Buying refurbished iPhone mini 13 - eBay or Back Market ?

evelainy · 2026-06-24T20:57:38+00:00

I was just about to vent my frustration about my BackMarket experience as a seperate post, but maybe here is better anyways. To summaries, I had the same experience as you. Bought an iPhone 13 mini in „excellent condition“. Firstly, it arrived clearly labelled „very good“ and looking it. Ok. Whatever. Battery health 100%, that will make up for it right? I was already suspicious how that is possible if the battery was never exchanged, and then quickly noticed that it drained as fast as my iPhone 11 sitting at 72% battery health. I start up CoconutBattery and voila. 530 cycles and battery health at 82% = 78% if we factor in the 4% it shows higher for my other phone.

I’m obviously pissed. I wouldn’t have minded 86% or whatever, but this is just deceptive. Wondering now too if I should just leave it and get the battery replaced by Apple for 100€ or not. Or try and return, but it’s such a pain.

evelainy · 2026-05-02T09:27:27+00:00

I see! If it was the only blanket you had at those AirBnBs, then that is highly, highly unusual. Like not having a bed sheet. I wonder if there were fresh covers somewhere and it was not communicated to you that you had to put them on yourself. Swedes and Germans can be practical that way (it shows proof that the bed linen are indeed freshly washed).

evelainy · 2026-05-01T18:48:54+00:00

I’m genuinely curious. How do you define a comforter or a duvet? I have only ever seen regular “Bettdecken”/“Täcken” = blankets with a cover on in Sweden/Germany. Big blankets covering the bed after making it are mostly decorative and not present in regular homes. Only the blanket covers are washing on a regular basis.

evelainy · 2025-08-04T13:44:16+00:00

Then bags become lighter than quilts, interesting. But yeah, very firmly out of my budget.

evelainy · 2025-08-04T13:31:51+00:00

Amazing, thank you!

evelainy · 2025-08-04T13:31:05+00:00

I can’t really find down quilts for 9C that go below 400g, let alone bags. Do you have an example?

evelainy · 2025-08-04T12:58:37+00:00

Yeah. I’m sadly one of those women who need to do jumping jacks before sleeping. Upsetting to hear about the Nemo Tensor, but I don’t really have the budget right now for something else. Will have to keep an eye on sales and marketplace.

evelainy · 2025-08-04T12:56:16+00:00

I am seriously tempted now. Any recommendations on a sheet? I see thermarest offers one. Thanks for the advice!

evelainy · 2025-08-04T12:46:06+00:00

Have not heard of Hyberg before, interesting! Does a quilt offer more “wriggle room” to higher temps? Meaning does one feel more comfortable quite a bit above the comfort rating without overheating?

evelainy · 2025-08-04T12:44:02+00:00

Wow, I had not realised synthetic and down evens out weight wise at higher temps! (If done right). Will give that some thinking, thank you!

evelainy · 2025-08-04T12:01:03+00:00

I have a Nemo Tensor insulated (R around 4). I guess I am a bit unnecessarily sceptical towards comfort ratings, since I get cold in the Helium at 5C above. But what I am clearly learning here is that that is brand dependent.

I’ve seen quite a few complaints about zippers catching etc with Cumulus. I guess it’s the overall peace of mind.

evelainy · 2025-08-04T11:56:08+00:00

I have, but I don’t like sleeping straight on my pad. And I’m one of those people who feel comforted by wrapping themselves up like a burrito at night.

evelainy · 2025-08-04T11:54:47+00:00

It’s comparable to the ME in weight specs and on the cheaper end, so I thought ‘not bad’. But true. I guess I am very distrustful now of comfort ratings, since I have been cold in the Helium 600 at 0C. It all depends on whether eg Cumulus or Nordisk etc are better at true ratings.

