Well, it's true. When people say 'mint'
condition, they usually mean "like right out of the box". Some might describe an item as 'nearly mint' condition. That would mean a few scuffs, etc. A HOOVER vault machine, for example, might be listed as 'mint' condition. A vacuum that was hardly ever used, (put in the closet for years), might be described as 'nearly mint condition'. "Like new".
I've gotten machines on ebay that looked like they were never ever used. I have a Concept posted in my "gallery" thread in Vintage. When I took that thing out of the box, I gasped...it looked PERFECT. I'd call that, 'mint condition'.
John