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Other iPhone Purchasing Options for First Time Buyer

W

weizilla

macrumors regular
Original poster
Feb 7, 2008
112
1
I'm going to be jumping from Android to my first iPhone with the upcoming model and would like some insight into the different purchasing and upgrading options.

With Android, since there are always sales, the resell values are low and updates are meh, I always just pay in full and hold for ~3 years as that's when they usually break or get too slow.

With iPhone, it seems like they don't go on sale, hold on to their value better and have more compelling updates, so I was wondering if people generally buy-and-resell or enroll in the iPhone upgrade program instead.

Options:
  1. iPhone Upgrade Program from Apple
  2. Carrier (T-Mobile) upgrade program
  3. Pay full now and trade in to Apple later
  4. Pay full now and resell to third party company (?)
  5. Pay full now and resell to individual via Craigslist/eBay/FB/Swappa/etc
From what I can tell, (1) and (2) are pretty similar?

For the iPhone Upgrade Program, you do end up losing money vs buy-and-resell because you give the phone back to Apple instead of making money back during the resell right? However, I always hear of scams when people resell themselves so is the extra money worth the risk and hassle?

The iPhone Upgrade Program also allows you to pay off early so is there any benefit to paying full price upfront?
 
I can't advise you on what's best for you... However, I always buy my iPhones direct from Apple and pay in full. And I always buy the "no SIM" model which can be used with any carrier and is unlocked.

Paying in full may not be for everyone but if you have a good credit card that offers cash back and an additional warranty, that's a plus.
 
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I usually keep my iPhones around 2 years (but it has varied from 1-3 years). I sometimes buy outright from Apple and other times have purchased through the carrier when they are having a promo. Usually I sell my phone through eBay when I'm done with it and often times I can recoup close to half of the original cost. I've haven't had an issue selling on eBay yet and have sold dozens of items (phones, laptops, iPads etc.) over the years.
 
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Selling in eBay is risky. I tried selling an iPhone worth about $180 resell and had to try selling it twice before giving up because both times the winning bid came in higher than normal, and the buyers were showing signs of a scam. (Just try googling iPhone eBay scam buyers.... it'll show up hopefully for you).

the other phones I've sold were years old and o Ly worth $50/$100, and I had no problems selling those.

Through the whole ordeal with the scammers, I kept thinking that if it wasn't scammers, it was iPhone resellers who make it their business on eBay to buy/sell... and they were just trying to push me out by winning the bid with fake accounts, and then just not paying.... forcing me to to either take a negative feedback on stopping the sell before the 14 day grace period Buyers have to pay, or losing out 14 days on selling the phone.

all that to say, eBay is scummy if you have a phone with high value.

I found someone to buy my phone for $180 on Craigslist. Met in person at a grocery store. They were a nice couple. Good deal. 👍
 
I’ve also seen cases where the sellers will pull a scam(not saying you did) by not erasing the phone before selling it and the new owner gets a phone that has activation lock and they can’t use it. When I did tech support those calls were not fun as the buyer did nothing wrong and they were out money due to the seller not erasing the phone.
 
weizilla said:
I'm going to be jumping from Android to my first iPhone with the upcoming model and would like some insight into the different purchasing and upgrading options.

With Android, since there are always sales, the resell values are low and updates are meh, I always just pay in full and hold for ~3 years as that's when they usually break or get too slow.

With iPhone, it seems like they don't go on sale, hold on to their value better and have more compelling updates, so I was wondering if people generally buy-and-resell or enroll in the iPhone upgrade program instead.

Options:
  1. iPhone Upgrade Program from Apple
  2. Carrier (T-Mobile) upgrade program
  3. Pay full now and trade in to Apple later
  4. Pay full now and resell to third party company (?)
  5. Pay full now and resell to individual via Craigslist/eBay/FB/Swappa/etc
From what I can tell, (1) and (2) are pretty similar?

For the iPhone Upgrade Program, you do end up losing money vs buy-and-resell because you give the phone back to Apple instead of making money back during the resell right? However, I always hear of scams when people resell themselves so is the extra money worth the risk and hassle?

