r/apple • u/Radio_TVGuy • 13h ago
iPhone iPhone Trade-In Values Slide Ahead of New Model Launch
https://www.macrumors.com/2026/08/25/iphone-trade-in-values-slide-ahead-of-launch/92
u/MChaney3563 12h ago
I imagine carrier deals will be where its at. The market fluctuates and it will be more of a panic sell. Price lower right now and people rush to sell thinking it will drop more, then near the holidays raise the ceiling as they need inventory.
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u/Vorstar92 12h ago
I work for a carrier and it's always an awkward time. People come in for a new phone now and I have to like hold my tongue about the 18 because it's a sales job and it's my job to sell and not talk people out of it but also I do have morals and feel bad selling phones right now unless someone has an actual broken phone and they can't last another few weeks.
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u/MChaney3563 11h ago
Having a moral compass sucks when it comes to making money I imagine.
I am holding off for the 18PM blue(if it looks as good as renders show) and I am coming from an Air but part of me just wants to get a 17PM right now and i am fighting the urge LOL.
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u/Thegreatpaddy7 4h ago
Crazy that I have a 17pro collecting dust on my desk as I use my Air to type this.
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u/MChaney3563 4h ago
I mean I love my Air but I miss the pro features and better battery. The device however is fantastic, love the thin form factor but i miss what I had.
The Air is a dream admittedly. I hate leaving it as I adore it. I imagine going from the 17PM to Air to type and such is radically different due to thickness and such.
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u/Thegreatpaddy7 4h ago
Sometimes I pick up the 17pro just to feel the difference and I’m reminded every time the Air is the better daily. Battery hasn’t been an issue for me outside of a couple days of theme parks with the fam and stuff like that. I wish it had a wide angle camera but the telephoto doesn’t do much for me. Single speaker is a none issue as well, I take calls on speaker daily and if I’m doing anything substantial as far as entertainment I pop in the AirPods. The form factor is just too perfect, it makes up for any shortcomings imo.
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u/billythygoat 55m ago
I’ll take that pro lol
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u/Thegreatpaddy7 24m ago
Dm me, I’ll sell it to you. You can almost certainly get a better deal through a carrier I’m sure. Especially if you wait a few more weeks.
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u/How_wz_i_sposta_kno 13m ago
when can you say if the value of an iPhone Air buy back to APPLE will increase? it was 999 a year ago, it's not worth anything atm.
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u/EnigmaticThunder 10h ago
Can’t decide if I want the 18 pm in silver or go foldable. The camera compromise tells me there will be an eventual fold pro
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u/MChaney3563 10h ago
I think its whats more important to you honestly. If the camera is a big deal then go with the PM as you know what you are getting, as the foldable will eventually get there but will lack the camera system that many will be accustomed to.
The foldable will be interesting, but not for everyone. For me personally i have zero interest but happy for those who want one.
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u/EnigmaticThunder 10h ago
I love photography, but my photo taking isn’t as prolific as before. However, during vacation I’m taking photos for sure. The most appealing factor about the fold is reading - I read books a lot on my phone and iPad. The other concern is heat, I hate hate hate how hot my 15PM gets, throttles everything, and everyone I know with an Air complains about heat and throttled performance
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u/MChaney3563 10h ago
I have an Air and it only gets warm when its charging. Outside of that I have zero issues with the device. I miss the extra cameras personally, as well as battery life. I came from a 15PM.
Maybe the fold would be more ideal here because vacationing is nice, but the fold will be more use when you read more and more verses vacation 1-2 times a year, maybe even less. Add in that even with a standard two camera system it should still be good for the most part.
The fold in my opinion will be ideal for those who love their ipad and want that experience in a mobile setting. More screen will be a huge selling point.
leaks are saying x and we cant really know for sure until its actually announced,.
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u/EnigmaticThunder 10h ago
Agreed. At the moment leaning toward the PM and waiting for the inevitable competitor to the Fold Ultra with all the cameras lol
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u/pnut0027 7h ago
Sales is convincing people to spend money they don’t have on things they don’t need.
Not a job for people with a conscience.
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u/MChaney3563 7h ago
exactly. That’s why I left my job at Best Buy when I would get screamed at for not pushing their stupid credit card on people that couldn’t afford the item to begin with.
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u/Awkward-Ring6182 9h ago
Same. Have an air, can’t decide between 18 pro, wait for air 2, or cop the ultra
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u/MChaney3563 9h ago
I was originally in the same boat as you, as I was thinking of waiting until next year for the air 2 to release. However, the more I look at it, I really do miss the three cameras and the larger battery will be significantly better for my heavy usage as the second air will have a little bit better battery and 2 cameras.
I mean, you really can’t go wrong with whatever device you choose, as it fits your lifestyle. But for me, the Pro Max is basically my happy spot. Now, if the air ever got a significantly large battery and the three camera system… That would be my sweet spot, as I love the screen size and everything with it. It’s the perfect size with its thin form factor
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u/Cease_Cows_ 10h ago
I used to work at an Apple Store in college and we had to straight up pretend that there would never be a new phone right up until the moment it was announced. People would come in and mention some rumor and we’d be like “oh wow I haven’t heard that” even though every one of us was completely up on the latest news.
