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Apple reportedly readying iPhone trade-in program

Shelling out a lump sum of cash for the latest iteration of Apple’s smartphone is never an easy task, but the company may take the sting out of a potential purchase with a new trade-in program. Bloomberg reports that Apple is considering partnering with Brightstar, a smartphone distributor that handles trade-ins on behalf of companies like AT&T And T-Mobile in the United States.

What does that mean, exactly? Essentially, in exchange for your old iPhone, Apple could give you credit towards a new purchase. Customers won’t have to put down as much money upfront for a brand new iPhone, with Apple then going on to recycle old devices for resale in developing nations at lower costs. Bloomberg says that the program will only be offered in retail stores, however.

Apple already offers a trade-in program in the UK and United States, but the plans differ somewhat. In America, customers trading in old devices receive an Apple gift card. Here in the UK, Apple instead transfers cash directly into your bank account through its recycling program. The new scheme, however, will mix things up by allowing people to put the credit directly towards a new phone purchase.

This scheme seems to be intended for the US for now, so it’s not clear if Apple recycling program in the UK will stay in effect or be replaced. There also aren’t any details as to when Apple will roll out the trade-in scheme, but the company could potentially drop the news during WWDC on Monday.

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