by 
Linda Joy
ANSWERS: 5
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I've bought a few, and I've had good luck with them. The thing to keep in mind is that you won't be getting anything state-of-the-art. If you save 50% off the cost of a new computer, but it only gets you half as much time, it's not really any better value.
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mushroom Computers really don't have an expiration date, which is to say, some components may become obsolete for use with newer versions of software (i.e. Microsoft Windows). In general whatever works on the computer today will work next year just the same assuming nothing else is changed. As to parts which fail, the hard drive is subject to mechanical wear and if it's 10 years old, it's a concern. Refurbished computers usually have newer hard drives which are larger than the drive which shipped with the computer when it was new. The power supply is the other component which may commonly fail. In most desktop computers, the power supply is a commodity item, easily replaced when needed. As far as speed of the processor, the difference is often not significant enough to warrant paying twice the price, unless you're into the latest games or heavy video editing. An SSD (solid state drive, like a memory stick) in place of a conventional hard drive wil make more of an impression of speed.
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I tend to buy and sell a lot of them. Think of them as similar to used cars - you get good ones and bad ones. If you know what you're doing then you'll get good used cars. Their reliability is more dependent on what their owners used them for.
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not yet
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I've been using T60 Lenovo's for years. They're a bit bulky yet very dependable
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Two Macs from Apple. First one became obsolete in three years. Second one is approaching its sixth year of good performance and is running Catalina. Typing on it right now.
bostjan the adequate 🥉 
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