[Open Discussion] Do you buy refurbished tech?

[Nathan]

I haven't bought a new laptop or phone in years. Mainly because when I upgrade, I buy a refurbished device. 

With bills spiralling for everyone, I can’t figure out why more people don’t do this. Based on my number I’ve saved £400 on my last two upgrades! 

I usually opt for the best conditions refurbished devices (Most retailers offer devices in varying conditions). Each time I’ve received a new device. My last one even came in the original retail box. 

I compiled a list of tech and potential savings buying refurbished below. Hope it’s helpful: 

Device	New Price	Best Refurb Price (Great Condition)	Saving %
iPhone 13	£749	£630	£119
MacBook Pro 2020	£1,149	£900	£249
Samsung S22	£769	£619	£150
iPad 2020	£369	£190	£179

Does anyone else know of some decent places to locate refurbished tech or do you always buy new? 

I’ve also attached a picture of the refurbished MacBook Pro 2020 I bought recently. It’s new and saved me £300 

[AndyPandy]

I am currently using a Pixel 7 Pro. I want a Pixel Fold, but that seems expensive brand new. A couple of months down the line, I might buy a refurbished one. With all of my Pixel phones (I've had Pixel 1st gen, Pixel 3, Pixel 5, Pixel 6 and Pixel 7 Pro) I have bought those new. I am hoping the price drops for the Pixel Fold refurbished when the Fold 2 is released!

[Stephen_3560]

Just before christmas I bought my wife and myself a samsung a54 phone each from back market, pristine condition. Price was half of what they should be. Now ive got smarty for currently a tenner a month, where before ee were charging me 15 for same package..

[EthanielUK]

Be very mindful about refurb items when it comes to hard drive storage.  Although data has been removed it's not difficult to recover, and you just don't know who's been downloading what.

[JennyVar_746504]

Over 5 years ago, I bought my refurbished  iPhone 8 at Carphone warehouse.
It is safe but my personal recomendación is ti get insurance cover to be safer in case it breaks. 

[IndiraC_2078370]

Refurbished tech is the best way to get a good deal! 

[SirAchie]

Ive never bought a new phone, buy mine at CEX every time. Condition B as this only means it doesnt come with a box or charger & all items have a 2 year garantee. How cold you go wrong. Ive saved a fortune over the years.

[Sap123]

Refurbished is a great way to buy i just got a samsumg s20 for christmas and all well just getting use to it  at the moment

[Lorrain_1025468]

Refurbished tech is a must with children 

[YulianK]

Absolutely! This or heavy duty grade😄

[JayneAl_1226139]

Just bought a pre-loved Kindle fire and it has been fantastic and quite a good bargain.

[Hristin_1853347]

Absolutely! I think that's a great bargain, as I myself have returned gadgets just because I didn't quite fancy them, so why not grab someone else's return for fraction of the price? 

[DamienG_2195313]

Depending on whether I want the latest tech or older versions ie if I want last years or any previous years model ill always go refurbished but as with my s23ultra brand new has some benefits like warranty and cheaper device insurance  iy if you don't want any ov that refurb is the way forward, in my opinion anyways lol.

[vista]

I bought an S20+ 5G earlier this year, that was listed on amazon as renewed. However, it appears to be a brand new phone. It required several updates to android when setting it up, which suggests it was brand new.

[LynneMi_1886687]

Apart from one occasion when I was gifted a brand new iPhone, I have always purchased second hand iPhones - most recently I’ve used Music Magpie for refurbished phones with no issue at all, saving hundreds of pounds over the years. I always get one that’s highly graded - and it comes wrapped and looking like a new phone. I definitely recommend it. Saves money and eco friendly too 😊

[MarkyR74]

Well I used the Smarty app to link me to Renoxed.co, and I got £50 of a new iPhone thanks to them. Got an iPhone 13 Pro 128GB for £649, my first refurb phone, and it is in mint as new condition and even still under Apples warranty till December! 
Very happy with that.

[Swarming1095]

I've never bought refurbished before but I just ordered an iPhone 13 Mini 256GB from reboxed in what they call 'premium' condition, so I'll happily come back here and update with what the condition/packaging/experience is like. Cost £539 and I've gone for the Klarna pay-in-three-installments option.

I'm currently on the iPhone 11 Pro, but it's been bugging me for a while. My battery has degraded to about 85% of its total capacity, there's quite a few scratches on my screen, the speakers don't work properly (they sound terrible), and I'd like the options of 5G and Magsafe accessories. I'm hoping this is a decent upgrade. I'm keen on upgrading next year to the iPhone 15 if it uses USB-C charging and offers a high refresh rate display on the base model, so this should tide me over til next year.

[MarkyR74]

I used Smarty's offer of £50 off a Reboxed.co phone. I got myself a iPhone 13 Pro that's pretty much like brand new, with 100% battery capacity, not a mark on it, and still under Apples warranty until December for £650! That's a saving of £350 over its new price, £450 if you look at the new 14 Pro. To say I'm happy is an understatement, first refurbished phone I've bought.

The battery in my old iPhone was going so needed a new one and fancied an upgrade. I'll keep this phone for a while now. But with Apple phones being VERY expensive these days I don't think I could stomach 1100 pounds for a new one. 

