My tower PC is dying of old age and I need to go back to a laptop due to space constraints (plus I like them way better) but I cannot spend more than 200 bucks. There a really nice Dell for 170 that would more than cover my nedds but it's a refurbished unit. It even has an optical unit to rip my DVD-rs to MKV files ! Once it leaves USA soil, it looses warranty, so not an issue. Any experiences buying refurbished on Amazon?
Refurbished stuff like that is usually sold by third parties, so it all depends on the quality of the third party. Amazon is just a payment processor in these cases. If factory refurbished and sold by Amazon directly, totally different deal.
It's my default mode for tablets e.g. Apple, Android, Windows. For me it's a smart way to save money. Hope this helps. FYI 6 Ipads 8 Android tablets 4 Surface Pro's 8 kindles (for gifts) Other than that, I got nothing. M~
I bought a Dell refurbed desktop almost from an Amazon seller almost three years ago, and it has been in use every day since with no issues.
Refurbished is just a fancy word for used if it is not factory refurbished. Factory refurbs usually mean units which had some defects which were later claimed to have been repaired at the factory. But FWIW: Laptop optical drives are generally light duty devices in my experience. It's generally better to use an external USB drive.
Do not do this! From my experience - you should not try to save money. Get professional level laptop new from manufacturer. And I mean "professional workstation". It will serve you for at least next 6 years. Simple office or home laptop will work for 3 years at best until it will require replacement. There are only three brands to look : Dell, HP, Lenovo. My HP laptop worked for 7 years before require replacement. Now Lenovo mobile workstation works for 2 years without a glitch. And they always have 3 years of standard warranty. For desktop computer I actually bought tower server. Current one is 8 years old, and I plan to replace!ace it with new server soon. It was not cheap, but you do not need to worry about upgrade for many years and it will allow for easy expansion of memory and storage if needed.
I've received refurbished equipment from Amazon, with no problems whatsoever, the unit(s) are still in use years later.
Amazon calls these things, "Amazon Renewed". They do not call it refurbished. Amazon's term is probably to group together refurbished, factory-refurbished, demo and used (or "pre-owned") under a made-up name, so they don't need to get into sorting out what's technically factory-refurbished versus used. Because these renewed items are sold by third party sellers who use Amazon as marketplace, and Amazon isn't inspecting each piece of merchandise. Amazon supposedly does some vetting of sellers who uses the "renewed" label on their website, to make sure they are selling stuff that is up to their "renewed" standards. But I have no idea if they do anything before the seller throws things up on the site, or that means they just kick off sellers if they get enough complaints and Amazon catches them violating the standards. I would treat it like buying stuff on eBay or Discogs, and buyer beware and buyer be smart. I bought an Amazon renewed camera once. Their renewed cameras are supposed to be like new. The camera had some wear, including dings on the corner and a scratch on the screen. Cosmetic wear and tear isn't a big deal for something I'll rough up a bit anyway, but even that camera had more wear and tear than a camera I had owned and used for years. But Amazon was easy about me returning it (don't know how returns go for the OP, outside the US). I bought another Amazon renewed camera of the same kind, after returning the first one (but from a different seller), and that one looked like no one had ever touched it. Amazon does itself sell returned items under their "Amazon Warehouse" category. They at least try to write a few words describing the condition of the item.
If the seller is Amazon itself and there are clear, fair terms of warranty, maybe. If a third party seller through Amazon, who knows what you are getting?
I've bought much refurb on Amazon, including a MacBook Pro, a MacBook Air, and other computer/audio gear. Not many issues, but as has been mentioned, be aware of who's selling. If I saw a "renewed" Dell laptop there that fit my needs, I'd go for it. The Air I bought was 3rd-party. It's been flawless so far.
I have 3 of them off of Dells website. Cant beat them. One is hooked up to my TV in the bedroom and runs 24 hours a day non stop. One to my main stereo all running fine. Though one I did purchase one of the slots for ram was broke. Also the above link had a coupon apllied at 50 percent which made it a little over 200. 50% off Dell Latitude 7480 Laptops (excl. Clearance and previous sales),free ground ship. - use coupon code: 7480DEAL4U
I would not buy a 3rd party refurb laptop. If it's refurbished by the manufacturer, that's one thing. It would be retested to original specification and carry a similar or equal warranty. Unlike a desktop computer, you can't really swap out defective parts on laptop outside of RAM and the SDD. Possibly the optical drive, but these aren't included in most laptops these days. While I realize warranty isn't an issue for the OP, but you should consider the risk management that the seller has to take to offer a returned product for resale. If you were buying it from Dell, they would run the computer back through their burn-in process. Burn-in is running the computer for at least 24 hours to weed out early failures. What's 3rd party seller going to do in there refurbishment process? Not much. Power it up maybe. A 3rd party is going to mitigate failure by having enough margin in the price to cover refunds. Still if you're willing to take the risk, $200 seems like a low enough wager to gamble. I would weigh how much you're willing to gamble on how much life you can squeeze out of your existing computer if thing go wrong.
