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The Golden Rules for Buying Used Laptops

Used laptops have the advantage of being less pricy and still perform the task at hand. However, the big question every buyer has in mind is just how much refurbished are these laptops? Here are some things to consider when going for your first used laptop in the market.

What Is It For?

Is the used laptop for simple desktop tasks like browsing, reading and sending emails, handling excel sheets or some gaming or video editing is going to be involved? If it’s for lightweight applications, buying budget laptop isn’t a bad idea plus you stand to save a lot of bucks. On the other hand, heavy duty tasks like gaming will require top-tier features under the laptop keypad and this is where you need to be vigilant. A general rule of thumb is to shop by specs and the more you pay, the better quality your used laptop will be.

Get all the Features

Buying used laptops means they have been opened up and a few things replaced then packaged for re-sale. Before checking out with your online cart or paying cash at the physical store, make sure you are getting all the features a new laptop of the same brand will have. RAM, hard disk space or graphic card should all be intact. Also, be ready to compromise on some specs, but make sure they are not the vital ones you need.

Shop by Brands

People will trust refurbished laptops from a well established brand compared to one that came up the other day. Also purchasing from top brands takes care of the nitty gritties like built quality or laptop performance. Well known brands are also easy to troubleshoot for problems and solve them quicker.

Where to Buy

To be on the safe side, it’s wiser to purchase used laptops from a brick and mortar store or a reputable online retail shop. This ensures you have someone to ask the hard questions if the laptop doesn’t boot once you arrive home or find out a certain feature is missing. If you are buying the laptop off someone, it’s a good idea to draft a ‘terms of sale’ that protects you in case you find out the used laptops do not meet your full demand.

Inspect the Laptop

They are used laptops, so it means their previous owner had a good reason why they disposed them. Since we cannot all of us hope the main reason was due to an upgrade to something better, it’s good to inspect the laptop on the spot to ensure all is ok. Does the budget laptop reboot? How long does it take to run programs? What is the history of the laptop? Heavily scrutinise the product and ensure it works pretty well before taking it home.

Used laptops are popular because they are a cheaper alternative and still get the job done. Nonetheless, it is important to consider the above factors while going out hunting for refurbished brands. Before purchasing the budget laptop, carry out a thorough inspection to make sure you are getting value for money.