Technology

Apple Set to Accept Broken iPhones as Trade-Ins

Paul Ausick

Published: February 5, 2016 11:50 am

Last Updated: January 13, 2020 1:34 pm

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) already accepts older iPhones as trade-ins on shiny new ones, but the old phone, minimally, must not have a cracked screen and all the buttons (and the camera) must work. Soon the company will begin accepting old phones that don’t meet all those criteria.

According to a report at 9to5Mac, Apple Stores will begin this week to accept older iPhones in trade, even if the display screen is cracked, the camera doesn’t work or the buttons don’t function, provided, of course, that the phone has a reasonable chance of being repaired and resold. In other words, don’t drive your car over that old iPhone 4s and expect Apple to give you anything for it.

The offer is limited to the iPhone 5s, 6 and 6 Plus. An iPhone 5s with any of the problems we’ve noted will have a trade-in value of $50, while an iPhone 6 will be worth $200 and a 6 Plus is worth $250 in trade on a new phone. Apple currently pays up to $350 for a phone that is undamaged.

The idea behind the change is to boost sales of new iPhones, something the company would dearly love to see take place. iPhone sales have stalled, and Apple recently forecast lower revenues for the current fiscal quarter, giving investors and analysts a severe case of agita and sending Apple’s share price lower.

Apple stock traded down about 1.5% late Friday morning, at $95.20 in a 52-week range of $92.00 to $134.54. The consensus price target on the stock is $136.59.