Welcome! This is a community for all those who are interested in protecting their privacy.
PS: Don't be a smartass and try to game the system, we'll know if you're breaking the rules when we see it!
If you're buying a computer from any store (online or physical) they're keeping a record of the serial number for returns warranty etc. Will they use this info to track you? Can't say, but they will have the info.
If this is a legitimate concern to you then used from a private seller is the best way.
They usually require you to register to use warranties, I think.
No, you don't have to register to use a warranty. There's federal consumer regs in the US that doesn't allow this.
You don't have to register - a warranty exists regardless of registration.
If course you'll have to give your name and address to use the warranty.
Maybe I'm thinking of some companies who say they'll double your warranty time if you register your warranty with them.
Best buy does not. Worked there. They just know you bought it and in many cases have the serial
You can pay with cash to not link it to yourself.
If you buy from them then you've essentially registered with them. They have your serial number and it's tied to some sort of an account which is what any individual company would ask for to register.
If I buy a computer on Amazon from a trusted brand like Apple or Lenovo, will they keep my name and address and connect that information to the serial numbers of the computer's parts?
Most retailers don't do this - (edit: specifically they don't correlate a laptop hardware ID like the MAC address with the purchaser. Not because they can't, but because they don't need to. They know most users will log into something that tracks them minutes after they get home. That said yeah, they keep a record of the serial number. But the serial number isn't particularly useful for tracking your online use of the device.)
I'm very wary that Amazon has the most motive and ability to do this (correlate your network chip MAC to your real name) and probably wouldn't tell us if they did start, until long after. Followed by Google in a close second.
That said, a Chromebook accomplishes every kind of tracking the moment I sign into the mandatory Google account, anyway.
Same with any Windows laptop and Microsoft, today.
Edit 2: Lots of devices support rotating network MAC addresses, now, anyway, at least on Android and Linux. If you're concerned, it's worth looking into and setting up, as well.
Would it be wiser to purchase it from a physical store using cash, or a second-hand computer from ebay instead?
Yes.
EVERY vendor does this, I can't imagine why you'd think otherwise.
I can go to a vendor I bought one piece of hardware from 20 years ago, and just give them my name, phone number, anything, and they can find my orders.
My local community theater has a record of me buying tickets from them, one time, 15 years ago.
on amazon, you aren't buying "from" lenovo or apple. i don't recall ever seeing a major pc builder/oem with their own marketplace account; and rarely even from amazon itself. most of the computers up for sale on amazon are offered and sold by third-party marketplace sellers.
if you're 'concerned' to the point of raising the question to begin with--yes, buy locally with cash.