Being budget-conscious does not mean you have to ditch the thought of buying a smartphone. 

Forget about the ridiculously priced brand new iPhones and Android phones as they're likely to burn a huge hole in your pocket.

After all, in these trying economic times, every dollar counts. 

The next best thing would be to get a second hand or refurbished phone at a an affordable price. When you purchase a refurbished phone you help reduce the amount of tech waste produced. 

When you buy a refurbished phone from an acquaintance or a peer-to-peer (P2P) marketplace like Amazon New Zealand or eBay, you run considerable risks such as getting a sub-par phone with a dying battery or getting a stolen phone that has been blacklisted.

Read on to find out more what you need to remember when purchasing a refurbished phone in New Zealand.

1) Does The Smartphone Have The Right Features?

A major question to ask yourself before deciding your next phone will be whether your desired phone in question contains the features necessary to address your needs. If you're not a fussy photographer, a decent camera lens may not matter. However, if your daily usage is high, battery life may be a huge factor for you.

If you are an avid photographer and one of your requirements is an ultra-wide lens for high-resolution shots, you might have to consider the Samsung Galaxy S20 Plus or the iPhone XS MAX.

2) Do Resellers Offer Additional Repair Services During The Phone’s Warranty Period?

The next question to consider before getting your desired refurbished phone will be to ensure if the resellers of the said phone offer additional repair or inspection services during the warranty time frame. This is because should your phone exhibit previously unknown functionality defects, you can maximise its longevity by sending it back to have it inspected and repaired once more.

If you get your refurbished phone from an individual seller with dubious origins, you might not stand a chance at receiving a legitimate warranty period, let alone additional repair services.

However, if you get your refurbished phone from a trusted and reputable New Zealand marketplace like Reebelo, rest assured that all devices undergo quality checks before resale, and that Reebelo offers our New Zealand customers up to a 12-month warranty for products sold on our platform.

3) Is The Price Of The Smartphone ‘Just Right’?

Now, this is a tricky question to answer.

Although the typical price of a used or refurbished phone is usually around 30% cheaper than its original brand new counterpart, cheaper is not necessarily always better for those of you who are budget-savvy out there. If you encounter a phone with a rock-bottom price without understanding the reason why, chances are the price is too good to be true and the smartphone might be riddled with additional defects that you might be unaware of.

To make matters worse, the smartphone might be stolen goods the seller is trying to pawn off quickly. 

Should you fall for such a scam, you could end up on the wrong side of the law and in legal trouble. Ascertaining whether the quoted price of any refurbished phone is ‘the right price’ can be complicated, but the safest is to stick to the market prices that can be found on the internet.

4) Is The Seller Legitimate?

Arguably, this might be one of the more prominent questions you would have to ask and have answered when you get your refurbished smartphone.

The marketplace is saturated with individual and retail sellers claiming to have the best quality used, recycled, and refurbished smartphones, and the difficulty is in sussing out the legit sellers from the scammers.

Where possible, avoid buying your refurbished phone from individual online sellers with unknown backgrounds or no previous track records.

Instead, buy your refurbished phone and other products from established sellers like Reebelo that have established past track records of customers that have had good experiences. By buying your phone from Reebelo, stand to look forward to great quality products (all our refurbished products have been tested and cleaned up by certified experts in New Zealand) at highly affordable prices. Even better, if you have an existing phone to trade in, do so at the same time when you buy your refurbished phone to enjoy double savings!

"Reebelo finally offers a marketplace for second hand electronics you can trust: fair prices and great quality. A nice way to save money and reduce waste.” - Mike. Reebelo's Trustpilot Customer Review.

An additional thing to note is that for every phone that is transacted on Reebelo, we plant a tree in partnership with One Tree Planted as a tangible symbol to mark our efforts in saving the environment, recycling existing smartphones and reducing the amount of electronic waste. 

Look No Further Than Reebelo For Your Refurbished Phone!

We work with the authorities and trusted partners in New Zealand to ensure that you get the best out of your transaction with us, for maximum savings.

Hurry up and check out Reebelo New Zealand's Instagram page for more updates!