[Quin452]

Refurb is a tricky one.  Sometimes it's good, sometimes it isn't good.
I've saved quite a bit on refurbished tech, but then again, I've bought things only to find that it doesn't work.

If it can be helped, I always try to get something with a warranty (because at least you can easily return it).

[David_1636157]

I've done pretty well with refurbs. 3 years ago I got a top of the range dell precision laptop on ebay, refurbished. It was like new, nearly three years on site dell warranty included, £1200 (recently had a motherboard swap carried out by Dell in our kitchen). The dell price would have been 2.5k. More recently bought an acer Chromebook. £700 in Curry's, £400 on ebay, refurbished with a year warranty and like new. My son bought an MSI Katana 12th edition i7 gaming laptop. Again ebay, 1 year MSI warranty and £300-400 less.

With laptops it is certainly possible to make massive savings and get an as new machine with full manufacturers warranty. 

I have bought mobiles from curry's ebay store with a years warranty. I only tend to go for top condition equipment from reliable sellers which has almost invariably turned out to be like new. 

[Chalkychap]

I sometimes buy refurb handsets.
It's always worth comparing refurb vs. new, allow with the length of warranty for the item in question.
Refurb be a way getting great value for money on occasions.

[Marjory_1308291]

I bought a refurb laptop a couple of years ago, it came with the same 1yr warranty as a new one.

[RonnieMa_777889]

Reduce, Reuse and Recycle should be the future way to go where possible in theory is good for the economy and the environment . Tech companies both in hardware and software do not make it easy to repair or upgrade as they have a business model that requires them to sell more product and in turn make more profit . The strategy will have to change as the current one is not sustainable long term

[Barbara_1030827]

I have had my present mobile phone for about 4.5 years.  So no contract for a new phone saving me hundreds of pounds and have a great SIM onlynmonthly from Smartly.

[Nathan]

I wish I had that level of self-restraint. If I get in my head that I would like something new a shiny I always end up giving in.

[StephenSmarty]

I have bought refurbished devices as can't afford new ones 

[HannahW_17]

I buy refurbished phone too and have a som only contract. The money this saves over the years is astronomically eye watering and I don't think people.reslise. I know not everyone has the cash finds available to purchase our right but if you do it really is a fantastic option. My last 2 phones I've got off eBay, repritable stores and pay with PayPal. I've never had a problem with either of my purchases at all. I also go for the best refurb option. 

It seems like a lot of people fall into this disposable culture but really these bit of tech with refurbs or new batteries have a hell of a shelf life.... Cheaper, perfectly good piece of kit and it is helping with waste what's not to love! 

[Terence_1037204]

Livingsocial , found this app on Google play. 

Got myself a refurbished chromebook reduced from £299 to £69 delivery was cheap , had this for six months now no problem. 

[PaulDev_1435944]

I just wouldn't but unless it was new and had a warranty I just wouldn't want to take the chance just incase it didn't last. 

[Sbristo5]

I downgraded, S22 were silly money, got an A53 new about £400. 5G big screen lovely photos. Screen resolution not as good but at 50yrs young am I going to notice? Plastic case not aluminium? It goes in a plastic case for its protection so overall very happy with it.

[Rebecca_1508376]

Always refurb. Current iPhone is 7 years old, was a refurb and still going strong after a new battery. Would never buy new. 

[BarakLe_1273076]

Always new. Mostly because of the manufacturer warranty. But also because it's nice to have a brand new gadget that no one used before 

[MarkHin_1003866]

I’m sure it’s something I should do, but in reality I do like to have the latest & best available when I do upgrade any tech…

[RobNewm_1309511]

Both my phone and laptop are refurbished and have been great really. Cheaper, just as good and reliable. Obviously I used well known and reputable refurb companies but I would say that it's a more viable option for sure 

[SquPaulStephen]

Haffprice good for refurbished tech & much more!

[SquPaulStephen]

I try to buy refurbished tech whenever I can, saves me money but it helps to save our shared planet's environment, resources & wildlife! Earth's resources has taken millions of years to make & Are NOT SUSTAINABLE, REFURBISHED can ROCK!

[AmarHuss_963242]

CEX is a good place to but used Tech, Everything comes with a 24 month warranty. I recently bought a 1GB SSD Harddrive from there it was pretty much brand new for £45. Also bought a laptop that was listed as B Grade but when it arrived it was virtually brand new and £200 cheaper than a brand new one 

[Jamie]

When I set my dad up with 4g Huawei b311 router on smarty for his home internet the refurbished version was only £11 cheaper (£39.00) - the new one was £50.00 so I decided to go for the new one.

[Wardysays]

I have no issues buying refurbed. You just need to do your research on what you are buying and where from. Battery is the main issue but most people know that now.

[Jomac]

I did post earlier about products from CEX (webuy.com) CEX like many companies grade their goods from A to C, A being like new and unmarked. To be honest I have had C grade goods from them that make some companies A grade stock look poor. B grade stuff is very hard to tell its not new, most items come with a brand new power supply/charger and usually boxed. The BIG decider for me is the warranty. Every item comes with a full two years warranty even C grade items and often where the original manufacturer offers a one year warranty. In all the years I have been buying from CEX, I have only ever had to use the warranty once with a portable hard drive that failed. As that model was no longer stocked they couldnt exchange it and I was given the full value of the original item against anything in stock.