This October, my computer died. Ordinarily, I’d just fix it, but since this particular computer was an Apple product, its designers made sure that would be very difficult — so difficult, in fact, that I’d need to buy a replacement.
Just for fun, I punched my old MacBook’s serial number into Apple’s website, and I was offered a generous trade-in value of $0.00 for my 10-year-old machine toward a brand new one priced between $1,200 and $5,000 (yes, they actually sell $5,000 MacBooks).
Needless to say, I started exploring other options.
That’s when I realized my friend Marty had just recently bought one of those fancy new $1,200 – $5,000 laptops, and his old one was collecting dust in a closet. So, in the year 2024, I purchased his 2020 MacBook Pro for $350.
But there was something very strange about this used and previously discarded 2020 MacBook Pro: As soon as I received it, it magically transformed into a brand new computer.
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The Technological Time Traveler
You’re probably thinking I did some clever upgrades to bring Marty’s old laptop up-to-date, but I actually didn’t do anything. The reason it was obsolete for him and brand new for me is that I’m a time traveler.
See, I live in the year 2024 with everyone else, but until now, I haven’t owned any electronics from this decade. So when I looked at a photograph on the vibrant, high-resolution screen of a 2020 MacBook Pro Retina Display for the very first time this year, it positively blew me away.
I instantly time traveled back (or from my perspective, forward) to the year 2020, when everyone else was opening their brand new MacBooks, and I got to experience the exact same feeling they did.
But here’s the thing: I paid $350 for this feeling, instead of, like…$1,200 – $5,000.
I’m certain that Marty is experiencing this feeling too with his own brand new MacBook, marveling at some even newer features that I’m blissfully unaware of. And I’m genuinely happy for him. I just can’t help but think he overpaid, since we both feel the exact same way right now.
Now, I know what you’re thinking: “Steven, to get your discount, you had to suffer without that beautiful Retina Display for the past four years while all us non-time travelers were enjoying it already!”
But that’s where you’re wrong. Until my last computer died, I was completely satisfied with it. I had absolutely no clue what I was missing. I simply didn’t care.
Lauren and I have always done it this way.
When my dad was raving about his amazing new Samsung Galaxy S10 in 2019, we were happily clicking away on the keys of our BlackBerry KEYones. Lauren and I each ended up getting the very same Galaxy S10 as my dad three years later in 2022, at about a 70% discount (<$280 each). And those are still the phones we’re happily using to this day, thanks to some easy tricks we use to make our phones last longer.
Walking Away From Awesome Deals
Admittedly, it’s probably harder than ever to be a technological time traveler when marketers are constantly interrupting your YouTube videos and Spotify playlists to tell you about the latest gadgets.
And the biggest advertised sales and incentives almost always apply to the newest generation of tech, too. But it’s important to train yourself to walk away from “unbelievable discounts” when they’re on expensive things you don’t need.
If you’re not interested in something at first, and then you’re convinced to buy it because it’s 50% off, are you really saving 50% — or are you actually just spending an additional 50%?
Remember my previous MacBook? The 10-year-old one that recently died? Here’s how it was originally acquired…
I’d just accepted a new job, and my employer really wanted everyone at the company to use Apple computers. As an “employee perk,” he offered me $500 toward the purchase of my very own brand new Mac. What a deal!
I instantly declined the money though, because I was already very happy with my ThinkPad, and I didn’t need a new laptop.
Forcing his hand, my boss bought me a refurbished 2015 MacBook Air for $1,100 in 2016. It lasted me through 2024, and I never paid a dime.
There’s no economic force more powerful than steadfast contentment.
How To Become a Time Traveler
Not everyone has an employer to squeeze a free laptop out of — or a nice friend with exactly the perfect used computer available at the right time for the right price.
Fortunately, we all have access to a modern miracle known as eBay (and Facebook Marketplace, and OfferUp, and Mercari, and…you get the idea).
Almost every camera, lens, and flash Lauren and I have ever purchased for our professional photography side hustle was found second-hand on eBay. And we’ve gotten several of our smartphones refurbished from Amazon and eBay as well.
When we’re done with them, we recoup what little they’re worth through the exact same platforms. That’s when we get to take our next (inexpensive) technological leap forward!
And you thought time travel was impossible. 😉
— Steven
Cutting back on small expenses one by one can add up to a life-changing effect. Check out Step 2 of our Financial Roadmap for more money-saving tips.
Update, February 2025: Since replacing the dead MacBook Air, I sold it on eBay (with the SSD removed) and netted $60 after paying for shipping and eBay fees. Don’t throw your broken tech in the garbage; somebody else always wants those parts!
