Refurbished laptops come from a number of different sources, including businesses that trade in their old laptops, and consumers returning systems either because they decided they didn't want them or because there was a serious defect.įailures and defects account for a certain percentage of refurbs. MORE: 7 Computer Pranks That Will Drive Your Friends Crazy Where do refurbished laptops come from? There's no doubt you can find a good brand-new laptop at any price, even under $200, but you can likely afford a better class of system ― a superthin ultraportable or a powerful business laptop ― if you consider refurbished models. However, if your budget is limited and you want a higher-quality laptop, like a Dell XPS 13, getting a refurbed model might be your best choice. So, if the refurbed model you buy was in active use for a year or two, it could have much shorter battery life than a brand-new unit. That performance delta may not matter as much to you today as it will two or three years from now, when you're using a computer that's really four of five years old and much less capable of running new software.Īlso, keep in mind that laptop batteries lose their ability to hold a full charge over time. The model year is important, though, because both performance, battery life and Wi-Fi connectivity improved significantly in the current-generation XPS 13.

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