Holy hell--you can rent a 32GB M5 MacBook Air for $33 a month.
You can stick that in your closet for one hell of an agent playground.
A standard $33 server has trash specs by comparison.
The iPhone Upgrade Program is being replaced by Apple Upgrade
291–300 of 411 posts
Re: The iPhone Upgrade Program is being replaced by Apple Upgrade
#292"For now, you can continue making your remaining monthly payments." Aww, thanks for the reminder Apple!
Re: The iPhone Upgrade Program is being replaced by Apple Upgrade
#293You'll own nothing and you'll be happy - World Economic Forum.
Re: The iPhone Upgrade Program is being replaced by Apple Upgrade
#294Earlier quoted context omitted.
> Why on earth are we leasing phones now??? Same reason some people lease cars: * want the New Thing regularly * are happier with OpEx than CapEx (can be handy for business/accounting reasons)
I think people don't really buy phones every year anymore because they can't afford it. But because they're kinda meh year on year. I don't buy apple anymore but my Samsung S23 from 3 years ago has the exact same cameras as the current S26. Same screen, same form factor. Only thing that's new is a slightly faster SoC and a bit more memory for AI features I dont really use anyway. I just don't see the point in upgradi…
Some upgrades are meh, occasionally I want one thing. Like next upgrade I really want a higher optical zoom than 3x.
But I think unlike leasing vehicles, where the vehicle has the same power (approximately and within usable limits) the new phones bring a new battery. If swappable battery was a thing everywhere; that would further depress the sale of new phones.
Re: The iPhone Upgrade Program is being replaced by Apple Upgrade
#295Earlier quoted context omitted.
Well, lets do math: - from this thread: iPhone 17 pro max would be $1199 to buy (~1273 with tax) or $34.99 for 24 months totaling $839.76. So would cost 433.33 at the end of the lease to keep it If you upgrade your phone every 1-2 years then what you pay for the phone is something like "full cost - optimistic trade-in value". I see no reason not to do if you know you going to upgrade.
I don't understand this mindset. I get that people who are going to upgrade to the latest flagship phone every 18-24 months will probably do better with this, but realistically... those people are fucking insanely financially irresponsible (and if you can afford it - no shade, I guess, its your money - lord knows I burn lots of cash on hobby projects of my own, although I tend to buy things that are actually projects…
Mine is about three years old now and I want a better camera.
Re: The iPhone Upgrade Program is being replaced by Apple Upgrade
#296Earlier quoted context omitted.
I don't understand this mindset. I get that people who are going to upgrade to the latest flagship phone every 18-24 months will probably do better with this, but realistically... those people are fucking insanely financially irresponsible (and if you can afford it - no shade, I guess, its your money - lord knows I burn lots of cash on hobby projects of my own, although I tend to buy things that are actually projects…
For me, the primary value of my phone is the camera, and the telephoto on the iPhone Pro Max models has gotten significantly better in the 2.5 years since mine was released. Were it not for the camera, I could have stopped upgrading 10 years ago. My point is, not everyone values the same things you do. The new Siri AI only runs on 15 Pro and higher, I think. New features do arrive in newer phones.
This is exactly where I’m at. Want a higher zoom. I’m about three years old now and feeling it.
Re: The iPhone Upgrade Program is being replaced by Apple Upgrade
#297Earlier quoted context omitted.
What if I don’t want to “own my phone”? Look, I have one camera with me and one child. As long as the camera gets better every year, I’m gonna want a better camera, every year. I don’t want to deal with carriers and trade-in shopping. Unfortunately this particular deal sucks compared tot he old one. I’m not financially irresponsible. I value these devices highly and value my time.
No one's really stopping you from owning nothing and being happy.
They did - they turned a 24 month loan/AppleCare that you could re-swizzle with a new phone and exchange the device on the same terms (except the cost delta for the phone) to a shitty leasing arrangement that costs 25% more.
Re: The iPhone Upgrade Program is being replaced by Apple Upgrade
#298The math for the new program is kinda perplexing, my guess is that they are hoping that most people just will send in the device and upgrade. If I am reading the FAQ here properly: https://www.apple.com/shop/apple-upgrade . > If you decide to buy the device, the purchase option fee is the list price minus any lease payments you’ve made minus any remaining discounts or trade-in credit. (excluding tax and any damage fe…
So the buyout price is never going to match depreciation, and in almost all cases keeping the device doesn't make sense.
The flip side of this, Apple gets more control of the resale market, pushing more buyers into the new device market.
In theory it lets them solve any market problems that emerge where independent resale markets let high quality devices cannibalize sales of new devices.
Re: The iPhone Upgrade Program is being replaced by Apple Upgrade
#299Earlier quoted context omitted.
It’s all about the AppleCare. I’ve used the upgrade program from the beginning. The issue with it from Apple is if I have an iPhone, iPad, MacBook I’m not gonna buy the $20/mo AppleCare. They are also dumping a weird risk premium on the end user. I literally get a new phone every year with the upgrade program, there’s no way I’ll be doing that going forward, at least through the lease. I’ll just buy it with cash and…
AppleCare is even more important with the lease. If you lose the phone you have to pay Klarna to replace it. There might also be lease cancellation fees on top of that. That is my big problem with leasing portable things. I never get AppleCare because I can self insure. But if I lose the phone 8 months into the lease I am deep in a hole.
They want their $19.99 so you cover your other stuff.
Re: The iPhone Upgrade Program is being replaced by Apple Upgrade
#300Earlier quoted context omitted.
Note that they already do this if you buy a mac on an Apple Card, and they even go so far as to link your AppleID that you may have had for decades. I bought a new mac last year and signed up for the 0% Apple Card financing and if I'd have known about this little bit of leverage they use, I would have created a brand new AppleID to partition it off.
What do they do to your Mac if you don't make payments?
they make you upgrade to Tahoe and force you to use liquid glass