Samsung has millions of recalled Note 7 smartphones sitting around gathering dust (and hopefully not exploding), and now the company says it may sell refurbished versions of the device (which, again, hopefully won’t explode), but that it won’t be selling these recycled products in the U.S. [More]
refurbished
Samsung To Sell, Rent Refurbished Recalled Galaxy Note 7 Smartphones — But Not In The U.S.
By 3.27.17 — Updated: 3.28.17
Apple Now Selling Refurbished iPhones Online
By 11.8.16
Before today, you could purchase a refurbished iPad or Mac — but not an iPhone — online from Apple. That’s changing as the tech company is now offering customers the chance to purchase refurbished iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus online. [More]
Brother Sends My Printer On Vacation In Florida, Not Back To Me
By 2.26.13
Cyndi’s new multifunction inkjet printer malfunctioned just after the 14-day return period was over. Isn’t that always how it ends up? Not by design on the company’s part, of course, but it feels that way when you depend on a printer like Cyndi does. She contacted Brother’s tech support, and ultimately they sent her a refurbished replacement. Yay! Except that they sent it to Orlando, Florida. Cyndi does not live there. How did the printer end up there? No one knows. [More]
GameStop Offers To Ship Out-Of-Stock Item, Doesn’t Mention It Will Take 7-9 Days Instead Of 3
By 1.7.13
Joseph wanted to buy a PSVita, and went to GameStop to see whether they had one available. New or used, didn’t matter. They didn’t have any in stock, but told him that they could order one online for him, and it would arrive in three business days, with free delivery. That was fine by him, until he learned what he had actually bought: a refurbished Vita, yes, but one that would take as long as nine days to ship to his house. [More]
Who Is To Blame When Newegg Sends The Wrong Power Cord For Your Refurb Laptop?
By 9.13.12
Buying a refurbished computer can be a way to save a significant amount of money off the retail price. But as one Consumerist reader found out when he bought a refurbed ASUS gaming laptop from Newegg, a small problem can earn you a seat on the customer service terror-go-round, with no one really wanting to take responsibility. [More]
EECB Strikes Lenovo, Gets Customer New Laptop
By 5.1.12
Patricia’s refurbished laptop from Lenovo could have used more refurbishment. It had a scratched webcam and an unbearably rattly disc drive, and she didn’t find this acceptable for a device that she had just purchased. So she tackled the issue using a time-honored consumer technique: the executive e-mail carpet bomb. Lenovo’s Executive Relations team heard her plea, and sent her a new computer to replace her refurbished one. [More]
Man Uses Consumerist Tips To Gets Xbox Repaired For Free
By 6.2.11
Reader Ben was sad. His Xbox was doing the ol’ Red Ring of Death. He thought that was quits for his trusted gaming companion but then he started doing some research on Consumerist. Perusing our archives, he realized from some of our old posts that included in the price of the repair to the machine he had done not too long ago was a one-year warranty extension. Huzzah! Here’s what he did next: [More]
AT&T Supplies iPhone AC Adapter With Refurbished iPads, Hopes You Won't Notice
By 5.19.11
Have you purchased a refurbished iPad from AT&T recently? Did it have the correct adapter?Adam made an interesting discovery when he bought one for his wife, noticing that the supplied adapter is the one for the iPhone. While it’s compatible, it charges the giant-sized iPod Touch that is the iPad more slowly, and isn’t powerful enough to keep the iPad going in photo frame mode. [More]
A New Record? Reader Receives Four Defective Nexus Ones In Four Months
By 12.30.10
Four months ago, Steve bought one of the very last Nexus Ones. Remember? The Google-designed phone that was supposed to change the entire mobile phone industry and instead just showed the world that Google didn’t know how to sell tangible objects? Its successor, the Nexus S, has arrived, but it seems that late Nexus One adopters like Steve can only exchange their defective devices for another refurbished Nexus One. This would be acceptable if HTC hadn’t sent Steve three defective phones in the course of a month. [More]
This Certified Refurbished Dell Laptop Comes With Large Scratches And A Pirated Copy Of Microsoft Office
By 5.30.09
Ever wonder if “certified refurbished” is just corporate doublespeak for “not entirely broken crap?” Well, at Dell, it is! The refurbished Dell Studio Joseph bought as a gift for his father-in-law arrived with large scratches and a CD-R in the optical drive containing a pirated copy of Microsoft Office. Dell’s response? They’re willing to take back the laptop and waive the restocking fee, but that’s it.
This iPhone Comes With A Blackberry User's Email Address, And A Mystery
By 1.27.09
No, we didn’t accidentally republish yesterday’s post. This is another story of a “new” iPhone with someone else’s email address, and this time there appears to be no simple explanation for it—the address on the phone belonged to a man who lived on the other side of the country and used a Blackberry.
This 'New' iPhone Comes With Russian Email Address
By 1.26.09
It’s bad enough that Victor and his friends were scammed by this AT&T store in Brooklyn, but AT&T has basically told him that they can’t help fix the problem, even though he’s now in another town. Update: Eugene Pikulin says this could have happened innocently when the phone was activated in-store.
Western Digital HD Ships With Super Secret Asian Lady Porn!
By 6.25.08
A reader wrote in to tell us that the Western Digital hard drive he recently bought new from Best Buy had hidden dirty pics buried on it. He was running a program to retrieve some accidentally deleted images when he discovered the secret files. Read his story below. [Update: our tipster has written back in to clarify that the HD was not necessarily “brand new.”]
AT&T Shipped Me An Empty Plastic Bag Instead Of An iPhone!
By 6.2.08
David ordered a refurbished iPhone from AT&T. What he received was a brand new empty plastic bag. Apparently, AT&T has 500 backorders for refurbished iPhones, so for some completely unknown and nonsensical reason, they’ve decided to start shipping empty plastic bags. Let’s join David as he tries to track down the iPhone he ordered…
You Can't Discount The Past, Apple
By 2.23.08
A reader noticed that Apple is selling refurbished 8gb iPhones for $349, and they’re listing the original price as $599. “Save 42% off the original price,” says the Apple Store. Gosh, that’s a huge savings! Wait… well sure, the original original price was $599, but we all know that Apple knocked that down fairly quickly, and now a brand new 8 gb model sells for $399—which means actually you’re only saving 12.5% off the Real World Price Right Now of a brand new iPhone, if you went and bought it today.
Follow Dell Refurbs’ Life Stories
By 1.16.06
Gawkerite Scott Kidder has stumbled on a potentially handy bit of Dell Hellishness for those who have had the brass balls to order refurbished computers from the Dell Outlet—only to find they don’t work.
