Dell Refurbished Memorial Day Sale: 35% off any item in stock, plus free ground shipping.

I've been watching this site waiting for their annual Memorial Day deal, and snagged an older model but still perfectly functional Optiplex 7010 Mini Tower for under $100. Comes with OS and a warranty that's long enough to deal with any obvious problems.

Here's the category for all Mini Towers if you are looking to put together a budget gaming rig.

https://www.dellrefurbished.com/d...s_type=236

As of this writing, there are 16 Mini Towers left, 4 in A cosmetic condition, the rest are B.

Systems that first supported SATA III are the 3020 (Late 2013) , 7010 (Mid 2012), and 9010 (Mid 2012). Note that the xx10 models only have 2 SATA III ports and the rest are II, due to the chipset limitations. xx20 models upgrade you from 3rd Gen to 4th Gen Intel CPU, and all SATA III ports.

The xx40 models have a SFF style power supply that will be difficult to upgrade for more wattage, unless you plan to install one externally. Also, as of the xx20 motherboards, the power pins are 6 and 4, not a 24, so you will need an adapter if upgrading the PSU. Example: https://www.moddiy.com/products/D...-30cm.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Del...x#Series_4

Update: for additional details on getting an OptiPlex upgraded as a budget gaming rig, check out the videos and forum posts over at Linus Tech Tips:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J8ja79SlA-g

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=56MgVgnRBSs

And here's a rather verbose forum post from me where I detail my upgrade journey thus far.

https://linustechtips.com/main/to...t=13584351

https://linustechtips.com/main/to...tier-list/

I was going to go with fleabay but that's a hit or miss with the savings of $10-$20, plus most are Small form factor which is half bracket for video cards or needs a new case and modifications (DIY). I paid dell refurb $112 for a 7010 with 100 day warranty + oS+ keyboard + mouse (yes I ranked 11th on my server for Wow with stock keyboard /mouse) , have a Xt5500($170) and a corsair 650 watt PSU(free from friend) ready to install. so about $280for a 2016-2019 build (don't think it'll handle newer games at a solid 60fps, could be wrong though). mostly for my backlog steam games and CS go/overwatch. keep in mind these CPUs still rank at least 200 out of 1300 or even better close to an i5-2600k

Hmmm...for laptops, looks like most are 2 or 3 year old units? Is the site owned by Dell or just a reseller?

Be wary of buying anything from here until you verify that its actually a deal. I uncharacteristically jumped on a laptop during their Earth Day 40% coupon. The reason I bought it before really researching the cost is because it was the only 7th gen Intel in stock everything else was older so I pulled the trigger. Afterwards I looked at the same laptop configured exactly the same on eBay and there were multiple listing that were comparable to what I paid. They had just blown the prices ridiculously high before the coupon. I immediately looked into cancelling the order and it cannot be done. If you refuse delivery or return your purchase there is a 15% restocking fee. Ill nev
er buy from here again.

Edit: They are doing the exact same thing again. I looked at the same model I bought. Currently shown at $549 before coupon here.

https://www.dellrefurbished.com/l...98127.html

Here's is an identical listing on eBay from a reputable seller for $218.49.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/353071850799

This coupon is a major scam.

Quote from AlpineMan : Hmmm...for laptops, looks like most are 2 or 3 year old units? Is the site owned by Dell or just a reseller?

No XPS anything either.

No Alienware stuff. Not even Dell G-line laptops when I checked.

Quote from AlpineMan : Hmmm...for laptops, looks like most are 2 or 3 year old units? Is the site owned by Dell or just a reseller?

This is through Dell Financial Services. https://www.dellrefurbished.com/about
They refurbish off-lease machines, whose warranty period when purchased new tends to be 3 years for business class hardware.

Quote from AlpineMan : Hmmm...for laptops, looks like most are 2 or 3 year old units? Is the site owned by Dell or just a reseller?

It's owned by Dell, but unlike Dell Outlet (where you'll find good deals on refurbished Alienware, XPS and other consumer Dell lines), Dell Refurbished is all stuff coming off leases from businesses. So, it's usually at least a few years old, and rarely anything interesting.

Quote from GigaTexan : Be wary of buying anything from here until you verify that its actually a deal. I uncharacteristically jumped on a laptop during their Earth Day 40% coupon. The reason I bought it before really researching the cost is because it was the only 7th gen Intel in stock everything else was older so I pulled the trigger. Afterwards I looked at the same laptop configured exactly the same on eBay and there were multiple listing that were comparable to what I paid. They had just blown the prices ridiculously high before the coupon. I immediately looked into cancelling the order and it cannot be done. If you refuse delivery or return your purchase there is a 15% restocking fee. Ill nev er buy from here again. Edit: They are doing the exact same thing again. I looked at the same model I bought. Currently shown at $549 before coupon here. https://www.dellrefurbished.com/l...98127.html [dellrefurbished.com] Here's is an identical listing on eBay from a reputable seller for $218.49. https://www.ebay.com/itm/353071850799 This coupon is a major scam.

I agree that the level of deals to be had depends on what you are looking for, and research / price comparison is required before pulling the trigger if you want to make sure you are getting a good value for your money. I have found the warranty and level of cosmetic grading to be reputable through Dell Financial Services / Dell Refurbished, but typically hold off until there's a coupon combined with an already low price.

One other complaint about the layout of the site: As a buyer, you have to be certain you have your desired features checked in the filter to make sure your specific machine has what you want. We ended up with a laptop with no webcam, and going back to the listing, the difference is INCLUDED and NOT INCLUDED (very easy to miss that option). Same as you, there was no way to perform an exchange unless I wanted to incur the 15% restocking fee. Thankfully, we have a Wyze v2 security camera that I was able to repurpose as a cheap 1080p webcam with the firmware Wyze provided and a hacked together USB male to male cable I made from two dead phone chargers that frayed at the phone end. https://support.wyzecam.com/hc/en...structions

Quote from improvius : No Alienware stuff. Not even Dell G-line laptops when I checked.

The focus on this site is business class machines off lease, good for budget gaming (with an upgrade), or home office use.

Quote from slick5150 : It's owned by Dell, but unlike Dell Outlet (where you'll find good deals on refurbished Alienware, XPS and other consumer Dell lines), Dell Refurbished is all stuff coming off leases from businesses. So, it's usually at least a few years old, and rarely anything interesting.

Depends on what interests you! I like a good bargain, and have always been fond of the toolless design of the OptiPlex line. Makes for a great sleeper build. The smaller form factors can fit in nicely for a HTPC machine as well, just add a low profile HDMI card.

Quote from slick5150 : It's owned by Dell, but unlike Dell Outlet (where you'll find good deals on refurbished Alienware, XPS and other consumer Dell lines), Dell Refurbished is all stuff coming off leases from businesses. So, it's usually at least a few years old, and rarely anything interesting.

Depends on what interests you! I agree there's not much in the way of GPU performance in these machines with the stock builds, but like a good bargain, and have always been fond of the toolless design of the OptiPlex line. Makes for a great sleeper build. The smaller form factors can fit in a living room nicely for a HTPC machine as well, just add a low profile HDMI card and a wireless keyboard.

Seems like this is more expensive than the regular Dell outlet.

Can Windows 8 still be upgraded to 10 for free on these?

Can anyone confirm whether or not the Amex Business Platinum $100 Dell credits apply to this site? TIA.