How to ID A Refurb?

[savaytse66]

I went into a Microsoft Store yesterday to do a Complete exchange. The store I want to was a mall kiosk, so they did not have a lot if inventory. I was in and out in 5 minutes with what APPEARS to be a brand new SP3. I thought Complete was supposed to exchange for a refurb unit, which I was fully expecting and willing to accept.

So is there any way to identify a refurb vs brand new unit? My experience with other products is that they will have a refurbished sticker, or something on the box to identify it.

Thanks

 

[GreyFox7]

There should be a label or sticker indicating that.

The Federal Trade Commission bans deceptive labeling in the sale of any product. This means that returned items cannot be sold as new, and retailers who sell rebuilt or otherwise remanufactured items must label them as such and not sell them as new items. If an item has merely been re-shelved without being used by another consumer, retailers should indicate that.

Read more : http://www.ehow.com/list_6910926_consumer-laws-refurbished-goods.html

 

[savaytse66]

There should be a label or sticker indicating that.

The Federal Trade Commission bans deceptive labeling in the sale of any product. This means that returned items cannot be sold as new, and retailers who sell rebuilt or otherwise remanufactured items must label them as such and not sell them as new items. If an item has merely been re-shelved without being used by another consumer, retailers should indicate that.

Read more : http://www.ehow.com/list_6910926_consumer-laws-refurbished-goods.html

Well in that case, it looks like I got a brand new replacement. Good deal! I'll be curious to see how this compares to my last one. My broken one suffered from Wi-Fi sleep bugs and early on, fan noise, though it subsided after a while. So far everything seems good.

 

[GreyFox7]

Well in that case, it looks like I got a brand new replacement. Good deal! I'll be curious to see how this compares to my last one. My broken one suffered from Wi-Fi sleep bugs and early on, fan noise, though it subsided after a while. So far everything seems good.

Just curious what lot number you got... it should be on the box.

 

[savaytse66]

I'll take a look and report back tomorrow morning. Until I get my case, I'm a bit paranoid and am not taking it out of the house since I shattered my last one...

 

[grumpy]

If it is in standard retail packaging, it is not refurbished. I do not believe that the kiosks (or MS stores) stock refurbished units.

 

[cemian]

Just curious if I bought the unit at best buy ..could I take it in to a microsoft store for a warranty replacement and hope they exchange the unit with a new one as well?

 

[Kif]

If it looks new call it good. Who cares if it's brand new or a refrub if it's in mint condition. You're covered by the same warranty on it regardless.

 

[raqball]

Refurbished units are better than new in box units in many cases.. New units go from the assembly line to the box and are not checked. Refurbished units get checked..

I've never understood the new in box -v- refurbished obsession..

 

[wynand32]

My only concern with refurbs is that if they were in service long enough, a component that experiences wear (like the battery) could have a shortened lifespan. Theoretically, another example would be the SSD. And one doesn't know how the device was treated by the previous owner and it could have issues that the typical checkup doesn't identify (although, to be fair, nothing comes to mind at the moment).

Finally, the quality of a refurb depends entirely on who's doing the checking and how carefully they do it--I've received great refurbs, and terrible ones that were obviously flawed and had nothing done to fix the issue(s) they were returned for. A classic example--I received a tablet refurb in exchange and there were numerous dead pixels on a scratched screen. No way that thing was checked and any issues resolved.

I'll admit that I'm one who prefers receiving a new unit in exchange for a problematic unit, but I accept that this isn't always a company's policy.

 

[savaytse66]

Just curious what lot number you got... it should be on the box.

Lot 1439

 

[GreyFox7]

Lot 1439

Must have been fresh off the factory floor, highest lot number in that series I have heard yet.