Lucked out and received better-spec'd MacBook Air than ordered - is warranty affected?

[ToTo Man]

After stalking the refurb store like a hawk for the last three weeks, I grabbed a 2015 11" MacBook Air i5 8GB 128GB, or so I thought...

When I received my delivery my first surprise was to see I had received the laptop in an authentic MacBook Air box that was neatly shrink-wrapped, not a plain brown box. (I haven't bought from the Apple refurb store for many years so I don't know what Apple's current policy is on packaging for refurbished models). I checked the sticker on the back of the box and all of the specs matched up with the model I ordered, so far so good...

I unwrapped the machine and inspected it closely. Looks brand new, not a mark to be seen anywhere. Tested the fit of the ports and they were nice and tight as you would expect from a brand new machine.

Plugged it in, switched it on and completed setup. Slightly surprised to find OS Sierra installed and not El Capitan (the 2015 13.3" 2.7GHz MBP I bought from John Lewis last week came with 10.11.6 on it), so I'd have thought a 2015 Air would also have shipped with El Capitan?

The next part is what put a on my face. I go to check System Information to see how many battery cycles it's had. The answer is 2 cycles, which suggests a brand new battery, right?). I then notice the processor specs say 2.2GHz i7. But the specs on the refurb site and the label on the box say 1.6GHz i5. I'm assuming the System Information specs are the correct ones here? If so then I'm absolutely delighted, as I really wanted the i7 but resigned myself to taking an i5 because I thought there would be very little chance of an i7 appearing in the refurb store!

I do have one concern though. How does this affect my 1 year standard warranty (and extended Apple Care, if I choose to buy it), if Apple's records show that my machine is a 1.6GHz i5 when it's really a 2.2GHz i7?

 

[flyinmac]

Warranty should be unaffected if the serial number on the computer matches the invoice and the box it came in. Most importantly the invoice/ receipt.

That's where I'd start.

 

[ftaok]

Perhaps Apple ran out of refurb stock, but you had already ordered. So instead of saying sorry, we shouldn't have sold you that, they gave you a brand new, high-end model.

But yeah, as long as the SN matches up, you should be fine. What does your receipt say as far as the specs? This could be an issue if you need a warranty replacement and they give you a 1.6ghz i5 instead of a 2.2ghz i7.

 

[talmy]

It's not unheard of to get a better equipped model than advertised in the refurb store. Twice I've had RAM upgrades unexpectedly arrive in my refurbs (out of 8 purchased), although I've never received a better processor.

 

[ToTo Man]

The serial number of the machine matches the serial number on the box and matches the serial number on my pdf receipt. However both the box and the receipt state the machine specs as
11.6/1.6GHZ/8GB/128GB. Should I contact Apple for clarification on my warranty?

Warranty should be unaffected if the serial number on the computer matches the invoice and the box it came in. Most importantly the invoice/receipt.[/QUOTE]

As long as the SN matches up, you should be fine. What does your receipt say as far as the specs? This could be an issue if you need a warranty replacement and they give you a 1.6ghz i5 instead of a 2.2ghz i7.

 

[flyinmac]

The serial number of the machine matches the serial number on the box and matches the serial number on my pdf receipt. However both the box and the receipt state the machine specs as
11.6/1.6GHZ/8GB/128GB. Should I contact Apple for clarification on my warranty?

If the serial number matches, you should be good. But yes, it wouldn't hurt to make sure that their records are matching your configuration to avoid them possibly assuming later that you've modified your computer.

 

[talmy]

What will happen is that if your logic board gets replaced under warranty you would get a 1.6MHz board/processor and not the upgraded one.

 

[Mcmeowmers]

Happened to me once. Got a top end processor and more ram but I got a smaller SSD. The serials on the device and what the software said were different. Didn't effect warranty when I took it in.

I'll also add that what showed up on receipts and during tracking were all different too!

 

[gnasher729]

The serial number of the machine matches the serial number on the box and matches the serial number on my pdf receipt. However both the box and the receipt state the machine specs as
11.6/1.6GHZ/8GB/128GB. Should I contact Apple for clarification on my warranty?

No need, it's not unusual. If someone orders a Mac with non-standard spec and returns it, it becomes "refurbished", but it would be too complicated for Apple to change their website for that one Mac. And they don't want to offer a refurbished Mac if they have only one with that spec. So some lucky guy gets a better machine than they paid for. It's cheaper for Apple to give you a better machine than doing all the extra work.

However, you still only paid for 11.6/1.6GHZ/8GB/128GB. So if you are now out of luck and your Mac breaks and you get a replacement, you only have the right to get what you paid for - 11.6/1.6GHZ/8GB/128GB.

 

[StoneyG]

After stalking the refurb store like a hawk for the last three weeks, I grabbed a 2015 11" MacBook Air i5 8GB 128GB, or so I thought...

