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iMatt.

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Sep 1, 2010
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Cupertino
Just wondering those of you who have traded in old iPhones with Apple, what your experience has been? I'm trading in my iPhone 11 Pro Max towards the 12 Pro Max, which should get me £580, and the phone is in very good condition, however I've heard stories of trade-in partners finding tiny scratches etc and look for any excuse not to credit the full price.
 
Take pictures before you send the phone. The experiences have been a mixed bag of people getting money without hassle and some having troubles with such claims.
 
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I traded my 11 Pro and my wife's 11 with an Apple UK store. They just gave them a quick once over to make sure there was no significant damage and then processed the transaction. Both had been well looked after but had a few tiny scratches from normal wear and tear over the course of a year.
 
I traded in my iPhone 8 Plus last year to get an iPhone 11 and got the full whack that the Apple trade-in calculator promised.

Similarly, I'm trading in my iPhone 11 this year to get the iPhone 12.

I keep my phones in thick-ish Spigen Ultra Hybrid transparent rubber cases plus I use JETech screen protectors so they are pretty much in immaculate condition.
 
Just packaged my pristine 11 Pro Max to send off to Brightstar and made the mistake of looking at some reviews and oh my God. They sound appalling! I'm terrified of sending my phone off now.
 
Just wondering those of you who have traded in old iPhones with Apple, what your experience has been? I'm trading in my iPhone 11 Pro Max towards the 12 Pro Max, which should get me £580, and the phone is in very good condition, however I've heard stories of trade-in partners finding tiny scratches etc and look for any excuse not to credit the full price.

Apart from Apple offering about £300 less than your phone could be sold for privately? There’s no way I’d be letting an 11 Pro Max go for just £580. If you advertised that phone for £680 you’d have dozens of people trying to bite your arm off with offers.

I sold an iPhone without even leaving my house a couple of weeks ago and it doesn’t get more convenient than that.
 
Just packaged my pristine 11 Pro Max to send off to Brightstar and made the mistake of looking at some reviews and oh my God. They sound appalling! I'm terrified of sending my phone off now.

Reviews of the 12 Pro Max you mean or the comparisons?
 
Just packaged my pristine 11 Pro Max to send off to Brightstar and made the mistake of looking at some reviews and oh my God. They sound appalling! I'm terrified of sending my phone off now.
Try Rebuy. They offered some of the best prices and they pick it up from you and 48 hours later the money is on your account
 
i traded my 11 max pro with Apple for 12 pro. Sent it off on 2/11 and got an email this morning saying they will credit me with the full amount (£580). It was a painless process and I think it is worth losing a few quid for the peace of mind. I have sold a few phones on e-bay and had a couple of people try to scam me, so like I say, I would rather lose a few quid for the peace of mind.
 
Apart from Apple offering about £300 less than your phone could be sold for privately? There’s no way I’d be letting an 11 Pro Max go for just £580. If you advertised that phone for £680 you’d have dozens of people trying to bite your arm off with offers.

I sold an iPhone without even leaving my house a couple of weeks ago and it doesn’t get more convenient than that.

True, but there's something to be said at the best of times not having to deal with disputed sales and all that hassle, not to mention during a pandemic.

I'm getting £550 for my iPhone 11 Pro via Apple's trade-in. Having done it recently for an Apple Watch upgrade as well, it all works seamlessly and is even easier now that Royal Mail will literally collect the trade-in parcel from your garden.
 
True, but there's something to be said at the best of times not having to deal with disputed sales and all that hassle, not to mention during a pandemic.

I'm getting £550 for my iPhone 11 Pro via Apple's trade-in. Having done it recently for an Apple Watch upgrade as well, it all works seamlessly and is even easier now that Royal Mail will literally collect the trade-in parcel from your garden.
I haven’t had a disputed sale so can’t comment on that. The dozens of things I’ve sold are always sold as seen like any other free ad transaction. Parcels can get lost in the post too so the convenience of the Apple trade in can go pear shaped should a particular problem occur. I just don’t like the thought of not getting what the phone is worth when I’ve spent 2 years paying for it. The Apple trade in might seem convenient but you can bet it’s ten times more convenient for Apple with the profit they make from you the second time around.

I mean, there is no right answer here. It’s whatever you’re comfortable with after all.
 
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I haven’t had a disputed sale so can’t comment on that. The dozens of things I’ve sold are always sold as seen like any other free ad transaction. Parcels can get lost in the post too so the convenience of the Apple trade in can go pear shaped should a particular problem occur. I just don’t like the thought of not getting what the phone is worth when I’ve spent 2 years paying for it. The Apple trade in might seem convenient but you can bet it’s ten times more convenient for Apple with the profit they make from you the second time around.

I mean, there is no right answer here. It’s whatever you’re comfortable with after all.
Agreed, there’s a lot of personal preference here.

I can also say that my thoughts were were more closely aligned with yours in the past, but over time I’ve found myself wanting to spend less time thinking about this kind of thing and happy to trade some of the monetary value for other value.

