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I bought a brand-new iPhone 15 ProMax back in November 2023 for around $1,380, and now, in May 2025, it is only valued at $630. This is absolutely ridiculous.
This is why it is financially foolish to buy any brand new phone post-2020 unless you're getting a trade-in deal.

Smartphones have largely plateaued in capabilities. The "innovations" that happen don't meaningfully make 95% of users' lives better, but are just minor cool "nice-to-have" features (e.g. the iPhone did just fine for 15+ years without an action button).

Buy used phones. That's it. That's the lesson here. You don't NEED the "latest and greatest," when being "greatest" means only marginal improvements over last year's (or even a two year old) phone that you can probably only experience in a benchmark app or a high-end game that most people aren't playing.
 
Given that the typical expected lifespan for a phone is 2-3 years, you're approximately 50% into that time-frame so 50% retained value sounds about right.
This is not 2019, my friend. Post 2020 pretty much all non-budget smartphones can EASILY last someone 5 years minimum if taken care of. No one should be replacing their fully functional phone after just 2 years, arguably even 3.
 
Hi there,
I bought a brand-new iPhone 15 ProMax back in November 2023 for around $1,380, and now, in May 2025, it is only valued at $630. This is absolutely ridiculous.
Don’t get me wrong, I love my iPhone 15 ProMax, but a devaluation of more than 50% in just 18 months is just not acceptable.
Apple, with their annual and permanent releases of new devices is forcing customers to permanently purchasing new iPhones and Macs almost every year.
The iPhone 15 Plus is still available at the Mac Store, not so all the Pro models.
Maybe this will be my last iPhone Pro model I ever purchased.
My Apple History:
Since the release of the original iPhone back in 2007 I only used iPhones.
Since 1993 I exclusively used Macs, notebooks and desktops, iMacs.
But I am really getting tired of all their insane and greedy product upgrade strategy.
Good luck to all of you - and choose wisely.
There is nothing rediculous [sic] about the used value of iPhones.
 
This is not 2019, my friend. Post 2020 pretty much all non-budget smartphones can EASILY last someone 5 years minimum if taken care of. No one should be replacing their fully functional phone after just 2 years, arguably even 3.
I'm not talking about how long they can last, I am talking about the intended lifespan of the device both for tax deduction purposes, phone plan purposes and budget planning purposes.

Push your phone to 5, 7 or whatever years.

It doesn't make it worth any more second-hand when the value for tax/depreciaton/software lifecycle/budget purposes is 50%.
 
I'm not talking about how long they can last, I am talking about the intended lifespan of the device both for tax deduction purposes, phone plan purposes and budget planning purposes.

Push your phone to 5, 7 or whatever years.

It doesn't make it worth any more second-hand when the value for tax/depreciaton/software lifecycle/budget purposes is 50%.
But that's my point…for budget planning purposes, get a last-gen used phone and save 30-50% of the cost and then keep it for 5+ years. A phone that retails at $1000 that you instead buy for $600 a year later when it's not brand new has instantly resulted in a $400 savings for you by comparison. And if you keep your $600 phone for 5 years then you're spending an average of $120 a year instead of foolishly spending $1000 (which would come out to anywhere from $166/year if you kept if for 6 years and $200/year if you kept it for 5).
 
But that's my point…for budget planning purposes, get a last-gen used phone and save 30-50% of the cost and then keep it for 5+ years. A phone that retails at $1000 that you instead buy for $600 a year later when it's not brand new has instantly resulted in a $400 savings for you by comparison. And if you keep your $600 phone for 5 years then you're spending an average of $120 a year instead of foolishly spending $1000 (which would come out to anywhere from $166/year if you kept if for 6 years and $200/year if you kept it for 5).
Where do you think used phones come from?
 
...
Apple, with their annual and permanent releases of new devices is forcing customers to permanently purchasing new iPhones and Macs almost every year.

Get out of here with this nonsense.

Yearly iPhone updaters are >10%, and I have no idea on mac, but I would put it waaaay less than that. No one is forced to update yearly, every other year, or even every other three.

Also, this is another brand new poster, ranting, or just posting then never coming back. Yawn...
 
Apple products are not assets. Frankly, they're like a car: If you want the best value, buy used.
Actually, I think they are assets. Depreciating assets.

My pet peeve around this subject is this: I wish people would stop referring to their new MacBook or iPhone as an “investment”.

Investments appreciate in value over time. A MacBook definitely does not.
 
What? I’m surprised it retained any value at all. After all, it’s a consumer product! Usually, everyday items lose their value quite sharply. People buy these everyday products and expect them to hold their value like some kind of precious metal. But an iPhone Pro Max isn’t a gold bar despite weighing about the same. :p
 
The problem is you opened it, if you want it to increase in value it has to stay with the original shrink wrap.
 
