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bought an ipad that said "Demo - not for resale"

Did the OP not even look at this thing before he handed over his hard earned cash? I thought the beauty of CL was that you meet the seller in person and see the goods before handing over any cash.

The fact that the iPad has 'Demo - Not for Resale' in quite big letters is somewhat obvious to me. If the OP paid the retail price or more for it, surely you would check it out properly before handing over the cash.

This is a case of tough luck unfortunately. One thing I didn't understand is that Apple couldn't tell him if it was an actual store demo or if it was stolen? Surely if an Apple store told 'HQ' that they had one stolen they would know its serial number and Apple would have a record of this.
I would take it to an Apple store first, then the police. Apple can confirm if it's stolen and the police can deal with it. Apple should not take it off him regardless of if they say it's stolen or not.

Good luck and I'd like to hear back from the OP if he isn't already in jail lol.
 
Listen, you've already received a lot of conflicting advice on here, some good and some not so good.

There are two ways to look at this. The morally and legally correct thing to do is to report it to Apple. No need to report to the police at this stage, there is nothing to say that it is stolen. That is an assumption which you are not required by law to make. Ex-demo units of all kinds of products are sold all the time! For example, car dealers often sell ex-demo vehicles, and those are worth much more than a $500 iPad.

However, even though we all think that we are Apple experts and that we 'know' that it would be unusual for Apple to allow the selling off of a demo unit so soon, none of us know this for a fact. Furthermore, the law would not require us to have intricate knowledge of Apple's selling techniques.
So, like I said, the morally correct thing to do, assuming that you have doubts about the product, would be to contact Apple. No need to contact Best Buy either, that is another assumption you don't have to make. If that was the case, why not just contact every Apple reseller in North America?

Secondly though, I would advise you to look after yourself. Its all very good that people are telling you "take it to Apple! Give it back" or "report it to the police! They'll confiscate it, just take the finiancial hit!", but I guarantee you that most people in your situation are not going to hand over a $500 piece of equipment to the police (or anyone), with no prospect of recovering your money. I know that I couldn't afford to do that, and i'm guessing that if you are buying an iPad off craigslist then you can't afford to lose $500 either.

The bottom line is that you, me or anyone here doesn't KNOW that it is stolen. It is quite possible, but not for definite. It is really a matter of how far you want to take it. I would contact the seller first, don't be scared to pressure him a little. Ask him where he got it, if he isn't helpful then just confront him with the fact that you didn't want a demo unit. But don't accuse him of being a thief, otherwise he'll tell you to take a hike. If you aren't happy with his explanation of how he got it, ask for a refund. If he refuses, then you can take whatever action you feel is necessary -blackmail, police, Steve Jobs with a baseball bat, whatever.

Hope this helps ;)
 
It says 'Demo - Not for Resale' - Sums it up the Person is/was a Best Buy/Apple Employee or possibly just a thief who stole the iPad from the store. It's upto you what you want to do but the seller will not give you your money back. There is no doubt that the product he sold was against the law.

There is no right or wrong answer to what you can do, You may be out of 500$
and that's no easy thing to accept, like many others, I would keep it but if you want to take it to Apple, they are probably the only company that will give you an exchange in situations like this - however there is a very very low chance that such thing will happen.
 
JonnyIreland said:
That's my problem -What FACTS are you basing that sweeping statement upon? How is there 'NO DOUBT' -says who? You? Based upon what?

It may well be stolen, but the law deals with FACTS and responsibility.
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The fact that It says "Not for Resale" maybe? The seller didn't advertise that it was ex-demo, fine there are no facts but there is no way that the seller is legit.
 
Maybe the seller also got scammed and is just passing it on to cover his own costs?

Still very dodgy tho!

Best of luck OP, hope you get the situation resolved soon!
 
wackymacky said:
Well, you say that his gmail is still active on the device so you can get in to his e-mail account and see all his contacts.

You could get a list of these, see if there is an email address for his boss, wife, mom etc.

Then if he gives you grief tell him you will e-mail all his friends and family and work collegues and tell them that he is a thief!

Also has he left his iTunes account details intact? Spend up large on his credit card. See if his credit card details are on the device and then tell him you will buy your self a new iPad on his card if he doesn’t refund you your money.
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Speaking of bad advice.......

FYI for anyone who cares.......

