New vs Refurbisbed vs Used

[DynaSport]

Well, I know this is just an opinion, but I’m looking at the O75. I have a fair number of other financial obligations beyond a new lens, so I would love to save a few bucks, while still making a good decision. I have seen used O75s in the $550 range, often with a lens hood, but not always. Olympus has refurbished ones for $600, of course with no hood and I’m not even positive about the lens caps, the way the add is written. Finally, there is a Black Friday price of $700 for a new one. I have a feeling the refurb and Black Friday deals won’t last, so I want to make this decision quickly. Which would you go with?

 

[Mike Wingate]

Buy new. Too many reports of de-centred lens. Scuffs, stiff focus rings. Lack of expensive lens hoods. I too would like one. New, the black ones seem to cost £20 more than a silver copy? Cashback and it still costs £614, not a pro, not a Leica. A bit pricy.

 

[994]

I have never had a lemon in buying used or refurb. Never. And I have been horse trading lenses since 2009.On FredMiranda alone, I have about 100 feedbacks and 42 here on mu-43, and that's only maybe 1/3 of all the buying/selling I've done. Maybe my time is up, lol. But I've had no issues (I've even purchase a used XBox360, a used Tornado Foosball Table and even this 2014 MacBook Pro I'm typing on was used from B&H). All our cars are purchased used. (oh -- the only thing our family purposely bought brand new was a Minivan. We did shop used minivans -- but used minivans get u-s-e-d!)

But, I only shop reputable venues for that kind of purpose. I have bought used from e.g. B&H or Adorama or Amazon Warehouse deals. Or on Fredmiranda, from someone with a lot of feedback.

YMMV

 

[ex machina]

I generally buy refurbished if available and if I can't find a used option at a decent enough break, and have never had a problem. Refurbished items should be "as new" and all I've ever bought were indistinguishable from brand new when unboxed. Plus, it's nice to have a warranty sometimes for pricier items.

 

[Turbofrog]

Unless there is an absolutely screaming deal on new gear (got my GX7 for $400, Mitakon 25/0.95 for $289), I have always bought used because the savings are huge, and there are really no refurbished outlets up here in Canada.

I suspect all my lenses are pretty average copies - neither exceptionally good nor exceptionally bad. I don't have a ton of patience to go through the new lens buying dance (receiving, testing for defects, shipping back, receiving new copy, etc...) since the prices at most local stores are so much more than buying online, and the mail system is also kind of a disaster up here, and I am just not enough of a pixel peeper. I've been meaning to test that new Mitakon 25mm against my old Nikkor-O 35mm/f2 + focal reducer, but still haven't got around to it...

 

[Luke]

If you can't find a used one for $500, then I'd buy a refurb for $600. I've probably bought and sold a hundred lenses over the last 8 years. Never had a dud. But I'm also not the kind of guy to take photos of brick walls and obsess over them either.

 

[ijm5012]

Of the dozens of lenses I currently own or have owned in the past, I can count on a single hand the number of lenses hat a I purchased new, and despite all of that, not a single lens has ever failed me.

I buy used whenever I can because the savings are so significant, and I haven’t been disappointed thus far.

 

[Orbmiser]

Yep over 3 dozen transactions on Craiglist local buying Nikon gear over last decade. Zero issues some great deals.
A dozen on Ebay again zero issues. Refrub with 3rd party 90day or 6months warranty best of used world.

Just entered 4/3rds realm a couple of weeks ago. And had 3 original EM-1 packages to chose from at local Pro Photo Supply.
They give only 10 days return policy. But for $525 got an EM-1 with HLD-7 and two batteries,charger. Another $95 for the 40-150 R zoom kit.

Mid January plan on the 12-40 f2.8 Pro as they have 2 copies there for $600 and $625 unless something else pops up.

So very successful experiences and savings of monies!

 

[piggsy]

If you're concerned about buying used, buy from somewhere reputable like Keh. I had a lens I bought from them snap in half and they refunded the whole purchase without question or hesitation.

 

[Wisertime]

I've bought dozens of lenses used, a few refurb and just a few new. Never had a single issue. The 75mm has an impeccable record. I've yet to hear anyone having a problem with it, so I'd go used. esp if you get the hood. That's at least $50

 

[SojiOkita]

I've bought dozens of lenses used, a few refurb and just a few new. Never had a single issue. The 75mm has an impeccable record. I've yet to hear anyone having a problem with it, so I'd go used. esp if you get the hood. That's at least $50

I've returned my first 2 copies of the 75. I thought it was soft wide open (I found it comparable to my Oly 45 in my tests, which means really soft)
I kept the third one, that I found incredebly sharp. Far better than my P42.5 which is already far better than my Oly 45.
I'm not sure how much is linked to paranoia and bad testing, and how much is really due to faulty lenses, because I couldn't compare my first 2 copies with the third one.
The important thing is that I'm really satisfied by my third copy.

 

[DynaSport]

Well, I pulled the trigger on a used one for sale on this forum. I have had good luck myself with used lenses. The refurb and Black Friday deals were very tempting, but I still saved a few dollars buying used. I have more confidence buying used from this site than I do buying off eBay. Although I have done ok off eBay as well. In retrospect, I paid too much for one used lens off eBay, but that was my fault, not ebay’s
Now I just have to wait to get it. The waiting is the hardest part.

 

[rlb]

I'm quite new at the game so my buying/selling in this realm is limited. When buying my kit I opted for a refurb from Olympus (bought on Amazon). The camera and lens were like new and included all accessories. They give a 90 day warranty and you have the option to buy a 2 year extended warranty for $99 (if that's your thing). The price point on used gear was not much better and there's of course no warranty through that route.

Enjoy the new lens!

 

[Ed Diaz]

I buy mostly used nowadays, craigslist, ebay or the buy/sell forum. The great thing about buying used is the ability to resell the item for minimal loss if the gear doesn't work out for you. I've bought refurb too, but refurbs seem to take a hit on resale value.

 

[zensu]

If you're concerned about buying used, buy from somewhere reputable like Keh. I had a lens I bought from them snap in half and they refunded the whole purchase without question or hesitation.

Agree that KEH is a trust worthy seller from my many years of buying used equipment they have always made sure that I was pleased with my purchase.