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Refurbished Imac question...

S

Snguyen34541

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jun 20, 2008
7
0
So its about that time to upgrade my comp. I've been a PC guy for about 10 years and honestly im bored of the same old same old, so i wanted to see what all the hype was about =).

Anyways onto the questions about refurbished apple products...

On refurbished products, will i find dents, dings, or scratches on the comp?

I want to hear some feedback from other people on these boards. Do you guys have any complaints about any refurbished products you bought from apple?

Please be honest. I am a bit strapped on cash, I think i've gotten spoiled a bit since are PCs is usually cheaper then macs so i've always had "new". Anyways, I'd hate to get my Imac and find scratch in the middle of my screen eating away at me until i finally return the product.

Thanks in advance
 
Snguyen34541 said:
So its about that time to upgrade my comp. I've been a PC guy for about 10 years and honestly im bored of the same old same old, so i wanted to see what all the hype was about =).

Anyways onto the questions about refurbished apple products...

On refurbished products, will i find dents, dings, or scratches on the comp?

I want to hear some feedback from other people on these boards. Do you guys have any complaints about any refurbished products you bought from apple?

Please be honest. I am a bit strapped on cash, I think i've gotten spoiled a bit since are PCs is usually cheaper then macs so i've always had "new". Anyways, I'd hate to get my Imac and find scratch in the middle of my screen eating away at me until i finally return the product.
Click to expand...

If you do a search for refurb in this forum you will get a lot of hits on folks experiences. I bought a refurbed Powerbook a few years ago from Apple and it had NO flaws. Others who have bought refurbs more recently have reported the same results. There are bad units, but that is not limited to refurbs. NO manufacturer has a perfect product QA, so some bad ones do slip through new or refurbed.

The refurbs have the same warranty as a new one and can also have the warranty extended with Applecare just like a new product purchase.
 
No, you will not find dings, dents, or scratches. The computers have been restored to perfect working order with all cosmetic, hardware, and software issues replaced, repaired, or resolved. You can also read about Apple's refurbishment process here.
 
Never had a problem with any refurbs from Apple, like gehrbox said do a search for other peoples opinion but you won't be disappointed.
 
My last two computers have been refurbs with no cosmetic issues to be had. No serious hardware/software issue I didn't bring upon myself. I highly recommend refurbs to evryone.
 
I just received a 'new' refurbished 24" iMac yesterday. No flaws or anything... screen is immaculate, keyboard is practically new, and the mouse looks like it hasn't been touched. This is my 3rd time buying from the Apple Refurb department on their site.

My last purchase was a white 20" iMac and they hooked it up for me (maxing out the ram / video card), which was nice.

When most people think refurbs, they think it's some broke down piece of crap... but to be honest, I'd rather buy a refurbished product over a new product. New products just come off a mass assembly line and are shipped to your house. With refurbs, yeah granted there was a problem at one point, but they put it through rigorous tests to make sure everything is in proper working condition for them to put it back out. They're all covered by the 1 year warranty as well, by Apple.

The only downfall is that they come in an ugly brown box that says Certified Reconditioned Product or something like that, with the Apple logo on it. As opposed to the nice new ones that you've seen....

Anyway, like everyone else. I highly recommend the refurbs by Apple!
 
Refurbished mac question

From what I learned the refurbished models are a really good deal. No company has a 100% rating, nevertheless you will not find any visual defects, e.g. dents, scratches etc.,. on the refurbished from the Apple store.
BTW, when speaking "one to one" with their personnel at several Apple stores, the refurbished models are given extremely favorable ratings. One thing is certain technology will always improve and change. However, the downside is that with the refurbished Macbooks, & Imacs you will be purchasing a computer that is a few months old or a generation behind. For example, some one in the forum posted a message that he saved $700.00 simply by purchasing the top of the line Imac 24 immediately after the April 2008 release of the Imac update. So, if you are low in cash and you do not need to have all the latest bells and whistles with the most advanced technology, than refurbished models are the way to go. Good luck. :)
 
I would go for a refurb model.
At my company we ordered 6 24" and 8 20" over the past 5 weeks.
All look and work perfect.
We saved A LOT of $$ which we are gladly putting into software :)
 
awaiting my replacemnt. I received a refurb with alot of screen bleed. I still trust apples refurbs, as many bought new with same issue. It was packaged like brand new and no dent, scratches or anything, looked like a brand new unit. I would go for it.
 
Ahh, i just got home and after reading the replies i went ahead and ordered a refurbished imac, thanks guys! I'll reply back in a week or so when i get it and tell you how it goes =P.
 
Snguyen34541 said:
So its about that time to upgrade my comp. I've been a PC guy for about 10 years and honestly im bored of the same old same old, so i wanted to see what all the hype was about =).

Anyways onto the questions about refurbished apple products...

On refurbished products, will i find dents, dings, or scratches on the comp?

I want to hear some feedback from other people on these boards. Do you guys have any complaints about any refurbished products you bought from apple?

Please be honest. I am a bit strapped on cash, I think i've gotten spoiled a bit since are PCs is usually cheaper then macs so i've always had "new". Anyways, I'd hate to get my Imac and find scratch in the middle of my screen eating away at me until i finally return the product.

Thanks in advance
Click to expand...