Pinhead, you will truly regret buying trash laptops and end up throwing 200 bucks in the trash. You would benefit with a micro desktop (latest gen specs and brand new) like this from aliexpress for 172ish dollars. You cannot beat specs like this at your budget. Watch reviews on youtube you want. Beeline mini https://m.aliexpress.us/item/3256803823271006.html?spm=a2g0n.detail.1000014.1.57b538d6YwZOHT&gps-id=platformRecommendH5&scm=1007.40000.267768.0&scm_id=1007.40000.267768.0&scm-url=1007.40000.267768.0&pvid=9248bd54-bee0-49ee-a567-f994a690be7c&_t=gps-idlatformRecommendH5,scm-url:1007.40000.267768.0,pvid:9248bd54-bee0-49ee-a567-f994a690be7c,tpp_buckets:668#2846#8114#735&pdp_npi=2@dis!USD!249.36!172.06!!!!!@2101f6ba16640270854532704e1a9a!12000029859151982!rec I buy all kinds of things from aliexpress with full confidence. It will take 2 weeks to get to you, but, it will get there.
Thanx man; these would cover all the basis. But they're taxing imports sky-high down here, not to speak of shipping/delivery. Got my wife's cousin who travels and sells laptops, so I'd be inclined towards one.
That's great advice for a much bigger budget but any new workstation is going to cost way more than $200. If it were me and my budget was $200, I'd definitely look into the $170 model. Hopefully the seller has feedback that you can check out. @The Pinhead , you mentioned something about your wife's cousin selling laptops, that might be a great source to get something to fit your needs that's in good shape unless I misread the post.
Yes; she's reluctant to ask him, despite the same guy having brought a great lappy for her sister for that money. She's shy and ''doesnt want to owe any favors'', despite her constantly doing everyone favors! Since I still own and use a monitor, speakers, mouse, etc, that would go to waste with a lappy, I could also get one of those ''mini-PCs'', but that's new to me, and I know nothing about their longevity or reliability. Thanx for the kind response.
I second that! And if an optical disc shatters while you are reading it -- I had it happen several times while ripping my music library -- it's simpler to replace an external drive than an internal one.
My last new Kindle was terrific, and had best battery life ever. I had one glitch with it (couldn't directly access files on the SD card I installed, and Tech Support couldn't figure out why). I had to send it back to them for a fresh one. Got a refurb back, same model, only somehow the battery in it wasn't nearly as long-lasting as the one I originally had. Adding insult to injury, it still wouldn't read what was on the SD card. Another Tech Support call showed that the first Tech Support person just didn't know a setting I'd needed to change to access the info; so, I didn't really need to send it in for a refub...I needed a better-trained Support person. Now I know what the problem is, it wasn't the Kindle at all...but now I'm stuck with one with shorter battery-charge-life, because "it was certified correctly refurbished" when they sent it to me.
Refurbished is a bad word in my books and it means so many things when stuff is being sold on the internet that is easier to skip those listings and buy only new from an authorized dealer or plain second hand in good working condition. If you are buying something that is "claimed to be refurbished" directly from the manufacturer like Sony, LG, etc thne I can look at the word refurbished under a better light but you are generally buying a seconds product. It could have physical damage or it has been repaired that is never a guarantee that performs exactly as a new product despite any claims you might read. In short, I would not touch a "refurbished" product, the savings might not be worth the surprises that might come with it. Unless too expensive a laptop is something you are better of buying locally with a warranty.
Warranties down here are a joke. They either return you the item unrepaired (but claiming it's repaired) or give you another item ''on the same price bracket'' , which with our inflation rate...........well you get the picture. And you go through a ringer of red tape during the process, so most people quit and buy another item from their own pockets.
I have two 2012 MBPs (both refurbs) one of whose drives failed; the other is 100% working — and a 2009 Dell laptop with good drive (and that machine was a long-ago refugee from the corporate world). I think the point about having to possibly replace an internal is a good point. Funny though, the Dell's drive has on occasion been able to read some discs that baffled all others, both internal and external.
Had a refurb Lenovo for 10 yrs before finally died - the battery was poor but it was permanently usb'd into a dac so main plug ok. Stripped all OS and apps off other than required for music and Bluetooth control from phone or ipad. For under £200 it was a bargain. Now have a Node 130 that has slightly better bass resolution and soundstage (using same external dac).
