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Good Deal? Or Possible Scam?

J

Jshaw6000

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Apr 27, 2012
10
0
Hello everyone,

I was hoping I could get a little advice on possibly purchasing this MBP.

I am looking at buying this Macbook Pro with retina display listed for $2212 and was wondering if this deal seemed borderline too good to be true being that it's near full spec. There's also another guy selling a brand new one with 3 year Applecare but only 8 gigs ram for a similar price. I'm probably going to be meeting this guy this evening so any quick responses would be great. What should I be paying attention to and looking out for?

[Edit]: I emailed the guy and asked if he had a receipt. He said he purchased it from his company's online portal and does not a copy available. Fishy? I'm not sure. Do I need the receipt if I want to buy the Applecare Extended Warranty?

ScreenShot2013-05-01at111316AM2_zps7b1c6475.jpg


Why I need it:
I am a semi-professional videographer and am trying to incorporate some sort of data transfer speed into my work flow which is why I'm upgrading from my Late 2011 15 Macbook Pro to either a 2012 model or the retina display model. I'm specifically doing it for USB 3. I'm on a budget strict, so thunderbolt drives are not an option for me, especially since it offers little to no real-world speed advatage over USB 3.
I was originally going to wait until the back to school deal started but I decided to search Craigslist to see if I could save money on sales tax and instead apply it towards Apple Care extended warranty. Plus, this near fully speced one will be cheaper than a fully speced non-retina display MBP from Apple.

Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Thanks!
 
Last edited:
Jshaw6000 said:
Hello everyone,

I was hoping I could get a little advice on possibly purchasing this MBP.

I am looking at buying this Macbook Pro with retina display and was wondering if this deal seemed too good being that it's near full spec. What should I be paying attention to and looking out for? I'm probably going to be meeting the guy this evening so any quick responses would be great:

[Edit]: I emailed the guy and asked if he had a receipt. He said he purchased it from his company's online portal and does not a copy available. Fishy? I'm not sure. Do I need the receipt if I want to buy the Applecare Extended Warranty?

Image

Why I need it:
I am a semi-professional videographer and am trying to incorporate some sort of data transfer speed into my work flow which is why I'm upgrading from my Late 2011 15 Macbook Pro to either a 2012 model or the retina display model. I'm specifically doing it for USB 3. I'm on a budget, so thunderbolt drives are not an option for me, especially since it offers little to no real-world speed advatage over USB 3.
I was originally going to wait until the back to school deal started but I decided to search Craigslist to see if I could save money on sales tax and instead apply it towards Apple Care extended warranty. Plus, this near fully speced one will be cheaper than a fully speced non-retina display MBP from Apple.

Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

It looks like a scam. Apple Care until Dec 2013, that means he got the thing in Dec 2010? The rMBP did not com out until mid 2012. Have the serial number ran at a local Apple Store, they can tell you.

This looks like a Craigslist ad, meet the person at an Apple store. If it's genuine, then yes it's worth it.
 
stchman said:
It looks like a scam. Apple Care until Dec 2013, that means he got the thing in Dec 2010? The rMBP did not com out until mid 2012. Have the serial number ran at a local Apple Store, they can tell you.

This looks like a Craigslist ad, meet the person at an Apple store. If it's genuine, then yes it's worth it.
Click to expand...

I was thinking he meant the 1 year default warranty when he posted it, as that would make more sense. Plus, when I emailed him he acknowledged that I wanted to extend the warranty myself and didn't say anything else. But I'll definitely run the serial number on Apple's website.
 
stchman said:
It looks like a scam. Apple Care until Dec 2013, that means he got the thing in Dec 2010? The rMBP did not com out until mid 2012. Have the serial number ran at a local Apple Store, they can tell you.

This looks like a Craigslist ad, meet the person at an Apple store. If it's genuine, then yes it's worth it.
Click to expand...

I think that just means that he bought it in Dec. 2012 and it's covered by the original one year warranty. Probably deceptive to call it "Apple Care" but at least he's clear about when coverage expires.

I always feel pretty good about something not being stolen when it comes with the original box and accessories. My guess is that it is legit. I would continue to ask him about the receipt, but you don't need it to buy AppleCare. You just need the serial number.

It does seem like a very good deal. Check for dents/damage.
 
Just for reference I purchased the same exact model as a refurb for $2549 USD late January.
 
Its not realistic. I got mine with exact same specs 2013 model sealed for $1,700.00 and a collectors Edition game. :D So I think you can haggle more if you'd try?
 
Well it's not too cheap or anything.

If you're meeting him I'd say it might be okay... you can't get scammed if you look it over first and confirm it's what he says :)

The hardest part is trusting things you order online, an in person meetup should be fine.

If you're thinking it's stolen he probably wouldn't have the box also
 
fatlardo said:
Its not realistic. I got mine with exact same specs 2013 model sealed for $1,700.00 and a collectors Edition game. :D So I think you can haggle more if you'd try?
Click to expand...

There are no 2013 2.6 Ghz rMBP, so yours should either be a 2.4, 2.7 or 2.8 2013 or a 2012 version.
 
swunderful said:
Well it's not too cheap or anything.

If you're meeting him I'd say it might be okay... you can't get scammed if you look it over first and confirm it's what he says :)

The hardest part is trusting things you order online, an in person meetup should be fine.

