Meaning of refurbished ?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Amiman
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A

Amiman

Dumb question time please. I've often read about refurbished
products being offered at a discount, sometimes not long after
the type was first introduced into the market. I know the general
meaning of the word in English, but exactly what does it indicate
as a trade item ?

I guess a used computer would be classed as 'refurbished' if it
was cleaned up, had some defective or obsolete components
replaced and then put up for sale again. But a refurbished
motherboard ? Esp a model that was introduced only a couple
of months back ?

Are such items those that were damaged in shipping or had
some manufacturing defects and were repaired ? Are they
reliable ?
 
Amiman said:
I know the general meaning of the word in English,
but exactly what does it indicate as a trade item ?

I guess a used computer would be classed as 'refurbished'
if it was cleaned up, had some defective or obsolete
components replaced and then put up for sale again. But a >refurbished
Click to expand...
motherboard ? Esp a model that was introduced
only a couple of months back ?

Are such items those that were damaged in shipping or had
some manufacturing defects and were repaired ? Are they
reliable ?
Click to expand...

At best the products are brand new, unopened overstock returns from
distributors, or they've been very thoroughly repaired, with not only
the obvious defects corrected but also working components replaced
simply because they're known to have high failure rates, and the
circuit boards tested with automated equipment that pokes them all over
with needles to measure almost every circuit parameter. Such
refurbished products should last almost as long as brand new ones.
Unfortunately 'refurbished' usually means the product was repaired just
enough to get it to work again, and maybe the cabinet was cleaned up to
look pretty. Refurbishment sweat shops always do the latter, but so do
some large manufacturers, like Panasonic, which shiped 2 monitors in a
row that were in sorry shape - gouged cabinet front, cracked base,
wires dangling loose inside, large metal shield left out, bad solder
joints, picture way too dark. Apparently they refurbish their office
machines just as badly - very disreputable company.

Motherboards are commonly refurbished by replacing electrolytic
capacitors (known high-failure components), damaged MOSFETs (often
damaged by those capacitors) and any chips zapped by surges or static
electricity.
 
| Dumb question time please. I've often read about refurbished
| products being offered at a discount, sometimes not long after
| the type was first introduced into the market. I know the general
| meaning of the word in English, but exactly what does it indicate
| as a trade item ?
|
| I guess a used computer would be classed as 'refurbished' if it
| was cleaned up, had some defective or obsolete components
| replaced and then put up for sale again. But a refurbished
| motherboard ? Esp a model that was introduced only a couple
| of months back ?
|
| Are such items those that were damaged in shipping or had
| some manufacturing defects and were repaired ? Are they
| reliable ?

Some stuff that gets sold as "refurbished" actually hasn't had much of
anything done to it. A surprising number of electronic returns occur
not because there's something wrong with the item, but because
somebody was too stupid to know how to use it properly. Those items
sometimes get a more thorough checking out than they did before they
were shipped originally. I've got some excellent buys of refurbished
things like video cards that have held up very well.

Larc



§§§ - Change planet to earth to reply by email - §§§
 
Dumb question time please. I've often read about refurbished
products being offered at a discount, sometimes not long after
the type was first introduced into the market. I know the general
meaning of the word in English, but exactly what does it indicate
as a trade item ?

I guess a used computer would be classed as 'refurbished' if it
was cleaned up, had some defective or obsolete components
replaced and then put up for sale again. But a refurbished
motherboard ? Esp a model that was introduced only a couple
of months back ?

Are such items those that were damaged in shipping or had
some manufacturing defects and were repaired ? Are they
reliable ?
Click to expand...


Resellers are grossly misusing the term "refurbished". To
each seller it can mean something different. At the very
least it means "not new/unopened/" Beyond that you'll have
to consult the reseller, it certainly does not always mean
sent to manufacturer and repaired and/or tested and returned
for sale, as some buyers would anticipate.
 
Some stuff that gets sold as "refurbished" actually hasn't had much of
anything done to it. A surprising number of electronic returns occur
not because there's something wrong with the item, but because
somebody was too stupid to know how to use it properly. Those items
sometimes get a more thorough checking out than they did before they
were shipped originally. I've got some excellent buys of refurbished
things like video cards that have held up very well.

