Aqua-Soft ForumsI'm poor and I want a MacBook. Should I get a refurbished one, or is it worth it paying for a new one?
And does anyone know if they ship it in a new casing, not a scratched up one?
Refurbished MacBook
I can't speak from experience with Apple, but generally, they are fine. In some cases, it could be as simple as someone returning it because they didn't want that particular item (screen-size or color). Not all cases are of hardware failure, and if it is, Apple repairs it and makes sure it is working before the send it out.
Well you would probably end up saving $150. Which isn't that much and I'd rather get a brand new one. Than one that has been used. Just my opinion. This is what I did.
I have a refurbished MacBook and it looks a works great. It has all the advantages of a brand new one (warranty, AppleCare available, manuals, software, new box, etc). In many cases, it is actually built and inspected with higher standards than mainline production.
You can save 14-16% currently which can help you out with AppleCare or get you some increased RAM, maybe an external HD for Time Machine.
To me it's a smart move unless you just want to brag about having the latest greatest or maybe outspend the next guy.
I have a refurbished MacBook and it looks a works great. It has all the advantages of a brand new one (warranty, AppleCare available, manuals, software, new box, etc). In many cases, it is actually built and inspected with higher standards than mainline production.You can save 14-16% currently which can help you out with AppleCare or get you some increased RAM, maybe an external HD for Time Machine.
To me it's a smart move unless you just want to brag about having the latest greatest or maybe outspend the next guy.
So how was the case? (Scratched up, minor damage, shiny & smelled new?)
So how was the case? (Scratched up, minor damage, shiny & smelled new?)
I am sure this is a "by case" situation (no pun intended). Products get returned for a wide array of reasons, and by people with a wide of array of frustration issues.
So how was the case? (Scratched up, minor damage, shiny & smelled new?)
In my case (no pun intended) it was beautiful and odor free. If you were extremely picky and positioned the book with just the right intense sunlight from an angle that you wouldn't normally be viewing from, then yes it had imperfections like swirl marks (polish marks). But no cracks, chips, dents, etc. Apple does their best to deliver a perfect product. If the refurbishment process can't produce a reasonably acceptable condition, they would replace the case just like any other bad part on the MacBook.
What they do is polish it with industrial equipment and solutions. Then they are examined to see if it looks good enough to ship.
When mine arrived, I immediately put it in a clear enclosure and added wrist rest covers. Today it looks as good if not better then most I've seen around.
And mine is a WhiteBook.
A friend of mine has bought a refurbished MacBook Pro and you can't see that it's refurbished. It has a beautiful Glossy display and the whole MBP looks new, not used. He had no problems so far and it has got even a bigger HDD than Apple has posted on their webpage.