I’m from India and I’ve been looking at laptops on platforms like Amazon Renewed. I found a Lenovo ThinkPad with an 8th Gen i7 processor and 8GB RAM for $230. At first, I thought it was a great deal. But after checking how it performs, I was surprised. I compared the 8th Gen i7 with the Pentium Gold 7505, and the Pentium Gold was as good or better in every test. So, I’m wondering if it’s smart to buy an older laptop for $230 when you can get a new one for $260 that’s better in every way.
If someone told you a Pentium Gold is faster than an 8th gen i7, they are mistaken. Also, if you’ve only used lower quality consumer laptops and never a business laptop like a ThinkPad, you might not mind the lower quality of a new cheap laptop. But for me, just the feel of the keyboard on cheap laptops is enough to prefer an older ThinkPad.
Which i7 model are you comparing it to? Even an i7-8650u is faster than that Pentium. Plus, the build and keyboard quality on these new budget laptops are usually poor, while they’re quite good on an older ThinkPad.
It might be a good idea to get a refurbished laptop, but it’s not a good time to buy that specific model since it’s quite outdated.
It really depends on what kind of laptop we’re talking about. For high-end laptops, buying refurbished can save a lot of money. But for cheaper models, the savings aren’t that much. You might as well spend a little more and get a brand new one.