After almost two years of silence, a mysterious eBay store has appeared again to offer refurbished Apple products at prices lower than on the official Apple online store.
In 2012, an eBay listing showed Apple products at low prices. The products listed on the first Apple eBay store were not new but second-hand in pristine condition and were being offered at rates lower than Apple's own online refurbished store. Two years later, an identical Apple eBay store has returned with a unique listing of iPhone 5, which is not available on Apple's website. The price is, as expected, lower than a new purchase and comparable to other refurbished models. But the eBay store offers one year of manufacturer warranty from Apple, which gives it additional value.
The iPhone 5 models on the new eBay store are "Apple Certified" and are in mint condition almost, repackaged with manual, new EarPods and charger and claiming a final quality inspection by Apple, according to the website's product description. The new listing on eBay, which was first spotted by AppleInsider, includes models ranging from $449 to $499. Buyers can choose from black and white color options in 16GB, 32GB or 64GB variants. All devices are sold factory unlocked for GSM networks.
The 16GB iPhone5 model is listed for $449, 32GB variant sells for $479 and the high-end 64GB model has a price tag of $499.
The move suggests Apple is cleaning up its inventory ahead of its new product launch in September. A move that was seen in March last year, when a Apple Certified Refurbished Products Store on eBay listed iPads at $100 less than Apple's own online store. The listing abruptly disappeared from eBay just ahead of the 2013 iPad launch, AppleInsider notes.
The sudden appearance of the original Apple store on eBay has led to some confusion, with 9to5Mac suggesting it was a "low-profile test site" for much bigger things, TechCrunch reports. But the report was later rubbished by AppleInsider after confirming the original store was a pilot program run by Apple for just three months.
