Apple's Upgrade Program Now Available for iPhones Purchased Through Online Store

[bizack]

That's a lot of cheddar a month + why replace a phone once a year? nonsense

Reading through this thread, there seems to be a lot of confusion over what's essentially one of the simplest loans you can apply for.

A) There is no interest on the loan.
B) You can use any carrier you want, but you do need a current carrier (you can switch at any time).
C) The cost over 24 months is the EXACT same price as paying in full at time of purchase.

Why would anyone do this? Well, I usually upgrade my phone every new release unless it's an underwhelming S release. So rather than have to deal with the hassle of selling online, I swap my phone with Apple. I've paid half its value to use it for 1 year. I'm good with that. And I'm paying per month vs upfront - this is the equivalent of leasing a car - you never ever ever pay a lease off early.

Anyway, if you actually read the terms of the loan, it's very simple and self explanatory. Rather than speculate, you can just read what's in plain print.
[doublepost=1461644409][/doublepost]

This program is more about selling AppleCare at an extortionate price (20% of the value of the phone! when supposedly warranty failure rates are around 2%) and the main reason it is not available in Europe since there is a minimum 24 months warranty requirement by EU law. That is the real "interest payment" attached to the scheme.

No. This program is about getting consumers on Apple's upgrade cycle and decoupling them from carriers. Apple isn't insanely profitable because of AppleCare.

 

[ani4ani]

Reading through this thread, there seems to be a lot of confusion over what's essentially one of the simplest loans you can apply for.

A) There is no interest on the loan.
B) You can use any carrier you want, but you do need a current carrier (you can switch at any time).
C) The cost over 24 months is the EXACT same price as paying in full at time of purchase.

Why would anyone do this? Well, I usually upgrade my phone every new release unless it's an underwhelming S release. So rather than have to deal with the hassle of selling online, I swap my phone with Apple. I've paid half its value to use it for 1 year. I'm good with that. And I'm paying per month vs upfront - this is the equivalent of leasing a car - you never ever ever pay a lease off early.

Anyway, if you actually read the terms of the loan, it's very simple and self explanatory. Rather than speculate, you can just read what's in plain print.
[doublepost=1461644409][/doublepost]

No. This program is about getting consumers on Apple's upgrade cycle and decoupling them from carriers. Apple isn't insanely profitable because of AppleCare.

Not solely, but basically earning the same as selling one iPhone in six (with essentially no additional costs) helps the margins tremendously. If it was about decoupling from the carriers why incorporate AppleCare at all?

 

[Dopestar]

I buy a new iPhone every year. Every year I have to go on craigslist and list my old phone, and worry about getting robbed and shot dead. I rather pay the monthly fee and save my life (and time from selling old phone).

I hated those days of selling or buying from Craigslist, good thing for SWAPPA.com

 

[bizack]

Not solely, but basically earning the same as selling one iPhone in six (with essentially no additional costs) helps the margins tremendously. If it was about decoupling from the carriers why incorporate AppleCare at all?

AppleCare accounts for about 2.6% of Apple's revenue.
Yes, it adds to profit margins. But it's not the core reason that Apple is offering the program.
There's plenty of resources online to read regarding all of this. I suggest reading them.

 

[MH01]

GO READ THE TERMS AND AGREEMENTS.

Section 1, paragraph 4):

• Credit Card Interest and other fees. You will be charged 0% APR on the Installment Loan. However, the issuer of your credit card may charge you interest or other fees under the terms and conditions in your cardmember agreement. This may include any applicable interest on unpaid balances or late payments. Your card issuer may not provide certain benefits in connection with loan payments charged to your card.

Not only that you are basically wasting your money trading in a phone each year. Just buy the phone in full, sell it for more money instead of having to refinance ANOTHER device the next year. Ridiculous financing for a cellphone. You are not buying a car here. It's a cellphone. Skip the stupid program and do the math. there is no free lunch.

well if they did not charge fees or interest on late payments, this would be the best deal of the century I'd be getting a free phone each year.

Not everyone has the money to buy a phone out right. Same goes for cars, houses etc....heck is love to buy a house outright, much better idea!

 

[littyboy]

Isn't it better to just buy in full, then resell on craigslist after the year? You get WAY more back...

 

[Azzin]

This program is more about selling AppleCare at an extortionate price (20% of the value of the phone! when supposedly warranty failure rates are around 2%) and the main reason it is not available in Europe since there is a minimum 24 months warranty requirement by EU law. That is the real "interest payment" attached to the scheme.

The UK does not have a 2 year minimum, we opted out of that particular EU Reg.

We have the Sale of Goods Act (I think it may be called the consumer act now) which gives you the ability to make a claim against the retailer, for anything up to 6 years.

