Buying a used Air - What to look for

[The Grue]

Hi guys,

Thanks for the responses over the past few days as I've been trying to decide which MacBook model to buy. I have one more quick question ...

I found a pretty good deal on a used MacBook Air Rev B 1.86GHz, 128 GB SSD machine with the Superdrive. I'm meeting with the seller tomorrow or Monday to take a look at the machine and buy it if all is well. I was wondering what I should look for when I examine the machine. I was thinking of the following:

Ensure the configuration is in fact as advertised. I haven't used a Mac in 10 years, so I'm not 100% sure what to look for. My thought was to:

1. Look at the outside of the case to determine if it is in fact a Rev B machine by seeing if it has the DisplayPort connection as opposed to the MicroDVI
2. Checking the system configuration under the Apple Menu to see that the processor and RAM are as advertised
3. Looking at the Drive Size under the File Menu to confirm that it does have a 128 GB hard drive installed

I'm not sure how to tell that the HD is in fact the SSD rather than the 120 MB HDD though. Any ideas on that appreciated.

Also, based on what I've been reading here, I will look over the case for any damage, and boot it up and confirm that their aren't any lines showing on the display. Anything else to physically look for?

Any other ideas appreciated.

Thanks.

 

[kinkster]

If it's a good deal take it even if there are some lines. It's difficult to give you hard numbers but the majority of Rev. Bs will have lines. As long as they aren't very annoying to you I would take it.

Open system profiler to see if it has the SSD.

 

[IgnatiusTheKing]

You can find pretty much all the info you need in the System Profiler by going to the Apple Menu > About This Mac > More info...

AS for how you can tell if it's a SSD, I'm not 100% sure, but I bet if you looked under the ATA section of the Profiler, you'd be able to tell.

 

[Maks]

Drive size will be the same on both, as 8G are set aside on the SSD model. No need to check the RAM, all have 2G onboard.