Refurbished smartphones for Black Friday, things to know before buying
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For some years now, e-commerce sites that sell refurbished smartphones, tablets and computers have been recording strong growth in consumer interest. According to estimates by Certi-Deal, one of the many services active in the sector, the safe technological second-hand market will be worth around 65 billion by 2024.
The news
The era of smartphone repairability begins: after Apple, Google and Samsung will also sell spare parts
by Simone Cosimi
In Italy the phenomenon is not new and continues to attract more and more customers. It is no coincidence that almost all the major international players in the market sell and ship in our country, from Swappie to Refurbed, via BackMarket and the aforementioned CertiDeal, particularly active in sharing of data and trends on this promising sector. There is no shortage of success stories, and they all demonstrate the sustainability of a circular economy that combines economic advantage for consumers with environmental protection. Repairing and reselling smartphones (and other electronic products) that are not yet obsolete is in fact the best way to reduce CO2 emissions and above all to prevent heavy metals and other pollutants from ending up in landfills prematurely.
Swappie, find out the differences
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With the growth of the sector, attempts at imitation also grow, however, with improvised e-commerce that cannot always guarantee product quality, payment security and user privacy.
On the occasion of the Black Friday discounts, here is therefore a handbook to make sure you buy a quality refurbished device online, at the right price and without risks or bad surprises.
The case
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by Dario D’Elia
Guarantees and returns
The two most important elements to check before buying are the duration of the guarantee and the presence of an option to return the product in case you are not satisfied with the purchase.
The minimum guarantee is at least one year (CertiDeal offers 24 months, Swappie, Refurbed and BackMarket 12 months), while on average it is possible to return up to 14 days from the order in the case of almost all e-commerce in the sector.
If a site doesn’t have a dedicated page that clearly explains the warranty and return conditions, consider it an alarm bell.
Startups
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Payment methods
In the case of payments, the same precautions apply to reconditioned resellers as to all other e-commerce. A serious and secure site must offer payments through secure and controlled circuits and services such as Visa, MasterCard, Amex, Paypal, Amazon, Google or Apple Pay, Klarna. On the other hand, it is better to avoid wire transfers and debit card top-ups, which make any refund procedures more difficult.
Customer care
Another valid method to check the reliability of a site for the sale of refurbished vehicles is the customer service check. Does ecommerce offer the ability to contact support via email, chat, and phone? Okay, that’s a good sign. If you still have doubts, try to establish contact via chat or email asking for clarification on an aspect of the purchase procedure (perhaps precisely on the payment methods, guarantees or returns). The speed and quality of the response will be a good indicator of the trustworthiness of the e-commerce.
Product and ad details
Look carefully at the product page. Is the device described in great detail? Are all the important details indicated, such as the presence of scratches, the percentage of maximum battery charge, the age of the refurbished, the shipping times, the presence or absence of the original box?
Even in the case of a positive answer to all these questions, be wary of offers that are too tempting. Barring a normal swing in price, each model usually falls within a range that doesn’t change drastically from one retailer to another. If a price seems unusually low to you, always try to understand where the deception may lie or if there are details (such as the general conditions of the product) that are not adequately clear in the advertisement.
Specialized sites or resellers?
There are two types of e-commerce in the refurbished market: specialized direct resellers who manage the entire supply chain and who refurbish the devices internally, such as CertiDeal and Swappie (which will have a pop-up store in Milan until 18 December), or marketplaces that enable controlled and verified third-party resellers to sell on the platform. The advantage of this format is the availability of many devices, but there is the risk of a lower uniformity of the quality of the product, which is often evaluated by external parties. There are also excellent deals on the marketplaces, but in the case of direct resellers, the advantage is that in the event of returns, delivery problems, or requests for replacement under warranty, you will have to deal with a single company responsible for the entire supply chain. from the reconditioning of the used device to after-sales.
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