Anybody planning on doing ATT next every year for new phone?

[x-evil-x]

Heres what I've been doing every staggered iPhone launch since 3g. I paid the subsidized upgrade fee for the 3g then sold when the 2 years where up and basically got a new phone every 2 years for free (not paying subsidies because of selling the phone).
So this brings me to Att and every other phone carrier stopping full on subsides. There is a ATT next every year plan and you can put a down payment of any amount on now (the just updated this to any amount).
What would be the best amount to put down to upgrade every year?
You can pay off the phone and keep the phone then sell it if you want every year to pay for a new one or just turn in the phone at the end of the year.
say i pay 400 down for a 64gig iPhoneS+(750). Monthly fee is 18.75 ($225yr) so i would owe 125 at the end of the 12 months and can keep the phone and make anywhere from 4-500 on it and repeat. overall costing me 75$ to upgrade and drop 400 on the new phone again if i made 450$ on selling it.
Any better way of doing this? I don't mind selling the phone but turning in the phone would be easiest.
[doublepost=1469077793][/doublepost]Edit just realized i did pricing for the non + model at 750 instead of 850.

 

[Alexrat1996]

I will be doing AT&T next I have to trade in my iPhone and pay 142 to get the iPhone 7 and for my dad to upgrade on the next he has to pay 115 and trade in the 6

 

[rugmankc]

I started last year and at this time plan on continuing.

 

[x-evil-x]

I started last year and at this time plan on continuing.

Do you do the down payment thing and keep your phone at the end or trade it in? Seems pointless to get applecare if you're getting a new phone every year unless you drop it a lot.

 

[rugmankc]

Do you do the down payment thing and keep your phone at the end or trade it in? Seems pointless to get applecare if you're getting a new phone every year unless you drop it a lot.

I just trade in. Pay taxes only, I believe. No AppleCare. All thru ATT.

 

[lordofthereef]

Do you do the down payment thing and keep your phone at the end or trade it in? Seems pointless to get applecare if you're getting a new phone every year unless you drop it a lot.

You can get a pro rated refund on apple care for them portion you didn't use. In not sure how it works if you have had a replacement, but if you never replaced and you kept the phone for a year you're entitled $50 back.

This isn't a sales pitch. I personally don't keep apple care either. But figured I'd point that out in case you weren't aware.

 

[HEK]

Did two iPhone 6 Plus phones on Next. Upgraded both on Next to 6s Plus. Apple care on all and got refund of second year of AppleCare+. Did not use AppleCare+.

 

[ToroidalZeus]

Nope. I left AT&T when they increased unlimited pricing. I plan to buy my new iPhone at-retail and sell my old phone on Craigslist. Honestly I am only upgrading because the 6 lacks band 12 for T-Mo, else I'd wait next year. Smartphones have plateaued and yearly upgrades no longer make sense.

 

[aneftp]

The key to ATT next (or whatever Verizon/Sprint financing is called these days) is to wait for good promos. They are a dime and dozen these days. They range from $100-300 store card cash promos.

Say right now I purchased a Galaxy S7 for $694 with ATT Next 12 (18 payments at around $38/month). My "total cost" is $38 x12 equals $462 after 12 payments to trade in.

Now best buy gave me a $200 gift card (we can debate the value of gift cards but it's like cash to the vast majority of people).

So my "net" 12 month ownership cost for the S7 would really be $262. Than I wait for the next promo (wait till Thanksgiving, Costco/Sam's club were doing $300 gift card promo. Target was $250 I believe.

I will NEVER pay full price for a phone again even iPhone (I purchased my iPhone 6s plus last october for $850 full price plus taxes) and could have just waited a few weeks for the $300 gift card promo on ATT NEXT.

