what does canon refurbished mean?

[ebiggs1]

There was a problem.    A Canon tech goes over the item and fixes it. It gets the same warranty as a brand new product at a reduced price.

[Crista]

Hi sigkid!

 Here's what we qualify as a refurbished product here at Canon:

Products are returned to Canon for a variety of reasons, including overstock balancing, miscellaneous returns from retailers, suspected mis-operation, and minor damage to the box. The products that are serviced have undergone rigorous function and cosmetic inspections by trained Canon technicians and fully meet new product operational specifications and selected cosmetic standards established by Canon U.S.A. Inc. These refurbished products must pass a comprehensive quality assurance inspection before final packaging and shipment to customers.

Our refurbished products carry a one year limited warranty. 

We hope this information is helpful to you! 

[amfoto1]

Over the years I've bought several Canon refurb items and they've been great... no problems what-so-ever and a great way to save a few $$$s.

Besides the good response you got, I bet a lot of refurbs are demo units from trade shows where Canon exhibited and loaners from major events where Canon provided support. Those can no longer be sold as new, might have seen only a few days or hours actual use, if any, and now are offered as refurbs.

I'd also suggest that buying a refurb might be even better than new... since the item has gotten individual attention of a service tech, at a minimum to check it and make sure it's in full working condition... that's in addition to and might even be more attention than it got originally at the factory from quality control.

Plus refurbs are usually backed up with a liberal return policy and a warranty of some sort.   

It's a great way to get good gear while saving a few bucks.

[Skirball]

+1 to everything Amfoto said, but just to add a point: buy the refurbs either directly from Canon or a reputable dealer like B&H or Adorama.  I'm not sure what their warranties are, but Canon now has a 1 year warranty on refurbs.  I'd buy without hesitation, if there was a significant price difference between that and new (there's isn't always a big difference).