Save Money with Refurbished Xbox 360 Consoles

With my teenage son's birthday just a couple of weeks away, I've been scrimping and saving to buy him a nice gift. He has been begging me for a new video game console for the longest time, but the new systems are just so expensive that I've always had to say no. But since he's been getting good grades and staying out of trouble, I figured this would be the perfect time to surprise him. And when a friend mentioned that she bought a refurbished Xbox 360 for her kids for a fraction of the price of a new system, that sealed the deal.

I have to admit that I never considered buying a refurbished Xbox 360 instead of a new one, but I think it's a terrific idea. After doing some research on the Internet, I learned that refurbished Xbox 360 consoles are just as functional and reliable as new ones. These used units have to meet strict quality standards before they are resold, and in some cases they even come with a secondary warranty in case something does go wrong. Most of the time, however, the consoles are as good as new, and customers who have bought the units claim that they can't even tell they've got a used machine.

The best part of buying a refurbished Xbox 360 console is the price. A brand new unit can cost well over $250, which is a lot of money for me. It's hard to justify spending that kind of cash on a home gaming system, especially when the economy is bad like this. But I've seen refurbished Xbox 360 units offered for as low as $50 on some websites, which is just 20 percent of the original retail price. That's a much more reasonable figure to wrap my head around, and one that I can actually afford to pay without any guilt or sacrifice.

Before buying a refurbished Xbox 360, I plan on asking the seller a lot of questions. For instance, I want to get an idea of how long the previous owners had the machine, why they decided to get rid of it, and what kind of extra accessories (if any) it comes with. I'd also want to get details about the warranty and find out exactly what I would have to do if I run into any problems with the machine. I don't anticipate anything going wrong, but it's always better to be safe than sorry, and asking a few questions never hurt anyone.

The bottom line here is that buying a refurbished Xbox 360 console is the most affordable way to give my son the home gaming experience he has been hounding me for. My son won't even notice that the system is not brand-new, and in a few weeks that won't matter anyway. I just wish someone had told me about the availability of refurbished Xbox 360 systems a long time ago!

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