 

[itsray]

yea i see Best buy doing that for all iPhones right now

 

[x-evil-x]

Nope. I left AT&T when they increased unlimited pricing. I plan to buy my new iPhone at-retail and sell my old phone on Craigslist. Honestly I am only upgrading because the 6 lacks band 12 for T-Mo, else I'd wait next year. Smartphones have plateaued and yearly upgrades no longer make sense.

they increased it 5$...
my bill is 80$ a month it is not bad for using 15 gigs a month on average. I also have been on the 2 year cycle refresh but since subsidies are no longer involved I'm thinking of hopping on the yearly upgrade cycle.
[doublepost=1469311895][/doublepost]

The key to ATT next (or whatever Verizon/Sprint financing is called these days) is to wait for good promos. They are a dime and dozen these days. They range from $100-300 store card cash promos.

Say right now I purchased a Galaxy S7 for $694 with ATT Next 12 (18 payments at around $38/month). My "total cost" is $38 x12 equals $462 after 12 payments to trade in.

Now best buy gave me a $200 gift card (we can debate the value of gift cards but it's like cash to the vast majority of people).

So my "net" 12 month ownership cost for the S7 would really be $262. Than I wait for the next promo (wait till Thanksgiving, Costco/Sam's club were doing $300 gift card promo. Target was $250 I believe.

I will NEVER pay full price for a phone again even iPhone (I purchased my iPhone 6s plus last october for $850 full price plus taxes) and could have just waited a few weeks for the $300 gift card promo on ATT NEXT.

problem with waiting is i can't get launch day phones like I'm used to. Usually no retail stores offer any kinds of deals until black friday and thats a maybe. Samsung phones seem to get deals faster. When did the S7 come out and when did you get that deal?

 

[aneftp]

they increased it 5$...
my bill is 80$ a month it is not bad for using 15 gigs a month on average. I also have been on the 2 year cycle refresh but since subsidies are no longer involved I'm thinking of hopping on the yearly upgrade cycle.
[doublepost=1469311895][/doublepost]
problem with waiting is i can't get launch day phones like I'm used to. Usually no retail stores offer any kinds of deals until black friday and thats a maybe. Samsung phones seem to get deals faster. When did the S7 come out and when did you get that deal?

I got that deal like 3-4 weeks after the S7 launched at Best Buy.

That Costco SAMs deal for the iPhone 6S/6s plus was about 8 weeks after the iPhone launched last year.

I guess if you absolutely must have first than not many deals for iPhone. I think Costco had a minor $50 gift card for iPhone 6s when it launched last year.

The smartphone industry in the USA is completely saturated. Even iPhone sales are down.

I'll probably get a new iPhone and hand the 6S plus down to my 6 year old son. But I will wait a few weeks this time for the att next promo.

 

[mmomega]

Since the iPhone 5s I've bought 3 of ours outright retail. I plan on doing the same with the next batch of phones.

So for me I have 10 lines on the account. Starting back with the 1st iPhone. Bought 3 susbsidized, iPhone 3G buy 3 more and the first 3 got handed down to the kids. And this is how it went up until last year. Now we have 3 6S+, 3 6+, 2- 5S, 1 5C and an SE.
5C and SE are business phones.
5s's are stepsons g/f and a backup.
6+'s are kids phones.
6s+'s are main 3 in the company's phones.

So 3, possibly 4 of us will buy the 7 outright. I know I for sure will along with my wife. Most likely 7+, 7 Pro whatever it ends up being called. Stepson may or may not upgrade and business partner... I'll probably grab him a new 7 as well.
I'm just interested to see if there are new colors and what else has been added.

I, personally, am the photo guy so the camera improvements each year get me more tingly in the jinglys than anyone else in our group. So the camera, overall speed improvements and what I'm excited about more so than a redesign.

 

[x-evil-x]

has nobody done the next program with a down payment? I'm trying to figure out how much of a down payment would be worth it for a year upgrade with little cost.
ps. i know it works out to the same in the end but if i can save 18$ a month by doing a down payment id like it more than buying it outright.

