Photo by Joshua Fernandez on Unsplash
Buying a premium phone in India no longer means a store visit or even a next-day courier. As of this month, TechCrunch reported that Blinkit, Zepto, Swiggy Instamart, and BigBasket are now delivering the newest iPhone Pro models to Indian doorsteps in about the time it takes a pizza to arrive. BigBasket alone moved over 300 units in the first hour of launch-day sales, with Bengaluru and Delhi leading demand on Instamart.
It's a striking sign of how big quick commerce has gotten -- the sector is now estimated at roughly $9 billion for the first half of 2026, with electronics increasingly sitting alongside groceries in the same 10-minute delivery slot. But speed and a big purchase decision don't always mix well, and that's worth thinking about before you tap "buy" on any phone or laptop, new, unboxed, or refurbished.
When Regulators Are Already Uneasy About "10 Minutes"
The instant-delivery promise that quick commerce apps built their brand on has itself been under scrutiny. Earlier this year, TechCrunch reported that authorities in India had asked these platforms to stop advertising the 10-minute guarantee outright, over concerns about the pressure it puts on delivery riders and the operational shortcuts it can encourage. If regulators are questioning whether 10 minutes is a sensible promise for a bag of groceries, it's fair to ask whether it's the right pace for a decision involving thousands of rupees and a device you'll rely on for years.
What Actually Changes When You Buy in 10 Minutes vs. a Few Days
None of this is an argument against convenience. It's an argument for reading the fine print before the fine print stops mattering to you. A few things behave very differently once an order is placed, whether it lands in 10 minutes or 10 days:
- Warranty terms don't change with delivery speed. An unboxed phone still carries a 6-month brand warranty, an unboxed laptop or gaming laptop a 1-year brand warranty, and a refurbished laptop a 6-month warranty -- regardless of how fast it arrived. Knowing which bucket your purchase falls into matters more than knowing how many minutes it took to reach your door.
- There's usually no changing your mind. Impulse-friendly checkout flows make it easy to order first and think later, but most electronics sellers, including ours, don't offer change-of-mind returns. What is covered is genuine transit damage, handled as a defect remedy -- and that claim only holds up if you've recorded an unboxing video.
- Grading and configuration details are easy to skim past on a fast checkout. Refurbished laptops are sold as Good or Fair grade, typically in 256GB or 512GB SSD configurations paired with 8GB or 16GB RAM. That's the kind of detail worth pausing on for more than a few seconds.
The Case for Buying Deliberately -- Refurbished or Unboxed
At Get Like New, phones ship the way most considered purchases do: free shipping above ₹5,000, 1-2 business days of processing, and 7-10 business days for delivery. That's not a knock on quick commerce -- it's a different model built for a different kind of decision. The extra days give you time to compare an unboxed phone's 6-month warranty against what you're actually planning to use the device for, instead of locking in a choice before the courier has even left the dark store.
The same logic carries over to laptops. Whether you're comparing unboxed laptops fresh out of the box or a refurbished laptop graded Good or Fair, the few extra days of processing time are an opportunity to actually check specs, grading, and warranty length rather than discovering them after the order has already shipped.
And if your needs change later, you're not stuck: our buyback program returns 80% of the purchase price if you trade in within 15 days, which is a far more forgiving safety net than hoping a change-of-mind return gets approved somewhere else.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Get Like New offer 10-minute or same-day delivery like quick commerce apps?
No. Orders on Get Like New follow a standard timeline: free shipping above ₹5,000, 1-2 business days of processing, and 7-10 business days for delivery. This is by design, giving both us and the buyer time to confirm grading, configuration, and warranty details before the order ships.
What warranty comes with an unboxed phone versus an unboxed or refurbished laptop?
Unboxed phones carry a 6-month brand warranty. Unboxed laptops and gaming laptops carry a 1-year brand warranty. Refurbished laptops carry a 6-month warranty and are sold as either Good or Fair grade.
Can I return a phone or laptop if I simply change my mind after a quick purchase?
No, change-of-mind returns are not offered. Genuine transit damage is covered as a defect remedy, but you must have an unboxing video to support the claim.
What if I want to upgrade or sell my device back later?
Our buyback program pays 80% of the original purchase price if you trade in your device within 15 days of buying it, giving you flexibility without relying on a change-of-mind return.
Are refurbished laptop configurations standardized?
Yes. Refurbished laptops are graded Good or Fair and come in 256GB or 512GB SSD storage paired with 8GB or 16GB RAM configurations, so it's worth checking which combination fits your workload before ordering.
