Refurbished is a word every budget-minded hobbyist should
know. Over the last 15 years I have purchased at least 50 items considered
refurbs. I have never had a problem, not one, with any of the refurbished
equipment I have purchased.
Refurbished items are more than simply factory rebuilds and
fall into several categories that we will discuss along with their relative
merits and weakness.
First off, why should anyone consider a refurbished product?
To save money, get more for your money and overall being able to put that
little piece of magical equipment in your house sooner. Refurbs are a great buy
for many items but others are best avoided depending on the type of refurb it
is.
Recertified: An
item that has been returned, most often to the manufacturer for repair. These
refurbished products generally made it into someone’s home where it failed to
operate properly. It could be that it had a failed part such as a hard drive or
the firmware wasn’t correctly installed. Recertified products are a great buy
because they go through much more rigorous testing than the original units and
carry a warranty, often the same as buying off the shelf.
Open Box: These
are the marked down items you see when browsing, most often, the local Best Buy or other brick and mortar. They
often went home with someone who decided they didn’t want it for whatever
reason and returned it. Look out for missing parts such as cables and manuals.
The nice thing about buying an open box item is that you can return it easily
if it fails to work. Open box televisions are generally the best buy in this
category but make sure it wasn’t a demo unit.
Floor Models/Demos: Products
that fall under this group should have a serious savings involved, like 30% or
better. If it is an item that uses power like a television, it has likely been
on for 16 hours a day, 7 days a week, in full burn mode for months. This is not
a good buy, I also avoid receivers, computers and other items that the public
have had a chance to dismantle. Non-power items or items that come from a high
end dealer where they have seen light use are a better buy and worth
considering.
Damaged: This is
likely a unit that has a few scratches, dents or other cosmetic flaw. If the
unit will reside in a hidden area such as a cabinet or there is a scratch on
the back side where nobody will ever see it this is not a bad buy. It is really
up to the buyer to determine if a damaged unit will work for them based on the
amount of savings involved.
Previous Generation: Big
savings on last years model can be a great deal as long as it has a feature set
that works with your system. Many of last years products may not have a key
feature, for instance HDMI receivers are new to the market. You may not see a
need for HDMI in your system but it does future proof your investment. Research
the missing feature, many of which will have no impact to you at all.
Factory Seconds: Very
small scratches or dings that make selling an item at full price impossible.
The cosmetic damage is far less than the damaged category so the savings may be
less. These are a great buy if the savings are right.
Buying refurbished products from a respected dealer is
important to ensure you are able to get help if there is a problem. I have
found many bargains at Fry’s, Best Buy and Amazon
but my favorite shop is Ecost where I have
received great service and the pricing is right.