Where did yours ship out of? The same model you purchased (a machine with the specs you paid for) came up for sale last night, and I jumped on it (I'm hoping my luck is as good as yours was). Mine shows as having left "Rialto, CA" today. I'm assuming this one will show as being "Assembled in USA" on the packaging. Not sure if that pretty much guarantees I'll getting an actual refurb unit (not to mention the i5 processor) or not. Thanks!

 

[ToTo Man]

Where did yours ship out of? The same model you purchased (a machine with the specs you paid for) came up for sale last night, and I jumped on it (I'm hoping my luck is as good as yours was). Mine shows as having left "Rialto, CA" today. I'm assuming this one will show as being "Assembled in USA" on the packaging. Not sure if that pretty much guarantees I'll getting an actual refurb unit (not to mention the i5 processor) or not. Thanks!

I bought mine from Apple's UK refurb site.

 

[kingtj]

Umm, are you sure about this or just speculating?

My experiences with Apple repairs tell me they'd order the exact replacement for the board that's actually in the system in such a case. They're not going to give you a "downgrade" just because some paperwork indicates you should have received the lower-spec system at time of purchase.

The faster board/CPU should match the serial number stamped on the product as what was actually in it when it was assembled, so they're going to work from that ... not the web site that says you clicked to buy a slightly different configuration.

What will happen is that if your logic board gets replaced under warranty you would get a 1.6MHz board/processor and not the upgraded one.

 

[Fozziebear40]

I bought mine from Apple's UK refurb site.

Plenty on there now. Your model looks like £1039, well done. Ridiculous price now, glad I only spent £749.

A refurb MacBook is only £20 more (£1059) with the better screen, smaller and lighter. (but I still love my Air)

 

[ToTo Man]

Plenty on there now. Your model looks like £1039, well done. Ridiculous price now, glad I only spent £749.

A refurb MacBook is only £20 more (£1059) with the better screen, smaller and lighter. (but I still love my Air)

My 11.6" i7 MBA only has a 128GB SSD so would probably be priced a little lower than that (£999 maybe?), but I'm probably still up £200 though!

Also, two weeks ago I was fortunate to source a brand new 2015 13.3" rMBP from John Lewis (one of the last few my local branch had in stock) for £999, which I then got a further £100 off due to a price match with a competitor who slashed the price for a 24hr period. Crazy when you consider Apple are still selling the same model for £1,249 new (or £1,059 refurb'd)!!!

I can't believe I've bought two new laptops in the space of a few days... I guess I was overdue because I haven't bought any since 2011. These two new purchases will hopefully last me another 5 years...

 

[cerberusss]

Dude! That's crazy luck! You must have some good karma or something Be happy with it

 

[jimrichardson90]

After stalking the refurb store like a hawk for the last three weeks, I grabbed a 2015 11" MacBook Air i5 8GB 128GB, or so I thought...

When I received my delivery my first surprise was to see I had received the laptop in an authentic MacBook Air box that was neatly shrink-wrapped, not a plain brown box. (I haven't bought from the Apple refurb store for many years so I don't know what Apple's current policy is on packaging for refurbished models). I checked the sticker on the back of the box and all of the specs matched up with the model I ordered, so far so good...

I unwrapped the machine and inspected it closely. Looks brand new, not a mark to be seen anywhere. Tested the fit of the ports and they were nice and tight as you would expect from a brand new machine.

Plugged it in, switched it on and completed setup. Slightly surprised to find OS Sierra installed and not El Capitan (the 2015 13.3" 2.7GHz MBP I bought from John Lewis last week came with 10.11.6 on it), so I'd have thought a 2015 Air would also have shipped with El Capitan?

The next part is what put a on my face. I go to check System Information to see how many battery cycles it's had. The answer is 2 cycles, which suggests a brand new battery, right?). I then notice the processor specs say 2.2GHz i7. But the specs on the refurb site and the label on the box say 1.6GHz i5. I'm assuming the System Information specs are the correct ones here? If so then I'm absolutely delighted, as I really wanted the i7 but resigned myself to taking an i5 because I thought there would be very little chance of an i7 appearing in the refurb store!

I do have one concern though. How does this affect my 1 year standard warranty (and extended Apple Care, if I choose to buy it), if Apple's records show that my machine is a 1.6GHz i5 when it's really a 2.2GHz i7?

Former Genius here. First, congrats! That's awesome luck. Your warranty *shouldn't* be affected, like others said, so long as all the serial numbers match up. However, if you ever have to have the Logic Board replaced through Apple (not too uncommon with MBAs), they might try and replace it with what was supposed to come with it. In other words, if the serial number they pull up in their system shows the lower end specs, that logic board would be the only thing they would replace it with. We had a tool to show exactly what serial number Logic Boards, SSDs, etc were supposed to originally ship with each computer. That might be your only trouble that I can see.