Any experience with "Seller Refurbished Devices?"

[Toes Up]

I'm thinking about picking up a used S7 Edge and therefore I've been looking at Swappa, ebay, etc. A couple of the ebay sellers advertise seller refurbished devices. The reviews for several of the sellers are good but I was wondering what kind of experience/input the AC crowd might have.

Thanks for your help.

 

[IAmSixNine]

Thats extremely subjective.
You need to look at each company and see if they are reputable and properly trained at refurbishing the devices.
I work at a company that does repair / refurbishing of devices and i would gladly take one of ours as we stress quality control and multiple avenues of testing.
Then you have companies like Asurion who seem to lack quality control as they are more about quantity and not quality.
Just read the forums and reddit. Complaint after complaint about someone getting an insurance phone back that still has problems. Yet those devices are supposed to be repaired and refurbished and ready to go for the next customer. Even if i didnt work where i work i would never use carrier insurance and risk getting an Asurion phone.
If your unsure of the quality or capabilities of someones refurbishment job stick with a used phone that has never been broken.
OR if you do buy a refurb try to get one through the manufacturer.

 

[Toes Up]

Thats extremely subjective.
You need to look at each company and see if they are reputable and properly trained at refurbishing the devices.
I work at a company that does repair / refurbishing of devices and i would gladly take one of ours as we stress quality control and multiple avenues of testing.
Then you have companies like Asurion who seem to lack quality control as they are more about quantity and not quality.
Just read the forums and reddit. Complaint after complaint about someone getting an insurance phone back that still has problems. Yet those devices are supposed to be repaired and refurbished and ready to go for the next customer. Even if i didnt work where i work i would never use carrier insurance and risk getting an Asurion phone.
If your unsure of the quality or capabilities of someones refurbishment job stick with a used phone that has never been broken.
OR if you do buy a refurb try to get one through the manufacturer.

Thanks for your advice. That's the kind of insight I was looking for.

 

[IAmSixNine]

Also check to see what kind of warranty they offer. We offer 90 day on our stuff. But rarely have to use it. I know march of last year we had a lot of problems with screens coming from China for iPhone 6 units. We had to hold a lot of shipments back due to quality control issues.

At least with manufacturer refurbished units you know they are using the same source for parts as the original devices and typically get a good warranty with them. I also prefer to buy and sell on Amazon. I feel they hold the sellers to a higher standard and your less likely to get a crap device because they need positive feed back to keep selling more items.

 

[WingLT]

I don't recommend getting a refurbished phone. Try to get one that is used or one that is new. I've had 2 bad experiences with getting the phones and the screens starting to come off.

 

[IAmSixNine]

I don't recommend getting a refurbished phone. Try to get one that is used or one that is new. I've had 2 bad experiences with getting the phones and the screens starting to come off.

Care to add where you got them from so the OP can avoid that place.

 

[WingLT]

Care to add where you got them from so the OP can avoid that place.

E Bay and Swappa

 

[IAmSixNine]

I wouldnt buy a phone off eBay.
Swappa im surprised. They tend to do a better job at keeping junk off the site.

 

[Law2138]

I had reservations at first about Swappa because I wasn't 100% confident in an independent seller. I've been burned in the past by selling a pair of gaming headphones on Amazon in which the buyer claimed the item was destroyed when he received it. He never returned them and Amazon issued a full refund. In any marketplace dealing with pre-owned goods, there is always the possibility of a transaction not going smoothly. Swappa does their best to prevent people from being ripped off and try to make sure people receive the device as described. PayPal buyer protection is also a good thing as you have the option to reverse the transaction or file a dispute. Your money is safe as long as you play by the rules (including reporting within a certain amount of days).

I payed close attention to the pricing on Swappa and what the sellers were offering. I went with a corporate seller who had an established account and a high volume of positive feedback (1000+). Granted they use stock photos of the device, but their description of item condition and warranty terms are very detailed.

This S7 Edge pictured above ended up being $475 (unlocked for $15) and arrived in great condition. No cracks, chips, dings or deep scratches. There was minor screen scratches, but I figured that they would occur anyway because I don't roll with a screen protector. Why worry about a flawless screen and making a scratch when it is inevitable? A few tiny scratches cant be seen when the screen is on. The tradeoff is about $275 which I can certainly live with.

So the device is AT&T branded, but unlocked and free from anyone else's NEXT agreement or account. It's paid off and if I choose, I can take it to my local AT&T store for an evaluation and enroll it under the insurance plan.

