Scratched screen - how much off the value?

Breezer

Hi guys,

I'm thinking of selling my laptop and getting a new one cheaply in the states. I know how much the one I'm selling should be worth based on it being in perfect working order, but the thing is there's a few small scratches on the screen (about 5 or 6, each about a millimetre or two long. They're not hugely noticeable except in strong light or against white backgrounds.

Just looking for a rough idea how much this would knock off the value?

I'll try get pictures up later if that's any help.

copacetic

it could massively affect the value imo as there is a fair bit of second hand stuff out there so if someone is too take something that is in bad condition they will need to feel it is a bargain. You don't post the estimated perfect condition value but you would have to say 20% at least off. Personally I wouldn't touch a screen with scratches as no matter how small they sit in your eye line and constantly annoy you. You may find a lot of people are similar.

Breezer

€720. 1.83 Ghz Core Duo White Macbook, 1GB RAM, 60GB HDD, Slot-loading combo drive. The estimation is based on Mac2Sell.net. Would I be right in thinking that based on what you said, a Mac might be worth more second hand than say a Dell given that there's less of them out there? I'll have a chat with the folks on the Mac forum too and see what they think.

Thanks for the opinion BTW

copacetic

i dunno maybe 100 off? or you may get lucky and get someone who doesn't care, you never know..

440Hz

Breezer wrote:

Would I be right in thinking that based on what you said, a Mac might be worth more second hand than say a Dell

Yes, this appears to be the trend alright!

Breezer

440Hz wrote:

Yes, this appears to be the trend alright!

I had a feeling you'd turn up! Do you reckon if I knocked €100 off it'd be fair? Or is that not enough? Or would I be selling myself short?

By the way, I tried a picture, it didn't turn out so well, I guess all I can do is describe

440Hz

Breezer wrote:

I had a feeling you'd turn up!

Hehe!! I can leave again if you prefer

Breezer wrote:

Do you reckon if I knocked €100 off it'd be fair? Or is that not enough? Or would I be selling myself short?

It's hard to know to be honest. From the description you gave I reckon the damage does not sound *too* bad, and maybe €100 is a bit too high to drop. You would be a better judge yourself, or get someone objective to look at it - if they think its really bad then say 100, if they think its minor I'd go lower. For the spec of the machine and if the damage is not too bad then I would say somewhere around the 700 mark would be fair.

How long do you have it? What condition is the casing in?

Breezer

440Hz wrote:

Hehe!! I can leave again if you prefer



It's hard to know to be honest. From the description you gave I reckon the damage does not sound *too* bad, and maybe €100 is a bit too high to drop. You would be a better judge yourself, or get someone objective to look at it - if they think its really bad then say 100, if they think its minor I'd go lower. For the spec of the machine and if the damage is not too bad then I would say somewhere around the 700 mark would be fair.

How long do you have it? What condition is the casing in?

No, stay, I like you, you help!

My gut instinct is that it's not that bad, but it's hard for me to be objective. Pity I can't post a photo. The casing is fine, a little scuffed but nothing major. It still gets admired on a regular basis and the one time I replied 'but it's all scratched' I promptly got put in my place and told it was lovely! I seem to be one of the few people who doesn't treat it like a puppy!

I'll get someone I know who uses Macs to have a look at it, he'd know what he'd want to buy himself and what he'd pay for it. Thanks!

440Hz

A few scratches are part of wear and tear and general use, I wouldnt worry too much about them unless they are really bad. Anyone buying a second hand laptop rarely expects it to be in mint condition, if it is then thats a bonus and you can charge a little extra for that. Unless the scratches take the user experience then I would put it down to general wear and tear and just a small bit off for that. IMHO.

copacetic

certainly you are more likely to find a mac lover who will live with the scratches. I wouldn't consider them wear and tear myself. Outside could be scratched to bits, but marks where you have to look all day is not something I could live with. Having said that hard to tell without seeing them. Maybe start out at your 720 price and see what happens? You would get lowballed initially no matter whether it was scratched or not..

Breezer

That's true. Fortunately I've found a buyer at €700 - a family member needs a laptop and doesn't care about the scratches Thanks for the help guys, I'll buy a protector this time around!

440Hz

copacetic wrote:

I wouldn't consider them wear and tear myself. Outside could be scratched to bits, but marks where you have to look all day is not something I could live with.

Agreed. In my opinion from the description given they sound like something I could live with, but its hard to tell without seeing them, thats why I mentioned getting an objective opinion on it. Very hard to call without seeing it. If they are very obvious then of course its a problem.