That one is refurbished by shop or other than Machines itself. If refurbished by Machines, all's original including housing and lcd.

While demo set can get almost 50% off than RRP price

both same i guess ... but i think demo is better then refurbished

Lot of ppl sure said is refurbished by Machines or Apple but who knows..
I rather buy the used unit over the refurbished set.

Same here. My preference would be New > Used > Demo > Refurbished.

These days a lot of con artists out there. Dunno what parts they used when refurbishing

Err.. both used or refurbished work just the same right? And for all, it's part and accessories come from Apple too?

Nope. Used means you are buying directly from the previous owner. Refurbished means you could be buying from a reseller who accepted a trade-in unit or faulty unit and repaired it before reselling it.

I see and how to make sure if the previous owner did not sell refurbished unit? Anyway to check?

You can check the phone's IMEI vs the IMEI on the box. Beyond that , I would think it's hard to judge

Very risky indeed buying used unit.

Nope. Since 2011, I nvr use a new phone and using used phone for these year.
No problem for me if you know how to check it properly.

At least from the cosmetic I can judge how the previous owner abuse it or keep it well.

Ha, how may I learn regarding checking properly used unit phone? Any tips sifu?

Lots of way to determine whether it's refurbished unit or not.
Some refurbished units are merely changing the old bad looking body to new 3rd party body.
But the most part that i think will affect most out of refurbished unit is the screen itself. I sell lots of iPhone. And my eyes are trained to determine whether it's original screen or 3rd party screen.
Original iPhone screen is a bit yellowish the lightnings where 2nd grade screen is more or less is super bright.

Has any of you peep open your iPhone before?
But don't open those that's still under warranty as it will void your warranty.

Most basic is check the IMEI casing of the new phone match box or not..most easy case la..

IMEI is only for motherboard as far as my read tell. If they change other parts like screen or speaker or mic or else, you won't be able to tell.

That is why i still suggest to take used unit.

Did u know that nowadays the refurbished unit is having the same imei as box and mobo? 😊

I know that they can reprint the sticker and matches with case and mobo.
That is why i wont go for refurbished unit at all.

Yeah. But it depends. But secondhand unit of course better in lots of ways if you know what you buying 😊

So in other words, its better to go for a used unit rather than a refurbished unit even if it has been refurbished from factory?

I deal alot with car parts and from experience, a used unit is the better bet than a refurbished (recon) unit unless the refurbished unit comes back from the manufacturer and does carry some warranty.