Hardware Refurbished 3DS XL - Another chance?

[the_randomizer]

So, my brother and I were talking about the 3DS the other day and trying to find the best deal for it, now the XL is still going for about $200. But, I decided to go look at Nintendo's online store and take a gander at the refurbished units, where were, for obvious reasons, a lot cheaper than they were for the same XL models on Amazon or Best Buy. This begs the question, if he or I decided to ever get a 3DS, can refurbished units even be trusted to last a good long time, esp. if we take as good as care as possible? Now I have a hard time trusting used electronics, as I don't know from the time I get it on how long it'll last, so naturally, I'm wary about a refurbished unit.

I don't care about the firmware version it's on, that's not an issue for me, and sure, the New 3DS/XL is coming out in 2015, but that's still a while away. So I guess what I'm trying to ask is, are refurbished units worth getting through Nintendo and will it still be more reliable and longer-lasting than getting it used from some dude on Craigslist or eBay? And also, given the fact I've had bad luck twice before, what games would you guys recommend to avoid, uh, making that mistake again? Thanks

 

[Sychophantom]

Chances are, any refurbished units will have the latest firmware or close to it. If it's an official Nintendo refurb, it's probably the closest you'll get to buying a brand new one.

I can't say about your local Craigslist, but mine tends to be full of people who think original Game Boys in beat-to-shit condition are worth $100. I wouldn't trust it from there, but I also deal with a few local game stores who have been very good to me, and those I would trust.

Except Gamestop. I never trust used electronics from them.

 

[the_randomizer]

Chances are, any refurbished units will have the latest firmware or close to it. If it's an official Nintendo refurb, it's probably the closest you'll get to buying a brand new one.

I can't say about your local Craigslist, but mine tends to be full of people who think original Game Boys in beat-to-shit condition are worth $100. I wouldn't trust it from there, but I also deal with a few local game stores who have been very good to me, and those I would trust.

Except Gamestop. I never trust used electronics from them.

Yeah, firmware isn't an issue for me, so long as the 3DS I get isn't a worthless piece of shit Gamestop, yeah, I won't get it from there, well, yeah, not worth the price as far as I can tell, but if I understand it correctly, a refurbished is pretty much in between a new and a used one, but still almost as good as being new I'm surprised at how cheap XL models are at their online store. Craigslist, yeah, I'll avoid that for sure. That said, can it be assumed a refurb will last quite a while?

 

[chairsgotoschool]

Get a nintendo refurb. 135 for a 3ds xl, you know it will work. and includes a warranty. or look on other sites for nintendo refurbished ones. I got mine from groupon. a mario and luigi xl for $150 (same price as nintendos store) plus a free game.

 

[Joe88]

the advantage with craigslist and gamestop/used game store is that you can inspect the system before buying
gamestop sends used systems to their refurbishing factory where it gets cleaned up, anything broke gets fixed and has to pass various tests before its sent back to stores for resale
with ebay, the majority of sellers just put up a picture of a system in perfect condition for all their used auctions and you get a system so scratched and banged up you have to question if it was used as a dogs chew toy
I look for sellers who put pictures from that specific system and have come up pretty good
you will most likely get a system above 4.5 though

 

[the_randomizer]

Get a nintendo refurb. 135 for a 3ds xl, you know it will work. and includes a warranty. or look on other sites for nintendo refurbished ones. I got mine from groupon. a mario and luigi xl for $150 (same price as nintendos store) plus a free game.

With these, I know they're guaranteed to work as they've been fixed up and are almost as good as new.

the advantage with craigslist and gamestop/used game store is that you can inspect the system before buying
gamestop sends used systems to their refurbishing factory where it gets cleaned up, anything broke gets fixed and has to pass various tests before its sent back to stores for resale
with ebay, the majority of sellers just put up a picture of a system in perfect condition for all their used auctions and you get a system so scratched and banged up you have to question if it was used as a dogs chew toy
I look for sellers who put pictures from that specific system and have come up pretty good
you will most likely get a system above 4.5 though

I need to update the OP to reflect the fact that I don't care about the firmware version as I've no intent to take advantage of 4.x That being said, the problem with Craigslist is how worn out the 3DS in question actually is, or how much longer it can last, if that makes any sense. See, I don't want to get it from some dude who shows me the console and it looks fine, but winds up lasting like, a month or a week before it goes to crap and stops working; that's money that I've wasted, you know? Refurbished just sounds more reliable as the source can be trusted. I think Gamestop's refurbished XL models are more expensive than they are on Nintendo's store, and again, firmware I couldn't give a crap about in all honesty.


Edit: http://www.gamestop.com/browse/nintendo-3ds/systems?nav=28-xu0,131a2-c4-1d9

Yep, the ones at Gamestop are 40 dollars more for XL than they are here https://store.nintendo.com/ng3/browse/subcategory.jsp?categoryId=cat50005

I personally don't like that much of a differential.

 

[Sychophantom]

the advantage with craigslist and gamestop/used game store is that you can inspect the system before buying
gamestop sends used systems to their refurbishing factory where it gets cleaned up, anything broke gets fixed and has to pass various tests before its sent back to stores for resale

Not all Gamestops do that. I've seen quite a few that put the handheld/Console in the back, wait a few days, then slap in in a box and put it out for sale. Handhelds are usually the worst for that, but I've seen an Xbox360 that I know had RROD'd in the past get put out after the staff did a simple "did it turn on and play a game at random?" check.

 

[the_randomizer]

Not all Gamestops do that. I've seen quite a few that put the handheld/Console in the back, wait a few days, then slap in in a box and put it out for sale. Handhelds are usually the worst for that, but I've seen an Xbox360 that I know had RROD'd in the past get put out after the staff did a simple "did it turn on and play a game at random?" check.

Well that sucks and it is a gamble when you buy used or refurbished, so I will keep that in mind. That being said, Nintendo's refurbs are approximately 40 dollars cheaper for the XL models on their online store than Gamestop is. Sorry, but that 40 dollar differential (see links in my last post) just well, to me, the premium isn't worth it, you know? $135 is better than spending $175, at that rate, that's only $25 less than a new, so I might as well get a new 3DS XL, at least at that price. Ugh. Gonna be a while before I can save up, but I'd love to get an XL again, you know that they say, third time's the charm

 

[Sychophantom]

As I said before, Nintendo's refurbished consoles are probably as close to new as you'll get, especially with the warranty.

However, I'd be willing to bet that there will be some major sales this season on XLs, and probably the 2DS as well. Mostly depends on how soon the NA launch of the stupidly named "New 3DS" is in 2015. I'm not saying wait for one of those, but if you're saving up anyway, just keep that in mind.

 

[the_randomizer]

As I said before, Nintendo's refurbished consoles are probably as close to new as you'll get, especially with the warranty.

However, I'd be willing to bet that there will be some major sales this season on XLs, and probably the 2DS as well. Mostly depends on how soon the NA launch of the stupidly named "New 3DS" is in 2015. I'm not saying wait for one of those, but if you're saving up anyway, just keep that in mind.

Eh, not sure if I want to wait till the new 3DS is out, I mean, how soon in 2015 it'll be out is anyone's guess, a sale would be enticing, yes, but, it all depends on when I'll have the means of getting one