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Is it safe to buy a refurbished MBA?
- Thread starter iJcaP
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Perfectly safe. People buy them all the time and they are the same as new. If anything, it has been inspected MORE closely than a new machine.
- Risks??? Mhhh, that's difficult to say, it's just not new but almost.
- Benefits??? (IMO) Yes, because you get an almonst new device with up to 200$ discount.
(The only "risk" I see is that a new product (with better features) arrives soon and you get annoyed.)
The only reason I do not buy refurb from Apple, it's because you cannot buy them from the brick and mortar store, so you need to wait for the shipping to arrive, and where I live the delivery service is very bad...
my mbp is a refurb and i couldn't of been happier with it i looked as hard as you could for a blemish and i could not find one
just got a 11" air for $999 ($1090 w/ overnight shipping)
2 days with it, and so far so good
you don't get that fancy box, but no big deal at all
still has the same 1 year applecare warranty as a new machine
don't hesitate, do it
2 days with it, and so far so good
you don't get that fancy box, but no big deal at all
still has the same 1 year applecare warranty as a new machine
don't hesitate, do it
If you are buying from the Apple refurb store, then the benefits are simple.....lower price and more intense QC.
I would not hesitate at all.
I would not hesitate at all.
Refurbished Apple computers go through a quality control inspection twice, whereas the new computers only go through once. It has the same warranty and condition as a new computer. In addition, they're cheaper, and the fact that it's refurbished has no bearing on resale value. The only people who would know that it's a refurb are you and apple.
I had a technical problem with a refurbished MBA (no audio due a loose flat band cable), but that was fixed by local ASP within a few days between christmas and new years eve . The device has no dents or scratches and its battery and screen are in perfect shape.
. The device has no dents or scratches and its battery and screen are in perfect shape.
Buying refurd is perfectly safe. Apple throughly tests all of their refurb products and they are eligible for applecare and I believe that they come with the standard 1 year at the time of sale. Also the obvious best benefit is that you can save a fairly large amount of money by buying refub. Many people go the refurb route because the price is great and sometimes they come with extras like upgraded RAM or an upgraded hard drive. But in closing refurb is a perfectly safe and economical way to go.
Refurbs rock, same warranty as new, since 2007, I have bought and upgraded 26 refurbs,24 of which were MBA's, not a bad one in the bunch.I may adore the current gens when they are released,but I always wait for the refurb version to appear, that said, I just bought the new iPad3
With refurbs, 0 risks
I've had good experiences with refurbs...
Here's basically way an Apple refurb is:
* Start with any brand new Apple product
* open it
* have a reburb specialist double-check every component for proper functionality and every surface for near-perfect cosmetics -- defective or non-near-perfect parts are replaced so that the device is functionally perfect and cosmetically near-perfect.
* lop a significant chunk off the price
In other words, after you have paid for and used your device for a few days, there is literally no difference between a new Apple product and a refurb one except the refurb might be a little more reliable because it's been through an extra QA process.
I think the warranty and return policy is the same, but double-check that -- maybe I am misremembering since I have not ever had to put it to the test.
EDIT: one more thing:
watch out - sometimes refurb prices make no sense. E.g., I just noticed that a 1st gen 16GB black wifi iPad is $399 refurb, while the same second gen is $349... Considering a NEW iPad 2 with the same specs is $399, the refurb price for the orignial makes no sense. (I don't think Apple is really trying to screw people -- I just don't think they pay a lot of attention to their refurb prices and it takes them a long time to update them in response to, e.g., new product releases.
They also ship the device in plain refurb packaging (e.g., brown box, at least in my experience) and it is harder to find exactly what you want.
Here's basically way an Apple refurb is:
* Start with any brand new Apple product
* open it
* have a reburb specialist double-check every component for proper functionality and every surface for near-perfect cosmetics -- defective or non-near-perfect parts are replaced so that the device is functionally perfect and cosmetically near-perfect.
* lop a significant chunk off the price
In other words, after you have paid for and used your device for a few days, there is literally no difference between a new Apple product and a refurb one except the refurb might be a little more reliable because it's been through an extra QA process.
I think the warranty and return policy is the same, but double-check that -- maybe I am misremembering since I have not ever had to put it to the test.
EDIT: one more thing:
watch out - sometimes refurb prices make no sense. E.g., I just noticed that a 1st gen 16GB black wifi iPad is $399 refurb, while the same second gen is $349... Considering a NEW iPad 2 with the same specs is $399, the refurb price for the orignial makes no sense. (I don't think Apple is really trying to screw people -- I just don't think they pay a lot of attention to their refurb prices and it takes them a long time to update them in response to, e.g., new product releases.
They also ship the device in plain refurb packaging (e.g., brown box, at least in my experience) and it is harder to find exactly what you want.
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