Like most individuals who write about Apple for a residing, I’m shopping for a brand new iPhone 16 this yr. As I do yearly, I went by way of Apple’s “Get Ready” system within the Apple Retailer app to begin the trade-in course of and make pre-ordering that a lot simpler.
Nonetheless, it didn’t fairly go the way in which I anticipated. Apple provides as much as $650 for trade-ins, and I assumed my telephone, the 256GB model of the iPhone 15 Professional Max, would get at or close to that. However once I started to reply Apple’s overly simplistic questions concerning the situation of my telephone, I shortly found it wouldn’t.
The issue? The again glass of my iPhone is cracked. I dropped it some months in the past (with out a case) and because the entrance glass is totally unaffected, held off on fixing it regardless of having AppleCare+. I assumed Apple would merely deduct the $29 value of the restore when going by way of the trade-in course of.
Apparently that’s not the way it works. In reality, Apple wouldn’t take my telephone in any respect once I checked the “No” field beneath “Is the body of your iPhone in good shape?” Apple knowledgeable me that my trade-in worth can be $0. They did, nevertheless, supply to recycle it for me without spending a dime.
(I checked, by the way in which. If you happen to reply “No” to both query—whether or not the buttons work or the physique is in fine condition—Apple will deny any trade-in low cost.)
So I shortly made an appointment at my native Apple Retailer to repair it so I can commerce it in for the total $650. And I like to recommend you do the identical: try your iPhone 15’s situation earlier than you go to commerce it in. If there are any cracks on both the display screen or the again, go get it fastened earlier than buying and selling it in—particularly when you’ve got AppleCare+. The fee to repair the entrance or again glass is barely $29 with the protection and $199 with out, which continues to be higher than handing it over to Apple without spending a dime.