Did any of you guys buy a 3g iPad 2, soley for better resale value later?

[J Griz 757]

Because I did.

I had the money, and figured I'm a tool for Apple products now, and will upgrade to the iPad 3, so getting a 3G iPad 2 will only up it's resale value later.

I guess I also would rather have it, and not need it, than need it and not have it too. But that was a distant second reason really.

Anybody else have my same kind of mindset with getting their iPad 2 3G?

 

[CrAkD]

no I bought it cause I was sick of mywi draining my phone battery.

 

[Blorzoga]

Because I did.

I had the money, and figured I'm a tool for Apple products now, and will upgrade to the iPad 3, so getting a 3G iPad 2 will only up it's resale value later.

I guess I also would rather have it, and not need it, than need it and not have it too. But that was a distant second reason really.

Anybody else have my same kind of mindset with getting their iPad 2 3G?

Yes. I also plan to upgrade to ip3 when it comes out so I figured I'd get what value I could out of the ip1. I was lucky enough to lock in a price of $550 with Gazelle a few days after ip2 was announced. The price is good until 4/5, which gave me enough time to get my ip2 before sending the old one off. Then yesterday I lucked out and found 2 64 gig AT&T's which I flipped for a $400 profit. So my upgrade cost me nothing, and I even made a few bucks. Honestly, I don't see much improvement in the 2, maybe a little zippier, but, like you said, the 2 will have a lot more worth come upgrade time. I'll definitely be doing the Gazelle route.

 

[markyr17]

I got a 64gb AT&T iPad because it's all the store had... I only wanted a 16gb wifi, but having a 3G iPad is so much more seamless.. You leave your house and you're connected without having to worry about it at all - much more convenient than my iPad 1 was that I used mywi to tether with!

 

[Whorehay]

Just wondering, do you really think you can get the whole $129+tax back when you sell it?

I say if you need 3G get it (I did), but I have doubts that you'll be able to get that full amount back over the respective WiFi versions when the iPad 3 comes out. Not a great "investment" if you don't need it or won't ever use it, put your money in gold or crude and it might even go up in a year

 

[Mad Mac Maniac]

Just wondering, do you really think you can get the whole $129+tax back when you sell it?

I say if you need 3G get it (I did), but I have doubts that you'll be able to get that full amount back over the respective WiFi versions when the iPad 3 comes out. Not a great "investment" if you don't need it or won't ever use it, put your money in gold or crude and it might even go up in a year

This. Sure a 3G iPad will be worth more than a WiFi, but do you think it will really be $140 more? The answer is no, it will not.

Great investment...

Plus a year from now 3G will be old tech. All the tablets will be LTE by then

 

[gigaguy]

Don't know about 3G alone, but with my transferred Unlimited Data Plan my 32GB 3G ipad1 went for $800 today.
I usually use less than 1GB/month so I didn't need the Unlimited plan.
and yes I did get an ipad2 32 3G ATT, for less than retail, after sale of a sealed 16 Wifi iPad2.

 

[tstarks33]

Because I did.

I had the money, and figured I'm a tool for Apple products now, and will upgrade to the iPad 3, so getting a 3G iPad 2 will only up it's resale value later.

I guess I also would rather have it, and not need it, than need it and not have it too. But that was a distant second reason really.

Anybody else have my same kind of mindset with getting their iPad 2 3G?

As someone else already pointed out, this makes no sense. You won't get the full cost back.

 

[benjayman2]

Don't know about 3G alone, but with my transferred Unlimited Data Plan my 32GB 3G ipad1 went for $800 today.
I usually use less than 1GB/month so I didn't need the Unlimited plan.
and yes I did get an ipad2 32 3G ATT, for less than retail, after sale of a sealed 16 Wifi iPad2.

So you sold your 32 3g iPad 2 and unlimited data plan for $800? Thats a pretty good deal for the buyer IMO.

 

[TheFarmer]

Dood, an iPad 3 is a year or more away. If you're going to sell then...better resale value later?? You fail at life.

If you bought now and sold for more? Get a life. Simple as that.

 

[foodle]

You won't get the full cost back.

This was not a wise use of your money. Invest the extra money and use it to help fund your iPad3 purchase. If you bought Apple stock, it might pay for the whole iPad3.

 

[kdoug]

Because I did.

I had the money, and figured I'm a tool for Apple products now, and will upgrade to the iPad 3, so getting a 3G iPad 2 will only up it's resale value later.

I guess I also would rather have it, and not need it, than need it and not have it too. But that was a distant second reason really.

Anybody else have my same kind of mindset with getting their iPad 2 3G?

I did just that on my first iPad. I never used the 3g but it sure brought big $$$. I have nothing against VZW and their 3g but I won't buy it because it won't have the same resale value AT&T's will. I honestly believe this is solely base on the overseas market and their use of GSM band.

 

[JC5280]

This. Sure a 3G iPad will be worth more than a WiFi, but do you think it will really be $140 more? The answer is no, it will not.

I think the AT&T version will be worth much more than the Verizon version. For the simple fact that if you are selling on eBay, you get a much bigger audience. And with the limited availability of these things overseas, I wouldnt be surprised if you get close to what you paid. Only time will tell.

I sold my iPhone 3GS 32GB for more than what I paid for it. A lot more. Paid for my upgrade to my iPhone 4 and then some.

 

[kdoug]

I think the AT&T version will be worth much more than the Verizon version. For the simple fact that if you are selling on eBay, you get a much bigger audience. And with the limited availability of these things overseas, I wouldnt be surprised if you get close to what you paid. Only time will tell.

I sold my iPhone 3GS 32GB for more than what I paid for it. A lot more. Paid for my upgrade to my iPhone 4 and then some.