In a nutshell, I think a refurb will be just fine. I'm about to purchase a macbook from refurb and Apple guarantees it to be just fine upon purchase. They do full testing on the computer. Plus it saves you some $$$.
 
Depends...

You could get a great refurb that looks like new. Or, you get get one like my last one.

It was an iMac G5. The plastic was heavily scratched. It had a quarter-inch chip in the top that was quite noticeable. The screen had a rather significant mark about an inch wide that ran from corner to corner. The mouse looked like it had been run through a sander and was heavily scuffed (additionally, it's button would stick). The case was coated in grime and had dirt stains on the mouse, the computer's bezel, the foot, and the ring in the back where the cord goes through. Likewise, the power cord was extremely brown and stained.

The absolute only part of the computer that looked like new was the keyboard.

The computer had a dead ethernet port right out of the box. Called Apple, no help at all.

Called the local service center, and brought the computer in. It was in the shop within an hour of coming out of the box.

They ordered a replacement logic board for it, and told me that the rest of the damage was cosmetic and would not be covered (same thing Apple says).

I get the computer back with a refurb logic board after a few days. Works great, but still ugly.

After many months of fighting, I did finally get all the cosmetic issues resolved. But, the computer still required frequent trips to the shop for other failures (screen, backlight, CD-ROM, etc.).

So, while I was specifically told on the phone when I ordered it, that there would be no physical damage, what I received was heavily damaged and Apple didn't cover it (without months of fighting) because it was only cosmetic and Apple doesn't cover cosmetic issues under warranty (read their warranty).

So, you could get a good one, or you could get an abused dud. Which you get, depends on which one comes up for shipment.
 
flyinmac said:
Depends...

You could get a great refurb that looks like new. Or, you get get one like my last one.

It was an iMac G5. The plastic was heavily scratched. It had a quarter-inch chip in the top that was quite noticeable. The screen had a rather significant mark about an inch wide that ran from corner to corner. The mouse looked like it had been run through a sander and was heavily scuffed (additionally, it's button would stick). The case was coated in grime and had dirt stains on the mouse, the computer's bezel, the foot, and the ring in the back where the cord goes through. Likewise, the power cord was extremely brown and stained.

The absolute only part of the computer that looked like new was the keyboard.

The computer had a dead ethernet port right out of the box. Called Apple, no help at all.

Called the local service center, and brought the computer in. It was in the shop within an hour of coming out of the box.

They ordered a replacement logic board for it, and told me that the rest of the damage was cosmetic and would not be covered (same thing Apple says).

I get the computer back with a refurb logic board after a few days. Works great, but still ugly.

After many months of fighting, I did finally get all the cosmetic issues resolved. But, the computer still required frequent trips to the shop for other failures (screen, backlight, CD-ROM, etc.).

So, while I was specifically told on the phone when I ordered it, that there would be no physical damage, what I received was heavily damaged and Apple didn't cover it (without months of fighting) because it was only cosmetic and Apple doesn't cover cosmetic issues under warranty (read their warranty).

So, you could get a good one, or you could get an abused dud. Which you get, depends on which one comes up for shipment.
Click to expand...


wow, that's discouraging. I wonder why apple didn't help you. They SAY that they do full testing on the refurbs but your bad ethernet port is raw proof that is wasn't fully tested.
 
froggytreafrogg said:
wow, that's discouraging. I wonder why apple didn't help you. They SAY that they do full testing on the refurbs but your bad ethernet port is raw proof that is wasn't fully tested.
Click to expand...

I gotta wonder how that slipped by as well. That's the first Apple refurb store I have heard that involved that kind of wear and tear. Abnormal comes to mind.
 
froggytreafrogg said:
wow, that's discouraging. I wonder why apple didn't help you. They SAY that they do full testing on the refurbs but your bad ethernet port is raw proof that is wasn't fully tested.
Click to expand...

Yes, I don't know why they let that one pass either. But, if they can do it once, it would indicate that it could likely happen more.

The problem, is that not everyone posts here. So, that means there are potentially millions of unheard voices from both sides.

So, I would be inclined to think that if they would let that one slip, that it is likely not that uncommon. Just likely not reported as heavily (they could be going to those who don't frequent Mac Rumors).

Not everyone comes here.

If they would have helped me, then I'd be more forgiving. But, since they refused, and fought me, I'm not.

The problem, is that it's not the only machine Apple has refused to service for me. I've had other machines that I purchased brand new which suffered failures after a month or two. And, some of them were issues tied to recalls. And, Apple denied repairs on those as well (even on the recalled parts). Fortunately, the local independent shop fixed it without complaint. But, contacting Apple directly (and yes multiple times with different reps and even supervisors) yielded flat denials of service.
 
gehrbox said:
I gotta wonder how that slipped by as well. That's the first Apple refurb store I have heard that involved that kind of wear and tear. Abnormal comes to mind.
Click to expand...

From the reports here, it would seem to be. But, then how do we really know?

I would say that most of the Apple market doesn't hang out here yet. What we need is a way to get a representation of the entire user base.
 
flyinmac said:
From the reports here, it would seem to be. But, then how do we really know?

I would say that most of the Apple market doesn't hang out here yet. What we need is a way to get a representation of the entire user base.
Click to expand...

The number of people that write about issues on any other issue fills volumes here, yet the number that have problems with refurb finish quality are very small. So if this forum is a sampling, the volume of refurb problems compared to new machine problems is VERY small.
 
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