so /g/ how often, if ever, do you purchase second-hand hardware?

The only pieces of hardware I have ever bought new were my hard drives.

Buying anything else new is for suckers.

mainly thinkpads, T440 and an x220 notably, T440 was great, x220 wasn't as described.

Most 2nd hand stuff I've bought off of Craigslist so I usually get to check them out first. Only been burned once with one iPad (out of ten) and in an odd twist actually came out ahead in the end.

Only bought a few devices off eBay. None "high-profile" like phones or tablets, so I haven't had problems there.

Desktops & laptops I usually buy new.

>>57550183
good rule to stick by, but i usually feel the same for power supplies too.

>>57550408
I buy a lot of stuff from thrift stores. In the back of my mind I'm kind of wary about electrical stuff you'd typically leave plugged in. Though I used to run a bunch of old Macs (pre iMac) I bought from there as my main machines. Game consoles I'm fine with since I usually only plug them in while playing. Sometimes I'll look at UPS units and wonder if I can just replace the batteries.

I bought my past 2 laptops refurbished, both have been excellent, no complaints.

Nah, I'm not poor

>>57550408
been buying used computers for 20 years and never had a power supply fail in any of them. I think PSUs either die early on or turn out to be good and last forever.

Same. eBay is the best place to get shit because of buyer protection.

>>57550156
Not very often because in my country they thinks they are allowed to sell used stuff as pricey as new

But in forums you can find better deals because they enforce some rules to give stuff the price it deserve

In fact I recently bought a gtx960 strix for 130€, when new was 210
It complimented my poorfag build
For the same price I could have bought a 750ti new

>>57550518
PSUs definitely tend to die more than anything else I wouldn't expect a PSU to last more than 5 years of continuous use ever. If it does it's a miracle but it's going to be in bad shape

They degrade and generate less power too over time.

Always buy PSUs new desu

x220, nexus 4, raspberry pi, docking station for the x220
I only buy used personally, and pay by cash after inspection and making sure that everything works.
Everything is flawless so far.

Apple Refurbished all day every day

Never

>>57550156
I do, several times a year. Ebay. iPads, iPhones, Thinkpads - for gifts and myself.

Thrift stores, I buy garbage to sell to shits like the retro luddites. The other day I bought a $15 item and within three days someone paid full price for it on ebay, I had it listed for $90.

the last 3 laptops I've bought have all been refurbished latitudes from ebay

I've had a decently current laptop for over a decade and never spent more than 300 dollars on one. they tend to be a few years behind but that's no problem for shitposting, office type shit.

I need to start going to thrift stores more often, I haven't been to one in fucking years pretty much.

I know a guy that found a brand new sealed in plastic wrap IBM Model M keyboard for like 5 bucks. People don't know what they have sometimes, I could probably make some money reselling if I find something good.

>>57552692
>>57550500
What type of stuff do you guys find? I am intending to keep some stuff as well. I am the anon that made this post >>57552904

>>57550331
Just curious anon but how did you come ahead?

>>57552926
>>57552904
It depends 100% on your city. I'm in a medium sized town and there are occasional tech finds. The model M for $5 stories will always be from huge cities in california, and I am jell as fuck.

Thrift stores in little towns are entirely full of just clothes and glass knick knacks. The fun part about the retro garbage is that it stays there for weeks because nobody wants it, so it's a little side business where I just hit about 6 of them on a saturday and it's semi-reliable that I will get at least two sellable items. Sometimes it takes a long time to sell but I always make at least 100% profit. retro shits don't really need it to work in the first place since they just like looking at it, obviously it's worth more if it does but you can sell anything non-working as long as you throw on a vintage tag on ebay. cashier girls at all these places know me and they all give me the socially awkward look since they think I collect this stuff and keep it.

>>57550156
go shill on

>>>/csg/

Jumped on the Thinkpad X220 meme. From an obvious corporate refurb seller with good feedback. Has been great.

>>57553038
I stay at Hialeah, FL so there are only a few thrift shops. I have seen shit old ass TVs, Guitar Hero things, GameCubes and etc. Pretty much just junk, I need to check whenever I have a chance.

Only issue is that you don't know if they work or not, so I am gonna try and look for a Model M and similar things like that.

>>57553175
Video games always sell. You should definitely go for the consoles especially, they go in hours online. gamecube is not junk, especially the oem controllers and wavebird are worth money on their own. gamecube is considered "retro" now, and you can sell them for $90+. thrift store I go to has about three per year for $20. just make sure you clean it up since all they care about is looking at it.

Most thrift stores don't give a shit if you plug stuff in to test it since if it works you'll buy it and give them money. I've tested computers, keyboards, TVs, monitors, game consoles, headphones, and video cameras before in their own building and plugged into a strip they had for the TVs. As long as you don't make a mess they don't care.

I bought a used Thinkpad t410 probably about 4.5 years ago now. Got it for around $200 CAD at the time. Easily the best purchase I have made on there because I still use it daily.

I love me some cheap eBay shit.

>>57553224
Yea you can test them out in the shit TVs they are selling. If a console doesn't have a cable or something then it couldn't be tested, so there is that.
I am also afraid to get bed bugs or something from those electronics.

>>57553720
That won't happen. I used to work at goodwill. anything that even remotely looks disgusting or that had bugs in it/on it gets thrown away.

bought a T400 for £30, was in really good shape. still using it today

>>57554253
30 clams? where did you find that?

>>57554277
ebay, it was an auction that ended at like 4am so there didnt seem to be any bidders. Just got lucky I think

Ebay rocks for computers, parts, tools, motorcycle and auto parts and much more.

I'm always getting deals off Ebay and saving shitloads of money.

Anyone ever buy a second hand GPU? I'm curious as to how anyone could possibly know the usage stats.


I bought a refurbed Thinkpad x220, very happy with my purchase.
Ebay's buyer protections are fantastic.

>>57550500
>Sometimes I'll look at UPS units and wonder if I can just replace the batteries.

If old APC etc, you can and many people do.

>>57553968
>>57553720
Retro shits will pay more for bugs because it proves how old it is. Import the bugs from outside the USA for bonus age points.

>Retro VINTAGE COOL FRENCH BUGS LIVING INSIDE... ONE OF A KIND. NO CHEAP JAPANESE BUGS

>>57554333
Was this before the "put your max in and it'll raise as people try to outbid you" shabang?

That's luck.

>>57553968
Working at goodwill is amazing I get so much free shit that the warehouses just throw out so I don't even feel bad

>>57550156
I used to buy everything second hand when I was poor, now I buy everything new because I don't want other people's manky paws all over stuff I used regularly.

>>57554965
>I don't know how to clean

>>57550156

I buy unboxed HGST hard drives all of the time off of eBay. I have never had an issue.

I bought some WD's and Seagates off Amazon and half of them failed within the first few months.

I also bought my XPS 15 off of eBay, manufacturer refurbished from a Dell certified seller and literally saved $800+ dollars off the new one. 6th Gen i7, GTX 960m, 16GB, 4K Screen, etc.There is no scratches or wear and tear, Windows 10 had zero bloatware since it was wiped by the seller, and it even had the protective plastic and what not you peel off it.