reacondi
ESEN
Menu

This guide mostly covers AirPods, with the Sony and Samsung reset steps at the end. We did not research JBL, Bose or Sennheiser. With refurbished earbuds there are two risks you cannot see in the listing. They can be a copy with a valid serial number, or they can still be tied to the previous owner's Apple account. Check both as soon as they arrive, and use the withdrawal period of a distance purchase to test them calmly.

The checklist for AirPods

  1. Ask for the serial number and the model number before paying.
  2. When they arrive, compare the serial printed under the case lid with the one your iPhone shows in Settings > Bluetooth, using the info button next to the AirPods.
  3. Compare the model number, which starts with A and is on the bottom of each AirPod, with Apple's list by generation.
  4. Look up the serial in Apple's Check Coverage, knowing that a valid result does not prove they are genuine.
  5. Pair them with your iPhone. If Find My says they are linked to another account, the seller has to remove them from theirs.
  6. Reset them with the method for your model.
  7. Use them for several days on calls and music, and watch for disconnections or failing noise cancellation on the models that have it.
  8. Clean the tips and meshes as Apple describes.
  9. Ask for the warranty in writing and keep the box, case, invoice and photos until the withdrawal period closes.

Serial and model number

AirPods and AirPods Pro have the same serial number as their charging case, printed on the bottom of the lid. Your iPhone shows it in Settings > Bluetooth. From the AirPods 2, and on the AirPods Pro 1 and 2, each AirPod also has its own engraved serial, but for Apple service use the one on the case lid. On the AirPods Max, the serial is under the left magnetic ear cushion and on the original packaging. Checking that the case serial matches the one in Settings is a reasonable test, although Apple does not present it as proof of authenticity.

The model number starts with A and is on the bottom of each AirPod. Apple publishes the list by generation. For example, the AirPods 4 with noise cancellation are A3056, A3055 or A3057, and the AirPods Pro 2 with the MagSafe USB-C case are A3047, A3048 or A3049.

A valid serial does not prove they are genuine

Apple offers Check Coverage to show the cover registered for a serial number. That result alone does not authenticate AirPods. Test pairing and Find My with the device in hand, and ask for the shop warranty in writing.

What you can do is compare the price with what the shops that give a written warranty ask. A price far below is a warning, not proof. There are more general signs in how to tell if a phone is original or fake.

The Find My lock

A device on the Find My network, such as AirPods, can be linked to only one Apple account at a time. If they are still on the previous owner's account, the Find My app says so and you will not be able to link them to yours. Apple says it cannot remove that lock for you. The previous owner has to remove them from their account, in Find My > Devices > Remove This Device, or from icloud.com/find. Make them do it before you pay, or buy where you can still withdraw if they did not.

Resetting

A reset does not remove the Find My lock. Apple mentions it as what to do if you cannot remove the device from the previous account, and says that you still will not be able to link it to your account. It helps you start from scratch once the previous account has released them.

On AirPods 1, 2 and 3 and AirPods Pro 1 and 2, put the AirPods in the case, close the lid and wait 30 seconds. Open the lid and hold the setup button on the back of the case for about 15 seconds, until the status light flashes amber and then white. On AirPods 4, AirPods 5 and AirPods Pro 3, double-tap the front of the case while the light is on, double-tap again when it flashes white and double-tap a third time when it flashes faster. Apple has a separate page for the AirPods Max that we did not read.

The battery

Apple does not show a battery health percentage for AirPods on the pages we reviewed. Your iPhone shows the charge of each AirPod. If a listing promises a health percentage, ask where it comes from.

Mercado Libre requires more than 80% battery capacity in all three grades of its refurbished listings, but we did not confirm how that rule applies to earbuds. Apple says Optimized Charging reduces battery wear on AirPods Pro and AirPods 3 or later models.

Cleaning

For AirPods Pro 2 and 3, Apple says to remove the ear tips before cleaning. The meshes are cleaned with a soft-bristled children's toothbrush, micellar water that contains PEG-6 caprylic/capric glycerides (Apple names Bioderma and Neutrogena) and distilled water to rinse, and the AirPods must dry completely, at least two hours, before use or going back in the case. The tips are removed separately. Apple does not say when to replace tips another person used. For AirPods and AirPods Max it has separate pages that we did not read.

Sony and Samsung

On the Sony WF-1000XM5, Sony's guide separates two things. A restart keeps the pairing information and other settings. Initialisation returns the earbuds to factory settings. To erase what the previous owner left, a restart is not enough. We did not read Sony's initialisation page, so we do not give its steps.

On Galaxy Buds, Samsung's US page says the reset is done from the app, in Earbud settings or About earbuds depending on the model, with Reset or Reset earbuds and then Reset again to confirm. That page is in English and Spanish names may vary.

Your rights in Colombia

Ley 1480 de 2011 sets no fixed warranty term for electronics. Article 8 says the term is the one the producer or seller announces, and one year for new products if none is stated. A used product whose legal warranty has expired can be sold without warranty only if you accept that in writing, and otherwise it is understood to carry three months. The law does not use the word "reacondicionado", so whether that rule reaches your earbuds depends on how the shop disclosed and sold them. Ask for the warranty in writing. Each offer in Reacondi shows the warranty the shop states. We did not read a warranty policy specific to earbuds at the Colombian shops, so confirm that the term on the offer applies to them.

On a distance purchase, when no legal exception applies, article 47 gives five business days from delivery to withdraw. You send the product back by the same means and in the same condition you received it and pay the return transport, and in e-commerce the money must be refunded within a maximum of fifteen calendar days. The law leaves out, among others, goods for personal use and goods that by their nature cannot be returned, and it does not say whether refurbished earbuds fall there. Mercado Libre requires every refurbished listing to state a warranty, but we did not confirm the minimum.

If the shop does not answer, make the claim in writing and then go to the Superintendencia de Industria y Comercio (SIC), which has an online form and the free line 01 8000 910165. The detail is in your rights when buying refurbished, and the photo routine when you open the package is in what to check when your refurbished phone arrives.

Sources

The Apple, Sony and Samsung steps were read on 1 October 2026 and may change. The fake AirPods case is a 2023 press testimony, not verified in Colombia. None of this replaces advice from a lawyer.