Admittedly auctions & sales can go smoothly (and there’s always a great feeling when you close a transaction for a decent amount when you’re selling a well looked-after item!).
 
i traded my 11 max pro with Apple for 12 pro. Sent it off on 2/11 and got an email this morning saying they will credit me with the full amount (£580). It was a painless process and I think it is worth losing a few quid for the peace of mind. I have sold a few phones on e-bay and had a couple of people try to scam me, so like I say, I would rather lose a few quid for the peace of mind.
How long did it take in total. if you posted it on the 2nd is that 17 days from posting?

I sent off my iPhone 11 Pro Max Monday dinner time in the box they send you with the prepaid 48hrs delivery tracking sticker they supply. And haven’t heard anything yet? I’m used to masuma mobile where they put the money in your account next day. and checking the tracking number just says scanned at post office 12.27pm Monday - may not update till reaching destination. So starting to get a bit worried.
 
True, but there's something to be said at the best of times not having to deal with disputed sales and all that hassle, not to mention during a pandemic.

I'm getting £550 for my iPhone 11 Pro via Apple's trade-in. Having done it recently for an Apple Watch upgrade as well, it all works seamlessly and is even easier now that Royal Mail will literally collect the trade-in parcel from your garden.
How long does it usually take from sending it off to getting the money or notified they even have it in your experience?
 
How long did it take in total. if you posted it on the 2nd is that 17 days from posting?

I sent off my iPhone 11 Pro Max Monday dinner time in the box they send you with the prepaid 48hrs delivery tracking sticker they supply. And haven’t heard anything yet? I’m used to masuma mobile where they put the money in your account next day. and checking the tracking number just says scanned at post office 12.27pm Monday - may not update till reaching destination. So starting to get a bit worried.
Posted on the2/11. The received it on the 7/11. I got payed on the 13/11. But, did not show in my bank until 17/11, but that is more Lloyds fault rather than Brightstar.
 
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Posted on the2/11. The received it on the 7/11. I got payed on the 13/11. But, did not show in my bank until 17/11, but that is more Lloyds fault rather than Brightstar.
Thanks. That makes me worry less. For me it should arrive tomorrow / early next week then. It was the lack of updates on royal mails tracking that was especially freaking me out
 
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It was the lack of updates on royal mails tracking that was especially freaking me out
Royal Mail are very poor at updating their tracking. Mine was posted 48 hour tracked, but still took 5 days to be delivered. Apple also have the tracking number and can check the progress and see that the parcel was posted, so you are covered anyway.
 
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Royal Mail are very poor at updating their tracking. Mine was posted 48 hour tracked, but still took 5 days to be delivered. Apple also have the tracking number and can check the progress and see that the parcel was posted, so you are covered anyway.
Just an update on my phone I posted with their box and prepaid 48hr postage label just after noon on Monday Nov 16th. It’s now noon Tuesday 24th and still no update on the tracking page other than the time and date it was posted. Really hope I hear something soon.
 
How long does it usually take from sending it off to getting the money or notified they even have it in your experience?

Well I packed up my 11 Pro for trade-in on November 20, it went into the garden on the 21 (and was collected by Royal Mail in the window selected - you can set up a collection via their app or website), and it's now (as of November 24) showing as inspected & trade-in value confirmed by Apple's partner – the info is shown as part of the order in the Apple Store app, and you can keep track of it there.

This seems to be even faster than for my Apple Watch trade-in earlier in the year – although that was before Royal Mail collected, so the parcel went gingerly into a postbox(!) and that could have slowed things down a little…
 
Well I packed up my 11 Pro for trade-in on November 20, it went into the garden on the 21 (and was collected by Royal Mail in the window selected - you can set up a collection via their app or website), and it's now (as of November 24) showing as inspected & trade-in value confirmed by Apple's partner – the info is shown as part of the order in the Apple Store app, and you can keep track of it there.

This seems to be even faster than for my Apple Watch trade-in earlier in the year – although that was before Royal Mail collected, so the parcel went gingerly into a postbox(!) and that could have slowed things down a little…
Wow. I posted mine at post office (scanned with receipt) at noon on mon Nov 16th. It’s now the 24th and I’ve heard nothing. The tracking still says - posted on 16th. Will update you on its journey - starting to get pretty worried now.
 
Wow. I posted mine at post office (scanned with receipt) at noon on mon Nov 16th. It’s now the 24th and I’ve heard nothing. The tracking still says - posted on 16th. Will update you on its journey - starting to get pretty worried now.
Update: looks like it arrived at 7.40 this morning so it’s now been delivered. So 9 days from posting. At least they have it now.
 
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Complete chaos here. Had to send the original iPhone 12 back - due to arriving with a chip in the stainless steel where it meets the screen at the top. Of course I had to wait a few weeks for a replacement, by the time the replacement arrived - the trade in had expired. Apple set this up again, sent me a new trade. Sent off the iPhone Max 11 Pro a couple of weeks back, whilst in transist got an email to say ‘Trade In cancelled’ but also the line - “If your device is in transit don’t worry”etc. So not concerned.

Guess what arrived back today, my iPhone 11 Pro Max... with no information why.

Apple have tried to charge my card for the amount of the trade in, but won’t be able to as it’s using a expired card.

Nightmare... just going to wait for them to contact me at this point.
 
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