 

[Ron Johnson]

- Iphone upgrade program is available through T-Mobile in Apple stores.
- You do own the phone after you complete 24 monthly payments
- You do not have to trade it in at 12 month, but you need to make 12 payments. So you have to pay for 50% of the phone to be eligible to "upgrade". You can do this i believe after the first 3 months.
- When you trade it in at 12 months it needs to be in good working and physical condition, which is why you are forced to buy the applecare. At that point the other 12 payments are forgiven and you start over again on the program when you get the new phone you want.
- If the phone is not in good condition you will be forced to get it fixed through the genius bar, or it will be ineligible to upgrade.
- There is no interest on it just like the carriers financing.
- Unlocked means that the carrier put a lock on the phone, Sim-free is a phone sold unlocked without a sim. These phones are unlocked but so is any 6s that you buy at full retail price. All model 6s will work on any carrier.
- The program is available for only 6s and 6s+
- All other phones have iphone installments, which is just a 24 month financing. With no upgrade option or applecare.
- This program is still subject to carrier activation fees, which is 20 for att and verizon
[doublepost=1461650750][/doublepost]

Isn't it better to just buy in full, then resell on craigslist after the year? You get WAY more back...

Not really. You pay for 50% of the phone with this program. While you may get more back buying in full, you also spent more to begin with. Even IF you made something like 50$ more buying in full, this program insures that you are basically getting an iphone for 50% cost without the hassle of selling on your own.

 

[GREEN4U]

The best deal is STILL the 2 year contract for $199. I'm using my iPhone 5 from 4 years ago and it costed me $199 flat. That's $199/42 months = $4.73 a month, and I plan to use it for another 2-3 years. Got the battery refreshed for free under the recall. You cannot beat that.

 

[dordal]

The lower. Verizon sees it as a BYOD.

This.

The Apple Update program is by far the best deal then. You get an interest free loan ( always better to pay later than pay today if there's no cost to doing so ), you get the best line-access fee available from your carrier, and you get the option to dump the phone after 12 months. I financed with Verizon; same deal (0% interest) except you can't dump the phone early like you can with this program.

 

[Juicy Box]

The best deal is STILL the 2 year contract for $199. I'm using my iPhone 5 from 4 years ago and it costed me $199 flat. That's $199/42 months = $4.73 a month, and I plan to use it for another 2-3 years. Got the battery refreshed for free under the recall. You cannot beat that.

This is not right.

The 2 year contract is a subsidy. Most, if not all subsidized "contract" plans allows you to buy the iPhone @ $199, but part of the phone plan pays for the unpaid amount of the phone.

My wife and I recently dropped our subsidized plan for Verizon's new family plan. Our bill dropped about $50 a month, but now we have to pay for our phones in full, or financed.

A while back, I did the math with my phone plan. The subsidized plan, or contract plan is most beneficial by purchasing a new phone as soon as an upgrade was available. If we waited a few months after an upgrade was available, or years like my wife does, then that was a lot of money wasted.

I'm using my iPhone 5 from 4 years ago and it costed me $199 flat. That's $199/42 months = $4.73 a month

But, you are paying more for your carrier plan. I am not sure how much for you, but it was about $25 a line per month on my plan.

Having the iPhone 5 from 4 years ago and not upgrading, or changing plans is like burning money.

 

[617aircav]

This is not right.

The 2 year contract is a subsidy. Most, if not all subsidized "contract" plans allows you to buy the iPhone @ $199, but part of the phone plan pays for the unpaid amount of the phone.

My wife and I recently dropped our subsidized plan for Verizon's new family plan. Our bill dropped about $50 a month, but now we have to pay for our phones in full, or financed.

A while back, I did the math with my phone plan. The subsidized plan, or contract plan is most beneficial by purchasing a new phone as soon as an upgrade was available. If we waited a few months after an upgrade was available, or years like my wife does, then that was a lot of money wasted.



But, you are paying more for your carrier plan. I am not sure how much for you, but it was about $25 a line per month on my plan.

Having the iPhone 5 from 4 years ago and not upgrading, or changing plans is like burning money.

Exactly. Even if you do t need a new phone, better to upgraded and renew and then sell the new phone and keep using your old phone.

 

[pika2000]

American economics at its finest. You are a complete (the term "loser" was suggested as being too rude but I can't help the fact if you can't afford something to begin with and yet you still want something you cannot afford AND you refuse to buy something in your own budget range, then you are pretty much a "loser" in my book).

If you cannot afford to pay $649 + taxes up front for a smartphone. Sorry if you need to finance a smartphone then you really need to go back to school and learn how to count. This is how Americans get in debt. You buy something you cannot afford. OR just buy something within your budget.

Either pay for it in full or SAVE UP until you can afford it. These programs have ludicrous interest rates and their entire objective is to trap you paying interests because you miss payments/stop paying. There is no "free" service to the general public on helping you buy anything.

Actually, even if I have enough money, and I am offered between paying in full vs no interest instalment, the smarter way is to opt for instalment, especially in this case the phone itself is unlocked and comes with Apple care.
If you pay in full, you are paying $649 + $129 Apple care.
If you opt in this program, you actually end up paying less. You didn't immediately lose $650, you can park the remainder funds to generate interest, and counting inflation, you will end up paying less. Even better, you can get a new iPhone every year, so the total cost of the current iPhone is just $32.41 x 12 months. $388 for a flagship iPhone? Who wouldn't opt in? If Apple offers this same program outside US, I would be on it already.

