The comments on this article are disgusting. As if none on this forum have taken out a car loan etc. If the product is not for you, great. If it helps somebody out there stretch their budget a little and they use it responsibly, also great -- it's not your money anyway. Why the moral judgment? Is it really that much of a shock to you that some people use installment loans.
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Apple Pay Later Officially Launches in U.S. Following Early Access Period
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Ummm... I haven't taken out a car loan. When I needed a car, I saved up, shopped around, and bought a car that I could afford. When I couldn't afford a new phone, I bought a used one. But this isn't even in the same ballpark as a car loan. It's slowly encouraging people to live beyond their means in little increments. I'm sure there are cases where these services are offered in good faith and used totally responsibly, but it's not a good industry as a whole. The moral judgement is on Apple stepping foot into the business of scummy loans. The loans are interest-free for now but I highly doubt they'll stay that way, and that's when it just becomes a means of preying on the less financially stable for profit.
That just makes you a weirdo. Roughly 80 percent of cars that were purchased this year were done so with consumer financing.
I think you're confusing ideology with facts. There's nothing inherently wrong or even financially ruinous about this product. The loan period is only six weeks. There are no fees and no interest, as you acknowledge:
Based on what exactly? Do you have a link to your source for this news? Oh, I see, you're just making it up.
Wait, so I was part of a BETA feature? LOL, wow, to be honest It was pretty easy and just as simplier than affirm and PayPal 4. It can be done with any platform that accepts Apple Pay.
Is this an American stat? Not every country has a financial system that encourages people to sink themselves into debt.
Nope, no confusion. Short-term loan providers are some most predatory businesses around. You don't have to believe me, but it doesn't make what I'm saying any less accurate.
Based on common sense. Apple is a for-profit company. We've seen this game plan run over and over and over again by countless businesses. It's nothing new.
1 - offer something cheap or free
2 - build an base of dedicated users
3 - ratchet up prices
4 - profit
You'd have to be wilfully ignorant to miss it.
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The shock is that Apple would get into this kind of low-class financing.
When I've been in Japan I noticed that some retail stores allow customers to pay over 3 payments or so, not all up front.
It's not an unusual concept at all.
And if we traveled back in time, you will find that even in the US that it was not unusual to buy something with a handful of payments.
This was all before credit cards became popular, when the finance guys figured out that they could make money by getting rid of the no-interest payment scheme and replace it with easy to use but more expensive credit card accounts.
It's not an unusual concept at all.
And if we traveled back in time, you will find that even in the US that it was not unusual to buy something with a handful of payments.
This was all before credit cards became popular, when the finance guys figured out that they could make money by getting rid of the no-interest payment scheme and replace it with easy to use but more expensive credit card accounts.
Except Apple NEVER did number 1. The word cheap isn’t in their dictionary. Their main product, the iphone, was excessively expensive from the first day it was sold in 2007.
They did this exact thing with AppleTV+, just off the top of my head. They introduced it for substantially less than competition, as well as offering a free trial for like a year with new devices. Then they ended the free trial thing altogether and put prices up because they had an established user base. It's not really applicable to Apple's hardware model because they already make things people pay a premium for, but it's the template business plan for launching a new service.
One more debt option for people to enrol. Thats how I see it. Whether said individual can manage or not is another matter entirely.
Also why no cash back bonus? Other credit card companies offer you cash back for similar purchases made in instalments upon completing transaction, which is more lucrative.
Also why no cash back bonus? Other credit card companies offer you cash back for similar purchases made in instalments upon completing transaction, which is more lucrative.
With afterpay, you can finance a bottle of water costing 90c. And you pay it back in 36 instalments. /s
Hmmm...Apple pay over six weeks, or PayPal over six or more months?
I don't think PayPal has anything to worry about.
I don't think PayPal has anything to worry about.
I get paid like $100 a month just by using credit cards for everything. I pay them off and pay $0 in interest.
What’s with other countries getting stiffed on rewards lol?
Honestly, I can only wish for Apple Pay later/Apple Card.
not going to arrive in u.k.
I can continue to enjoy PayPal.
not going to arrive in u.k.
I can continue to enjoy PayPal.
Credit is good if you use it correctly. I have one credit card account alone that I've made almost $600 in free money on this year in rewards. All while paying $0 in interest. My Apple Card has paid me almost $150 in free money this year.
While Apple TV+ may have launched for "substantially less" than the competition, a big reason for that was because it had substantially less content. From a content standpoint, I don't think Apple TV+ was really priced that much less. As the amount of content grows, one would expect prices to go up.
Amazon has done this for some time for qualified customers, though usually in 5 payments, not 4. It's zero-interest and allows access to a range of products for those on a budget or who live paycheck-to-paycheck. This is a popular category of credit, with Zip, Klarna, Paypal, and AfterPay being the industry leaders. Because it's zero-interest, it means purchasers aren't subject to excessive credit card interest rates. It's win-win if used responsibly.