Out of curiosity, Why are you doing Next instead of iPhone upgrade or Apple installment? With Next you have to pay the upgrade/activation fee.
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AT&T Next every year vs Apple Installment
- Thread starter rstark18
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I am confused. I have always had a 2 yr contract with carrier and on launch day I would get the newest phone and sell old phone.
This year I want to buy the phone out right and actually try a new carrier. We are with Verizon but I want to try T Mobile in my area.
What is the difference between Unlocked and and SIM Free phones.
On launch day can I go online a purchase a carrier free phone and then go into T Mobile and pick a plan? And if I don't like it go back to Verizon after a few months if I don't like T Mobiles service?
This year I want to buy the phone out right and actually try a new carrier. We are with Verizon but I want to try T Mobile in my area.
What is the difference between Unlocked and and SIM Free phones.
On launch day can I go online a purchase a carrier free phone and then go into T Mobile and pick a plan? And if I don't like it go back to Verizon after a few months if I don't like T Mobiles service?
Carrier free phones will not be available until after launch, like previous years.
As for taking a carrier unlocked phone and going to another carrier, it depends on the carrier. Going from Verizon to TMO won't be a problem. Vice versa could be a problem. If I recall correctly, Sprint and Verizon don't allow you to bring other carrier's phones. I don't know if this is still the policy but it use to be.
On launch day you will only be able to purchase a carrier specific phone that comes with a carrier SIM card. Regardless if you pay Full price up front.
Say I purchase a Verizon phone cant I just take the SIM out and put in a T Mobile SIM?
Thus is the reason att next may not be the best option for those relying on free credit card extended warranty. Amex won't give u any extra protection even their 90 day accidental unless u buy phone out right (or $199/299 subsidized pricing for those with Verizon grand fathered plans)
I typically hand down a phone so I did Nxt just to hedge should I prefer to trade up.
I just paid my current phone off and plan to do Apple trade up this time. I prefer to buy from Apple although I am a happy AT&T customer. It just makes sense to buy direct and I always get AppleCare+.
The re-sell prices seem To be lower than the cost to buy it out the year so I'd like to keep that option.
But if I was certain I would hand down, I'd buy it outright.
I just paid my current phone off and plan to do Apple trade up this time. I prefer to buy from Apple although I am a happy AT&T customer. It just makes sense to buy direct and I always get AppleCare+.
The re-sell prices seem To be lower than the cost to buy it out the year so I'd like to keep that option.
But if I was certain I would hand down, I'd buy it outright.
They why don't you just buy it outright? Next is designed for users to trade it in for a new phone.
Ah okay. Having other lines makes sense then. You are still paying the $40 a year activation fee though.
That's true but my dad always wants the last iPhone I have he never buys the latest iPhone
What the credit score have to be to do Apple plan my dad credit score is 750-800
With that credit score my dad won't be declined and how many hrs do they hold the phone that's reserved
He shouldn't be declined assuming there are no negative marks. That's a real good score. It's held for 15 minutes after your reservation time.
If you read the fine print there's a key difference between paying monthly through your phone carrier and paying monthly to Apple. If you finance through Apple, for whatever reason their loan agreement with Citizens Bank requires that you make payments with a credit card and NOT a debit card. This may not be a problem for you but if you're like me, having sworn off all credit cards and working on paying them off, it's definitely inconvenient. And even though Apple charges 0% APR this effectively means the loan they give you takes on the APR of the card you're using to pay it unless you carry a zero balance and pay it off immediately every month.
On the other hand if you just buy it through your carrier it just gets added on to your monthly phone bill. Seems a lot more convenient.
On the other hand if you just buy it through your carrier it just gets added on to your monthly phone bill. Seems a lot more convenient.
While I understand your point, credit cards do give quite a few bonuses and perks. I make back on average $50-$60 a month in cash back points on my credit cards. I never carry a balance and I have never paid a penny in interest over the last 9 years of having credit cards. Additionally, they offer extended warranty, price matching, extended returns, theft protection and accidental damage protection. These perks alone have saved me $1000+ in the last few years. I put everything on plastic and pay it off when the statement closes. Paying for my iPhone with a credit card with these benefits gives me added peace of mind.
