FabSwingers.com forum: Refurbished Laptops

By (user no longer on site) OP
over a year ago

Have been online looking for a new laptop and also refurbished but am not sure if I should go this route as have always bought new in the past.Both sites I have looked at are PCWorld and Argos which mentions scratches,and display models but do not affect performance of laptop. Just wondered what anyone else's experiences have been?

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By *ustsomedude83Man
over a year ago

Berkshire

I've bought a few refurbished PCs from PCworld.

Can get a really good bargain and I've not had any problem with them.

Think they're covered by warranty still as well, so nothing to lose if they did break

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

"Have been online looking for a new laptop and also refurbished but am not sure if I should go this route as have always bought new in the past.Both sites I have looked at are PCWorld and Argos which mentions scratches,and display models but do not affect performance of laptop. Just wondered what anyone else's experiences have been?

In my experience it never pays to buy refurbished as you have no idea what the laptop had been used for previously or what had been done to it ? Whilst they will check them its only a minor overlook, if you can afford it buy new as then you get the warranty etc

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By (user no longer on site) OP
over a year ago

Both have the usual one year warranty but would like to see pics of scratches etc.

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By *oodmessMan
over a year ago

yumsville

If you are buying refurbished dont buy from PC world, there is very little point as unless there is a give away price saving, you'll be guaranteed to find it cheaper elsewhere.

I have bought refurbished laptops from laptops direct as a student - over 10 years ago now thinking about it, and it's still going strong. Recently bought a tablet as a Christmas present from Argos. No quibble 1 yr refund policy - had to return it as win 8 was naff. was refunded within 3 days of receipt. They are usually graded, so you know what you are buying prior.

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

I have a refurbished one , not scratches etc and it was great plus full warrenty, my brother in law sourced it and he is particular about these things ,

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

I always buy 2nd hand laptops from cash converters, they're fine but usually the battery isn't chargeable. You can use it while plugged in but the battery dies quick.

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By *ustsomedude83Man
over a year ago

Berkshire

"If you are buying refurbished dont buy from PC world, there is very little point as unless there is a give away price saving, you'll be guaranteed to find it cheaper elsewhere."

Agree for the most part about price. I tend to build my own or go the Ebay route for PC's now.

Paid around £800 for my last one about 3/4 years ago and it can still play top games at full tilt......if that's your thing

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By *oodmessMan
over a year ago

yumsville

The tablet I got from Argos was RRP £349 - £399 depending on where you shopped. There wasn't a scratch on it and I got it for £168 delivered I think, just a shame win 8 was crap.

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By *oodmessMan
over a year ago

yumsville

"If you are buying refurbished dont buy from PC world, there is very little point as unless there is a give away price saving, you'll be guaranteed to find it cheaper elsewhere.

Agree for the most part about price. I tend to build my own or go the Ebay route for PC's now.

Paid around £800 for my last one about 3/4 years ago and it can still play top games at full tilt......if that's your thing

heh, I fill my dabs and scan and overclockers shoppng basket up weekly .... weeekly!!!! resisted well so far

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By (user no longer on site) OP
over a year ago

Have used Scan and Dabs before for other pc bits and pieces only use mine for email online and photos did see laptops direct website trouble is I like to touch and feel before I buy, am the same with phones.

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By *oodmessMan
over a year ago

yumsville

laptops are laptops - what matters are the components. I use CPU boss and the compare function - it give you a good idea if the cpu is good, bad, old or up to date. So long as the screen and keyboard is in good order, you can buy skins to cover any scratches on them for a few £.

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

I bought a refurbished pc from a company called micro dreams recently, very pleased with both the service and the product.

they have some laptops too, could be worth a look

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

my OCD rarely lets me buy anything refurbished. Even the slightest imperfection and i have to send it back

its a gamble as some will have been used and some will just be open box returns

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By *oodmessMan
over a year ago

yumsville

you basically source the laptop with the best cpu in your price range that you are looking at ... and add in other factors like ram

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By (user no longer on site) OP
over a year ago

Am looking at intel i3's as I don't need anything with high specs and functions I will never use.

