[azukizero]

I have yet to purchase my first Mac so I'm trying to research as much as possible in hopes of avoiding any major pitfalls. After reading several posts here, it seems like everyone supports purchasing a refurbished mac. I'm not usually a fan of purchasing any refurbished electronics and a refurbished computer sounds even more risky.

Can somebody break down why purchasing a refurbished mac is a wise move. Is it the assumption that the refurbished mac has gone through repairs that a new mac *would* eventually face?

I realize the price difference between a new mac and a refurbished one is a couple hundred dollars, but is it worth it?

thanks

[bpd115]

I just purchased a dual 2.0 refurb (Ships on or before 2/17, when the updates will happen of course ) and it comes with the same warranty and is eligible for Applecare. Some even say that the refurbs will be in better condition since they've been gone over by Apple to make sure they're in working order.

[azukizero]

Did you purchase it from the Mac Store? Are there any other good places to get refurbished Macs?

[dpc]

Over the years I've purchased 3 or 4 Apple refurbs (either directly from Apple or smalldog), and I never had a problem.

[bpd115]

I purchased directly from Apple....

Smalldog and Powermax have good reputations as well and give you the same warranty

[Lateralus]

Purchased my most recent refurb, an iBook, from MacWarehouse. Excellent decision.

[aquilles10]

I've purchased a dual G4 last year from the Apple Store and have never had a problem with it. My work iMac was purchased from Smalldog, and had some video problems initially but it was fixed because it had a year of Applecare like a new Mac, and it's been working like a charm ever since.

Most people's experience with refurb macs seem to be good although YMMV...

[DeathToWindows]

I generally advocate refurbs... cheaper and same coverage.

[Vetinari]

I just received my refurb'd Dual 1.8G5 over the weekend. Came in the original box (e.g., the one with the picture of the computer on the outside) and was in flawless condition. Panther installed (but not iLife '04).

Machine worked great up to the point where I installed Office X without first uninstalling the Office Test Drive. Every time I tried to patch to the latest version of Office, the whole machine would freeze. Erase and Install from the Panther DVD did the trick. Now Office (after uninstalling the Test Drive) works fine.

First time with a PowerMac--there is no greater joy than encoding two MP3's with LAME, moving between 3 or 4 large Word documents, and having multiple email/Safari windows open--all at the same time without a hitch!

My only complaint is about my monitor. I was using a 20" iMac (which is now my wife's) and got used to the widescreen aspect ratio. My wife's Sony 19" LCD, while good, just work as well for multiple windows.

[-Q-]

The refurbished machines are great. I've had two refurb monitors go bad on me tho', so definitely buy those new.