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Buying the iphone and reselling it?

T

tdx

macrumors member
Original poster
Oct 17, 2008
53
3
I'm not into the iphone (personal reasons) but i'm eligible for upgrade and i;'ll be opening a second line tomorrow for work. So my question is:

if i get two iphones 3GS at 199, activate them and then sell them on ebay, will it work? I see them going for a lot more than what i would pay, so i could make a good profit from that and then just use other phones on those two lines.

is there any catch to that? or is it as straightforward and profitable as i think?
 
tdx said:
I'm not into the iphone (personal reasons) but i'm eligible for upgrade and i;'ll be opening a second line tomorrow for work. So my question is:

if i get two iphones 3GS at 199, activate them and then sell them on ebay, will it work? I see them going for a lot more than what i would pay, so i could make a good profit from that and then just use other phones on those two lines.

is there any catch to that? or is it as straightforward and profitable as i think?
Click to expand...

If you buy them you will have to add the data plan to each line.
 
Katharine said:
If you buy them you will have to add the data plan to each line.
Click to expand...

Right, i hadnt thought about it. but then if i sell the iphones i can just tell ATT to downgrade my data plans back to a cheaper one right?
 
Yes but then you can call and say you are no longer using the iphones and can take of the data. So yes that will work... enjoy your 1500$ profit
 
Awesome, thanks for the confirmation. What I'm planning to do is legal right?
 
Thanks a lot for all the info guys. I will go to the apple store tomorrow and get 2 iphones.
 
yup, don't settle on the price either. Re list if you need to. Get your 7-800 apiece for those beast :)

EDIT: BTW you dont have to activate the phones, and you can tell ATT that you wont be using the iPhone on that particular line so they wont put a pro rated data plan on there. Just to cut out a lot of crap.
 
I heard you need to wait 30 days to cancel your contract though, but whatever the high price its going will prolly stay by then.
 
Bakakage said:
I heard you need to wait 30 days to cancel your contract though, but whatever the high price its going will prolly stay by then.
Click to expand...

But the thing is, I'm planning to keep those lines )using other, cheaper phones). So why would i need to cancel my contract after 30 days?

Is this the only way the person who buys my Iphones can use them?
 
tdx said:
But the thing is, I'm planning to keep those lines )using other, cheaper phones). So why would i need to cancel my contract after 30 days?

Is this the only way the person who buys my Iphones can use them?
Click to expand...

No, he didnt realize you were an ATT customer. Just don't activate the phones and you can resell them easily.
 
I use T mobile on mine, so if I wanna upgrade to the new 3GS phone I'm gonna have to get it from eBay most likely. Of course right now they are selling really high, 600+ dollars for 32GB.
 
One last question before I go ahead and purchase: I'm thinking about ordering online on ATT.com (and using the Bing.com cachback to save 35%) on each handset, thus maximizing the profits when i resell them.

On the other hand, since they're backordered, it could 1-2 weeks for the phones to arrive, in which time their ebay value might depreciate.

So what makes more sense: order online and wait or buy today at the Apple store?
 
tdx said:
One last question before I go ahead and purchase: I'm thinking about ordering online on ATT.com (and using the Bing.com cachback to save 35%) on each handset, thus maximizing the profits when i resell them.

On the other hand, since they're backordered, it could 1-2 weeks for the phones to arrive, in which time their ebay value might depreciate.

So what makes more sense: order online and wait or buy today at the Apple store?
Click to expand...

a week might be better because I bet they will take 4-5 days to sllout and then they only way to get them will be eBay/ Craigs list. But really shrink wrap factories are going to get bought up anyway
 
Bing cashback does not apply to upgrades (existing customers), or additional lines, only to NEW accounts. Also they will only rebate you on 1 device not 2 as stated in their terms.


From AT&T Bing Terms:
iii.CashBack Rewards will apply to the price of a single wireless device with a qualified activation and accessories from www.wireless.att.com during a single Online Session. [CashBack Rewards will not be applied to any additional purchases. The price of accessories will qualify for the CashBack Reward only if purchased with a qualified device and activation. The following purchases on www.wireless.att.com are not eligible for CashBack Rewards ("Excluded AT&T Purchases"):

a.upgrades, add-a-lines or device purchases with GoPhone (prepaid) service;



tdx said:
One last question before I go ahead and purchase: I'm thinking about ordering online on ATT.com (and using the Bing.com cachback to save 35%) on each handset, thus maximizing the profits when i resell them.

On the other hand, since they're backordered, it could 1-2 weeks for the phones to arrive, in which time their ebay value might depreciate.

So what makes more sense: order online and wait or buy today at the Apple store?
Click to expand...
 
Ok thanks. Then i'll just buy them at the Apple store.

iUser4Lyfe said:
a week might be better because I bet they will take 4-5 days to sllout and then they only way to get them will be eBay/ Craigs list. But really shrink wrap factories are going to get bought up anyway
Click to expand...

So the prices on ebay are higher after the first week, or lower? (based on the previous 2 iphones' opening weeks)
 
iUser4Lyfe said:
EDIT: BTW you dont have to activate the phones, and you can tell ATT that you wont be using the iPhone on that particular line so they wont put a pro rated data plan on there. Just to cut out a lot of crap.
Click to expand...

I don't get it: i just went to the Apple store to buy the 2 iphones (one for my upgradable line and one for a new line) and they said i can not buy them at the 299 price unless i activate in-store. I called ATT and they confirmed that, and also said that I will be locked into the $30 data plan for two years no matter what.

So what should i do? I'm guessing once I activate the Iphones I can't sell them to someone else on Ebay right? And do i have to pay $30/month if I sell them?
 
Sorry for the bump, but i need to make a decision by tomorrow.
 
Ok so after some research I think I've figured out what I need to do:
- Go to the apple store and buy the phones, activate them in store.
- Go home and cancel the $30 data plan online
- Remove my sim card from the phones, sell them on ebay
- Get a couple of cheaper phones for each line, and tell ATT to port my IMEI to them after 30 days (so they dont ask me to retunr the Iphones)

If someone on these forums can confirm I'm doing this right, then i'm all set to go.

Thanks
 
Isn't there a 30 day period that you must go through before cancelling, or else they will make you return the iPhones before the 30 day period for the cancellation. Don't quote me on this though.. good luck!
 
tdx said:
Ok so after some research I think I've figured out what I need to do:
- Go to the apple store and buy the phones, activate them in store.
- Go home and cancel the $30 data plan online
- Remove my sim card from the phones, sell them on ebay
- Get a couple of cheaper phones for each line, and tell ATT to port my IMEI to them after 30 days (so they dont ask me to retunr the Iphones)

If someone on these forums can confirm I'm doing this right, then i'm all set to go.

Thanks
Click to expand...

You can't cancel the data plan, it's a "must have" item with an iPhone purchase.

I think you have to wait 30 days to sell them, meaning you can cancel the iPhone voice/data plan after 30 days and stick your SIM in another cheaper phone.
 
bytethese said:
You can't cancel the data plan, it's a "must have" item with an iPhone purchase.

I think you have to wait 30 days to sell them, meaning you can cancel the iPhone voice/data plan after 30 days and stick your SIM in another cheaper phone.
Click to expand...

wrong, you CAN cancel the data plan. you have to tell att you lost the iPhone and give then an IMEI number from a razr or some other phone. They will then take the Data plan off
 
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