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Pudlo

macrumors member
Original poster
Apr 3, 2014
65
18
Hi,

I have a question. I'm searching for a mbp16. I found one, sealed with an invoice. It was bought in UK (I'm now in PL) from apple store I think lookin at the invoice. The spec and a serial number are correct but when I check warranty site it tells me purchase date is valid (shouldnt it say not validated for a sealed unit?) but the coverage expired (originally it was bought 3 months ago). I asked a seller and she said she is in contact with an apple store in uk and they said there is something wrong with a serial number but they are trying to solve the problem. The person selling the macbook sound resonalble I think but at the same time hard to tell for 100%. Is it possible or it is just some kind of very high quality scam with fake invoice, photos of the box with correct serial number etc? Trying to decide between this one and a new one (probably will go this way) from a store but with much lower spec. ps. it was bought as new not refurb I think looking at the original price. Would apretiate any help.
 

maflynn

macrumors Haswell
May 3, 2009
73,566
43,547
I check warranty site it tells me purchase date is valid (shouldnt it say not validated for a sealed unit?)
I'm not sure what you mean that you were expecting not to be validated?


The person selling the macbook sound resonalble
jeffrey dahmer (the serial killer) sounded reasonable, and look what he did ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Don't go on appearances.

There are certainly some red flags associated with this sale. You didn't mention the selling price, is it a lot under MSRP? Is it a deal too good to pass up? The old adage could fit - if it sounds too good to be true then it probably is
 

Pudlo

macrumors member
Original poster
Apr 3, 2014
65
18
I'm not sure what you mean that you were expecting not to be validated?



jeffrey dahmer (the serial killer) sounded reasonable, and look what he did ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Don't go on appearances.

There are certainly some red flags associated with this sale. You didn't mention the selling price, is it a lot under MSRP? Is it a deal too good to pass up? The old adage could fit - if it sounds too good to be true then it probably is
I watched a video on yt saying that before opening the box and logging into your macbook the site checkcoverage should show your serial as not validated.

Good one with this serial killer ;)

The price is of a new m1 pro but it is m1 max. As I said I will stick with new m1 pro probably (just hope 16gb will be enough). I called apple service today and they told me this macbook is listed as lost in transport, and can be legit but is not under any warranty. And it is on the seller to straighten this up (she can send them receip etc). I can probably check it and buy some coverage from other company but i think it is too messy.
 

maflynn

macrumors Haswell
May 3, 2009
73,566
43,547
listed as lost in transport,
Back in the day, where I used to work. we'd go for lunch at the local fast food joint, and almost every day, we'd see people offer us stuff off the truck that was "accidently" loaded and they could not bring back to the warehouse. Accidently, yeah right.

So lost in transport is a nice euphemism for most likely stolen.

should show your serial as not validated.
Ok, I didn't know that. So not validated means in essence that someone hadn't take possession of it

As I said I will stick with new m1 pro probably (just hope 16gb will be enough)
If you can swing the memory then get it. I don't think you'll be painting yourself in the corner with 16GB, it should be fine, but its definitely a nice to have. I have 16GB on my MBP and its fine, and I don't see any issues with it, but my use case is rather light
 

Pudlo

macrumors member
Original poster
Apr 3, 2014
65
18
So lost in transport is a nice euphemism for most likely ststolen.
I told the same to the apple guy, but he lightly suggested that sometimes even in apple **** happens and it would be too much to say it is stolen. At the end they will repair it but only if you pay for it.

I will stick with 16gb. I'm from Poland and we have a little higher prices and lower amount of sales here then in other countries. I would buy from germany but they have different keyboard :/ There is a huge difference in price between 16gb vs 36gb even bigger while i have some good discount on base 1tb model, 32gb would be 1/3 more expensive.
 

Pudlo

macrumors member
Original poster
Apr 3, 2014
65
18
That's the show stopper right there.
agree, being UK market was the main advantage for me (uk has 5 years support by law) but without any support it is just too risky. Thanks for your help and a cold look, I will definitely stick with a new one then. At the end the base model will probably run circles around my old 2012 rMBP anyway :) And i just want to have fun from a new mac :)
 

maflynn

macrumors Haswell
May 3, 2009
73,566
43,547
At the end the base model will probably run circles around my old 2012 rMBP anyway :) And i just want to have fun from a new mac
Oh, yeah, its crazy how fast the M1s are especially compared to the 2012 rMBP. Which btw, was my all time favorite MBP. Apple hit it out of the park with that design, and performance. I'm really happy with the 14" MBP, though now in hindsight, the 16" would have been a better fit - oh well, live and learn
 
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tstafford

macrumors 6502a
Sep 13, 2022
965
882
Only regret I have about my 14" MBP is that I didn't get the Max chip.