Hi there,
I bought a brand-new iPhone 15 ProMax back in November 2023 for around $1,380, and now, in May 2025, it is only valued at $630. This is absolutely ridiculous.
Don’t get me wrong, I love my iPhone 15 ProMax, but a devaluation of more than 50% in just 18 months is just not acceptable.
Apple, with their annual and permanent releases of new devices is forcing customers to permanently purchasing new iPhones and Macs almost every year.
The iPhone 15 Plus is still available at the Mac Store, not so all the Pro models.
Maybe this will be my last iPhone Pro model I ever purchased.
My Apple History:
Since the release of the original iPhone back in 2007 I only used iPhones.
Since 1993 I exclusively used Macs, notebooks and desktops, iMacs.
But I am really getting tired of all their insane and greedy product upgrade strategy.
Good luck to all of you - and choose wisely.
As with many consumption goods, the price paid for a smart phone is part fashion value, part functional value & in some places also part scarcity value.

Buying something, like a brand new iPhone, as soon as it became available means that you paid a fashion premium; the functional value represented only a proportion of the price you paid.

18 months later, after the release of yet another updated model and the imminent prospect of another, the value to the follower of fashion - strains of The Kinks heard in the background - is greatly devalued, although fortunately much of functional value remains and I'm pleased that you still love your iPhone 15 ProMax.
 
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Where do you think used phones come from?
You do understand that *you* don't need to buy new phones for the used market to exist...right?

However, I still think everyone should stop buying new phones for a few years. Force Apple and others to stop making needless "updates" from year to year. It'd be better for the economy and the environment.

But mindless consumers gonna consume mindless...
 
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My favourite thing about these rants is where they claim Apple is forcing them to upgrade. What? How? Your iPhone 15 Pro Max is still perfectly fine, better in fact than almost any other model previous because it supports Apple Intelligence so it’ll survive even longer when AI gets actually good and not a gimmick.
I always admire the Apple life story, “I’ve been a customer for decades and owned everything but I’ve finally had enough” portions. A must for troll posts.
 
Wow. Definition of Mad Bro

If you buy a car for resale value, you're making a mistake. If you buy a phone for resale value, you're making a mistake.

Let me put my Econ degree to work here:

1. There exists. A large supply of these devices out in the wild, that lowers their trade value

2. Newer phones have come out since, that lowers the value of your device

3. Many competitors have released newer devices, both higher and lower end, that lowers the value of your device.

Mad bro being mad.
 
I put in my two cents I recently traded my iPhone 14 for an iPhone 16e because my battery on my 14 went to heck and I just figured I would get the 16e as a temporary replacement for now when I traded my old phone of I only got $150 trade in for it Best Buy only offered $10 more for it am I bothered by this no just the way the things are like a new car I the value goes down every day 😐
 
You do understand that *you* don't need to buy new phones for the used market to exist...right?

However, I still think everyone should stop buying new phones for a few years. Force Apple and others to stop making needless "updates" from year to year. It'd be better for the economy and the environment.

But mindless consumers gonna consume mindless...
The updates would only be “needless” if everyone bought their phones at the same time.

No-one really needs to have a new phone every year, but there are plenty of people every year who really need a new phone.
 
The value of the phone is not in resale but in actual usefulness for your lifestyle, job or else. An iPhone is a tool, use it until it serves you and replace when you feel it doesn’t. Still cannot find a single reason to upgrade my iPhone 11 Pro, apart from better cameras. Same apps, almost same speed, few new options that I would rarely use… basically that’s it. At this point I dunno, as you pointed out 1200€+ for a new phone is still 1200€+…
I have to say, as someone who had to replace their broken 11 Pro, this used 15 Pro is to me the first iPhone that somewhat deserves to be called „Pro“. I was always susceptible to micro stutters but this Pro Motion screen is a godsend, the outdoor brightness incredible and the bezels don’t bother me as much. Horizontal Face ID is often very handy and the DI good to have. The Ultra Wide camera is actually useful. The 3x telephoto very appreciated. USB C is a game changer in a household with an Android user, MacBooks and other recent electronics. The buttons feel better than they ever did on any previous iPhone. 5G is great. The speakers, so far, didn’t degrade with time. Loading times are a thing of the past for almost all apps. And 128gb base storage is a no brainer.
Yes, all of these things are basically only quality of life improvements, but after 4 years they add up to what should have been the first iPhone to actually be called „Pro“. I miss the feel and thickness of the 11 Pro though.
 
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