The iPhone Upgrade Program also allows you to pay off early so is there any benefit to paying full price upfront?
Click to expand...
If you are eligible, just go with the iPhone Upgrade Program. Instead of thinking that you're "losing" money, think about it that you are only paying half price for the phone + Apple care and you get to upgrade every year.

Only go with the carriers if they offer something extra (like discounts or BOGO deals).

Reselling your iPhone yourself is becoming a hassle nowadays since there are a ton of scammers (both sellers and buyers). And worse, you will have a hard time trying to sell your iPhone at good price since the market is flooded with scammers selling iPhones at much lower prices.
 
If you keep your phones around the 3 year mark, then I would go with option 2 around the holidays to see if they offer any deals especially around Black Friday. When your done with the phone then I would go with option 5. I have only experience with Swappa, sold 3, bought 3, no problems so far.
 
I usually keep my phones for 2 or 3 years. I do not want a huge phone bill so I buy my phone outright. Way too many scammers on E Bay so I generally look around for the best trade in offer when I am ready to buy new. Sometimes it's Apple sometimes it Best Buy etc. One year Verizion was giving new IPhones if you changed carriers. There are 5 on my phone bill. We all got a new 7 ( traded in our 6) and an amzazing unlimited plan. I say look around and see what available and works for you
 
When I got my first iPhone it was a couple of years ago. It was a 6s and I got it free when I brought a number over to Metro. My wife and I bought out SE 2020 unlocked directly from Apple.
Myself I’m going to get my phones from Apple or enroll in the upgrade program. You trade in get credit and you don’t have to worry about getting scammed or robbed. With the 6s we passed it down as a first phone.
The thing about carriers is then you get locked into a contract and there’s got to be some fine print somewhere. After all the house always wins.
 
I bought my first iPhone directly from Apple unlocked(helped I worked for an Apple Vendor and got a discount on my purchase price) I did that because I have a prepaid plan from Verizon and I was able to move my SIM card from my Android device to my iPhone.
 
I've been with the Apple Upgrade Program (option 1) since they introduced it, and it's a great option if you plan to upgrade your phone every year, or even if you don't, since it's interest-free and includes Apple Care. Make 12 payments and you can trade it in for the new model each year, or make all 24 payments and you own the phone outright.
 
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You might not like iOS if you've grown up with Android. It's not like iOS is heaven by any stretch of the imagination.

Buy a new or mint used phone wherever (Swappa for mint used) and keep it. Never sell it. I don't think it's a good idea for anyone nowadays to own just one iPhone. The smart thing is to always have a mirrored back up device in case a disaster happens.

While you may not be buying two iPhones right now, the next time you want a new one - Keep your old one and use it for emergency backup or to do something else while you're using your main phone
 
now i see it said:
You might not like iOS if you've grown up with Android. It's not like iOS is heaven by any stretch of the imagination.

Buy a new or mint used phone wherever (Swappa for mint used) and keep it. Never sell it. I don't think it's a good idea for anyone nowadays to own just one iPhone. The smart thing is to always have a mirrored back up device in case a disaster happens.

While you may not be buying two iPhones right now, the next time you want a new one - Keep your old one and use it for emergency backup or to do something else while you're using your main phone
Click to expand...

I had an Android phone and and an iMac so I knew about MacOS but not iOS in detail. I did learn about iOS while training to do tech advisor work but now that I have an iPhone and iPad I prefer iOS
 
Thanks for all the advice!

For buying, it sounds like any carrier deals or promos is the best choice. Unfortunately, my current phone is too old for any of the current trade in offers so I'll be paying full. Not seeing any reason why paying in full upfront is better than iPhone Upgrade Program as IUP gives you the option to trade in OR pay off early w/o interest.

For selling, again, it looks like it's all based on what carrier deals are out there. Depending on what's available, it might be better or worse than trading in w/ Apple or IUP. For the current deals, some are doing 30 bill credits instead of 24 which is annoying.
 
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