It is always a great option to buy refurbished Apple products because they are relatively cheap as compared to the new one. In addition to this refurb, the product has gone through the round of quality control and comes with a 1-year warranty.

If someone doesn’t want to burn the hole in his pocket and still wants to buy Apple’s Macbook then a refurbished Macbook would be the best choice.

What does Refurbished mean?

Before proceeding let us know what refurbished products are. These are those electronic products( such as laptops, desktops, and tablets) that have been returned to vendors due to minor defects. Then these products go through the various functional tests. These products are sold in the market only after complete technical verification.

Some people want to upgrade the model of their Macbooks, but they don’t necessarily need the latest model. If their needs can be easily served with slightly older Mac models then why should they spend a lot of money on buying the brand new Macbook?

You can shop the old MacBook from nearby dealers, online stores, and from Apple stores. But before buying a refurbished Macbook one should check for the reliability and other major specifications of it.

10 Things To Consider when buying Apple’s MacBook 

Run these following test before purchasing the Macbook

1. Price

It is key important to research and compare the price of the product offered by various dealers, vendors, and online stores. As you are buying the refurbished MacBook this means you are looking for it at the lowest price. Some dealers sell it at much lower price than the Apple stores and through them you can save up to 15%-20% on MRP.

2. Look for Factory Standards

Before buying the old model of Apple products find out whether it has gone through the extensive recycling process or not. Buy these products if and only if these are “factory accredited“ and meet all standards of the factory as the new one. The great vendors always sell products after replacing all mal-functioning parts and make sure that everything is working correctly.

3. Check out the Seller Reputation

Whether you are buying the product online or offline, you should make sure the seller is reputable. You can verify the retailer by reading the reviews of customers on Google. Some vendors have built trust among people by providing the elite and impeccable services, you should choose vendors who have a large satisfied customer base.

4. Confirm the Return Policy

Before making a purchase make sure that the products are returnable within the applicable return window. Generally, all quality retailers offer 14 days return if you are not satisfied with the product or due to other valid reasons. Ensure that the refurbished Macbook you are going to buy has the same return policy as other products that are directly sold by Apple.

5. Check the Warranty period & Policy

Checking the warranty policy and period is a good security measure. It defines the period under which repairs and exchange can be done without any hassle. Like all other new products, the old MacBook also comes with a 12 months warranty and with 90 days of technical support. You need to register your Apple product on their professional website for warranty and the warranty related issues are handled by the replacement unit.

6. Accessories

Every refurbished Macbook comes with a charger adapter, charging cable, battery, inbuilt operating system, adequate RAM. Checking all these accessories are also important.

7. Check the Serial number

The other priority is to check the serial number of the MacBook. This is done by clicking on the” Apple icon” and choosing the “About this Mac” option on the desktop. The serial number plays a vital role in verifying all specifications of an item.

8. Check Whether the MacBook is Original or Fake

You can go to the official website of Apple to check the authenticity of its devices. For this, you need to know the serial number of the item, and just by entering it on www.cover page.apple.com, you will get all the details of the product along with the purchase date. 

The other way to verify the genuineness of the product is to verify whether it is supporting other Operating systems (such as WINDOWS XP 7/8/10) other than Apple’s operating system( Mac leopard, Os X Lion, macOS Sierra, macOS Catalina and more). If so, the device must be duplicated.

9. Always ask the serial number to see whether the refurbished Mac is stolen or not

Having a stolen Mac is a terrible experience. So, it will be better to attest its validity prior, by asking its serial number. In any case, if the dealer refuses to provide the serial number, then leave the MacBook and do not buy it by mistake either.

10. Never buy locked MacBook

To give extra protection to the owner Apple provides the locking feature known as “Activation lock”, which prevents anyone else from using your device even if it is lost. And only the owner can unlock it, so never buy a Mac without unlocking it as it can put you in serious trouble.

11. Inspect how old your Macbook is

Sometimes third party dealers commit fraud by stating the wrong age of the item. Therefore, it would be better to inspect the real age of the product by entering its serial number on www.coverage.apple.com page.

12. Check the Battery Health

Always test the battery before making a purchase. To know the current status of the battery press on the alt/option and click the battery charge icon to the right of the desktop. The Mac will then automatically provide you with battery status: whether it is working well or needs replacement.

The alternative way to check the health of the battery is to open “system information” and note the “Cycle count” under “health information”. Generally, MacBooks come with a battery count of 1000 and when the device reaches its maximum limit it is time to change the battery.

13. Check the Mac Storage

It is the most vital component of the MacBook because any problem in it can lead to data loss and other performance problems. Examine Mac’s hard drive with its inbuilt tool called “Disk Utility”. It will give you detailed information about the hard drive but remember one thing that sometimes it’s unable to repair the booted drive.

14. Check charger functionality

The MacBook charger is known as “Magsafe” as it attaches to the laptop through magnets. Sometimes the charger doesn’t work well due to several technical reasons (broken cable, magnetic port issue, etc). So, it is essential to check the charger functionality before buying the Mac.

15. Check whether the webcam is working properly

All MacBooks come with in-built cameras at the top of the display to support video conferencing. A simple way to test the webcam is by clicking on the “menu button” and then type camera on the search bar, select “webcam” and then click on the “camera icon”. The camera will open and you can check the clarity of the image.

Summing Up -:

It is the dream of many people to buy a MacBook but they are so expensive that only a few of them can buy it. So for those who can’t afford a new Mac, it is a great idea to buy a refurbished Macbook but it is crucial to perform some basic inspection before purchasing it. 

Author Bio: Jeremy Hills is passionate about building brands for the long term and maximizing brand competitiveness to grow value for the business. He is also a copywriter with 3 plus years in B2B marketing and loves to write about emerging technologies and easy solutions for complex tech issues.