Used Laptops In General

I get the same basic question every time someone is looking to spend $600 or more for a used laptop.  That question is "Why not just buy one of those brand new laptops offered at my local electronics store?"  My response is basically the same "You should buy it" -- But don't lose my name and number because you will need it for repairs.

Let me explain what I mean.  You will note that the warranty on these laptops they sell for that $600 price range only last for 1 year.  All of the major manufacturers of laptops offer this grade laptop, IBM, Dell, Compaq, and HP.  There is a very good reason for this.  Which I will explain as we move forward. 

The used laptops that are sold are off lease laptops.  The standard corporate lease is a 3 year term.  These laptops that are sold are not normally sold in your retail store.  These laptops are warranted for 3 years.  The reason is based on the standard leasing terms.

The reason that these corporate laptops are not sold in the retail store is because they are the high end expensive laptops.  They are only marketed to the corporate fortune 500 companies.  Since they are warranted for 3 years they are obviously built to last at least that long.  Meaning that higher quality parts are used to build these laptops.  The retail laptop is built to last 1 year after that you are on your own for parts and repair.  Hence the reason to ask the used laptop buyer to save my number.  They will need that new laptop fixed -- I guarantee it.

The used laptops that you see on the internet for sale through the various used laptop dealers come with various warrantees and guarantees.  Our favorite Used laptop dealer offers a Lifetime warranty on their used laptops and used computers.  They have a wide variety of used laptops which includes the mini laptop and sub notebooks we have been talking about.  You need to check the reliability and reputation of the company you want to order your laptop. 

When determining how much you want to spend on a used mini laptop we suggest that you actually push your budget as far as you can.  We suggest this mainly because the more you spend on a refurbished mini laptop the newer the laptop will be and the better the specifications.  Remember that what you purchase for the processor on your laptop is basically what you will have for the life of that laptop.  It is usually cost prohibitive to upgrade the laptops processor.

The items that are easily upgradeable on laptops are the memory and the hard drive.  You can even upgrade the CDROM drives to DVD or CDRW type drives.  Just depends on what you want to do.  Whatever you do never underestimate your usage.  So many times I have seen people purchase a used mini laptop and not 6 months later need to buy a better faster laptop because their needs suddenly changed. 

So in general, as long as you are looking for quality in a laptop that will not be in the shop to be fixed every few months and your applications that you will be using only require the specifications asked for on the laptop you purchase.  There is no reason to risk buying something that may not last as long as you would hope.  After all isn't the objective of your purchase not only to satisfy your job requirements but have you very happy using the laptop as well.