Sunday, November 14, 2010

iPhone 4 Upgrade

After the new iOS was released, my iPhone 3 started lagging. It was running so slow that I would have to wait 5-10 seconds to load the text messaging application. I dealt with this frustration for many weeks until finally the silence switch stopped working. Whenever I would flip the switch to silent mode on my iPhone 3G it would start freaking out in my pocket. The slightest bump and the phone would start vibrating as if I was rapidly flipping the switch off and on. I finally decided it was time to succumb and purchase the new iPhone 4.

I did some research to find out if there were any specials, but couldn't find much. The only thing apple or AT&T seemed to be doing to encourage an upgrade was allow an early upgrade. Usually you have to wait about 2 years to upgrade but for the iPhone 4 I believe you could upgrade if it has been 18 months. I continued researching to see what I could get for my old iPhone 3G. Seeing as it had some scratches on the case, some smudges on the display, and a broken silencer switch, I didn't think I could get much money selling it on eBay. That is when I found out about some trade in programs!

Trade-In Programs
RadioShack, WalMart, and BestBuy seem to all have some sort of trade in program. There are no WalMarts in Santa Barbara so first I went to BestBuy to see what they had to offer. The trade-in program there was with a third party which requires you to fill out some stuff online and then send your phone in and wait. The employees didn't seem to know much about this program and I quickly lost interest. Next I tried RadioShack.

I've never really had a reason to go to RadioShack but my experience there changed my opinion of the company. The trade-in program they have allows you to hand over your old iPhone 3G or 3GS and immediately receive a gift card which you could then use toward a new iPhone 4. The manager of the store was very helpful and friendly. Although my phone had some wear and tear, he gave me the redemption value as if my phone were in excellent condition. There was also some issue with AT&T when they tried to upgrade my phone which caused me to have to wait for nearly an hour. Because of this they gave me some free screen protectors and the redemption value as if my phone was actually a 3GS instead of just a 3G. I ended up getting about $160 towards a new iPhone 4 that cost $200 (about $240 after taxes). Needless to stay I was pretty stoked when I only had to pay about $80 for a brand new iPhone 4. My circumstances were a bit extraordinary, but the redemption value is pretty good for most of the trade-ins. You can get an idea of how much you will get for your cell phone before you go by checking out RadioShack's trade-in site. Click here to check it out. This works for nearly all cell phones from the past couple years.

I love my new iPhone 4 and I'm excited to start testing some of my applications on it.

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