Used and Laptops

[Trepidati0n]

i'm sorry if this is considered a genmay topic, but I believe it is applicable here...so here goes

Quite a few of us have desktops and would like a mobile when we leave for outside world and face the evil day star. While I wouldn't mind a new one, I can justify spending new money on something that will get fairly low duty cycle in terms of use.

When people hunt for used laptops, what do they look for and where do they look for them? Once you find them how do you filter it down to something reasonable? What are some of the "catches" that the average Joe might miss. Based upon what i've seen here over the years...desktops tend to be parted out while laptops are sold whole. so how about it..

 

[Dangman]

When I look for a used laptop for friends, family etc, I always look at the battery life of the laptop in question. If the laptop can last for 2 hours then it gets my recommendation. I also take in consideration what exactly will the user be doing with the laptop. Web browsing and word processing doesn't exactly need a screaming system. A P3 with 512MB of RAM should be plenty for that kind of role.

If you're going to be buying a laptop off Ebay, always make sure that it includes a battery and AC Adapter.

 

[bbz_Ghost]

What are some of the "catches" that the average Joe might miss.

Average Joe, Joe Average... my kinda guy (note the sig)

So, what Danny Bui said there is gold stuff, really. Battery life is a concern, obviously, especially on older used laptops where it's typically more of a concern so you just have to get the owner to fess up in one way or the other about the actual battery life and not just what they'd like you to believe.

Most of the time the standard catchphrase is "Battery is like new!!!" which, if the laptop is over 6 months old, means "It barely holds enough charge to do anything useful!!!" but obviously someone trying to sell it isn't going to be quite that honest. With the cost of a replacement battery still so ridiculously high, it's always the first thing I'd ask for information about or get some form of confirmation over.

Also, accessories like the AC adapter and proper cables for it are a must as well. Documentation isn't that big of a deal as most stuff is easily attainable from the manufacturer's website, but if they can provide all the original accessories and whatever CDs or DVDs came with it from the factory, that's just icing on the cake.

For the LCD, check the brightness, look for issues related to dead pixels (put on the blank screensaver and check for dead ones that should stand out like a sore thumb, or possibly stuck ones). Also check for bleeding which if it happens in one spot might indicate the LCD/laptop was hit hard or dropped at some point and the backlight cathode may have shifted from it's default position. Again, as long as it works correctly, it shouldn't be that big of a deal unless it's so bright in one side of the screen it's completely unworkable.

I'd expect to check out the hard drive also, a very important part before I would make the final purchase. I'd find out what brand of drive it is, then whip out my trusty bootable utility CD (or my bootable utility USB drive if the laptop boots from USB, some don't, especially the older ones) and run the hard drive diagnostic utility for that brand of drive. Typically the quick test is enough to spot major problems, then after you make the purchase you can run the advanced test to get the real story. If issues do show up, a possible refund would not be outside your rights to ask for.

Physical appearance means a lot to some people, to me I could care less. If the device is functional, does what it should, isn't defective, and it's a decent price, I'll buy it.

Off the top of my head those are the most important aspects for me. As long as the entire machine is functional, Device Manager says everything works, a cursory inspection confirms that, and I like it, I'd be taking it home with me, so to speak.

If you're buying off eBay, obviously the seller rating is the first thing to pay attention to. If they have negatives, even a few, find out what was said by both sides.

Hope this helps...

 

[EQTakeOffense]

Quite a few of us have desktops and would like a mobile when we leave for outside world and face the evil day star. While I wouldn't mind a new one, I can justify spending new money on something that will get fairly low duty cycle in terms of use.

When people hunt for used laptops, what do they look for and where do they look for them? Once you find them how do you filter it down to something reasonable? What are some of the "catches" that the average Joe might miss. Based upon what i've seen here over the years...desktops tend to be parted out while laptops are sold whoe. so how about it..

One piece of advice I have for you if you choose to buy from a retailer is to ask if it was a display model, or customer return. If it is a customer return, ask why it was returned.

I worked at Circuit City a year ago, and the majority of the employees know which ones are returned, store displays or were just give to us from the warehouse. Yes, some open box computers are given to use as refurbs from the warehouse.

Typically the store display models are in the worst condition. They have been physically abused and you can defintely tell.

Customer returns fall into one of two categories. The first being that the customer just didn't like the laptop, it was too heavy, too small, too little battery ect. The second being the borked the computer and instead of fixing it just decide to return it.

The last method is that from the warehouse. These tend to be in fairly good condition as they are refurbished, but tend to be older models. Some of the models we had open box were nearly eight months old!

One thing I can't stress enough is to check to make sure all the specs are correct. We have on a couple ocasions found RAM missing and Hard Drives replaced. So befure you buy, make sure the computer has all the accesories you want and all the specs are correct.

 

[LowDelta]

- If funds allow, checkout refurbs from dell outlet, etc. If you shop a bit, you can get excellent deals. Remember that you can always upgrade a drive and memory when funds are available, so get a good core system.

- Aside from friends and ebay, try craigslist (careful of scams) or your town/city's community forum site, esp if you are in a nerdy town.

- Consider acquiring a popular brand of system as it will give you access to parts/upgrades from ebay and other places for some time to come at reasonable prices.

 

[who am I - I ask]

usually people think used laptops should be cheap.

take my m170 for instance i paid over 3500 for it with everything but people think its worth only about 1250

but if you can find a laptop with like specs for under 2200 anyplace (retail where most people buy) it just goes to show that people want everything for cheap and the only way to do that is say that somethings not worth it