Refurbished Tech Buying Guide
What to look for when buying refurb tech
Considering buying refurbished? Hopefully we can help. In this article you’ll find everything you need to know about buying refurbished products.
What does refurbished mean?
Refurbished means a product has gone through a process to ensure it functions as initially intended. Some products may be ‘like-new’ but most are used. So how is that different from ‘used’ products?
Refurbished items are professionally restored to get an item into the best condition possible. Refurbished items also come with retailer’s warranty as opposed to used items which typically don’t.
Why should I buy refurbished?
Buying refurbished helps reduce e-waste, by keeping a perfectly good item in circulation for longer. Extending the life of tech, such as refurbished laptops, reduces your carbon footprint, that’s good for the environment and good for your wallet too. You also get more, for less; meaning you get a high quality laptop with a better specification than you would for the same money when buying new. There's also less risk than buying used as refurbished products have been checked & tested by professional refurbishers.
What happens to refurbished products?
Refurbished products can be like new items, customer returns or used items. Refurbished products generally go through a process where they are tested to ensure they are in working order, or as close to that as possible. Some refurbished items may need no additional work and are ready to be used straight away. Others may need some repairs or replacement parts added.
Generally a refurbished product will be in fairly good condition to start with, if a seller has gone through the effort to refurbish an item, rather than sell as used, that probably means it’s worth buying. Once repaired, items are cleaned and made to look as close to like new as possible.
Who checks everything?
Typically, refurbished products will be checked either by the original manufacturer or a third-party professional technician.
What types of tech products can I buy refurbished?
You can find just about anything being sold as refurbished. From refurbished laptops to refurbished iPhones. It doesn’t hurt to check and you might find exactly what you need and save some money in the process.
What will I get?
Refurbished items can come with the original accessories (e.g. charger) or may have compatible, non-original accessories included. You will get everything you need to use the item properly (such as the charger), but some non-essential items may be missing (e.g. such as the original packaging, or instructions, etc.)
You might see the term OEM used, this stands for original equipment manufacturer. So if something has OEM on it, it will be an official version of that product produced by the manufacturer. Non OEM means it’s not an official product but created by a third party.
What condition will the item be in?
Refurbished items usually have a grade which gives you a general idea of the condition of the item. You should be able to find a grading guide when buying a product so you will have some idea of what you are going to get. Some refurbished items do come with specific details on the conditions of each item.
What rights do I have with refurbished products?
You have the same rights buying refurbished as when buying new. You also have the same rights when buying from a second hand merchant, such as GreenGreen Store, as you do when buying directly from the manufacturer or larger shops. All items must be as described, they must work and they must be of satisfactory quality.
What if something goes wrong?
You have 14 days to cancel a purchase and a further 14 days to return the item after that giving you peace of mind. So if a refurbished product isn’t what you expected, doesn’t work properly or you find an undisclosed fault you can always send it back. You may need to pay for the return shipping yourself though but be sure to check before you buy. A lot of refurbished items can even come with 12 months warranty.
What if my item needs repairs?
All refurbished products come with some warranty provided by the seller. If your item needs repairs and you're within your warranty period, the seller should fix your item for free. This won’t include any accidental damage though. You might also have to pay for return shipping so check before you buy.
About GreenGreen Store
Did you know we sell refurbished tech? We sell mostly refurbished laptops from all the major brands, Lenovo laptops, Dell laptops & HP laptops just to name a few. We are looking to increase the range of products that we offer in the future to include things like refurbished phones. We pride ourselves on the quality of the service we provide and the products we sell. For more information go to about us or check out our current stock.