Exactly! Those Asian people aren't stupid. They're buying up every AT&T iPad they can get get their hands on.

 

[Mad Mac Maniac]

I think the AT&T version will be worth much more than the Verizon version. For the simple fact that if you are selling on eBay, you get a much bigger audience. And with the limited availability of these things overseas, I wouldnt be surprised if you get close to what you paid. Only time will tell.

I sold my iPhone 3GS 32GB for more than what I paid for it. A lot more. Paid for my upgrade to my iPhone 4 and then some.

limited availability overseas? yeah maybe now... but not in 8-12 months when the next iPad is released...

ipad 1's are being sold at a loss of $200-$400. you won't get most of what you paid. in fact the more expensive iPad=more lost. For example a $500 iPad now might still get you $350 in a year. The $830 iPad will probably go for $600 in a year. Nearly twice as much but you have lost $250 instead of $150.

The reason you sell your iPhone for more than you bought it is because you bought it at a subsidized price. If you buy an iPhone straight up they cost $600. So if you sell an iPhone for $300 you are actually selling it at a $300 loss...

 

[kdoug]

limited availability overseas? yeah maybe now... but not in 8-12 months when the next iPad is released...

ipad 1's are being sold at a loss of $200-$400. you won't get most of what you paid. in fact the more expensive iPad=more lost. For example a $500 iPad now might still get you $350 in a year. The $830 iPad will probably go for $600 in a year. Nearly twice as much but you have lost $250 instead of $150.

The reason you sell your iPhone for more than you bought it is because you bought it at a subsidized price. If you buy an iPhone straight up they cost $600. So if you sell an iPhone for $300 you are actually selling it at a $300 loss...

I think the point JC5280 was making was that AT&T's GSM would be worth more than VZW's CDMA.

 

[wordoflife]

I don't understand these better resale value threads.
If you buy a 16GB iPad for $500, and sell it for $350, you spent $150
If you buy a 16GB 3G iPad for 630, and sell it for $430-50, you've spent about the same.

 

[zunairryk]

I don't understand these better resale value threads.
If you buy a 16GB iPad for $500, and sell it for $350, you spent $150
If you buy a 16GB 3G iPad for 630, and sell it for $430-50, you've spent about the same.

Exactly!

 

[jenzjen]

I don't understand these better resale value threads.
If you buy a 16GB iPad for $500, and sell it for $350, you spent $150
If you buy a 16GB 3G iPad for 630, and sell it for $430-50, you've spent about the same.

And just to put the nail in the coffin, it is still better to buy the cheapest option (here, the 16GB iPad no 3G even though you spent the same amount), as $130 is still left in your pocket day 1 to do something else.

 

[Mad Mac Maniac]

I think the point JC5280 was making was that AT&T's GSM would be worth more than VZW's CDMA.

and I think the point of this thread was about buying 3G vs WiFi to get a better resale value. Yeah, I agree the GSM version would have a slightly better resale value (if you put it on ebay or some international site) due to the wider audience, but I don't see it being a huge difference. Especially after everyone else across the world already has GSM iPads...

And my point was that regardless of which 3G you buy you aren't going to get the ~$140 back that you spent on it. If I had to wager a guess 3G versions probably get back $70-$90 more than Wifi versions on avg. So not exactly the best investment (but usually that's not the point of buying an iPad). but if you need it buy it and use it!

 

[Julien]

Invest $130 with a high probability of getting at most $100 back in a year makes sense because...?

 

[cinca]

I don't know that one would totally (or even partially?) recoup all the additional cost of the $129 "tax" you pay for the option of grabbing a random month (or always on) 3G wireless access but for me having 3G always available dramatically increases the functionality and usefulness of the device -- each and every day that I use it. So the additional cost spread over the year or two that I might end with my iPad 2 is well worth it..

As for the effect 3G might have on resale value -- I guess I wouldn't be so optimistic about getting a premium price but rather getting offers more quickly on a reasonable price. While some balk at the additional $129 you pay for the 3G option when its new, someone getting "last years model", I believe, wouldn't mind paying an additional $20-$25 for the option and to get the "premium" of last years model... Which feels very different than getting the cheapest, least functional version of something that is already outdated..

My $.02

 

[leenak]

I'm not sure why a 3G would have a higher resale value in a year. Wi-Fi options are popping up everywhere and if someone is going to buy last years tech, I imagine that they will want to spend as little as possible.

So in a year from now, if the next iPad has 4G and more hotspots are available, someone could buy a used 3G for $130 more than a used Wi-Fi and a used 3G would cost about the same as a new Wi-Fi, not sure why they would go for the used 3G.

My upgrade strategy though is to give my husband my used iPad and buy a new one for myself.

 

[Blorzoga]

I'm not sure why a 3G would have a higher resale value in a year. Wi-Fi options are popping up everywhere and if someone is going to buy last years tech, I imagine that they will want to spend as little as possible.

So in a year from now, if the next iPad has 4G and more hotspots are available, someone could buy a used 3G for $130 more than a used Wi-Fi and a used 3G would cost about the same as a new Wi-Fi, not sure why they would go for the used 3G.

My upgrade strategy though is to give my husband my used iPad and buy a new one for myself.

The GSM 3G ipad 2s are the most sought after configuration. Fact.

 

[WLS]

This. Sure a 3G iPad will be worth more than a WiFi, but do you think it will really be $140 more? The answer is no, it will not.

Great investment...

Plus a year from now 3G will be old tech. All the tablets will be LTE by then

This.
Actual price premium for a 3G iPad1 was around $40. Not a good investment on $130.
I bought the basic model this time with the intention of selling it and taking the least loss just before the iPad3 comes out.