With the daily release of flagship (and flagship killer) smartphones in the market, the prices of these high-end electronic devices are skyrocketing on a religious scale. While the more affordable mid-range phones offer much-needed essentials, they are no match against the goliaths of the smartphone industry, armed to the teeth with power-packed spec sheets. These smartphones are the best of the lot, the compilation of the most cutting-edge hardware and software brought together to uphold the brand value of their manufacturers and compete against their rivals.
But with great power comes great prices and these highly decorated smartphones are no exception to the rule. Since the flagships specifically target the elite range of customers, they are price tagged at ranges that are difficult to afford for the common man without burning a hole in their finances.
So how does a mid-range customer get his hands on his dream flagship phone without having to worry about a long-standing EMI? Well, this is where the plethora of refurbished smartphones in the online market comes in. So what is a refurbished smartphone and how does it differ from a straight out of a factory one? Read on to find below.
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Refurbished smartphones are devices that have had a previous owner or owners. They have been returned or sold out due to hardware or software issues or minor physical damage. Sometimes there is no damage at all, the owner simply did not like the feel of it or rejected it because it was delivered in a box with a broken seal.
So now that you are thinking about it, the next question that arises is how good of a condition these phones will be in when you get your hands on them, considering the slash in the price? For starters, trusted resellers who are in the business of refurbished and renewed products subject their commodities through extensive tests. Meaning, everything that they resell goes through extensive quality testing with microscopic precision. Smartphones are at the top of the pyramid when it comes to refurbished products. So they naturally have the most criteria that need to be fulfilled to tag them as resalable.
Below is the list of aspects that are thoroughly scrutinized in a smartphone before it is reissued with a slash in the price –
Bluetooth |
Front Camera |
Light Sensor |
Wi-Fi |
Back Camera |
Gyroscope |
GPS |
Home Button |
Finger Print |
Microphone |
Volume Buttons |
Phone Casing |
Speaker |
Power button |
Earphone Jack |
Vibration |
Mute Key |
Charging port |
Flash Light |
Accelerometer |
NFC test |
Earpiece |
Proximity |
Face ID |
Screen Test |
Having said that, if the phone is deemed functional in all the above applicable criteria, it is only then that they are permitted to be released to the market. So rest assured whatever you are getting is quality tested and not just an inferior version of what you originally wanted.
Now that you know about how refurbishing works, the next question is if it is worth buying? Well, there are a lot of upsides to buying a refurbished phone. The first one is obviously premium quality with a slash in the price. Refurbished phones are sold at a considerably cheaper rate than what is their original market price. Take the Samsung Galaxy S10 refurbished for example.
What was once marked at a whooping, well-deserved price for this legendary Samsung flagship, the Samsung Galaxy S10 refurbished can now be attained at almost half the price, with the same hardware and software of course.
A minor dents here and there is all that you may find, ignoring which the phone might be in absolute mint condition. The iconic 12, 12,16-megapixel camera rig along with the legendary chipset of the Samsung Galaxy S10 refurbished will work as well as its factory-new version.
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Aside from the considerable price reduction, a refurbished phone is also a way of creating a better environment. When a phone is discarded into nature, the plastic and lithium-ion batteries take decades to decompose and are extremely hazardous to the environment. When you are buying a refurbished phone, you are giving it a chance to continue for as long as it can, thereby saving the environment from another non-biodegradable piece of junk inside its ecosystem.
Also, in case you were wondering, smartphones like the Samsung Galaxy S10 Refurbished come with a 1-year warranty so as long as you have checked all the documents, you can trust them as much as you’d have trusted a first-hand version of it.
If all these are not reasons enough to buy a refurbished smartphone, think about that one phone you have had saved in your shopping kart for quite a while now. The one you are saving up for. It’s about time you held it in your hands.
So get going. It’s time to upgrade your smartphone experience. It’s time you go premium and join the flagship club.