If you traffic the world of consumer electronics, you have probably heard the tag ‘refurbished’ attached to some product. This is particularly common in the arena of MP3 players, but it is also a label attached to many different types of devices. Everything from GPS units to cell phones to XBox 360s can be sold under the adjective ‘refurbished.’ But what does this little word mean?
According to Wikipedia, refurbishment is
the process of major maintenance or minor repair of an item, either aesthetically or mechanically.
Simply put, a refurbished item is a fixed item.
The reason behind the fix is somewhat of a more complex story. With some electronics, such as computers, the title can denote that the item did not pass the company that manufactured the item’s quality standards. The problem in the product is found at some point before the item gets to market and is subsequently fixed. As a result, the company is legally bound not to sell the product as ‘new’ since it under went modifications post-production. The item is labeled as ‘refurbished’ and offered at a significant discount.
These quality standards do not necessarily have to be functional in nature either. A chip in the unit, a small scratch along the screen, or a minor dent some cosmetic reasons why a GPS or any other production could be classified as refurbished. Even though the cosmetic appearance of the unit is flawed, it is still fully functional and did not require any replacement of parts.
Another instance where products can be labeled in this way is way is when they are opened and return by the user because it was defective. Often times complex electronic devices (like MP3 players and GPS) have relatively high return rates, giving the store and manufacturer an incentive to patch up the unit in order to turn around and sell it to another consumer. This way both the buyer and seller can benefit from refurbishment.
The benefits of buying a refurbished GPS (or any electronic device for that matter) is significant. You can get a significant price reduction while getting the exact same functionality of its ‘new’ counterpart. Many refurbished devices also have a warranty with the store or manufacturer which can cover you in the event that the device has additional malfunctioning parts.
This is by far the biggest risk behind purchasing a refurbished item - that a history of defect is indicative of future problems. While this could be true, I do not think that a refurbished item is any more likely to have additional defects in it than the ‘new’ counterpart. As a result I find that the significant savings that you can achieve buy purchasing a refurbished GPS item is well worth it when considering the cost versus risk factors.