 

[diipii]

32.41 a month x 24 months vs buying the phone at $649 and adding apple care plus for $129.

32.41x24=777.84
649+129=778.00

You're right! This program has ludicrous interest rates.

The real danger here is you are conditioned to want a new phone every year or 2.
The word "want" now has the same meaning as "need" and you are Cooked.

 

[Three141]

When I worked for a phone retailer (UK) they were dreading this.
This is a good move by Apple and I expect other companies to follow suit.
It will push networks to better compete on tarrifs but it also locks Apple into 12 month upgrade cycles and I don't think that's really needed, IMO 24 month cycles would be better all around.

 

[Dave245]

I'm in the UK so if it eventually comes over here, would i be able to use this programme and still use my pay as you go sim card? I'm not on contract and i don't want to be.

 

[iGeek2014]

I'm in the UK so if it eventually comes over here, would i be able to use this programme and still use my pay as you go sim card? I'm not on contract and i don't want to be.

Indeed you would, yes.

 

[ovo6]

Can u make a down payment to lower he monthly payment with this program?

 

[bushido]

American economics at its finest. You are a complete (the term "loser" was suggested as being too rude but I can't help the fact if you can't afford something to begin with and yet you still want something you cannot afford AND you refuse to buy something in your own budget range, then you are pretty much a "loser" in my book).

If you cannot afford to pay $649 + taxes up front for a smartphone. Sorry if you need to finance a smartphone then you really need to go back to school and learn how to count. This is how Americans get in debt. You buy something you cannot afford. OR just buy something within your budget.

Either pay for it in full or SAVE UP until you can afford it. These programs have ludicrous interest rates and their entire objective is to trap you paying interests because you miss payments/stop paying. There is no "free" service to the general public on helping you buy anything.

but you get a 250 dollar amazon gift card if you lease a 40.000$ car

--

why cant you do this without a provider? you pay it off completely without a plan after all. seems stupid

 

[tripmusic]

That's a lot of cheddar a month + why replace a phone once a year? nonsense

Because the batteries are useless after a year?

 

[Gawjuz]

Hmm I can see the attraction but isn't just best to save up for it instead of relying on a finance plan?

 

[Juicy Box]

Hmm I can see the attraction but isn't just best to save up for it instead of relying on a finance plan?

That answer depends on many things, and everyones' situation might be different.

Considering it is free financing, I think most people would consider it better than paying in full.

But, if you did not want the Apple Care+ for whatever reason, then paying in full, or some other type of financing could be a better choice.

These are just a few scenarios, everyones' situation is different, so saying one way of purchasing is best for everyone just isn't realistic.

What most people would probably agree is that having more options on how to obtain a phone is a positive thing.

 

[tech3475]

Hmm I can see the attraction but isn't just best to save up for it instead of relying on a finance plan?

What I find funny about these kinds of comments is that in reality....it depends.

If you have just bought an iphone and are waiting for the iphone 7, then saving may be better.

If however you are just getting a phone and plan to upgrade then this isn't a bad deal since it means you get the phone now while being able to pay it off slowly (assuming you can pay it off on time).

Speaking about phone contracts in general, on my last two contracts, I managed to get a discount/special offers so for me a contract made sense and it would have arguably been worse to just buy the device outright/separate contract (even though I had the money to do so).

 

[vsx-ax3]

32.41 a month x 24 months vs buying the phone at $649 and adding apple care plus for $129.

32.41x24=777.84
649+129=778.00

You're right! This program has ludicrous interest rates.

Good point, but he isn´t completely wrong. If you cannot pay 650,00 $ or 1.000,00 $ up front, you´re a kind of a loser or you want something you cannot afford.
I don´t get it anyway - why people don´t save a share of they income a few month and go shopping when they got the money? Then you´ll never have the risk, that you cannot pay your rate if you lose your job or something like that.

 

[Roller]

I think that this is a better deal than AT&T's Next installment plan (and presumably Verizon's as well). AT&T's Next phones aren't unlocked; Apple's installment plan phones are. Yes, I'm forced to pay for AppleCare+, but it does help mitigate the cost of accidental damage.

If I start the upgrade plan when the iPhone 7 is released, I can upgrade when the next iPhone comes out or wait for the one after that. If I decide to wait, I can either get a new iPhone through the upgrade plan (you have to exercise the option before the loan termination date) or take ownership of the old one and sell it or give it to a family member.

One thing I'm not clear on after reading Apple's Ts and Cs: If I own the phone after 24 monthly payments, is there anything preventing me from starting a new upgrade program with the then-current iPhone? What's the advantage of handing the phone over to Apple just before the termination date at 24 months if it doesn't reduce the monthly payment on the next one?