Should You Ever Buy a Used Laptop?

I came across Liz Weston's column today, outlining 10 things you should never buy used. Not surprisingly, four of the items (including camcorders, plasma TVs, and DVD players) are high-tech items. At the top of the list is something I hear all the time: Never buy a used laptop.

Is this good advice? I've heard tons of people sheepishly tell me stories of getting a great deal on a laptop from Craigslist, only to have it die one week later. Of course they checked it out in person before paying for it (in cash, natch), but a sudden problem emerged only after the seller had changed his phone number or moved out of town.

But is this the exception or the rule? All things equal, I'd prefer to buy a new laptop instead of a used one, but if the price was good enough I could be convinced to get a secondhand system. Why? Two reasons: First, if the case is not cracked, there's a good chance that it hasn't seen much terrible abuse. All you really need to avoid is a broken LCD or a damaged motherboard. The other components of the laptop, particularly the hard drive, can be easily replaced. And even a faulty LCD can be fixed in about an hour if you're reasonably handy with a screwdriver and have a replacement part. (Many "burnt out" LCDs actually require only minor parts that cost less than $30 to replace.)

Weston also goes on to note that refurbished computers sold with warranties can be a good buy, too. But note that they often cost substantially more than privately sold laptops and those warranties are usually only 90 days long... hardly comforting, and you could probably get a private seller to give you a three-month guarantee on a product, too.

In lieu of any hard data on the reliability of used laptops, I'm throwing the topic open to you readers to get your experiences. Have you bought a used laptop, especially from a private seller (not a refurb unit)? Did you get a good deal, or did you end up with a lemon?