The thing with the SIM-free models is they're whitelisted right from the start on Verizon and Sprint's networks so you can activate new service or SIM cards on those models. Now if Verizon and Sprint would just get rid of their asinine policy, buying full price AT&T would be just as good as getting SIM-free (assuming only AT&T and SIM-free have Band 30 same as last year).
While that's true, that's literally never been the reasoning I've heard for people that refuse to buy anything else. For some reason there are those out there who just believe it is purely a better option. That's fine. I don't really mind. It's just an odd stance to have IMO. Not all that difficult to pick up a phone for ouellette activations reasons and return it anyway. America is the land of unquestioned return policies lol.
The topic:
I'm still on the fence regarding paying outright and going every other model or just paying a lease fee.
Paying outright:
Paying the lease:
The Math:
Using the statistics on phone prices, actually buying the device outright and selling it saves you more than you'd save on a lease program.
Assuming a 64 GB iPhone 6S Plus at retail was $900, I'd end up spending $864 ($36 x 24 months), savings of $36, on a lease program, but then I'd sell the $900 phone for $500 so at the end of 2 years, I only spent $400 on the device in total.
Conclusion:
So by estimation, I'm saving about $500 every two years by just buying the device outright. Since I sell 2 devices, I basically get one for free, after 9 iterations I'll get both devices for free because of the 100 remainder.
Math FTW.
I'm still on the fence regarding paying outright and going every other model or just paying a lease fee.
Paying outright:
- Pros:
- The phone is mine, I can sell it or give it to a family member on the same carrier when I get the new device.
- My bill is cheaper by about $70 for two 6s Plus iPhones.
- Cons:
- I have to wait to get the next "S" model since I'm every other year with my iPhones.
Paying the lease:
- Pros:
- I get a new phone every year when it comes out.
- I never have to pay full price for a phone.
- Cons:
- My month to month bill goes up.
- I never have an opportunity to sell my phone to offset the cost of the next phone. (~$500 per unlocked 64GB phone or ~$400 per locked 64 GB phone) (thepricegeek.com)
The Math:
Using the statistics on phone prices, actually buying the device outright and selling it saves you more than you'd save on a lease program.
Assuming a 64 GB iPhone 6S Plus at retail was $900, I'd end up spending $864 ($36 x 24 months), savings of $36, on a lease program, but then I'd sell the $900 phone for $500 so at the end of 2 years, I only spent $400 on the device in total.
Conclusion:
So by estimation, I'm saving about $500 every two years by just buying the device outright. Since I sell 2 devices, I basically get one for free, after 9 iterations I'll get both devices for free because of the 100 remainder.
Math FTW.
It's not a lease, it's an installment plan. There's nothing stopping you from paying off the remaining balance on the device and selling it yourself. The early upgrade program just makes things easier if you don't want to deal with selling on ebay, CL or trading in to Gazelle, Amazon, etc. Basically you're trading higher resale value for convenience with the upgrade programs.
You're not saving $500 every two years because you're buying outright. You're saving $500 because you're not replacing your phone every year.
Your math isn't entirely correct though.
IUP: iPhone 6s 64GB + AppleCare+ = $878
$36.58 X 12 = $438.96. That means, Apple is giving you $439.04 for your current phone on trade-in when you upgrade to the next phone. By paying off the remainder of the loan, you are essentially selling it back to them. I will gladly take $439 for my iPhone 6s without having to worry about fees, scams or the hassle of selling it. Plus I get to keep all the accessories for free. Which is valued at $75 if you were to buy them from Apple.
The savings you are talking about is only if you upgrade every other years. Not yearly. Also, you won't be able to sell a 2 year old iPhone for $500. iPhone 6+'s are worth like $400-$450 tops right now and the 7 hasn't been announced/launched. That price will drop at least $100 in a week's time.