AT&T Next through Apple store?

[ggibson913]

Not Sure

I use ATT Next, I am not sure why you would use anything else. You get the phone you want with only the taxes down then interest free for 20 or 26 months with the ability to pay it off at any time. I would much rather hand Apple $60 than $649. I still have the option to leave ATT at any time just would have to pay for the phone, there really isn't a down side to it that I can think of other than the phone is locked until it is paid for and you request an unlock.

 

[nostresshere]

Yea, I am trying to figure out why somebody would do the outright purchase when the cost of NEXT is the same, but over 2 years.

You can always just buy it out for those that are about to leave ATT and do not want even a "quasi contract".

Even though I have been with them for 15 years and will be still with them in two years, I see no reason to do the contract costwise now.

 

[whsbuss]

If I were you I would just go online as soon as it's up and order that way and have it sent to your house. If you order in the store they are just going to have you jump on one of the computers they have set up and order like you would if you had ordered from home and store pick up still won't be an option that way.

If you are set on store pick up then you might have to watch the site for a week or two until that becomes an option. I forget how long it was before store pick up was an option last year.

Thanks for the response. But unless Apple can apply the trade-in value of my iPhones by ordering online it will not help me. I think I'll visit the Apple store a day or 2 before the 9/9 announcement date and see what options may/may not be available.

 

[Gathomblipoob]

Thanks for the response. But unless Apple can apply the trade-in value of my iPhones by ordering online it will not help me. I think I'll visit the Apple store a day or 2 before the 9/9 announcement date and see what options may/may not be available.

They may not tell you until after the announcement, so be prepared for that possibility.

 

[oldwren]

I use ATT Next, I am not sure why you would use anything else. You get the phone you want with only the taxes down then interest free for 20 or 26 months with the ability to pay it off at any time. I would much rather hand Apple $60 than $649. I still have the option to leave ATT at any time just would have to pay for the phone, there really isn't a down side to it that I can think of other than the phone is locked until it is paid for and you request an unlock.

Do you have to give back the phone after 12 months for the new phone? I know after the full 20 months you get to keep it, but I was never clear on that.

Edit:

Upgrade after 12 or 18 months: Requires minimum 12 or 18 monthly installment payments and account in good standing, plus trade-in of current-financed device in good and functional condition

So is it cheaper to pay it off and sell it on eBay or to turn it in and waive the next 8 payments?

Edit:

Once again, answering my own questions. Using the 32GB 5s as a model, you'd pay $449 over 12 installments, turn it in, and the cycle starts over. If you pay all $749 off, you can sell the phone and get potentially $310 unlocked from Gazelle. So $449 vs $439. Not a big difference, unless you can sell it for $400-ish on eBay; then you could make roughly $100.

 

[whsbuss]

They may not tell you until after the announcement, so be prepared for that possibility.

Yeah I'm aware of that. I think my best option is to once again go to my local AT&T corporate store and pre-order like I did 2 yrs ago. Their trade-in option is $175 vs $185 from Apple so I will eat the $20 difference for our 2 iPhones.