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rando32

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Oct 3, 2021
13
3
I traded in my XS Max for a 13 PM using the $1000 trade in deal from AT&T at an Apple Store 2 days ago however when I checked the Apple Store app today, I see that the trade in value was revised down to $700. Has anyone else run into this or have any advice on how to handle this? As far as I know, my XS Max was in good condition- no cracks, everything worked and turned on.
 

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Sorry, but I can't even figure out your monthly payments. $2.75/month for 36 moths? $400.00/month for 36 months? A $99 or a $14,000+ phone? LOL! What the heck? It looks like the actual payment HAS to be the one in "fine print" there ($30.53/month for 36 months). But those other figures make no sense. I must be missing something.

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Sorry, but I can't even figure out your monthly payments. $2.75/month for 36 moths? $400.00/month for 36 months? A $99 or a $14,000+ phone? LOL! What the heck? It looks like the actual payment HAS to be the one in "fine print" there ($30.53/month for 36 months). But those other figures make no sense. I must be missing something.

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Ha, it threw me for a loop the first time I saw that. The original promotion was $1000 off the 13 PM (128 GB) leaving $100- which is $2.75 per month for 36 months. The $400 is the revised remainder: now that my trade in is only worth $700, I now owe $400. I think they just messed up the formatting in the app. The $30.53 is the original no-promo price (30.53 x 36 months = 1099).
 
Ha, it threw me for a loop the first time I saw that. The original promotion was $1000 off the 13 PM (128 GB) leaving $100- which is $2.75 per month for 36 months. The $400 is the revised remainder: now that my trade in is only worth $700, I now owe $400. I think they just messed up the formatting in the app. The $30.53 is the original no-promo price (30.53 x 36 months = 1099).

Still doesn't make sense to me, but moving on from that . . .

I can't speak for AT&T experience, but with T-Mobile, they also had a $1000 trade-in offer. The way they worked it was they give you a one-time bill credit of the "FMV" (Fair Market Value) of your trade-in device and then the remainder of the $1000 credit ($1000 minus FMV) is divided over 36 months in equal amounts.

Best thing for you to do would probably be to contact AT&T and ask them what's going on.
 
Did you give them the phone in store or mail it in? If in store did they give you paperwork stating a $1000? I know for mail in it said they could adjust the value once the phone was received and there was nothing you could do, and you couldn’t get the phone back.
 
That’s why I took mine into the AT&T store.
I made sure my XR got $800 credit and 12 Mini $1,000 credit.
Traded in for 13 Mini 256GB and 13 Pro at no cost.
 
Yeah I doubt they're gonna give you $1000 credit for a XS Max. That's a 3 year old phone. That's probably the reason for the revised amount. I think a $699 trade-in credit for that phone is a great deal.
 
Did you give them the phone in store or mail it in? If in store did they give you paperwork stating a $1000? I know for mail in it said they could adjust the value once the phone was received and there was nothing you could do, and you couldn’t get the phone back.
I gave it to them in store. I e-signed stating it was for $1000 in bill credits, however I was not sent a copy of that to my email. There is a disclaimer on my order page stating:

"If the model or condition you described doesn’t match your description, you may be sent a revised trade-in value offer. This revised value can change your AT&T bill credits and your monthly device payments, and make you ineligible for the AT&T special trade-in offer."

Looking at Apple's requirements of being in a "good condition", my phone matches all requirements. I'm completely baffled.
That’s why I took mine into the AT&T store.
I made sure my XR got $800 credit and 12 Mini $1,000 credit.
Traded in for 13 Mini 256GB and 13 Pro at no cost.
I took mine into the Apple Store, I figured things would go smoother compared to shipping it in.
 
Yeah I doubt they're gonna give you $1000 credit for a XS Max. That's a 3 year old phone. That's probably the reason for the revised amount. I think a $699 trade-in credit for that phone is a great deal.
It's a promotion from AT&T that Apple and Best Buy are offering. Straight from AT&T:

To qualify for $1000 credit, minimum Trade-In value must be $180 or higher after device condition questions have been answered
Eligible devices:
  • Apple iPhone: 11, 11 Pro, 11 Pro Max, 12, 12mini, 12 Pro, 12 Pro Max, XS Max
 
It's a promotion from AT&T that Apple and Best Buy are offering. Straight from AT&T:

To qualify for $1000 credit, minimum Trade-In value must be $180 or higher after device condition questions have been answered
Eligible devices:
  • Apple iPhone: 11, 11 Pro, 11 Pro Max, 12, 12mini, 12 Pro, 12 Pro Max, XS Max
Yes, you are supposed to trade in directly to AT&T. They state on their website you need to enter a promo code to get the offer.

also, even if you purchased the phone through apple, the trade in part is handled by AT&T, as I remember reading threads last year that people went to the AT&T store to get their $800 credit they offered last year.

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ETA: OK I did go on Apple’s website and it mentions you can trade in through them. I would chat with apple and see what happened - maybe they did not add in the promo code, as that seems to drive the special offer.
 
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Apples trade in values were lower than att. I got 800$ credit for my XS for the iPhone 13 at the att store. Apple Store app said 240$ credit for the xs. Make sure u take care of your problem at a corporate ATT store and not an Apple Store
 
I had this problem with AT&T last year. I took my trade in into the store rather than mailing it in. Got a receipt and a paper that signed off that everything was good.

My credits were cut in half. Why? Where they mailed it (3rd party) insisted it was activation locked. It was not.

Turning it in to the store instead of mail meant nothing. My paper and receipt from the store meant nothing to this 3rd party either. And they refused to mail me back the phone. I gave up after several months of fighting.

*****
Lesson learned (for me) is to do the trade in offers with Apple since they will return your device if you don’t like the trade in offer.
 
Apples trade in values were lower than att. I got 800$ credit for my XS for the iPhone 13 at the att store. Apple Store app said 240$ credit for the xs. Make sure u take care of your problem at a corporate ATT store and not an Apple Store
The store app will say $240 but once you select monthly payments, you will see an option for $800 in credits.
I had this problem with AT&T last year. I took my trade in into the store rather than mailing it in. Got a receipt and a paper that signed off that everything was good.

My credits were cut in half. Why? Where they mailed it (3rd party) insisted it was activation locked. It was not.

Turning it in to the store instead of mail meant nothing. My paper and receipt from the store meant nothing to this 3rd party either. And they refused to mail me back the phone. I gave up after several months of fighting.

*****
Lesson learned (for me) is to do the trade in offers with Apple since they will return your device if you don’t like the trade in offer.
Interesting about the activation lock. I believe my phone was unlocked but that's definitely something I should look into. Thanks!
 
Update: Went to the Apple Store and they produced a receipt stating the phone was in good condition when they received it, however the bottom of the receipt had the trade in credit as $699. Store Manager told me to call AT&T, and when I did, they saw in their system that the trade in is marked as $1000 and should reflect in my bill credits once they hit. They added a note in my account so hopefully should be resolved 🤞
 
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Update: Went to the Apple Store and they produced a receipt stating the phone was in good condition when they received it, however the bottom of the receipt had the trade in credit as $699. Store Manager told me to call AT&T, and when I did, they saw in their system that the trade in is marked as $1000 and should reflect in my bill credits once they hit. They added a note in my account so hopefully should be resolved 🤞
Yeah the credits are confusing, on your bill though it should be taken care of
 
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