Blackmail and extortion are also MAJOR FELONIES, as is fraudulently using or obtaining someone else's credit card info.....

you can NOT commit a crime yourself and then justify it by saying that you did it because someone did something illegal to you and you wanna get them back for it !

"2 wrongs do NOT make a right" as the saying goes :)
 
Pushkar said:
The fact that It says "Not for Resale" maybe? The seller didn't advertise that it was ex-demo, fine there are no facts but there is no way that the seller is legit.
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Just so you know, i'm not pouncing on you personally!
But if you look on eBay, you will see thousands of ex-demo items of all types for sale, promo copies of music albums, everything -all legally for sale.

But, don't get me wrong, and maybe I didn't make this clear -there is a huge difference in the eyes of the law between what we all think we know on these forums and what the facts are -not to mention what the buyer was legally expected to know or do.

Therefore, what I am talking about here is the legal position of the buyer -which is, at this point, that he bought a used iPad that happens to have a marking on it which indicates that it was once a demo unit-not for resale. It doesn't really matter what is stamped on it -it could say 'not for resale -death by hanging', it wouldn't make it fact.
 
How says its actually stolen ?
Maybe its a developer preview, or an internal Apple test device or something.
Its clearly that it should not be resold, but doesn´t mean its stolen.
 
MyRumors said:
How says its actually stolen ?
Maybe its a developer preview, or an internal Apple test device or something.
Its clearly that it should not be resold, but doesn´t mean its stolen.
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If it's a review unit or a testing unit Apple makes sure that contracts are signed about disclosure and I'm sure those contracts say the item remains the property of Apple. (See the previous MR news items on the non-disclosures, tethering it to an immovable object and blacking out any windows from outside view of it) If Apple retains ownership of the device and someone sells it, that's theft.

If it goes back to them for servicing with a serial number associated with testing, demo or evaluation unit and has the NFR etching someone is going to ask questions about the possession of the device.
 
I am guessing that every ipad has a serial number that Apple could trace to the exact location/person who the unit was originally given too? That would make it pretty darn easy to find out who the rightful owner was and if they voluntarily sold this unit or it was stolen. Either way you have learned a very painful and expensive lesson on the dangers of trusting total strangers that you meet online.
 
tkingart said:
I don't trust CL at all, it's full of scams and thieves selling stolen property. My brother uses CL. Once, my brother being new to Mac's at the time; ended up buying a MacBook that he was told was a 13" MacBook Pro. He didn't think to look that it should say "MacBook Pro" instead of "MacBook" on it. When I told him, he contacted the seller, and they denied telling him that it was a MacBook Pro even though the post clearly stated that, and he had emails to prove it. In the end, they said they had spent the money already (probably bought a real MacBook Pro.), he ended up selling it for $300 less than what he paid for it.

I'd like to add, my brother also bought a Dodge Durango v8 off of CL, seemed like a good deal, until AFTER he drove 2-3 miles and it died. The seller would not issue a refund. He had to spend around $2,000 to get an entirely new engine, and wants to sell it now. He will have to take a loss of $400 due to blue book.

Stay away from CL. If you sell anything on it- don't take checks, paypal, money orders. Don't ship it anywhere! Deal with locals, and when cash is handed to you, check for the security strip in every bill.
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That doesn't sound like Craigslist problems, but more of a person who has no business or purchasing sense.
 
cello2456 said:
I am guessing that every ipad has a serial number that Apple could trace to the exact location/person who the unit was originally given too?
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Yeah, it'd be nice if they did that, but more than likely they won't. Have you ever heard of anyone getting back their lost/stolen iPhone (that also had a serial number on it) as well as with AT&T having their information?
 
The Ipad was bought for $440, guy said he had the receipt but when I was buying it he said he didn't have with him and that since we have each other contact info that he would give to me as soon as he can get it. He told me he sold it because he got his laptop stolen and that he needed to sell this to buy a new one. I mean with that offer i thought it was a reasonable amount since it was used and we did it at his business company with security cams..etc.

I contacted apple and gave them the serial number, they didn't say anything about it being stolen except that if I wanted to register the Ipad i need proof of purchase (ie: receipt) even after I mentioned the "Demo unit" and that i may be aware that it could have been stolen


The update of the situation is that I am still trying to contact him for proof of purchase, he hasn't answered because it turns out he used google voice. However since I have more info about him such as his business number, I have just left a message there to see if he gets back to me.