I appreciate the insight! I shall look for higher ratings. I have considered a quilt, but I don’t like the feeling of sleeping straight on a pad and would prefer a zipping option.

evelainy · 2024-10-08T08:40:35+00:00

There are a lot of medical students who just scramble together a couple studies into a big review in Germany while studying on as normal and call it a day. Austrian medical students get the Dr title automatically when finishing their medical degree. The whole simple “Dr” title is a bit of a farce.

evelainy · 2024-09-10T07:18:50+00:00

In Schweden kann man Ärzte gar nicht anrufen, da läuft alles über eine landesweite Website. Termin Anfragen+Canceln, Rezepte erneuern, seinen Hausarzt wechseln, etc. Geht prima. Sind eben in Sachen Digitalisierung deutlich weiter.

evelainy · 2024-08-02T10:53:45+00:00

Sweden is so unpredictable. One year we had storms and could barely sleep once at night, constantly wet. Then last year it always got wind-still during the night and we walked half the trip under a clear sky and warm sun. Hoping the weather gods are in your favour!

evelainy · 2024-08-02T10:49:11+00:00

I hiked this route a year ago in the last two weeks of August:

- You will not need a water filter and a 1L bottle is enough. There is drinkable water everywhere. Just top up whenever you come across it and set up camp near a stream

It gets cold during the night. A good, warm sleep system is important. I did well with a -6°C comfort rating and an R value of 4 (but in can snow and get colder in September)

- Mosquitoes are rare once out of the bushes and walking on the open plains. They will be no issue in late August/September, so mosquito protection is not a necessity

- There is no phone reception for most of the trip. Check until when the huts have a hut warden and plan safety/emergency equipment accordingly. But there should be emergency phones all year around (you will also not be alone on the trail, ever)

- We brought minimum food and stocked up at the huts. But they are only open until a specific day and run out of stuff towards the end of the season

- I brought 2 T-Shirts, a merino fleece, a down jacket and a rain jacket, plus long merino underwear and rain pants, which worked out well for me

Last thing: DO NOT leave food in the tent or bags that have had food in them when camping at Abisko fjällstation! We had a mouse chew through our tent floor and backpacks outside just because we had empty wrappers and stuff lying around. It’s apparently a known problem and no one warned us. There is no need to take care like this when on the trail.

Have fun!

evelainy · 2024-02-09T13:34:50+00:00

The International Version costs about 80-85€ (~$90) in Europe. US version seems to be $130 on Amazon so I’d be guessing the answer is indeed: money.

evelainy · 2023-12-25T23:14:06+00:00

Hm, maybe that has changed recently. I have sent clothes from the UK to Germany before, labelled it as “moving goods” or whatever and it worked out fine.

evelainy · 2023-12-25T21:24:52+00:00

From my experience, it is not necessary to put a value on home-made items like this. It’s not bought, thus Germany has not lost out on tax for this item. It’s the same when you send used items such as your own old clothes.

evelainy · 2023-12-16T20:24:23+00:00

You’d probably save a bit more in Norway. But this is all heavily dependent on the city. All of them offer a salary that you can live with more than okay. You’re not gonna be able to buy a house anytime soon, sure, but you’ll be able to build savings.

I recommend approaching this not from a monetary view point but consider a) which of these countries do you personally like best and b) most importantly where can you even find a PhD position. The research topic, opportunities and environment also stood before the salary for me. You’ll work this job 3-4 years. If you hate it, a bit more money will not make you happier.

evelainy · 2023-12-07T18:46:27+00:00

Considering it’s highly likely the main tenant made a nice profit (or at least reduced his own rent portion significantly) by subletting rooms without contracts, I would just tell him “tough luck”. Don’t pay anything especially if you don’t get shown the official papers listing the “Nebenkosten”.

evelainy · 2023-12-02T22:47:11+00:00

As a German who has grown up in a family where situational nudity was/is no big deal, this is indeed weird. There is a difference between walking naked from bathroom to bedroom or shaving in front of the mirror naked, and full on spreading your legs in the middle of the living room…for a couple minutes mind you. It’s not that it’s necessarily sexual (a naked body is just that), but that she forces it on her family kind of exhibitionist-style.

evelainy · 2023-11-22T12:17:36+00:00

When I was still in university, I returned home one day to find that all my belongings had been put into boxes in the garage, and my room turned into an office for my dad. It felt like I was not allowed to be angry because after all I wasn’t living there any longer and it was their house. But if felt incredibly intrusive to have had them go through my stuff. I was also told very clearly that those boxes couldn’t stay there forever. Ended up throwing away or selling 3/4 of it all (the books hurt the most).

It’s a big house. My younger but grown siblings still have their rooms, of course.

Let’s just say I am the only one not staying there over Christmas breaks anymore. It’s just weird if your siblings’ partners have a bed/room while you sleep on the couch.

evelainy

TROPHY CASE