Is that a good deal, or should you stick to the new models? These are great questions, and I’m going to attempt to shed some light on them in this article.
I’ll just go ahead and let the cat out of the bag and let you know my general answer to this question. No! For what GPS receivers cost new and for the amount of money you’ll save, to me it doesn’t make sense for you to buy a reconditioned unit.
Let me explain my reasoning.
Right now, on Amazon, you can get a Tom Tom 3rd Edition, brand new!, for $119.49. If you want to buy a reconditioned unit, that will cost you $109. Personally, I just don’t see saving $10 as a reason to buy a used unit–even if it’s reconditioned by Tom Tom themselves.
Well, maybe I picked the wrong example. Maybe you can save some real money on other models. Let’s see…
A new Magellan Maestro 3100 will cost you $109. Used, you’re looking at $99! Again, a $10 difference.
Even in the higher prices, there’s not but about a $20 difference between a new unit and a refurbished unit. The Garmin nuvi 660 (a great GPS device, by the way!) is currently selling for $329. Refurbished it’s $309.
$10 to $20 seems to be all the difference there is currently between new and refurbished GPS receivers.
Maybe you think differently, but to me that’s not enough of a savings for the potential hassles of buying an older, used unit.
If you’ve been looking for a reconditioned GPS for sale and found price differences that are larger than what I’m quoting you, then I suspect I know what the issue is.
Prices for GPS recievers of all kinds have dropped a lot over the past two years. What cost $400 or so dollars a year or two ago, only costs $200 or so now.
I’ve seen price comparison websites where they show you the low, low reconditioned price compared with the price for a new unit. What they’re doing, though, is using prices for the new units that are at least a year old–sometime older.
They’re doing this to get you to think you’re saving $300 to $400 by buying a reconditioned GPS. You’re not, because the new GPS’s don’t sell for those higher prices any more.
Part of the issue is dealing with unscrupulous businesses and internet marketers who are willing to skew their prices in order to deceive you. This is why (at least to my mind) it’s so important to deal with really reputable companies like Amazon.
There are others, and I’m not trying to say Amazon is the only reputable company on the Web. They do enjoy a very good and very well deserved reputation for fair dealing, and because of that I’m using them in my example.
If you’re looking at someone’s website that’s selling other companies’ products (called affiliate marketing), make sure the company that you’re actually buying from is someone with a good, customer friendly reputation like Amazon.
Just as an example, I have a number of websites that sell other companies’ stuff. But the companies I work with are only the best ones–the ones you can trust to quote you fair prices on their merchandise.
So, with prices as low as they currently are, to my mind, a reconditioned GPS for sale just doesn’t make sense. Go ahead and spend the extra $10 to $20 and get a brand spanking new unit.
By: Rick Cole
Posts Tagged ‘Gps Recievers’
How About Buying a Reconditioned GPS For Sale?
January 16th, 2010A Comparison of Garmin and Magellan GPS Receivers
December 11th, 2009
If you’re like me, a comparison of Garmin and Magellan GPS recievers would really help you choose the right device to buy. Both of these companies are industry leaders, although Garmin has by far the most market share. Both make great products. So, how do you choose between the two? Read on to find out.
Before I launch into a discussion of these two companies’ products, let’s talk about what the basic features of any GPS receiver are, and also what are the main upgraded features.
All GPS receivers have a touch screen interface. They also all auto-calculate the best route to get you to where you want to go. In addition, they all have voice prompts that tell you where to turn, as well as a large database of Point of Interest (POIs).
With either Garmin or Magellan, you can get all of this for around $150!
If you want to spend more, then you can get the following features: wider screen, more POIs, actually saying the street names, Bluetooth integration, ability to hear your GPS device through your car’s audio system, and real-time traffic and weather.
You can get all of this with either Garmin or Magellan. Let’s talk about Garmin first.
Garmin is the industry leader. They’re really a powerhouse in GPS technology with about 70% of the current market share. Garmin also has a much broader product range than anyone else. As far as automotive after-market GPS receivers are concerned, their nuvi and StreetPilot lines offer an excellent selection along with a very large price range.
The Garmin 660 can give you all of the upgraded features I mentioned above for less than $350! Of course, you can get more by spending more.
Garmin’s 800 line, can do everything the 660 can but it also includes maps of Europe and can calculate multiple routes. That is, you can enter more than one destination into the device and it will calculate how to go from point A to point B to point C, etc. in the most efficient manner.
Magellan’s Maestro Elite line compares with the nuvi 600’s and above. Magellan’s prices might be slightly less for comparable features. But not enough for that to be the deciding factor.
Both Garmin and Magellan make an excellent product! You won’t go wrong with either company!
Since it’s impossible to write a complete comparison of Garmin and Magellan GPS receivers in 500 words, what you need to do now is get on an informative website where you can browse and check prices.
By: Lee Cole
