Refurbished Phone vs New Phone: Which is better?

If you are low on cash and want to purchase a decent phone that does the trick, a refurbished phone might be for you. With the rapid growth of digital shopping platforms like Amazon and Flipkart, some people tend to buy new phones almost every year due to lucrative deals. This has made the refurbished market for mobile phones proliferate over the last several years. Today, there are thousands of refurbished phone options available. Refurbished phones are way cheaper and save you some cash, but are they worth over brand-new phones? Let’s find out.

Are refurbished phones the same as second-hand phones?

People often confuse refurbished phones with second-hand devices. While they are essentially similar, they aren’t the same. Refurbished phones are fully functional, unlike second-hand ones which may not be. Second-hand phones may have issues with certain parts, however, most parts of a phone are working on a refurbished device. They are checked before putting up for sale, which may not be the case with a second-hand device.

More importantly, refurbished phones have a limited warranty and can be used for a longer period, depending on the state of the phone. There’s no warranty on a second-hand device. Also, before putting refurbished devices for sale, they are checked and fixed to make them usable, unlike second-hand phones.

Having that said, refurbished phones appear to be a good package. But is it a good idea to buy a refurbished device over a brand-new one? The answer is a mix of no and a yes.

Refurbished phone vs New phone

Refurbished products have their own advantages over brand-new phones.

Refurbished phones are indeed cheaper, but the price gap between a refurbished and a new phone will be a determining factor. So we cannot say that refurbished phones are better than brand-new phones, it depends on several factors and the price gap is one of them.

For instance, a refurbished Honor 90 5G is listed for Rs 21,999 on Amazon. The device was launched for a starting price of Rs 37,999. Here, the refurbished unit appears to be a good deal considering the price gap. However, just a few days back, a new Honor 90 5G unit was sold between Rs 20,000 and Rs 25,000. Now, when the price difference is little or negligible, buying a new handset is always a better idea.

That said, you need to always check for the best offers and compare the price range when buying refurbished phones. If a refurbished device saves you a lot of cash, go with it. You will get a limited-time warranty and the device should be functional as opposed to a second-hand device.