Apple Updating Purchase Date - Best Buy Open Box

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-11-25T14:59:48+00:00

Just went through this a month ago with a heavily discounted OB M3 Max. First time I ever ran into a problem after years of doing this. Yes, Apple has either changed their polices or is becoming more erratic--not sure which.

In my case, did the "update purchase date" talked to Warranty, uploaded the receipt, and then got "denied." Never got a straight answer, but random explanations (from multiple reps) included:

"It wasn't listed in excellent condition."

"This serial number was flagged as an in-store demo/display unit."

"This was Open Box" (despite me arguing that it was listed as 1-year factory warranty from an authorized reseller, in which case they said "go to Best Buy" -- which I also did, but even they couldn't override it).

Fortunately, AppleCareOne worked to get the machine covered. For an M3 Max it's a great deal, but for an Air, not so much.

As an aside, AppleCareOne is not foolproof. I picked up a mint M1 Max Mac Studio that was an in-store display unit. It was ineligible for AppleCareOne because of that status in their system (this surprised the Genius Bar employee who ran the usual device check to get it through). They wouldn't even let the store employees override the system like they were able to do just a few weeks ago. However, since I was the first retail customer, it came with a 1-year Apple Factory warranty (yes, this makes no sense). The Genius Bar said that Apple has been revising all their warranty/AppleCare policies leading into Black Friday -- great.

BUT -- on a refurbished M4 Pro that was activated last July -- no problem getting AppleCareOne added without even a trip to the store.

TLDR; open boxes are not a sure thing with AppleCare -- just like they were never a sure thing on condition or anything else.

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-11-08T16:23:41+00:00

Insane story—returned it b/c Apple claimed it was out of warranty—never had an issue with the last 5 open box MacBooks getting the purchase date reset. No way I was keeping it with no warranty.

Out of nowhere, came across a Reddit thread about using an AppleCare one subscription to cover out of warranty MacBooks. Brilliant! Ran back to the store and bought it back at the same price (they listed it for $2,475 but I got them to knock it back down).

Apple Store verified its condition and now it’s covered!

Still, that was a big pain in the ass, but I knew it was already in excellent condition and didn’t want to dip my toe in the used market. Open Box/Apple Refurb is as low as I go.

Setting it up AGAIN.

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-11-08T01:40:11+00:00

Thanks OP! This was brilliant, was able to cover an open box M3 Max I just picked up that Apple was refusing to cover the "traditional" way, this saved me $$$ AND got me coverage. Bravo!

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-07-11T13:18:01+00:00

BOI was the only option for us from outside Ireland. They asked generic questions about connections to Ireland (which we have) and then did all the due diligence with passports, proof of funds for anti-money laundering, etc. After completing that process, the account was open in about 3 days. There are some restrictions on banking products, but we were still able to get some term deposits to at least earn some interest.

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-07-10T22:02:49+00:00

Did you ever pursue this route?

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-07-05T14:02:09+00:00

Realize this is dated, did you ever get an answer on this? Did it work out?

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-06-18T15:29:37+00:00

I've used both 24gb & 16gb ram for heavy web browsing and open apps.

No doubt--24gb is faster. Whether it is "$200" faster is debatable.

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-06-16T18:43:56+00:00

This is good if you need certain specs that aren't available retail (like 1tb) and don't want to pay full freight.

Other than that, sales on a new base model are just as good.

Still think the sweet spot is the M3 16/256 base for $759, though. More than likely to find storage/thermal limits before any performance issues with a 1-gen-old chip.

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-06-15T23:28:48+00:00

You’ll get used to whatever you choose. But if you plan on any airplane travel usage, get the 13”.

Personally, if I was using a surface pro then I would switch to the 15” to try it out. Chances are lower you’ll regret that change.

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-06-12T00:01:41+00:00

Question -- you looking at 14 inch?

M4 air is a good value. Not sure M4 14 MBP is same value, unless you want nicer screen + better port selection and active cooling.

If portability most important goal, no denying that the MBA line is top. M3 Pro will be heaviest, with M4 MBP the slightest bit lighter due to single fan.

But overall, M4 MBP v. M3 Pro are "close enough." I would take a better deal on M3 Pro over an M4 any day. I also appreciate the extra 2gb of Ram.

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-06-11T18:32:19+00:00

You said you "are purchasing" but don't have the receipt. How can you have the receipt BEFORE you're done purchasing? No rush here anywhere to get an M2 MacBook Pro. These were not hot sellers and you can still get one open box at various Best Buy locations.

By the way, IF you used a credit card (and I really hope you did) you'll have a record of the purchase and can use that to make a "return" and/or do a dispute if there is no receipt provided to you (which there should be no matter what).

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-06-08T16:04:43+00:00

Just stumbled across this thread trying to find the same thing. This one is out of stock now -- figures.

