Am I allowed to post an eBay vendor recommendation that is not directly related to photography? I have no business affiliation with the vendor or eBay.
I just want to share an awesome experience with an eBay vendor: Weliky Group, LLC. I'm not one to purchase brand new tech equipment, including cameras and computers. I've been using Macs since the late 90s and used to go to the company Tekserve in New York City for used and refurbished Macbooks. They stopped that part of their business in 2016, just as I was looking for a 17-inch Macbook Pro... I ended up going to eBay. Just a few weeks ago, the logic board failed - I assume it's the known issue with the graphics card - so I was in the game again for a new Macbook. I decided on getting a mid-2015 Macbook model - before touchbars, before USB-C ports, before Thunderbolt 3. I spent a couple of weeks looking at prices and found that the best deal was from an eBay vendor Weliky (pronounced WELL-lickee, I think)
I was very hesistant... should I pay a premium to get something from Apple's refurb store? How about BH Photo, Mac of All Trades, OWC, or any one of a slew of others? The problem, generally, was that they were all a bit more expensive and typically with just 30-90 days of warranty (mostly... maybe a 6-month warranty crept in somewhere). On eBay, Weliky offers a 1 year warranty on a full Macbook and was better priced than any of the other places. The only way I'd spend less is to wait for a cheaper Buy It Now, win an auction, or find someone willing to take my best offer (I made two offers while I was reluctantly contemplating about Weliky, both failed).
Now here's the real kicker for me... Weliky was the one shop I saw that TRULY MAXED out the mid-2015 model. That is... it was the only place offering a 2 TB SSD installed in the Macbook! Remember, it was still cheaper than the other retailers I listed above. Same specs all across the board, except for the 2 TB SSD. I was stoked... still a bit nervous, but I finally pulled the trigger because Weliky has lots of positive feedback and have made 2500+ sales.
I ordered, but had it going to an old address (sold our home in September '18). Through eBay's Contact the Seller feature, I sent them my request to change the shipment address and I got both a call and text message within minutes. We corrected the issue, chatted a little bit about the Macbook, and they stayed in touch to make sure I received the Macbook and was satisfied.
Dude, that thing was well packaged - huge box, tons of bubble wrap and paper surrounding the smaller box inside. Open up the smaller box and the Macbook was surrounded by what's basically an inflatable aircast for it. I could probably stay afloat going down river with what the Macbook was inserted into. I should have taken a photo.
The Macbook came with its charger, a black protective case, and a keyboard cover. It also looked brand new. Upon closer inspection, maybe some very minor bumps on the aluminum unibody edge, but it really, really looked new and clean.
I've been using it the Macbook for about two weeks now. Runs incredibly well - quiet, fast, and loaded with space.
Boy am I happy. I really recommend Weliky if you're looking for a refurbished Macbook.
https://www.ebay.com/str/welikygroupllc