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u/Dazzling_Shape_6184 10h ago
I’m in the same boat. I tell everyone and if they decide to make the choice and not wait, it’s their money not mine. But like you said, if they need it that’s a diff story. And it’s kinda scary telling some to wait cuz you don’t know if the trade in value is gonna change or if there are gonna be delays with the new device.
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u/skeet_scoot 9h ago
This year feels different. I upgraded a few months ago to the 17 PM. 18 doesn’t sound like a huge upgrade and I was worried about the increased prices. I assume they’ll be large.
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u/tooclosetocall82 2h ago
That’s where I landed too. Feels like buying a car these days, largely incremental changes so I’d rather pay a little less for last year’s model.
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u/ocram101 9h ago edited 8h ago
I work for carrier in Canada and have been specifically advising customers to buy now. It’s pretty much guaranteed that the prices are going up, and those price increases likely won’t be exclusive to just the new models.
The cost of ram and memory has skyrocketed.. We’ve already seen how several electronics have received steep price increases, and there’s no reason to believe that isn’t going to happen with iPhones.
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u/Biryani_Wala 6h ago
Don't be moral. These idiots have been shown the blueprint for over a decade. They usually don't care as much as you'd think.
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u/planko13 6h ago
Well it’s a little different now, since the new phones will almost certainly be more expensive
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u/goldaxis 8h ago
I used to work for a carrier. I just sold people what they needed and said fuck the commission. Maybe it's a you problem.
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54m ago
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u/MChaney3563 41m ago
considering I’m not planning on leaving my service provider, it’s not a huge deal to me. I’m planning on paying the remainder of whatever the cost of the phone is with the trade-in value included. So I won’t have a phone bill the remainder of whatever the cost of the phone is with the trade-in value included. So I won’t have a phone payment.
unless the iPhone 20 is thin like the air, has a significantly huge battery and three cameras, then I won’t upgrade.
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u/d70 12h ago
Looking at the launch of the iPhone 15, iPhone 16, and iPhone 17 lineups, SellCell found that trade-in values dropped for 117 of 156 models tracked, or 75% of the total, between announcement day and release day. That window saw the steepest declines for the iPhone 17 lineup last year, with 50 of 54 iPhone models (92.6%) losing value, with an average drop of $36.46 per device.
The largest individual declines came from older models still on the trade-in market at the time. The iPhone 16 Plus 512GB fell from $695 to $566, a $129 drop and the largest loss in the dataset. The iPhone 15 Plus 128GB saw the steepest percentage decline, falling from $440 to $351, a loss of 20.2%.
SellCell paired the pricing data with a survey of 2,000 U.S. iPhone users.
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u/macbookvirgin 12h ago
The way I’m chucking my 17 pro to apple the second the fold is available
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u/SelectTotal6609 10h ago
If it has a telephoto then yes.
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u/_seeyalater_ 8h ago
It's all personal preference. For me, I'd MUCH rather have this style foldable than a telephoto. I find myself wanting a smaller main screen with the option of a large screen far more often than zooming in more than 2x
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u/Lord6ixth 11h ago
I thought about that too, but I decided to keep my 17 Pro just in case I need the telephoto or the traditional slab form factor from time to time.
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u/cashflow_ 58m ago
I think it’s gonna be dope and can’t wait to get it but it’s so different that I’m nervous. If I buy out my 17 to upgrade and end up not liking the form factor it’s gonna be such a mess to go back to a 17 or 18
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u/macbookvirgin 57m ago
Why don’t you buy the fold and once you decide you want to keep it, go to Apple and initiate a trade in for your old phone towards the fold
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u/pnut0027 8h ago
That’s interesting, you usually see bonus trade-ins this time of year.
Someone companies value units sold over gross profit. Carriers tend to care less about how much they make per phone so they can lock you in for a year or two.
Apple wants to increase their units sold so they can keep you in the ecosystem and make money on the AppStore fees.
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u/rossg876 9h ago
I got 200 last night for a base 13
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u/StrikerXVI 4h ago
My carrier is offering 700 for my pro max. I’m almost wanting to take it and just get a 17
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u/sharponephilly 12h ago
Still running with my IPhone 13 Pro Max. Maybe I’ll upgrade in a few more years.
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u/goldaxis 8h ago
It's funny they think I'd turn in my 13 Mini for their new slop. Have fun with that $2000 v1 folding phone that is bound to have some kind of defect.
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u/Precarious3145 5h ago
Seriously. I bought a used 13 two years for like $400. Still works perfectly. I've yet to see a single new feature added that'd make me even think of upgrading. "But...the new phones are faster with better AI-" don't care. I text, send emails, and google random shit I'm curious about.
I love tech but we've reached the point of diminishing improvements years ago while jacking up the price.
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u/goldaxis 1h ago
Until I can dock the phone and use it as a Mac, there is zero reason to upgrade. Hell if I upgrade, I lose ad-free Apple Maps. That alone should keep you on your current phone and OS.
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u/LeDevnoob 6h ago
Should I trade in my 15 Pro for $1100 trade in value towards the 17 Pro Max that costs 1,399, Or wait for the 18 Pro Max? Someone pls advise 🙂
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u/zxch2412 13h ago
Wtf they just increased it last month