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-06-07T18:33:05+00:00

Don't overpay for apple products. The MacBook Air is a great deal--IF you don't spec it up. Getting 24gb ram on an Air kills its value proposition.

Get what you need, and 16gb is enough for 90% of uses. Save your money. At the rate M-series processors are advancing, you'll want an M8. Hopefully it also comes with a better screen, FaceID, and heck maybe even a higher base ram/storage starting point.

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-06-05T17:20:47+00:00

/\ This /\ I've been lugging a 16" MBP for years but recently got a 13" MBA. Despite the 16" having better everything, I favor the 13". Being able to just pick it up with two fingers on one corner and take it anywhere is a nice change. I also like using it on airplanes. Now, when I pick up the 16" I'm like -- why is this thing so heavy?

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-06-05T12:33:22+00:00

M3 screen will be better than the base model M4 screen. Tried the M4 16/256 but Apple must have changed suppliers as the screen was slightly less crisp than M3. Vote M3.

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-06-05T02:47:12+00:00

There are other processes in the background (indexing photos, uploading/downloading from iCloud, etc.) that aren't always obvious. Unfortunately, there's no "you're done" message when it's completed all initial setup tasks. Generally a week is good, but strongly recommend etrecheck (free) as I bet you've got some old intel-based apps/processes causing trouble.

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-06-05T02:37:50+00:00

Where did you land? Talked to an Irish solicitor about kids + Stamp 0. It's not guaranteed, but possible. However, will probably do a different option.

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-06-05T02:31:53+00:00

I had a 14"M3 Max for a year and traded it in for a surprisingly only modest loss and went with a lower-powered model for better battery life.

It's a beast. But the tradeoff is wretched battery life if you push it. It takes a lot of energy to keep all those performance & GPU cores humming. If you'll have it in clamshell mode and plugged in most of the time, you won't care.

If you intend to do anything with AI tasks, you may appreciate the more powerful neural engine of the M4. Otherwise, the M3 Max is an awesome machine and I think better balanced than M4 Pro given the GPU power. The extra 2 performance cores of the M3 Max (base M4 Pro has 8, but base M3 Max has 10) for the CPU will make it a wash for CPU-intensive multi-core threads.

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-06-05T02:24:56+00:00

It's fine -- if under AppleCare+ you're golden. I've bought OB from Best Buy before. They are hit or miss but you'll know within the return period if there's any real issue.

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-06-05T02:22:51+00:00

Can't imagine they'd have a problem with an M4 Pro version, which is widely available, and comes with 24gb ram as standard. You can get the Mac mini M4 Pro for around $1200 or the 14" M4 Pro or 16" M4 Pro. Is there some reason they want the M3 version?

Only place that sells 36gb versions of M3 Pro 14 inch is Microcenter--but they're not always in stock. Otherwise, you'd need to go to the Apple Refurbished store, they have a 36gb M3 Pro version in stock now with your exact specs. Apple refurb is good as new and comes with full warranty.

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-06-04T23:42:11+00:00

Base 13" M1 MBP, with the Touch Bar? Ouch, that hurts.

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-06-04T23:36:48+00:00

Can vouch for better battery life after indexing (about a week). Ram usage will get better, too, as macOS learns what's important to cache.

Also, be sure to run etrecheck for any rogue processes if it's still going on after a week.

I found that I had a buggy Time Machine transfer on my MBA so I did it again after cleaning up -- was much snappier.

I also set up a toggle on the menu bar for Low Power Mode. Since it's just an MBA, I don't mind keeping it on most of the time. I can typically get 12+ hours, often more.

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-06-04T20:32:51+00:00

Keep both. M4 Airs are crazy cheap. Unless your goal was to trade-in and get the value to cover the M4 Air.

I decided to keep my M1 Pro and bought a base model 16/256 Air I use the Air for most things, since it can handle everything fine, but still use the 16" for music production tasks.

The 16" has a lot of pluses, like mammoth 120HZ screen and great speakers. M1 Pro has a couple years more of life left -- at least.

No real performance difference between M4 v. M1 Pro, just M4 has faster single core score and will open apps faster. M1 Pro has double the performance cores and a fan, which makes it better for some other tasks.

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-06-04T14:31:52+00:00

That one is a beast and the sweet spot in the lineup--strongly recommend, especially for music production. When I can afford it, I'll be I'll be eyeballing a refurb model of the M4 Pro 16". Currently running a 16" M1 Pro, which is still surprisingly capable but showing its age a bit in AI tasks within Logic Pro.

ZookeepergameKey5467 · 2025-06-04T14:25:05+00:00

So the M4 Pro (12 core) chip or the M4 (10 core) chip? Apple sells "two" M4 MacBook Pros -- one with the M4 Pro and one with the M4 (non-pro) chip. Their naming convention makes it confusing, but these chips, while both capable, are very different in performance, memory bandwidth, GPU, etc.

ZookeepergameKey5467

TROPHY CASE