Larc
Click to expand...

Especially stuff like motherboards and components etc. When I went to
check about returning my vid card when I thought I had problems with
it, I went to their site and they had a thing about how 70-80% of the
cards RMAd to them check out OK so they urged people to go through the
check list.

For me it was weird. The 6800s take two power connections. I tried one
and it wouldnt show any video onscreen and made a screeching noise
like an alarm. I then figured bad connection Ill try several more.
Nope none worked. Then I went through the hassle of taking my system
apart and substituting other parts. Finally after reading that blurb
on their site I decided to try it again and for some bizarre reason it
worked after that. Maybe its the humidity factor as I mentioned but
Ive had such weird problems the last few years with all the equipment
Ive bought but it all worked perfectly after I got it working.

Anyway now I get the fun of being an early adopter of the nforce4
boards after deciding to get rid of everything and getting all new
stuff.
 
refurbished in the computer industry mainly means an item has been placed
back on sale after some form of repair has been done thats minor enough to
not need to be sent back to manufacturer.

A consumer has returned an item due to being defective in some form, and the
retailer can save time or money by making the repair themself and placing it
for sale again at a discount ( often the discount is not that much that ive
ever seen)

I guess a used computer would be classed as 'refurbished' if it
was cleaned up, had some defective or obsolete components
replaced and then put up for sale again. But a refurbished
motherboard ? Esp a model that was introduced only a couple
of months back ?
Click to expand...

For a motherboard, it could have been a bad solder on 1 component..The
retailer solders it back on and runs a diagnostic program and if its fine..
places it out for sale.. If its still defective, then sends back to
manufacturer.

With regards toa ge of when it was introduced to the market ....Within a
short time, any bugs in the production chain will have likely been worked
out soon..In fact, the first few months is when most refurbished items are
likely to be seen..
Are they reliable ?
Click to expand...

Retailers will still honor the full warranty. Be sure to ask before
purchasing.. Some small establishments have been found to try to weasel out
of it.
 
When I was in school, I worked for a number of refurbishing companies.

I would not touch anything that is refurbished. Usually these are returned
items that had faults, and were supposed to be repaired. Sometimes the unit
may have had a bad intermittent fault, that non of the regular service techs
were able to resolve. The unit would then end up being used by a refurbished
for parts. In effect, the bad part(s) may end up in another machine, because
no fault was seen at the time. This happens often.

The quality of repair is not always very good, because the refurbishing
contractors usually do not like to pay the rates for the proper tech people.
They usually hire students that are studying electronics, or the
inexperienced, or any related science field to do the work as part time
employees. They also skimp on the necessary test and diagnostics equipment
required to do proper servicing.

If you buy a refurbished unit, you may be very lucky and it will work out
for you. This is a chance that you are going to take when buying something
like this. My mother likes to buy cheap, and she has not been lucky every
time she bought something that was refurbished.

--

Jerry G.
======


Dumb question time please. I've often read about refurbished
products being offered at a discount, sometimes not long after
the type was first introduced into the market. I know the general
meaning of the word in English, but exactly what does it indicate
as a trade item ?

I guess a used computer would be classed as 'refurbished' if it
was cleaned up, had some defective or obsolete components
replaced and then put up for sale again. But a refurbished
motherboard ? Esp a model that was introduced only a couple
of months back ?

Are such items those that were damaged in shipping or had
some manufacturing defects and were repaired ? Are they
reliable ?
 
Amiman said:
I've often read about refurbished products being
offered at a discount
I know the general meaning of the word in English,
but exactly what does it indicate as a trade item ?

I guess a used computer would be classed as 'refurbished' if it
was cleaned up, had some defective or obsolete components
replaced and then put up for sale again. But a refurbished
motherboard ?
Click to expand...

"Refurbished" means whatever the seller wants it to mean, from restored
to brand new condition to casually inspected and wiped off. Standards
are so bad that I wouldn't buy a refurbished product unless it was
backed by a 100% money-back guarantee (including shipping both ways),
the manufacturer's warranty was the same as the brand-new version's,
and the product was substantially cheaper than any similar new one
(even a cheap brand). But I haven't found any true bargains among
refurbished products, except for 21" and larger CRT monitors.

