Trading in That Old iPhone

What do you do with your old iPhone?

You can give it to a family member. You can sell it yourself (eBay, anyone?).

Or you can take advantage of the iPhone trade-in programs that have cropped up like ivy.

For example, you can sell it to NextWorth. “NextWorth customers can receive up to $200 for a 1G iPhone 8GB in ‘light wear’ condition, or $300 for a 16GB. With current 3G iPhone pricing, trade-in amounts will fully cover, or nearly cover, the cost of the upgrade,” I’ve been told. You get your check within two weeks, or you can return the old iPhone to J&R Computer World or certain Circuit City stores for immediate in-store credit.

I was also pitched by RapidRepair.com, which says it’s giving “as much as $150” for original 16-gig iPhones.

Actually, Google unearths lots of places buying back old iPhones. I guess the moral of the story is: “You’re not on your own. There’s a market for these things.” Happy selling!

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Javier September 5, 2008 · 12:47 pm

I sold my old 8Gb iphone for $360 on eBay. I’ cant say I got a profit out of it, considering the original price tag, but at least I got enough money for the upgrade and a new dock-speaker system, as the old one does not charge my iphone anymore….

Dave September 5, 2008 · 12:52 pm

I had a great experience with freeiphoneswap.com. I was a bit skeptical at first but I saw it mentioned in Saul Hansell’s Bits Blog and figured I would take a chance. They sent a fedex shipping label via email and credited $250 to my paypal account (they’ll also mail a check) within a day of receiving my 8GB iPhone. Nice thing was all they required other than the phone itself was the charger.

Fran Rodgers September 5, 2008 · 3:21 pm

Don’t forget Craigslist.. I sold mine , a 4 gig, in just a few days. Local, no hassle, what you see is what you get. I did pick up a few wild offers, $100 more than I asked to send it to her son in Africa who was going there to visit DAd and could use her UPS number…who knows, not me.

Abhi September 5, 2008 · 4:15 pm

I actually just sold my 1st gen 8gb iphone on ebay for $400… not sure why anyone would trade it in!

Peter Steinberg September 5, 2008 · 4:31 pm

I don’t know that I’m so quick to get rid of my 1G iPhone. Based on the call drop issues a lot of my friends have had with their 3G phones here in NYC, I think it’ll be a few months before I dare risk it.

Peter
//www.FlashlightWorthy.com
Books so good, they’ll keep you up past your bedtime. ;)

robinson September 5, 2008 · 7:09 pm

Do any of those places sell refurbished/reconditioned iPhones?

I’d rather not gamble on ebay and a reputable company could be a good way to go!

Scott September 5, 2008 · 7:24 pm

You can give it to a shelter. Lots of shelters give cell phones away that are just 911 enabled. Save a life.

John B. Kendrick September 6, 2008 · 8:51 am

I sold my original iPhone on eBay within 40 seconds of the post for $250. I think that was a little low, but it gave me the cash for a new 3G 16gb. I had used all of the space on my original so space was my primo reason for upgrading. But I do appreciate the 3G for Pandora and GPS a great deal. In fact I recently posted some articles on my blog at //johnkendrick.wordpress.com about my experiences with GPS and applications available from the app store. John

spurn September 6, 2008 · 10:55 am

I had a similar experience as Javier… I sold my iPhone on eBay for $375. If you jailbreak your phone before putting it up for auction there’s a substantial market, especially in countries where the phone is not legally available.

Michael September 6, 2008 · 12:45 pm

I sold mine on ebay for $345 (the 4 gig iPhone) the slow lady hasn’t paid yet & it’s been 7 days!!

William Myers September 6, 2008 · 2:12 pm

Why not jail-break it, keep it, and use it overseas with local top-up SIM cards installed. Then just buy a new 3G with its ATT subsidy for the GPS and faster throughput for Pandora etc. The added cost is just a few dollars a month more as you lose the original ATT plan for the jail-broken phone. Great for business and other travelers, no monthly contract when not traveling. Is there a VOIP service for jailbroken phones available?

Darren64 September 6, 2008 · 4:39 pm

I sold mine 8G to freeiphoneswap.com too and was thrilled to get 250.00 exactly the way they said they would. Highly recommended, no hassles, no bidding, no messing with craigslist. Great service!

jmr September 8, 2008 · 2:51 pm

I sold mine on ebay in 8 hours for $350…obviously too low!

paul16 September 9, 2008 · 2:22 pm

I’m considering upgrading from my original iPhone to the 3G (esp. now that some of the bugs seem to have been fixed) and am wondering if anyone can tell me how to transfer all contacts, music, pics, etc. from old phone to new, and then ‘wipe’ the old one. Thoughts? Many thanks.

mark September 10, 2008 · 11:00 am

…anyone selling an old phone (or any other computer/smartphone/pda) don’t forget to secure erase your devices(s).

@paul16.. get your new one (when you leave the store, your old one will be dead, and your new phone will not have your info). go home, backup the old one, then restore the backup to the new one (itunes will ask you if you want to restore from a backup the first time you plug in your new one). I think you can swap the SIM’s if you prefer to use your old one until you can get your info transferred.

official instructions:
//support.apple.com/kb/HT2109

Angel Farley October 28, 2008 · 2:52 am

I’ve been sending links to my relatives all day long to come here and take a look at this post – excellent work!

Emil H. February 5, 2009 · 11:10 am

I had luck with gazelle.com .. and mine was broken! $114

Alan B. June 20, 2009 · 12:20 pm

I bought my 16G iphone on back at theend of May…..when the new iphone 3GS came out…i went back to AT&Tand they gave me a $150 credit.

Harris January 12, 2010 · 1:57 pm

I sold my 4GB iPhone for $315 on eBay. I bought it for $299 two years ago.