fine. You may be able to get a good discount on it. :D:D:D

Sorry, I just double checked and its a 5 not a 5s.
 
Jason1978 said:
I understand the refurbished units are almost new but my phone is only 4 days old. I would just like a new phone like the one I got.
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So as you've just experienced first-hand, getting a new phone doesn't guarantee that you'll get a perfect phone.

If you go the Genius Bar route, you shouldn't be able to tell if you're getting a new or refurb'ed one. Both come with brand-new exterior shells (wrapped in that protective plastic you'll have to peel off), and both come with brand-new batteries, so you're not going to have any visual clues to go by.

Plus, say your Genius Bar replacement happens to be another brand new one with a defect that you notice right there, it's a lot easier for them to get you another replacement (on the spot).
 
Joybulb said:
But why U don't want a refurb phone tho?!?
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It's all psychological. Especially now that I heard refurbished phone processes are getting lazy. But that's not why. When I think of refurbished I think of new.

Edit: I mean I think of "old" lol
 
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Jason1978 said:
When I think of refurbished I think of new.
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Like the new screen, casings and batteries that all Apple refurbished phones have?

I get it though… even though it's been thoroughly wiped clean and reformatted, I'd hate knowing that the motherboard in my phone once stored and did calculations for someone else. :rolleyes:
 
cyks said:
Like the new screen, casings and batteries that all Apple refurbished phones have?

I get it though… even though it's been thoroughly wiped clean and reformatted, I'd hate knowing that the motherboard in my phone once stored and did calculations for someone else. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

So technically refurbished phones are made to be new? I don't get it because you can buy refurbished phone from apple- not the 5s yet, and they are priced much lower. So why would someone get a refurbished phone valued lower in replace of a brand new phone?
 
Jason1978 said:
So technically refurbished phones are made to be new? I don't get it because you can buy refurbished phone from apple- not the 5s yet, and they are priced much lower. So why would someone get a refurbished phone valued lower in replace of a brand new phone?
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Apple doesn't sell refurbished iPhones.
 
Jason1978 said:
So technically refurbished phones are made to be new? I don't get it because you can buy refurbished phone from apple- not the 5s yet, and they are priced much lower. So why would someone get a refurbished phone valued lower in replace of a brand new phone?
Click to expand...

Every exterior component and battery of Apple refurbished and swap iPhones is brand new. Only the internal parts are re-used.
 
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