If you're thinking it's stolen he probably wouldn't have the box also
Click to expand...

Thank you. I was sort of thinking the same thing.
 
I'm a little confused why people are saying it's fake?

It's 2212$? It's not like it's 1000 or anything?

What are the signs its fake? I'm just curious.
 
fatlardo said:
Yup, what a deal huh? He gave me the receipt too! :) Took a bit of bargining, but finally got it. Mine is the 2.7 version btw.
Click to expand...

What was the original asking price? As a CL seller myself, there's no way I'd let someone work me down a few hundred so you must be pretty slick!

I'm going to try to get this for $2100.
 
Jshaw6000 said:
What was the original asking price? As a CL seller myself, there's no way I'd let someone work me down a few hundred so you must be pretty slick!

I'm going to try to get this for $2100.
Click to expand...

Well the reason I asked for specs is an online store that starts with "Ma" and ends with "cmall" has some great pricing going on. And depending on your specs, you could get a new one for the same price or close to it.

Just sayin' ....
 
Rule number one when buying macbooks from CL:
#1: MEET AT YOUR LOCAL APPLE STORE AND RUN DIAGNOSTIC TEST

Good Luck.

Possible scenarios:
1. Water damage = No future warranty, even if the laptop works
2. Cosmetic damage that you are too excited to find when you meet with the person (scratches on the display are most common and can be manipulated easily for several hours. Apple Genius geeks know how to observe for this kind of "damage")
3. Stolen laptop.
4. Different hardware than the original. You can get different SSD or whatever fakes/scams are going on out there.

There are more, but most if now all can be avoided by going to your local Apple store, checking the laptop in Apple's systems and only than make your purchase.

Good Luck.
 
Moshe1010 said:
Rule number one when buying macbooks from CL:
#1: MEET AT YOUR LOCAL APPLE STORE AND RUN DIAGNOSTIC TEST

Good Luck.

Possible scenarios:
1. Water damage = No future warranty, even if the laptop works
2. Cosmetic damage that you are too excited to find when you meet with the person (scratches on the display are most common and can be manipulated easily for several hours. Apple Genius geeks know how to observe for this kind of "damage")
3. Stolen laptop.
4. Different hardware than the original. You can get different SSD or whatever fakes/scams are going on out there.

There are more, but most if now all can be avoided by going to your local Apple store, checking the laptop in Apple's systems and only than make your purchase.

Good Luck.
Click to expand...

Excellent advice! That would definitely reduce the likelihood if issues: would a Mac Store chrge for that? How can they know if there is water contact without opening it? Can that be known through a system test?
 
Jshaw6000 said:
What was the original asking price? As a CL seller myself, there's no way I'd let someone work me down a few hundred so you must be pretty slick!

I'm going to try to get this for $2100.
Click to expand...

I believe the asking was 2200 but with no applecare. Still slick without it right?

USC_Gamecock said:
Well the reason I asked for specs is an online store that starts with "Ma" and ends with "cmall" has some great pricing going on. And depending on your specs, you could get a new one for the same price or close to it.

Just sayin' ....
Click to expand...

I got the ME version. ;)
 
I traded my 2011 13" MBP, 2.4GHz, 8GB RAM, and 500GB HD + $400 dollars for a 2012 15" rMBP, 2.3GHz, and 256GB SSD.

I got that 2011 for $650 and it had 3 years of AppleCare.
Realistically it only cost me $100 though because $550 of that was pure profit from buying and selling a couple MBPs after upgrading their memory.

Bottom line is I'm into my rMBP for $500 out of pocket + a few hours of time.

The price you can get that for depends on how badly/quickly he wants the money. It's not an unrealistic price (not too high nor too low) but it does have a lot of extras that people may not need so you may have leverage if you feel like you can walk away. No matter what you pay him, asking or lower, it looks like a solid purchase.
 
BL4zD said:
I traded my 2011 13" MBP, 2.4GHz, 8GB RAM, and 500GB HD + $400 dollars for a 2012 15" rMBP, 2.3GHz, and 256GB SSD.

I got that 2011 for $650 and it had 3 years of AppleCare.
Realistically it only cost me $100 though because $550 of that was pure profit from buying and selling a couple MBPs after upgrading their memory.

Bottom line is I'm into my rMBP for $500 out of pocket + a few hours of time.

The price you can get that for depends on how badly/quickly he wants the money. It's not an unrealistic price (not too high nor too low) but it does have a lot of extras that people may not need so you may have leverage if you feel like you can walk away. No matter what you pay him, asking or lower, it looks like a solid purchase.
Click to expand...

Wow even better deal than me! Nice chit!

Jshaw6000 said:
Thanks all! Going to meet the guy at a Starbucks right now.
Click to expand...

GL bargin hard!
 
fatlardo said:
Wow even better deal than me! Nice chit!



GL bargin hard!
Click to expand...

I bought it! I was able to work down to $2120. I don't think that's too bad. Any lower and he would have just given it to the people who offered slightly more. It's in "like-new" condition so I thought the price was fair.
I was more happy that it came with the Samsung panel than anything (found out using Terminal command). No burn in problems for me!...or at least not as bad.
Thanks for the help!
 
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