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RSS feedsIt can be difficult to imagine the breadth of specifications, makes and models that appear in refurbishment companies. Whether you want a machine that can tear into the latest games, a Linux box or something basic to hand over to the kids, you will be able to find it.
As with all computer purchases, it's important to work out what you need your computer to do before buying. Kieran MacGregor, online marketing executive at EuroPC, says the company has no such thing as a typical customer, but is always happy to advise.
"We really do get every type of customer coming to us when they are after a new computer. We get old ladies, young men and large corporate customers all ordering computers from us, but we have sales people who know how to advise customers to ensure they get a computer which is suitable for their needs," he explains.
We took a fairly typical buying scenario - a family looking for a computer for the children to do their homework on, to surf the internet and use email. With that brief, we approached several refurbishment companies and the best deal we found was from Second Chance PC, which could sell us a 350MHz Pentium II HP Vectra running Windows 98, with a monitor and modem, for £225 inclusive of VAT. The price also included a six-month warranty.
Morgan Computers had a much more powerful 733MHz Pentium III system available for £234 inc VAT, but by the time we'd upgraded the 14in monitor, Windows 95 and fitted a modem, it was looking like more trouble and money than our fictional family wanted.
If the budget wasn't so tight, there is a wide range of HP and Dell computers sold with full warranties available from EuroPC and Morgan Computers every day. If our family was feeling adventurous, it could have opted for a tray-loading iMac from Second Chance PC for £210.
Another fairly familiar story is of a small business that needs to upgrade its IT equipment, but wants to keep its initial outlay as low as possible. Obviously, the type of business and the use the computer is going to be put to is important, but we found it hard to look past the Dell models available from Dell itself and resellers such as EuroPC.
Dell had an Optiplex GX270 system sporting a 2.2GHz Pentium 4 processor, 512MB of PC2700 Ram and a 40GB hard disk for £409 ex of VAT. Better than that, the price includes a full Dell warranty, despite being sold as a refurbished computer and that means three years of on-site support.
If you were after a complete corporate package, EuroPC could also close a deal on a Dell Poweredge 8450 server at a cool £10,000 off the list price at £15,000. There are further discounts available for bulk purchasers.
If you are just after a powerful, well-specified computer, but don't want to pay too much for it, there are still deals to be had. When we last visited, EuroPC could supply you with a 3.2GHz Pentium 4-powered Dell Optiplex for £700 inc of VAT and a full warranty.
At Morgan Computers, a Compaq Presario S4490UK for £669 holding a 2.8GHz Pentium 4 processor, 512MB of Ram, 120GB hard disk, DVD writer, Windows XP and a full Compaq warranty looked good too. The same computer would have cost around £150 more three months ago.
It's not just PCs that can be picked up as refurbished stock. We found two places where lovers of Apple computers can save themselves a few quid too. The Clearance Store and Second Chance PC both have a variety of Apple machinery on offer and both offer significant savings over the new cost.
Gavin Nicholson, managing director at Second Chance PC, says that the company does PCs and Macs, but the business is currently about 85 per cent Apple-orientated.
"There's a good reason refurbished Macs are easy to deal with at the moment. Lots of owners are finding that new Macs come with OSX. This is quite a jump from the Classic operating systems and, as a result, lots of people are finding that their old SCSI and other legacy devices just aren't compatible.
"Rather than throw away all their old kit, we can supply G3 and G4 systems which are a huge improvement over what they are currently using, but allow them to hook up all their existing peripherals. It's also pretty hard to track down cheap new Macs as prices are quite strictly controlled. So refurbished computers mean we can help people who think they don't have the budget to upgrade."
Scanning both companies' websites, a beige G3 233MHz Power Mac for £99 from The Clearance Store looked like a good-value computer, particularly if you have a compatible keyboard, monitor and mouse already. If you have a little more to spend, you could have a G4 750MHz flat-panel iMac sitting on your desk for £880. Our favourite though, was a G4 350MHz graphite Powermac for £586 from Second Chance PC.
It's not just the computers themselves you should be looking for when you're scanning the refurbished market though. All IT equipment is available along similar lines and there are some great savings to be made. One particularly good deal was on a basic digital camera.
The Fuji A204 is a 2megapixel camera and we found it priced between £125 and £170 with different retailers and in the high street. Morgan has refurbished examples on sale for £93, a saving of around 35 per cent and the price includes a full Fuji warranty.
If your camera tastes are a little more exotic, then what about a 5megapixel Nikon Coolpix 5700 with an 8x optical zoom. It is a factory refurbished camera, although it only has a six-month warranty. The best price we could find anywhere was from an online camera retailer for £549. Morgan will supply the same unit for £470.
Tom Willet, a spokesman for Morgan, says cameras represent a good deal, but that not all product categories are as well suited for the refurbishment treatement.
"We do have quite a lot of laser printers, but inkjets are a different matter. We stock some of the higher-end Canons, but most models are so cheap to buy that there's not much you can do with the price," he says.
