Remanufactured & Refurbished Laptops – Making the Grade?

The recent need to work from home has pushed up demand for remote working devices. With new laptops seemingly in short supply, it’s no wonder that sales of remanufactured and refurbished laptops are soaring. Cheaper and greener, they offer buyers a chance to get more tech for less money, whilst helping save the planet too.

Our Refurbished Laptops Grading

Buying computer equipment, new or otherwise, often takes time. Choosing refurbished or remanufactured laptops can be tricky, but the rewards are high, and there are some good ways to identify the best options.

Start by setting yourself a budget, consider the minimum spec you need, then do a little research online to find potential suppliers. The most reputable companies should have structured grading schemes for equipment, ranging from grade B refurbished up to tip-top grade A remanufactured.

What are the differences, and what should you look for?

Refurbished or Remanufactured Laptops

Refurbished (or ‘Reconditioned’) Laptops will have been cleaned, with previous data erased, and perhaps some components replaced. They usually have guarantees of some kind, which puts them a giant leap ahead of buying privately second-hand. Widely available online, you can buy from specialist computer re-sellers plus the usual auction and shopping sites. The same companies may also supply refurbished desktops and refurbished monitors. The best of them will have considerable expertise and a proven track record in their field.

Remanufactured Laptops are typically subjected to a much more intensive check, including a 100-point inspection to comply with ISO9001 certification. New batteries may be installed, and tracker pads restored to ensure smooth movement. Cosmetically the body will most likely have been resprayed, and the screen dismantled and fixed if required. Expect guarantees to be for at least one year. These assurances make Remanufactured laptops a much better option for business users, especially if buying laptops in bulk.

Buying Tips for Refurbished Laptops

Take these simple steps to build a shortlist of potential suppliers:

1. Accreditation – make sure the company you buy from can back its products with the right paperwork. Check to see if the laptops include any Microsoft certification. Always find out if the operating software is up-to-date and genuine, and has been legally installed.
2. Warranty – most suppliers of refurbished laptops offer at least a 3 Month warranty on their items. It’s better than nothing but something longer is better. Narrow your search to those companies that feature warranties of at least 12 months across their product range. It shows you which suppliers have the most confidence in the products they are selling.
3. Provenance – it’s worth trying to delve into where second-user equipment originally came from. A decent supplier will be happy to provide some background information. The best will be sourcing laptops from large corporations or government departments, ideally in the UK or Ireland. Some of these are barely out of original warranty so you can be assured they’ve been maintained properly, with no surprise bugs or malware lurking within them.
4. Returns Policy – first of all, is there a returns policy? Read it carefully. Check the small print to see if it’s fair, with provision to return or exchange any unwanted item if you are not completely satisfied.
5. Manufacturer – brand names are very important when it comes to IT. Choose from well-known names such as Dell, HP and Lenovo. They are the world’s biggest selling business laptop manufacturers. All of them follow strict production standards, gaining them an excellent reputation for build quality and performance.

Making the Grade – Refurbished Laptops from grade B to grade A

The comparison below shows typical differences between Grade B Refurbished Laptops and Grade A Remanufactured Laptops –

Grade B Refurbished laptop	Grade A Remanufactured laptop
Prior owner’s use may be obvious in visible wear and tear	Cosmetic respraying in matt, gloss and soft touch finishes
Scratches or scrapes may be visible on external surface	Worn or broken components are replaced or upgraded
Pressure marks and scratches may be visible on the screen	Screens are fully tested, dismantled and repaired if necessary
More obvious signs of use for keys and buttons on the keyboard	Finishing visual inspection and quality control checks at ISO9001 standard
Original battery supplied	Batteries thoroughly tested and replaced if necessary
Standard minimal purchase warranty	1 to 3 year warranty
Goods not necessarily available in high quantities or with consistent system specifications	Laptops available in quantities of 1 to 5,000 in 7 core models with consistent specifications
Every refurbished laptop saves a device from being sent to landfill	All laptops are carbon-neutral and 5 trees are planted for every one sold to offset legacy carbon emissions
LOWER QUALITY                                                                                                                           HIGHER QUALITY

Buying Laptops from Comms Warehouse

As a long-established UK supplier of refurbished and remanufactured IT and Telecoms hardware, Comms Warehouse knows how to get the very best out of second-user equipment.

If you are looking for B-grade laptops or above, our Refurbished Laptops programme includes an intensive 8-stage check on laptops (and desktops and monitors). We supply laptops from the world’s leading computer brands, like HP, Dell and Lenovo. They are sourced from large, well-known and reputable organisations. All are pre-supplied with Microsoft software. We are so confident of the quality that we include a 12 Month Warranty as standard. Our refurbished laptops are an ideal option for the most budget-conscious users, whether buying in bulk or as an individual.

For higher spec requirements, we offer grade A Remanufactured laptops that are so good it is almost impossible to distinguish them from new. They are made in partnership with the world’s leading computer remanufacturer, at a state-of-the-art production centre, employing 250 people. Every remanufactured laptop is subjected to a rigorous 5-hour inspection to ISO 8887-211 standard i.e. “returning a used product to at least its original performance with a warranty that is equivalent to (or better than) that of the newly manufactured product”. More than 250,000 enterprise-grade units are made here every year, enabling us to guarantee quality and consistency on very high numbers of second-user units.

Carbon-neutral laptops – our long-term, sustainable option

Comms Warehouse has long been a pioneer of sustainable IT and Telecoms solutions. We have a long and proud track record offering our customers greener alternatives. As well as laptops, our remanufacturing capability also extends to telephone handsets and headsets. We also have a unique buy-back scheme for redundant telephone hardware.

It’s all part of our drive to promote sustainability and create a ‘circular’ economy for old equipment, instead of discarding it too quickly to landfill. It’s kinder to the planet and kinder on the pocket. We even support our Remanufactured Laptop programme with a nationwide tree-planting scheme, thereby making our own visible green contribution.

You can join our sustainability initiative too. For more information about our ISO-accredited, remanufactured, carbon-neutral Laptops, please email or call us on 0203 7642 655.