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By *oodmessMan
over a year ago

yumsville

"my OCD rarely lets me buy anything refurbished. Even the slightest imperfection and i have to send it back

its a gamble as some will have been used and some will just be open box returns"

companies nowadays too, are offering such competitive prices ... consumers are often blind-sided with technology into buying what they believe is a good deal, when in fact it is just old clearance stock. You can get new tech/laptops very cheaply if you hunt around

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By (user no longer on site) OP
over a year ago

"my OCD rarely lets me buy anything refurbished. Even the slightest imperfection and i have to send it back

its a gamble as some will have been used and some will just be open box returns

True and when windows 10 comes out then windows 8 laptops will come down hopefully.

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By *oodmessMan
over a year ago

yumsville

"Am looking at intel i3's as I don't need anything with high specs and functions I will never use."

theres a very tidy sony 14" lappy in cambridge for £120 with a case, back lit keyboard 4gb ram etc on gumtree... google i3 laptop

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

Have purchased direct from Dell and never had a problem

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

its worth going for an i5 over an i3 just for the turboboost the i3`s lack

a decent i5 will be more futureproof and help out in case you do ever run some intensive programs

whats your budget

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

"Have purchased direct from Dell and never had a problem"

i really really like the new dell inspirons. the design looks awesome but i had to send mines back as its a total fingerprint magnet

OCD

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By *iceguydaveMan
over a year ago

Monmouth

"Have purchased direct from Dell and never had a problem"

Worth looking at the Dell Outlet, where they have open box and returns - my current work desktop is from there, never had a problem of any sort, but it does have a (tiny) scratch on one side of the case, under the desk and out of my sight.

I've also had several 'open box' HP laptops from Amazon warehouse which when they arrived appear to be exactly as new, sometimes they've clearly never been switched on, and I can't find the 'blemishes/marks' that make them reduced. I guess it's a risk but so far I have never had an issue..

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By (user no longer on site) OP
over a year ago

Never had a dell only Acer Asus and current one is Advent. Budget is no more that £350 don't want to touch Lenovo's was looking at the Acer E5 571... 15.6

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By *oodmessMan
over a year ago

yumsville

Just looked a little more on Gumtree around Cambridge, I would check if people are selling multiple laptops or just private sales. The one I found is a private sale. A vibrant red cased sony 14" with a good long description, it stands out from all the others. There seems to be one guy selling multiple 'large quantities' of laptops easy to spot - which I would avoid.

The one I found looks a genuine sale:

SONY 14 INCH i3 LAPTOP (title). Posted by Mike. 16 hrs ago. 4 pics loaded.

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

for £350 you`ll get a 4th gen i5 lappy easy. just shop around

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

thats new aswell

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

Also have a look at argos clearance on ebay, basically returns, most of the time just with open boxes and some bits missing, dell outlets also a good place, I'd avoid PCW and such like the plague

Hex

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

For general home use there are lots of new laptops around for under £300. I sell thousands of laptops a year into education & business and for what people use them for at home (web browsing/email/Facebook/fab etc) a laptop under £300 will be fine! At that price I don't think there is a need for a refurbished one! However, you can pick up ex-display models very cheap too from all places (including supermarkets)!

If you was more local to sme I could sort you out a good price! I'm buying laptops for around £220-£250 at the moment!

If you need any more help give me a shout! I don't mind!

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By (user no longer on site) OP
over a year ago

Will not pay cash for a laptop as a card gives you more protection so gumtree is not an option but thanks for the help there. Will do some more research but the brain is already overloaded. If it wasn't for this massive crack and bleeding on my screen I would stick with this old one but my son says it's a pile of ********* lol

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By *ophieslutTV/TS
over a year ago

Central

I've always been really lucky with refurbed laptops. The supplier is important, what warranty there is and knowing your consumer rights about distance selling regulations.

Many of the big companies have outlets online where they sell of returns etc. Otherwise there are specialist retailers who do them.

Many people buy equipment that is so over-speccd for their needs that even older models, as long as that spec matches yours, is good enough. I see little point buying stuff that can power NASA rockets to Mars, if I'm only going to do a bit of writing and viewing.

Don't buy in a rush. Some stores have changing stock, depending on what's being returned. If you know the minimum spec that you'll need, then you can wait for that to come along at the right price.

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