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iPhone 13 Depreciates Half as Much as Flagship Android Rival

ftaok said:
I decided to replace the battery in my iPad Air last spring. It was $99 and while that probably wasn't fiscally prudent, it would have served my needs ... which is basically reading comic books.

Decided to get an OEM replacement at the Apple Store since the local "fixit" places were charging the same price and Apple just swaps it with a refurb unit. I figured, what the Hell.

It took a long time because they didn't have any replacement units available and had to order it from HQ. When it did finally show up (after some nagging by me), I ended up with an iPad (2017) as the replacement unit. Bumped up from 16GB to 32GB as well.

Not sure if iPad Air is still on the list for allowable service, but you might end up with a better iPad.

YMMV
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I thought about replacing the battery. Nice to hear that $99 would be enough to cover that (I'm assuming that includes shipping it to Apple, along with parts and labor)! In the end, I ended up getting a 9th gen iPad. It's over 3x the price, but we do get an iPad that's in new condition, the latest generation, somewhat larger screen, and latest version of iOS (I would've been fine with 1 or 2 generations past if it was a used device for a good price TBH). Spec-wise, it pales in comparison to the Air and Pro lines, but those are also much more costly. I'm just using my iPad as a more basic+ gaming device, so those would've been overkill
 
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ackmondual said:
I thought about replacing the battery. Nice to hear that $99 would be enough to cover that (I'm assuming that includes shipping it to Apple, along with parts and labor)! In the end, I ended up getting a 9th gen iPad. It's over 3x the price, but we do get an iPad that's in new condition, the latest generation, somewhat larger screen, and latest version of iOS (I would've been fine with 1 or 2 generations past if it was a used device for a good price TBH). Spec-wise, it pales in comparison to the Air and Pro lines, but those are also much more costly. I'm just using my iPad as a more basic+ gaming device, so those would've been overkill
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I'm lucky enough to live near several Apple Stores. So I just set up a Genius appointment and explain my issues to someone in person.

There's really no parts and labor involved because Apple doesn't replace batteries in iPads. They just swap with a refurb.

I guess you can go with mail-in service with Apple, but I like to deal with someone in person. My feel is that they are more sympathetic and will offer more than what you might get with a faceless mail-in tech.
 
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emmab2006 said:
Enough BRAGGING that your expensive phone because it's Apple is depreciating less than any other phone...this is not the kind of article I expect from Macrumors!
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You can buy android phones that are as much as an iPhone, this is just pointing out to us iPhone users
and android users
what we already know..Iphones hold their value and androids not so much.
No reason to get salty over the facts.
 
Amazing Iceman said:
I could have sold it on the net for a lot more than $400.00
And I was already a T-Mobile subscriber, so it was a big plus.
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I’m sure you could have sold it for more than $400 online. Selling privately is usually the best way to go versus straight trading or selling to one of the phone reseller sites.

My point was simply that the $1,000 offer from T-Mobile was mostly the incentive to try to lock you in for 30 months on a top tier Magenta MAX plan. T-Mobile's regular trade offer (not connected to any particular phone purchase or plan) for an iPhone 11 Pro right now is around $285 to $330. Apple's trade in offer is up to $400.
 
This really cuts two ways. If you're buying new phones with the intention of selling in a few years to part-finance another new phone it's probably great.

Until this year I tended to buy used or refurbished phones and used them until selling wasn't worth the hassle anymore.

For the price of an iPhone several years old you could usually find almost recent Android flagships, often from the same year.

For buyers, the iPhone value retention isn't great and to me it feels like it's gotten worse over time.

I've bought a new phone for the first time in forever and just plan on using it for longer. I'm not going to buy someone's old hardware at inflated prices.
 
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I own a 13 mini and Pixel 6 pro. I love them both. I'm surprised to see the 13 mini on the top!
 
What some also fail to realize is that there's no competition in the iPhone space. And Apple doesn't really discount (carriers may offer deals). If you want iOS, you're getting an iPhone.

Android has a lot of competition. If you want an android phone, the space is large. And manufacturers don't release new phones all at the same time.

The playing field isn't the same.
 
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This has always been the case for iPhones and Macs for years, one of their lesser-known features. Here in NZ people pay well for second-hand devices (and there's a trusted online place to sell), so I usually sell my 2-3 year old iPhone for around half its original cost when I buy the replacement. Makes a significant dent in the price of the replacement. Same for MacBooks and iMacs, which sell for good proportions of their original price even when several years old as long as they're boxed and in very good condition.
 
This is flawed calculation. $500 value depreciation for a product costs $1700 is not same as $500 depreciation for a product costs $1100 in percentage.

The actual amount depreciation is almost the same.

Also don't forget Pixel comes with unlimited photos storage which might save $100 per year
 
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Lollu said:
This is flawed calculation. $500 value depreciation for a product costs $1700 is not same as $500 depreciation for a product costs $1100 in percentage.

The actual amount depreciation is almost the same.
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True. They are comparing resale percentages in a similar way that automobile resales are typically compared.

Someone looking at or concerned about dollar value loss would be better of going with a lower end, lower priced phone. Even if it loses most of its value within a couple of years, it could still be less than the dollar value loss of an iPhone.
 
emmab2006 said:
Enough BRAGGING that your expensive phone because it's Apple is depreciating less than any other phone...this is not the kind of article I expect from Macrumors!
Click to expand...
This whole forum is one big circle jerk echo chamber for fanboys.

Apple good! Everyone else BAD!
 
ftaok said:
I'm lucky enough to live near several Apple Stores. So I just set up a Genius appointment and explain my issues to someone in person.

There's really no parts and labor involved because Apple doesn't replace batteries in iPads. They just swap with a refurb.

I guess you can go with mail-in service with Apple, but I like to deal with someone in person. My feel is that they are more sympathetic and will offer more than what you might get with a faceless mail-in tech.
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Ahh, I see. Yeah, I don't live near an Apple Store, so my cost probably would've been closer to $120 to $150 (rough estimate).
 
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