Additionally, I submitted a request for Samsung's "Try on the Future" for a free Gear VR, and received it 2 weeks later. I will certainly attest that great devices can be had for hundreds less by going the Swappa route. Good luck.

 

[420lyfe]

I have had a decent experience with buying refurbished. I bought my hp laptop refurbished and my note5 as well. Talking seller refurbished on Ebay, had a good experience. This was about 5 months ago and everything is still working perfectly fine. I should mention that I got 60 day warranty/return on the laptop and 45 days on the note5. I never had to use it and so far everything has been going quite smooth to say the least.

 

[Morty2264]

This is awesome! So glad that that worked out well for you! Enjoy your Edge device!

 

[Morty2264]

This has been an awesome thread to read. I am considering buying an unlocked phone and quite a few stores and online venues are selling refurbished versions. It makes me very uneasy but it makes me feel better to know that there are people out there who have had positive experiences. Gotta do your homework, for sure! Good luck, OP!

 

[mmcclure0453]

I have bought and sold on eBay since 2002. Have always made sure I sell something that I would want to buy myself. No junk.

All the phones I have purchased (and according to my wife, it's too many) have been perfectly fine and I've had no problem with any of them.

Keep in mind that if you buy off eBay, you have the Buyer protection. If the item is not as described and the seller refuses to replace it or refund you, eBay will refund you and then they go after the seller. The only thing you stand to lose is some time.

My opinion of eBay is that you really can't go wrong as a buyer and if you are an honest seller you won't go wrong either. Paying attention to a sellers feedback is good advice too.

 

[Morty2264]

I have bought and sold on eBay since 2002. Have always made sure I sell something that I would want to buy myself. No junk.

All the phones I have purchased (and according to my wife, it's too many) have been perfectly fine and I've had no problem with any of them.

Keep in mind that if you buy off eBay, you have the Buyer protection. If the item is not as described and the seller refuses to replace it or refund you, eBay will refund you and then they go after the seller. The only thing you stand to lose is some time.

My opinion of eBay is that you really can't go wrong as a buyer and if you are an honest seller you won't go wrong either. Paying attention to a sellers feedback is good advice too.

Thank you for this! Perhaps I was too hasty in dismkssing eBay. I just like buying things from a store - I feel like it adds security. But it course, you can buy inferior products from a store and superior products from online venues like eBay.

 

[WingLT]

In the end for both cases I had to get my money back through Paypal and E Bay. They wanted photos of the damage. Which I then provided. If you guys can list some reliable sellers for E Bay and Swappa that can help a lot. The sellers however that I had tried had very good feedback. I was looking to get a Note 5 64GB.

 

[Morty2264]

In the end for both cases I had to get my money back through Paypal and E Bay. They wanted photos of the damage. Which I then provided. If you guys can list some reliable sellers for E Bay and Swappa that can help a lot. The sellers however that I had tried had very good feedback. I was looking to get a Note 5 64GB.

I'm glad you were able to get your money back! Hopefully users will get in contact with you soon about reputable sellers. Good luck!

 

[msm0511]

I'm thinking about picking up a used S7 Edge and therefore I've been looking at Swappa, ebay, etc. A couple of the ebay sellers advertise seller refurbished devices. The reviews for several of the sellers are good but I was wondering what kind of experience/input the AC crowd might have.

Thanks for your help.

I bought an S7 Edge through Swappa recently. It was the only way I could get a black T-Mobile one as TMo doesn't sell them anymore.

I wasn't told if my particular unit was refurbished or not, but the seller does sell refurbs. It was an odd experience. The Edge I bought had apparently not gone through testing by the seller. After testing turns out there was a problem that needed to be warrantied through Samsung. They offered me a different color in the condition I paid for (like new). They told me the back had an AT&T logo because it had been replaced, but it was a TMo phone. I said no b/c I only wanted black. I was told they get shipments of devices daily and would either refund my money or I could wait a few days until they got one. They told me they'd let me know in 72 hours if they got a like new one. On the third day I got an email stating my item shipped (from Swappa not the seller), but never heard from the seller. I emailed to confirm my Edge shipped, but didn't hear back from them. It had shipped though, and I got it a couple days later. Emailed them again because I disagreed with the condition. I considered it good instead of like new. They got back to me after that and refunded the difference between like new and good.

I know that was allot to read, but it was a drawn out experience. I'm happy with the phone and not swayed against buying from the same seller again. Just wish the communication had been better. I also thought it odd that they listed a phone that they hadn't tested yet.