Everyone is looking for a cheap laptop to buy, this should be an axiom or a force of nature as strong as gravity. One can find a nice deal here or there but there are a few things to keep your eyes on especially when the said laptop in subject is not only cheap but second-third-fourth hand too. It’s just like with cars, you have to check every single detail to make sure you are not paying more than you should before deciding on which laptop to buy.
First make sure you are buying the laptop from a trusted source. Even though it’s new it could still very well be stolen. As far as I know Lenovo uses a technique to find stolen laptops. The original owner tells Lenovo that their laptop is stolen and should be taken back, or at least found. When this happens Lenovo notes the serial number and when the new owner of the unit takes it to warranty or service they wait for him or her at collection for a little talk. There are helplines for every laptop manufacturers, should you be in the slightest doubt call them and ask by the serial number, they should be able to tell you if there is anything shady going on.
Let’s assume that the import is white, there is no criminal record. You still want to make sure you check every corner of the laptop, especially the screen. Check for cracks, dead pixels, scratches and patches. Never buy a laptop that has cracks on the screen but ‘are working perfectly otherwise’ as you are putting yourself into the risk of losing it should the smallest knock or touch put it to a terminal status. Don’t take dirty laptops, demand the seller to clean it because there are tricky people who smudge a problem with some dirt any time of the day. Especially on the screen. Most of the time warranty is already void on the unit, factor it into the price. Also look at the keyboard, you won’t believe how much stuff can lay under the keys. Pieces of nail, hair, dead bugs, breadcrumbs, dried coffee, dust just to name the few least problematic, but you get the point how it transfers any disease like rats.
Check software, if you have the chance also test the hard drive for bad sectors as they have the bad habit of multiplying depending on the nature of their cause. Physical hdd problems like dust can put an end to the drive quite soon. If there is any strange sound you might notice talk to the seller about it. Ebay and other auction sites in this manner are not that good as you have little to no chance to check anything personally, so you have to rely on the reputation system these sites have. 99.5% of positive feedback usually means that the laptop for sale is as described. Buying a laptop second hand is like buying someone else’s shoes, you should either not do it, or make really really sure it is worth it.
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