Back-to-school tech for less: Here’s how you can save big by going refurbished for the 2025 school year

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While most Australian students might not want to hear it, the new school and uni year is just around the corner, meaning now is the time to shop for your back-to-school necessities. If you’re looking to nab a tech upgrade this year, eBay is making the back-to-school rush easier by taking an extra 17% off* already-affordable refurbished items for a limited time, letting you pick up big-brand laptops, phones, tablets and audio gear without breaking the bank. The full 17% discount is exclusively available to eBay Plus members by using the code RFURBS17, while non-members can still save 15% off* with code RFURBS15.

As you’d expect, refurbished tech is typically much cheaper than buying new, and with an additional 17% off that can add up to some massive savings.

eBay launched its Refurbished program back in 2020, with a goal of highlighting high-quality refurbished items from trustworthy sellers. eBay has strict standards for the program, which means you can rest assured that any items marked by the blue Refurbished tick have undergone a detailed multi-point inspection and come from pre-vetted, trusted sellers. All blue-tick products also include 30-day returns and a one-year warranty as standard. Thanks to free shipping and the inclusion of new (or original) packaging and accessories with many refurbished items, you’ll also get that new-buy feeling.

So, whether you're an experienced purveyor of refurbished goods, or you're just looking to snag a premium laptop, tablet or smartphone at a less-than-premium price, eBay’s refurbished range is absolutely worth investigating this back-to-school season.

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Refurbished highlights

Get up to 17% off* refurbished back-to-school tech at eBay.com.au
With savings across mobile phones, Apple and Windows laptops, headphones, tablets, smartphones, ebook readers and much more, you don't need to spend big to get great gear for the school year thanks to eBay's refurbished tech deals. Everyone can get an additional 15% off* the refurbished range with checkout code RFURBS15, and eBay Plus members can get 17% off* with the code RFURBS17. Don’t have a Plus membership? You can try it free for 30-days.

Offer ends 31/01/2025. Terms & conditions apply.

Or AU$356.07 with eBay Plus, save up to AU$142.93

Thanks to the already low price on refurbished tech, while the savings on this 2021 workhorse may ‘only’ break down to 31% off, this 2-in-1 laptop originally retailed for around AU$1,400 – so this price of just AU$364.65 is over a grand cheaper and quite the deal, even if it does show some signs of wear. If you're looking for a portable, versatile and high-quality productivity laptop for school this year, the ThinkPad L13 Yoga Gen 2 is hard to beat at this price.

Or AU$178.26 with eBay Plus, save up to AU$36.51

Incredibly cheap at this price and in excellent condition with no signs of use, the Galaxy Tab A tablet has a bright 8.4-inch display while remaining slim and light enough to easily slip in and out of your bag. Originally released in mid 2020, this incredibly affordable tablet should be great for reading, watching videos and doing light productivity work.

Or AU$438.58 with eBay Plus, save up to AU$89.83

While this might not be the latest release in Samsung’s superb line of Galaxy S phones, there’s still a lot to love about this older flagship. Not even three years old, we gave the Galaxy S22 four stars in our review – applauding it as a compact, fast and reliable smartphone. Fully functional and showing minimal signs of wear, it's an excellent handset for a smidge under AU$450.

Or AU$1,178.04 with eBay Plus, save up to AU$241.28

A 16-inch MacBook Pro for just over AU$1,200? Thanks to the as-new condition of this refurbished device, you don't even have to worry about scratches ruining your experience. If you're looking for a premium Apple laptop to power you through the school year while saving some coin, this deal gets you a massive Retina display, 512GB of storage, an Intel Core i7 processor and all the Apple family integration you’d expect.

Or AU$397.57 with eBay Plus, save up to AU$81.43

With all those uni readings, lectures and documentaries to watch, as well as notes to write, quizzes to answer and commutes that require entertainment, this cellular 128GB version of Apple’s 10.2-inch 8th-Gen iPad for a touch over AU$400 delivers excellent value. While its successor is the best budget tablet you can buy, there's still plenty of value to be found in this older model that we awarded 4.5-stars in our iPad 10.2 (2020) review.

Or AU$605.07 with eBay Plus, save up to AU$123.93

With the iPad Mini 7 only very recently released, its 2021 predecessor with cellular connectivity remains an excellent buy if you're looking to get stuff done without the necessity for Wi-Fi connection. Made for reading, watching and writing on-the-go, it's the perfect tool for taking to classes, lectures or tutorials – and it makes for quite the commute companion. We called it the best small tablet money can buy in our original iPad Mini (2021) review, and while the newer model bests it in some ways, it’ll also cost you at least AU$429 more than this deal.

Understanding refurbished quality ratings

Wondering what the difference is between refurbished tech that's in Good, Very Good, Excellent or Certified condition? Certified is the best a refurbished product can be – offering pristine, as-new condition, with new packaging and accessories, while tech in Excellent condition will still be like-new, but come in generic packaging. Tech that is in Very Good and Good condition are still in perfect working order, but will show varying signs of wear.

You can read eBay’s full description of each condition category below:

Certified - Refurbished: The item is in pristine, like-new condition. It has been professionally inspected, cleaned, and refurbished by the manufacturer or a manufacturer-approved vendor to meet manufacturer specifications. The product will be in new packaging with original or new accessories.
Excellent - Refurbished: An item that is in like-new condition, backed by a one-year warranty. It has been professionally refurbished, inspected, and cleaned to excellent condition by qualified sellers. The item includes original or new accessories and will come in new generic packaging.
Very Good - Refurbished: An item that shows minimal wear and is backed by a one-year warranty. It is fully functional and has been professionally refurbished, inspected, and cleaned to very good condition by qualified sellers. The item includes original or new accessories and will come in new generic packaging.
Good - Refurbished: An item that shows moderate wear and is backed by a one-year warranty. It is fully functional and has been professionally refurbished, inspected, and cleaned to good condition by qualified sellers. The item includes original or new accessories and will come in new generic packaging.

So, whether you're looking to save some money while purchasing tech that’s for most intents and purposes exactly as you would have found it if purchased brand new, or you're happy to pick up a laptop for uni that shows wear if it means snagging a mighty low price, eBay has something worth considering. Spanning across headphones and mobile phones to tablets and ereaders, no matter what device you need to prepare for heading back to school, choosing to go with a refurbished product from eBay means you can get a quality item and still have plenty to spend on the good times.

* Please see eBay’s full promotion terms and conditions for more information.

Refurbished highlights

Understanding refurbished quality ratings

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