If that doesn't work, I have a few of his business partners number and email that I can try at to reach him, and also his wife's number, so I can try that and tell his wife the situation, and hopefully she makes him do the right thing.

If all else fails by this monday, as I mentioned in my previous post, i'm going to apple to see if they can fully verify that it is legit, if not then to file a report on it and give the police the seller's information (D/L number..etc)


Thank you again once for your advices and comments - )
 
sjtnn said:
The update of the situation is that I am still trying to contact him for proof of purchase, he hasn't answered because it turns out he used google voice. However since I have more info about him such as his business number, I have just left a message there to see if he gets back to me.

If that doesn't work, I have a few of his business partners number and email that I can try at to reach him, and also his wife's number, so I can try that and tell his wife the situation, and hopefully she makes him do the right thing.

If all else fails by this monday, as I mentioned in my previous post, i'm going to apple to see if they can fully verify that it is legit, if not then to file a report on it and give the police the seller's information (D/L number..etc)


Thank you again once for your advices and comments - )
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That John Appleseed is a slippery SOB.
 
A stamp that says 'Demo - Not for Resale' is NOT a legal contract! The owner can do whatever he pleases with the item, including selling it, unless he's signed an agreement with someone not to sell. It not illegal to own, operate, or re sell a demo unit.

SO AGAIN, my advice, enjoy your new iPad.
 
One of the most interesting threads I've read ...

good luck, and I would love to know how this turns out ...

BTW ... if you tried to report something like this to our police, they would say they are on lunch break and it didn't seem like that big of a deal for them to waste their time on ...

Not saying this is a small matter, but it would seem to require too much of their time to deal with something that is not life threatening ...

Apple, on the other hand ... wouldn't surprise me what they did ...

Please keep us informed ... I would love for this story to have a happy ending ...
 
Have you thought that maybe if you return the stolen unit to a Best Buy or Apple store they might be willing to help you get an iPAD that is not stolen?

Did you make note of the gmail and other details about the person who sold you the possible stolen iPad? This person might be an employee of the store and does this on a regualr basis.

There are lots of things that "might" be going on, but really the best thing to do to keep yourself safe and out of trouble is to atempt to return the item if you think it has been stolen.

You can check with the local best buy and local Apple Store. Bring the details about the person who sold it.

If they don't have a missing item then talk to the police and file a report.
 
Apologies to the OP for a bad situation. Hopefully it works out.

And... LULZ at all of the "lawyers" on here, who are all, I'm sure, aware that it is illegal to engage in the unauthorized practice of law.
 
The OP bought the device in good faith so I doubt there's any way s/he'll be charged or out $500 if the device is found out. Voidable title can be pass as good title when the initial device was obtained through nefarious means. If Best Buy / Apple sought to reclaim the device they are not entitled to it through the OP, but would have to bring some kind of suit against the seller. Or at least that's the assumption I'm going on.

HOWEVER the "Not for Resale" bit is telling. You should have inspected the device and noticed it before purchasing it. Its noticeable for a reason, and I doubt you could prove not seeing it.
 
Daremo said:
I love how everyone assumes the unit was stolen. This could VERY well be an early developers unit, and if that's the case, it's quite legal to sell it privately if it was legally obtained, and the original owner didn't sign any contracts binding him to the unit. "Not for re-sale" is for businesses like Best Buy. Once you own it, you can do what ever you please and sell it to who ever you wish. Through the serial number, Apple may be able to trace back the owner if there is such a contract with them, and hold them responsible. I HIGHLY doubt they will take your iPad away.

It's the same thing as a key with "Do not duplicate" stamped on it. I got news for you... It can LEGALLY still be duplicated if you're the owner.

Here's some advice for you... Enjoy your iPad!
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Jeez, maybe someone should go back to school and learn the definition of "not for resale."
 
Consultant said:
Jeez, maybe someone should go back to school and learn the definition of "not for resale."
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Yes, but maybe you should go back to school and learn that just because you write some words onto something, it doesn't make it a fact. I could write "Bugatti Veyron" all over my car, but it still won't be true, believe me. Stamping "not for resale" onto an item has absolutely zero standing in legal terms. If someone can show me some legal document or law that says otherwise, I will stand corrected.
 
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