OP: I don't like the vibe of that deal. There will be plenty of deals to be had in the near term. I'd wait for something that is less sketchy.
 
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Pudlo

macrumors member
Original poster
Apr 3, 2014
65
18
Only regret I have about my 14" MBP is that I didn't get the Max chip.

OP: I don't like the vibe of that deal. There will be plenty of deals to be had in the near term. I'd wait for something that is less sketchy.
just out of couriosity, where do you find m1 pro too weak?
 

KaliYoni

macrumors 68000
Feb 19, 2016
1,729
3,808
Would apretiate any help.

My advice probably is "buttery butter" due to all of the earlier responses, but if I faced a similar decision I would also avoid buying the Mac with a questionable warranty. Why? Because I'm OK with spending more money now in order to avoid having to deal with a situation that would make getting service difficult later (for example, if something goes wrong during the warranty period or if something goes wrong longer term and Apple has a free repair program for the problem).

On a personal level, I've used Apple extended service offers a few times in the last several years. These offers, where Apple fixes or replaces parts for free, are a big part of why I'm willing to pay the price premium on Apple products. So I don't want to risk Apple refusing to work on something because of questionable provenance.
 

BaggieBoy

macrumors 6502a
May 29, 2012
653
348
UK
agree, being UK market was the main advantage for me (uk has 5 years support by law) :)
That's not quite right. What the UK (well England and Wales to be precise) has a Consumer Rights Act that covers new items for 6 years. However this isn't a blanket cover all support, it just means you have rights for 6 years. For example if a fault occurs in the first 6 years and it can be shown (by the way of an independent report) that the fault is inherent (i.e. the fault is due to a manufacturing issue) then the retailer should repair, replace or refund. However any refund will be reduced to reflect usage, so after 5 years you would be lucky to get 20% of the original retail price. If the fault is due to normal wear and tear, you might not get anything.
 
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tstafford

macrumors 6502a
Sep 13, 2022
965
882
I'm curious as well. I'm very happy with the pro - what tasks do you that a max would be beneficial
Three external displays. Yeah - I'm weird but that's what I like. I thought I'd be satisfied with two plus the laptop screen but it didn't work for me. Ended up buying a Studio for desktop use and keeping the base MBP14 as a laptop. Other than the screen limitations, I absolutely love the MBP14. Honestly having two devices works better for me anyway. I didn't love plugging and unplugging the TB cables every time I came and went.
 
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FreakinEurekan

macrumors 603
Sep 8, 2011
5,636
2,691
agree, being UK market was the main advantage for me (uk has 5 years support by law)
Agreed... while maybe not quite that black-and-white as you're implying ;) there are CL coverages in UK. But, they do not apply to the manufacturer! They apply to the SELLER of the product. So best to buy from the Apple Online Store or an Apple Retail Store IMO, rather than some discount-warehouse that might be out of business in 3 years. And certainly not from the boot of a car, no matter what type of "paperwork" the seller has.
 
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ericwn

macrumors G4
Apr 24, 2016
11,868
10,484
agree, being UK market was the main advantage for me (uk has 5 years support by law) but without any support it is just too risky. Thanks for your help and a cold look, I will definitely stick with a new one then. At the end the base model will probably run circles around my old 2012 rMBP anyway :) And i just want to have fun from a new mac :)
The UK offers five years statutory coverage aka consumer law for the original seller via the place of purchase. That will not work in other countries. I’d stay clear if the entire interaction.
 
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Pudlo

macrumors member
Original poster
Apr 3, 2014
65
18
Thanks for all the help! I ended up with a new one base model with 1tb ssd and I'm really happy, first macbook actually faster then me ;) I remeber getting the 2012 rMBP and as much as i loved the design, I had an impression that overall speed was not up to the amazing design (like slow but looking amazing itunes etc.) As a lightroom user the new way of managing color profiles is amazing and it is wierd not many reviews mention it, love the speed, could wait for new release but was hard to live for 3 months without a good PC (my 2012 retina ended with a broken screen) and I'm pretty sure new ones will be more expensive and out of reach for me. So again thank you and if anyone is courious I continued the mesage exchange with the seller and it was getting more and more complicated (invoice was suposed to be with sellers name but at the end it was on some guy from uk, the warranty was lifted, and i called some insurance and get info it isbl hard to buy insurance for an used device with a shady history) ohbandbofc went withnansilver one 🤩
 
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