 

[HEK]

has nobody done the next program with a down payment? I'm trying to figure out how much of a down payment would be worth it for a year upgrade with little cost.
ps. i know it works out to the same in the end but if i can save 18$ a month by doing a down payment id like it more than buying it outright.

I don't understand how you save $18 a month? You pay the tax up front, divide the cost by 18 and after that you own the phone. No interest is charged. If you want at twelve payments made you can trade in phone for new one starting payments anew.

I can pay for phone with full down payment and save $47 a month. Is it a difference to you that monthy payment is $18 lower?

 

[aneftp]

I don't understand how you save $18 a month? You pay the tax up front, divide the cost by 18 and after that you own the phone. No interest is charged. If you want at twelve payments made you can trade in phone for new one starting payments anew.

I can pay for phone with full down payment and save $47 a month. Is it a difference to you that monthy payment is $18 lower?

The total payments are the same. The original poster acknowledged this as well. The reasoning behind people wanting to do downpayment to lower their monthly cost is "sticker shock" at month 12 when wanting to "upgrade" with ATT next.

In a perfect world everyone everyone would take advantage of interest free financing and pay as little as possible per month (Americans are pretty bad with savings....housing crisis/interest only/no downpayment!). Like a balloon payment due at the end.

It's a well time tested advertising tactic by companies to set the "lowest per month price". Notice ATT stretched out the lowest advertised payments to 30 freaking months with most of their ads and not the standard 18 months (ATT 12 NEXT) they first started doing.

 

[ToroidalZeus]

they increased it 5$...
my bill is 80$ a month it is not bad for using 15 gigs a month on average. I also have been on the 2 year cycle refresh but since subsidies are no longer involved I'm thinking of hopping on the yearly upgrade cycle.

5 per line + no subsidies.

I pay 200 a month for 5 lines of unlimited on T-Mo now. I'm saving ~70 a month compared to AT&T; enough money to buy 1 new iPhone each year.

[doublepost=1469369250][/doublepost]

The total payments are the same. The original poster acknowledged this as well. The reasoning behind people wanting to do downpayment to lower their monthly cost is "sticker shock" at month 12 when wanting to "upgrade" with ATT next.

In a perfect world everyone everyone would take advantage of interest free financing and pay as little as possible per month (Americans are pretty bad with savings....housing crisis/interest only/no downpayment!). Like a balloon payment due at the end.

It's a well time tested advertising tactic by companies to set the "lowest per month price". Notice ATT stretched out the lowest advertised payments to 30 freaking months with most of their ads and not the standard 18 months (ATT 12 NEXT) they first started doing.

Doesn't AT&T Next have an upgrade fee? So it's not really 0% financing, that's just marketing.

 

[HEK]

5 per line + no subsidies.

I pay 200 a month for 5 lines of unlimited on T-Mo now. I'm saving ~70 a month compared to AT&T; enough money to buy 1 new iPhone each year.

[doublepost=1469369250][/doublepost]
Doesn't AT&T Next have an upgrade fee? So it's not really 0% financing, that's just marketing.

Upgrade fee? I didn't have no stinking upgrade fee last September. Got new 6s Plus sent back year old 6 Plus. Paid tax up front and 12 payments. Last six payments were waived when started new 18 month plan. No credit checks, no issues. Was easy, and paid no interest.

 

[ToroidalZeus]

Upgrade fee? I didn't have no stinking upgrade fee last September. Got new 6s Plus sent back year old 6 Plus. Paid tax up front and 12 payments. Last six payments were waived when started new 18 month plan. No credit checks, no issues. Was easy, and paid no interest.

"Activation and upgrade fees for devices purchased with an installment agreement – $20"

https://www.att.com/esupport/article.html#!/wireless/KM1008601

 

[HEK]

"Activation and upgrade fees for devices purchased with an installment agreement – $20"

https://www.att.com/esupport/article.html#!/wireless/KM1008601

Always get that waved. Notice the wording, "Fees that may be added."