[AV Media Matters] Refurbished Equipment

[sgreen@westernfolklife.org]

Thanks everyone for the input--  keep it
coming.

My question was partly to do with the pros and cons
of buying used equipment, but more specifically, I was trying to ascertain just
what "refurbished" means.  I am aware of things like-- a customer buys a
unit at a retail outlet, gets it home, finds it doesn't work, and takes it back
to the store (with or without packaging).  The store then returns the unit
to the distributor, and eventually the unit winds up back at the factory or an
authorized repair place where it is checked out and faulty parts replaced.
Presumably, this unit can now be repackaged and resold, but, I gather there must
be regulations requiring that the unit be described as "refurbished" rather than
new.  Is this roughly an accurate picture?  What other scenarios lead
to stuff being refurbished?