Downsides
To every good deal there's likely to be a downside or a catch. In the case of shopping for computers on the cheap, however, it seems that the negatives are minimal. The main downside of buying a computer from overstock or a recommissioned machine is the comparative lack of choice. If you have a dream list of computer components, you can call up one of the direct selling companies and have a one built to your exact specification.
When you are buying computers from surplus stock or rebuilt units, the specification is already in place. You may have to compromise on your chosen specification in order to get the best price. All the companies agree that this can be the case to an extent, but the volumes of stock and varieties of specifications on offer generally mean you'll find something to suit you.
Macgregor explains that a lack of choice usually isn't an issue, particularly if you are patient. "We get a wide variety of models. Often, these are computers which have been ordered specifically, built and the order has been cancelled," he says.
"We don't have rows of identical machines and our stock changes very quickly. If we send out an email with stock details on it, it can be out of date by the end of the day. It's best to ring to find out if we have what you after on a given day."
So should you?
The decision on whether or not to buy a refurbished computer comes down to two factors. How much you want to spend and what you plan to do with the computer. With established direct sellers such as Mesh offering complete PC systems for £500 including VAT, it seems there isn't much point spending a large amount of cash on a refurbished or second-hand computer.
If you are prepared to build your own computer, £500 on parts alone builds you a fairly potent PC, but that misses the point. By buying a refurbished computer direct from Dell, for example, you can save hundreds of pounds over the standard retail price, getting a very well-specified PC for the price you'd expect to pay for a less powerful model. With anything up to 60 per cent off the retail price, a Dell could now be firmly within your budget.
If you have less than £500 to spend, buying a refurbished computer makes a lot of sense. We found computers on offer from around £75 upwards. Such computers don't represent the leading edge of technology, but we also know that you don't need leading-edge technology if you are after a second computer for browsing the web, sending emails and typing up the odd letter to the bank manager.
You could buy a computer from a car boot sale or from a card in the window of your local post office for that sort of money, but if you had a problem with it the chances of getting your money back or a replacement computer from the vendor are very slim indeed. Buying a refurbished unit from a reputable supplier gives you a warranty as well, making it the cheapest way to buy a cheap PC safely.
Second-hand versus refurbished
The objective here is to save money when buying a computer, and you might think you know an even cheaper way of doing this. Indeed, Loot, eBay and your local paper will all have computers for sale at very tempting prices.
However, buying computers privately is a risky proposition, as you are much less likely to recover your money from a private individual if there is a fault with the product. You should also be aware that if the computer turns out to be stolen, you'll have no redress when someone knocks on the door and takes it away to return it to the rightful owner.
Buying from a company, on the other hand, gives you certain consumer rights. If the computer you buy is faulty, or is not as described, you have the right to return it for a refund. It's also true that buying second-hand computers often means buying second-hand software, which can be a bit of minefield. The best advice here is to ensure you get all the CDs to reinstall from, whether an operating system disk or a recovery CD, and ensure you get any serial numbers that you are going to need if you have to reinstall.
Finally, and most importantly, before you buy a computer second-hand check the price against refurbishment companies and other private ads. Private sellers who pay out a four-figure sum for a computer often value it much higher than the market does.
The crucial thing to remember is caveat emptor - buyer beware. If you buy a pup, you have no comeback, so be very cautious if you do decide to buy privately. Do the groundwork before you buy, check the computer thoroughly and ensure the price is very low before parting with any cash.
Community service
Lots of older computers are gathered up from businesses and refurbished, not for resale, but for charity. Although your PC may be creaking under the load you put on it, there are many companies that will take old IT equipment, shred the data on it and get it ready for a new life working with a community group, or other good causes.
Microsoft's Authorised Refurbisher Scheme seeks businesses that have old computer equipment to donate and puts them in touch with organisations that are desperately short of IT equipment and, more importantly, the money to buy it.
The scheme ensures that any information on a donated PC's hard disk is securely deleted so the company needn't worry about confidential information getting out, while the needy get the benefit of cheap, possibly free, IT equipment. Microsoft has a vested interest since the vast majority of computers have its software on them. It can insist that the supplied PCs have licensed software packages installed before they go to new owners.
If you have computer equipment sitting idle that you'd like to donate, or know of a good cause which could make use of IT equipment, visit the Microsoft Refurbisher Scheme website where you will find a list of all the authorised refurbishers in your area.
Refurbishment companies:
Apple Refurbishment Store
http://promo.euro.apple.com/promo/refurb/uk
Dell Outlet - 0870 907 5219
www.euro.dell.com/countries/uk/enu/dfo/default.htm
Euro PC - 0870 987 0800
www.europc.co.uk
Getmeapc.co.uk - 0800 026 5888
www.getmeapc.co.uk
Morgan Computers - 0121 454 8200
www.morgancomputers.co.uk
PC Disposals - 01923 233923
www.pcdisposals.com
SDEurope - 0151 348 6212
www.sdeurope.com
Second Chance PC - 01223 833 412
www.2ndchancePC.co.uk
Sterling XS - 01483 301331
www.sterlingxs.co.uk
The Clearance Store - 020 8503 3131
www.tcsmacs.com
See also:
All Desktop Computers
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