Better to not trade in old iPhone.

[Retired Cat]

I observe that many people have issues with their new iPhone 6, which is to be expected unfortunately from a massive launch of brand new hardware.

I've also seen news articles and posts advising people to sell their current devices shortly before a new launch in order to recoup maximum value. I think this advice may be mistaken.

If you have a device that works and is stable, I think it makes more sense to keep the old device until the new one is confirmed to also be satisfactory and stable. I keep my old phone as a spare. If N is the current generation phone I bought, I keep my N-1 phone as a spare. N-2 generation sold or donated. Obviously this strategy may or may not be appropriate depending on individual finances.

 

[lordofthereef]

Pros and cons of both.

Pro for selling early is you get more money. I sold my 64GB 5S for $600, and it was locked to AT&T. I can't complain.

Pro for keeping it is you comment about a stable device. I would have sold it for anywhere from $100-$150 less had I waited.

Right now I am using a cheap windows phone on this line and it's fine. Waiting to be able to actually find a 6 plus in the 64gb+ capacity.

 

[mdlooker]

I sold my 4 before I got my 6 and sold my 5 approx. 48hrs after. I wasn't worried about any unstable iOS or anything else for that manner. These phones may have little bumps in the road which may not make them perfect, but I don't ever think it would be something that would require to hold on to the old device.

 

[Peter K.]

iPhone 5 is the first iPhone I've owned. When I get around to getting a 6(+?), I will be keeping the 5 as a backup.

 

[Vertigo50]

I upgrade on launch day every two years for my wife and I. After I have preorder locked in, I post the old phone the day before the new one arrives. It's already been unlocked for weeks.

I get my new phone set up and have a buyer that day or the next day for more than I just paid for my new phone. Why would I do this any other way? I haven't paid for a new phone since my original 3G.

I have never EVER been disappointed in a new iPhone. This isn't Android we are talking about here. These are Apple products. If there is a major issue it will get taken care of, and I have a year of warranty to cover any issues.

 

[aPple nErd]

kept my 5. but i like to be able to change it up every few weeks between my iPhone 6, and my jailbroken iPhone 5. it keeps IOS interesting.

 

[myscrnnm]

I observe that many people have issues with their new iPhone 6, which is to be expected unfortunately from a massive launch of brand new hardware.

I've also seen news articles and posts advising people to sell their current devices shortly before a new launch in order to recoup maximum value. I think this advice may be mistaken.

If you have a device that works and is stable, I think it makes more sense to keep the old device until the new one is confirmed to also be satisfactory and stable. I keep my old phone as a spare. If N is the current generation phone I bought, I keep my N-1 phone as a spare. N-2 generation sold or donated. Obviously this strategy may or may not be appropriate depending on individual finances.

Same here. I regret having traded in my 3GS back when I upgraded to the 4S. I would definitely have kept the 3GS if AT&T had unlocked phones in the past. This time around, when upgrading to the 6 Plus, I decided to keep the 4S. It'll be nice to have the option to use the 4S unlocked if I find AT&T's international plans to be too cost-prohibitive when traveling (120MB was fine on the 3GS for a week abroad, but with the increased data usage on LTE phones, who knows how much I'd use).

 

[Retired Cat]

Better to not trade in old iPhone.

I haven't paid for a new phone since my original 3G.



I have never EVER been disappointed in a new iPhone. This isn't Android we are talking about here. These are Apple products. If there is a major issue it will get taken care of, and I have a year of warranty to cover any issues.

You're still paying for the new phone as part of your monthly bill though, even if you sell the old phone to cover the upfront cost of the new device.

For me, I like knowing that if a brand new device doesn't work as expected, I can just pop the SIM card back into my old one, and I'm no worse off than I was before. I can return or swap the new device at my leisure (though within the 14 day period of course).

If I traded my old phone in, and was walking around with a device that wasn't quite right for me, I'd be irritated. I'd have to swap ASAP. And there would be no option to go back to my old working well phone. I guess it just depends on how much potential inconvenience one is willing to risk having to deal with.

 

[pdxmatts]

I hand down the one I am using to one of my kids and trade-in the oldest model we have for the higher promotion rate. Hope the carriers keep offering more for trade-ins on each new iPhone event.

 

[dukebound85]

I love people who sell for about 30% of what the phone cost brand new. Staying a gen behind is liberating....still supported, people think it is suddenly crap as not the latest and will do a firesale, just as fast, and you don't worry about issues.

I recently bought a used 5s to upgrade from my 4s. 4s is now a dedicated dash cam and iPod/gps device for my car