Need some opinions about refurbished laptops, using for personal fun. What would be a good price range? Thanks

Answer 1

Hello, You need mimimum of $300 and up for a refurbished laptop depending on the availability.

A refurbished Computer can be a computer that was:

Returned by the consumer because it did not work properly and was repaired to factory specifications.

Returned by the consumer because it was not the type that they wanted but they had opened the box.

Slightly damaged and, therefore, could not be sold in the stores as 'NEW'.

if you are planning to purchase a refurbished computer, I would suggest you to buy directly from manufacutres as they would treat refurbished computer as good as a new one (you get one year limited warranty plus exteneded warranty, for example:
http://www.dell.com/outlet/

Normally, you would get a refurbished laptop with $200 to $300 off depending what your price range is. Also you may be able to make some bargain by making a request to speak with a supervisor or a store manager.

You may also like to visit your local computer stores, sometimes they offer a great price on their floor models.

You may also be able to buy a brand new laptop in a range of $499 and up:
http://www.dell.com/content/products/category.aspx/notebooks?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs


Good luck!

Answer 2

This is a tough question because it is so broad. The price of a refurbished laptop depends on the model, the amount of memory, wireless modem, special features like CD/DVD player, etc.

The other thing to consider is the reliability & integrity of the seller or retailer.

I just went shopping for a laptop this weekend & didn't have much luck finding a refurbished one. The best I found was an IBM Think Pad for $320 but I would have had to buy a wireless modem for $39 so I decided to buy a new lap top instead.

I ended up buying a new Compaq Presario F560US w/ AMD Sempron for about $400 after the mail-in $30 rebate. I had to double the memory for $40 because it came w/ Vista Basic which requires a lot of memory.

Bottom line: consider buying a cheap, brand new laptop before buying a re-furbished laptop.

Take someone w/ you who knows about computers if you don't because many sales people will try to upsell you stuff you don't need. (e.g. extended warranty, $129 diagnostic to take it out of the box & make sure it runs, peripherals, etc.)

Consider Costco because it has an excellent return policy.

BTW, I like what "been there, done that" has to say - esp. about buying direct from the manufacturer. The manufacturers' sites will also give you good information about price ranges.

Answer 3

Sort of a chicken and egg questions ... figure out what you want to use the laptop for ... games, word processing, text messaging, photos, etc. Think about the features you want: long battery life, big display, small size, DVD burning etc. Then figure out how much you want to spend ... prices can be from under $200 to over $1000.

Refurbished laptops can be a great deal, but you should know that they might have an old OS ... 98, 2K or XP, often the batteries won't work (no biggie if you always will use it plugged in and the warranty is typically 90 days or if you buy on ebay may have only a DOA or limited warranty, versus new typyiccally have a one year warranty.

Answer 4

Depends on what you're looking for. Check manufacturer's websites for prices on their refurbished laptops; they'll generally knock a couple hundred off of the price. Overstock, eBay, Microcenter, and Tiger Direct are also good sources of refurbished computer equipment too.

As far as something fairly modern goes, I would tell you that you can get a good everyday machine for between $350 and $700, depending on brand.

Answer 5

I would not go above $200. You can buy a new one for under $400;



Gateway ML3109 - $350
Best Buy has the Gateway ML3109 Notebook with Intel® Celeron® M Processor 520 for $349.99. Features include: a 4-in-1 memory card reader, built-in high-speed wireless LAN and a DVD-ROM/CD-RW drive.




[added 9/17/2007 | expires 10/1/2007 11:59:59 PM ]

Answer 6

Depending on the Speed and optical drives , most will start around 350-375 with just a CD drive in it. The prices can go up from there depending on how they are configured from there. I have been selling Dell Latitudes w?DVD burners and 1 GB of ram for 475 and up.