Dealers rarely inspect returned computer products thoroughly because
that usually requires installation of Windows drivers, which takes a
substantial amount of time. So it's common to find something like a
defective TV-out or USB port, fan header, or sound port.
 
none of these dinks actually anwsered the question:
ISO 2000 and ISO2002 have standard definitions of what
"refurbished" is for most industrys..look on the web :P
things like ESD procedures and handling methods as well
as return cycles are covered and published.
ALWAYS look for the ISO compliancy certification when
buying a refurbed product. these will have warranties
as well as good quality control.
unfortunatly every idiot who can insert a card
into a pci slot ona plug n play OS now thinks they
are qualified to give support. i guess the moral is you get
what you pay for...retail and in newsgroups ;)
 
none of these dinks actually anwsered the question:
ISO 2000 and ISO2002 have standard definitions of what
"refurbished" is for most industrys..look on the web :P
things like ESD procedures and handling methods as well
as return cycles are covered and published.
ALWAYS look for the ISO compliancy certification when
buying a refurbed product. these will have warranties
as well as good quality control.
unfortunatly every idiot who can insert a card
into a pci slot ona plug n play OS now thinks they
are qualified to give support. i guess the moral is you get
what you pay for...retail and in newsgroups ;)
Click to expand...


OP did not use the limiter, "what does _ISO_ "refurbished"
mean?".

Rufurbished does not technically, legally, or (based upon
the majority of parts available for sale) actually mean it's
refurbished in some narrow interpretation of ISO standards.
"Look on the web."

Just as an exercise, let's go to the most popular search
engine, Google, and seek "refurbished computer parts".
First hit: http://www.compgeeks.com/

Searching for "refurbished" on their 'site, one does not see
mention of "ISO", nor of ANY qualification for that matter.
Second Google hit, first item was a laptop. Even though it
was clearly listed with the phrase "Factory Refurbished
Definition" and a popup description, there was NO mention of
ISO, no guarantee if anything in particular beyond the
typical, implied fitness-of-merchandise, barring any
limitations elsewhere.

Of course, if product is claimed to be refurbished in a
particular manner it should be, but we've not been focused
on one particular product marketed with that strict claim.

The problem with refurbished goods rigorously tested and
handled in an optimal environment, is that "someone" has to
foot the bill. Who will buy used equipment when it's
barely any cheaper than new? Actually there is a very real
potential it would be MORE expensive than new.

Your ideal of what "refurbished" ought to mean, does not
make it so.
 
oh your right.
you rule d00d.
i dont know what im talking about or maybe you just cant read
i dunno. twenty years in the industry could mean ive only
been dreaming of ISO standards.
again..i bow to your mastery of the subject
 
oh your right.
you rule d00d.
i dont know what im talking about or maybe you just cant read
i dunno. twenty years in the industry could mean ive only
been dreaming of ISO standards.
again..i bow to your mastery of the subject
Click to expand...


Regardless of what you want "refurbished" to mean, unless
you can manage to FORCE everyone else to go along with that,
there will be no guarantee that anyone selling something as
"refurbished" means it's _ISO_ refurbished to your narrow
interpretation.

Personally I agree that it would be nice if it were an
adhered-to standard, but the proof is out there... when all
is said and done, on average if you go to a website and buy
something "refurbished", you are not guaranteed to be
getting something meeting your criteria for refurbishment.
It might very well meet that criteria, but it's not implied
nor guaranteed to, it would have to be explicitly stated as
such (more than merely "refurbished") and from plenty of
reports from people who buy "refurbished" gear, I can relay
that it wasn't "refurbished" at all in your definition of
the word.

The distinction is between ideals and reality.
 
techumseh said:
oh your right.
you rule d00d.
i dont know what im talking about or maybe you just cant read
i dunno. twenty years in the industry could mean ive only
been dreaming of ISO standards.
again..i bow to your mastery of the subject
Click to expand...

Is this your standard reaction to failure to agree completely?
 
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