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Refurb or Brand new?

L T

L T

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Feb 24, 2013
433
108
UK
To refurb or not to refurb!

I have decided to upgrade my MacBook Air and upgrade to MacBook Pro Retina, Bit of overkill for the work I will do, but I need that retina display and a spec bump from a 1.4GHz, 4GB RAM and 128 SSD will be nice.

Still tossing up between a 13 inch and 15 inch, have a 13 inch Air and whilst it is good, I can't help but feel a little extra screen space will be nice. As I use this without an external display at home. The portability isn't really too bad, I do take my MacBook to work everyday and a 15 inch won't fit in my bag, but its a 10 seconds walk to my car and then the same from my car to work so I can just carry it in a sleeve.

The 15 inch does bring a price increase though! Hoping to sell my MacBook for £650 and have about £100 of vouchers for christmas giving me £750 towards it.

A brand new 2014 model will cost me £1471 with education pricing, thats for 16/256
The refurb of that exact model would be £1359

I can get a couple of refurb machines a bit cheaper, although these are 2013 machines. They are 8/256 at £1189 and 8/512 £1379

Whats the deal with refurbs? I don't want to get into a loop of sending back faulty refurbs until I get lucky with a good one. I want this to be my machine for a number of years, don't know if I want to add a year onto its lifespan by buying a 2013 machine!

I've quickly upgraded from a mac mini to MacBook Air (needed something portable) then hopefully onto this MacBook Pro which I will be able to settle at. Want to be able to use this MacBook for a good few years

Thanks
 
The only difference is the box they come in - new or refurb could be faulty - new or refurb could be problem free for 6 years

Go refurb! Highly consider the 2013 models - no real difference between 2013 and 2014 - small upgrade between models in a long time. Saves ton of $$
 
If you buy a refurbished model you aren't buying something that has been used heavy for a year and then traded in. You're buying something that has been returned, be it for buyers remorse or because of any issue, repaired if necessary and then put back through QC. There is usually very little difference between new and refurbished (assuming you are buying refurbished through Apple) outside of the packaging and, if purchasing a laptop, a few cycles on the battery.

I personally buy refurbished whenever possible.
 
ugahairydawgs said:
If you buy a refurbished model you aren't buying something that has been used heavy for a year and then traded in. You're buying something that has been returned, be it for buyers remorse or because of any issue, repaired if necessary and then put back through QC. There is usually very little difference between new and refurbished (assuming you are buying refurbished through Apple) outside of the packaging and, if purchasing a laptop, a few cycles on the battery.

I personally buy refurbished whenever possible.
Click to expand...

Refurb laptops come with a new battery
 
Refurbs offer excellent value, and have been individually tested and tried before being offered for sale. In fact, at different times, I have bought both new and refurb and have been very happy with both.
 
With the exception of one of my MBP (which I bought brand new), I have always purchased refurbished laptops. I have never experienced any issues with them.
 
L T said:
Whats the deal with refurbs? I don't want to get into a loop of sending back faulty refurbs until I get lucky with a good one
Click to expand...
Apple refurbished products are considered by most to be a very good deal, as they're pretty much like buying a new Mac, except for the box.
Apple Certified Refurbished Products are pre-owned Apple products that undergo Apple's stringent refurbishment process prior to being offered for sale. While only some units are returned due to technical issues, all units undergo Apple's stringent quality refurbishment process.
Click to expand...
Click the link in that quote for more details on the refurbishment process.
  • Apple Certified Refurbished Products are available online from the Apple Refurb Store and are not sold in local Apple stores
  • Educational discounts do not apply to refurb products.
  • Refurb products come with the same warranty as new products, and qualify for AppleCare
  • Refurb products have a changed serial number that identifies them as refurbished
  • Refurb products come with whatever OS version and software they originally shipped with as new
  • Refurb products come with the same items in the box as new products, only the box is a plain one, not the new box.
  • A refurb product could have some cosmetic signs of prior use, but rarely do
  • A refurb Mac notebook may have some cycles on the battery, but not a significant enough amount to affect usable life
  • The refurb store inventory changes frequently, sometimes several times a day, and doesn't have any direct relation to upcoming product releases. What's available in the refurb store is determined by what has been returned to Apple.
  • If you're looking for a particular item, refurb.me can alert you when it becomes available.
Spink10 said:
Refurb laptops come with a new battery
Click to expand...
Not always. If the battery has little or no usage and is not defective, they don't replace the battery before selling as a refurb.
 
I bought a refurb MBP in January of 2013 and I have no regrets. It comes in a simple brown box, but that's about the only difference from getting a new one. It still comes with the standard Apple warranty and is eligible for Apple Care, just like a new one. And if there's a problem, you can still return or exchange it.

Save yourself a few bucks and go with the refurb.
 
Another reason why I like refurbs is because (most likely) it was repaired and given a brand new battery and case. I feel better knowing it's been opened up and inspected post-build while still getting the brand new exterior. I've only once had a refurb that didn't work properly so I sent it back and ordered another one. I also prefer the ease of how refurbs are returned/refunded and how easy it is to order another one. I always get Applecare anyway (and never needed it) but it does make re-selling it much easier.
 
I've had more problems with new Apple products than I have with refurbs.

I always go with a refurb firs, if it is an option.
 
Bought a refurb late model MBP 15", my first Apple computer, this past August. Looks brand new and haven't had one problem. Best part is I saved around $400. Used the money I saved and bought 3 year Apple care. There's no down side to a Apple product refurb.
 
Thanks very much for your responses, looking at the refurbs, is it best to go for the 2014 model at 16/256 for £170 more than the 2013 8/256. If I want to keep this machine for a long time then 16GB is best for future proofing it isn't it?
 
My first mac was refurbish macbook aluminum unibody, and I was happy to buy refurb mac for lower price. The condition of refurb macs are new and also comes with 1 year factory warranty.
 
I just bought a new 13" i7/16GB/512GB, and am already on my second device, the first had a few dead pixels. This replacement one has bad pink tint on the left side so is going back. Was about to call apple and request a replacement, but then a refurb 2014 i5/16/1TB came up on the refurb site so I've snagged that. It's a £310 saving from a new device and i'll happily drop a few hundred geek bench points for twice the storage :) Costs me about £30 over what I paid for the i7 with employee discount.

Gotta love refurbs.

P.S. Although I've not experienced it, there have been a lot of posts in the past where people have actually received refurbs with higher specs than advertised. For example, receiving an i7 instead of an i5, or getting the next level of storage up than advertised.
 
Refurb all the way. If you buy at the beginning of a new model release you might actually get a brand new in-box outgoing model that's been dumped into the refurb inventory.
 
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