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Ebay iMac - go for it?

philipt42

philipt42

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jun 26, 2009
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I wouldn't. What I've heard from people here in MR, most broken items that they have bought have been more broken than they were told, eg iMac without HD but in reality the whole logic board was missing. There's a big risk that you'll get an iMac with more than just broken/without display. Also, a huge possibility that some innards have broke because the display was taken off

What sounds too good, isn't usually true. Why would the seller sell iMac without display for 100$ when he can buy a display and put it to iMac and get 1000$
 
Hellhammer said:
I wouldn't. What I've heard from people here in MR, most broken items that they have bought have been more broken than they were told, eg iMac without HD but in reality the whole logic board was missing. There's a big risk that you'll get an iMac with more than just broken/without display. Also, a huge possibility that some innards have broke because the display was taken off

What sounds too good, isn't usually true. Why would the seller sell iMac without display for 100$ when he can buy a display and put it to iMac and get 1000$
Click to expand...


you are probably right, and thanks for the quick reply.
however...there is some time left on bidding so the price will be more than 100 (with 7 people bidding), and the seller seemed to be fairly trustworthy (98.8% positive with 14000 odd ratings) and there is a 14 day return period
i probably should have mentioned all that first. sorry!
 
Hmm, if it stays at that price, it might be worth an experiment. But I wouldn't partake in it unless you can verify that is the correct screen for that model and you are sure you have stead of enough hands for working on the iMac. :p
 
i wouldn't buy a broken iMac..

I actually brought an iMac from ebay earlier this week. 20" 2.0Ghz C2D, with 1gb ram and 128gb OSX 10.5 bluetooth keyboard/mouse/controller for just over £500..

Absolute bargain.. But before handing over cash I gave it a full road test for around 30 mins. End of the day, you can exactly take it back for a refund if things go wrong...

Steer clear fella, and keep your eyes peeled for a working bargin ;)
 
philipt42 said:
you are probably right, and thanks for the quick reply.
however...there is some time left on bidding so the price will be more than 100 (with 7 people bidding), and the seller seemed to be fairly trustworthy (98.8% positive with 14000 odd ratings)
i probably should have mentioned all that first. sorry!
Click to expand...

It's your money not mine :D

I'm just suspicious why it's so cheap, the innards are worth way over 500$. It can cause you a headache if you buy it but same chances that you'll get an iMac for very cheap price. It's up to you
 
I bought a Macbook off ebay described as booting to blue screen. Well that was easy to fix so I bought it and repaired it. After fixing the blue screen problem I of course discovered that it had other issues which could have required a whole new logicboard. My advice on the ebay board was that if I said it was not significantly as described the ebay adjudicators wouldn't have the technical knowledge for me to argue my case and they would find in favour of the seller.

Luckily I fixed the problem without a new logicboard but I would not trust anything sold for spares or repairs off ebay.
 
I've bought a couple of iMacs off of eBay. But, always with a return policy. Never had any problems. That being said, I wouldn't buy a fixer upper.

I've also bought a MBP and a Mini from sellers on Craigslist.

Personally, I'm liking Craigslist lately. I can usually get better pricing than eBay, and I get it that day, no tax and shipping :) But, you've got to talk with the seller (no email and texting), and you've got to meet in a place (if you follow through on the transaction) that has a security camera on 24/7. I've found Starbucks locations in grocery stores to be a good place.
 
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