stephen blyth’s blog

On Wednesday I finally decided how I’d rejig my computer set up. Because of the amount of work I do in front of a screen I thought I’d probably be more productive with a bigger one. Plus a couple of times recently, my presentations haven’t worked 100% because I included multi-media that can’t be handled by my iBook, aged almost four years.

It wasn’t until about 8pm on Wednesday that I got around to placing my order. I decided to get a refurbished laptop directly from the New Zealand Apple store. A major attraction is that refurbished computers come with a one year warranty, albeit a limited one. This provides a level of comfort that I couldn’t get if I bought a computer off an individual.

The next day I got several confirmation emails, one of which came with a TNT consignment number. I thought I’d track progress and write this up.

I didn’t get a chance. My refurbished computer arrived 3pm Friday - just over 40 hours after I ordered it. Wow!

Notwithstanding a niggardly problem using the migration assistant to transfer my existing user profile, settings and files, I’m wonderfully impressed at both the speed of delivery and excellent communication. The computer itself is pretty fast and solid (a good thing as I will be carting it around in my cycle pannier). I’m sure I’ll sort out my migration problem with a call to the Apple helpdesk, which was highly rated in a recent survey of suppliers by the Consumer’s Institute.

BTW: I purchased a MacBook Pro, with a wireless keyboard and Viewsonic 22in monitor (see a review from the Good Gear Guide) on order. The iMac which I’m replacing has worked seamlessly since the day I got it second-hand from TotallyMac. I wouldn’t mind hanging on to it, but three computers is a tad excessive. It’ll be up for sale on TradeMe shortly.