Apple’s iPhone Upgrade Program was the company’s first attempt to turn hardware into a subscription product, but it certainly won’t be the last. To me, there’s a very obvious opportunity here for an Apple Vision Upgrade Program.
In my view, this would be a win for Apple and consumers alike …
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We first heard reports of an upcoming Apple hardware subscription back in March of last year, with two subsequent reports – the most recent one yesterday – stating that it’s been delayed, but the company still plans to launch it.
Details are sparse, but it does appear that it will differ from the existing iPhone Upgrade Program in at least two ways – and likely a third …
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Apple has been increasingly focused on generating recurring monthly income with its various subscription plans, and a rumored Google Pixel Pass could potentially point the way to the ultimate subscription for hardcore Apple fans.
Apple currently has two key subscriptions aimed at its most dedicated fans…
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Update: Readers report getting two different stories from Apple – either the same as below, or that you instead have to buy via a specific iUP link. Might be best to have that link open as a plan B.
If you want to join the iPhone Upgrade Program in the UK, you have to visit an Apple Store in person in order to present documents and sign the paperwork. Which raises the obvious question: How does the process work if you want to pre-order the iPhone 13 online or in the app to ensure you get it on day one … ?
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The UK’s Financial Ombudsman has opened an investigation into whether Apple discriminates against severely disabled customers through its iPhone Upgrade Program conditions.
The complaint was filed by Colin Hughes, a quadriplegic Apple user who says he is unable to comply with Apple UK’s requirement to visit a store in person in order to join or renew …
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iPhone Upgrade Program members in the US were able to set everything up in advance to pre-order their new iPhone 12 on day one. Not so UK members, however, as upgrades could only be processed in physical Apple Stores – and those were closed by the coronavirus lockdown .
Non-essential stores could remain open for click-and-collect, but that didn’t permit the in-store paperwork needed to begin or renew an iUP membership …
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iPhone Upgrade Program popularity has hit extremely impressive levels, suggests a survey of US iPhone owners. It found that 36% of them were already members, and a further 25% plan to join it.
This could suggest that Apple is well on its way to addressing one of the biggest challenges facing the company …
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Signing up for the iPhone Upgrade Program online should be the least-hassle way to buy a new iPhone every one to two years. You get an interest-free loan, and can then choose between upgrading every year – returning last year’s phone – or every two years, when the old phone is yours to pass on to a family member or to sell.
But there are some limitations to it in the US and elsewhere that put barriers in the way, and one of those is particularly problematic during a pandemic …
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Apple has filed a trademark application for the phrase ‘iPhone for Life’ – a phrase which has so far been used by overseas carriers and retailers for their own equivalent of the iPhone Upgrade Program …
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An iPhone subscription would once have sounded like a bad joke. But these days it’s a growing reality.
Apple has long faced a problem. Its biggest cash cow is the iPhone, historically generating the majority of the company’s revenues. But where people once bought a new iPhone every couple of years on average, that upgrade cycle has been gradually lengthening. It’s now in the 3-4 year range for the average buyer…
Shortly after announcing the iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, and iPhone 11 Pro Max, Apple has opened up pre-approvals for the iPhone Upgrade Program and iPhone Payments option that offer customers free financing with low monthly payments. Follow along below for how to apply and get pre-approved before pre-orders open on Friday, September 13, as well as the difference between the two 0% financing options.
Pre-ordering iPhone XR starts Friday ahead of the launch a week later, and iPhone Upgrade Program members can start the process as soon as today with pre-approval. Apple introduced the pre-approval step with the iPhone X last year to remove an extra step that could slow down upgraders at checkout.
One of the threats to Apple’s revenue stream has been longer smartphone upgrade cycles. The average in the US has crept slowly upwards, to around 2.5 years today – meaning most people are upgrading every 2-3 years.
The iPhone Upgrade Program was a smart solution – from Apple’s perspective. By giving people the option of upgrading every year for one monthly fee, the company strongly encourages people to do so. But it’s not such a great deal from the customer side …
Each year the iPhone Upgrade Program seems to improve in one way or another. Today, Apple started allowing both existing and new members of the program to get pre-approved for an iPhone Xs or Xs Max so pre-orders this Friday go as smoothly as possible.
T-Mobile is making life much easier for customers looking to upgrade their iPhone on a yearly basis. Starting this month, the Uncarrier is allowing customers to enroll in the iPhone Upgrade Program online or via the Apple Store app.
In the chaos of iPhone 7 preorder night last week, one widespread complaint was Apple’s apparent neglect of customers signed up with the company’s iPhone Upgrade Program. As Zac noted last week, one of the biggest problems with the plan is that customers must buy from Apple in-store, not from a third-party store like Best Buy or even online from Apple.
Now, Apple has been hit with a class action lawsuit because the issues surrounding the iPhone Upgrade Program. Filed in the U.S. District Court in Northern California, the lawsuit accuses Apple of prioritizing new customers over those who are part of the iPhone Upgrade Program.
Apple’s iPhone Upgrade Program, which provides a new iPhone every year for a fixed monthly fee, is being expanded to the UK and China. It was previously available only in the USA …
Data from Consumer Intelligence Research Partners shows that iPhone owners are holding onto their phones longer before they upgrade them. Three years ago, almost two-thirds of iPhones in use were just 1-2 years old, but CIRP says that number has now fallen to just 51%.
CIRP attributes the change to a combination of the slowing pace of development and carriers switching from phone-inclusive plans to separate financing for the phone itself …
setteB.IT noticed that French, Italian and Spanish iPhone owners can now take advantage of Apple’s Trade Up With Installments plan, where you use your existing phone as a down payment on a new one, paying off the balance in installments over two years. It’s effectively the iPhone Upgrade Program available in the U.S., but with lower monthly payments in exchange for handing over your old phone.
Bloomberg speculates that India could refuse to grant Apple permission to sell used iPhones in the country citing comments from a telecommunications ministry official today.
The U.S. company’s application has been turned down, the official said, asking to not be identified, citing official policy [while] Apple declined to comment.
Apple had hoped that used iPhone sales would be a good way to get a foothold in a country where its market share is just 2%, and where 80% of phones cost less than $150. Its iPhone Upgrade Program in the United States gave the company a plentiful supply of used phones that it could have sold at much lower prices in India without sacrificing margin, which must have seemed like the perfect plan …
Alongside the announcement of the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus last year, Apple announced a new program designed at encouraging users to upgrade their device every year, as opposed to the traditional two-year cycle. At launch, the iPhone Upgrade Program was oddly only available to customers shopping in Apple Stores. Today, however, Apple has expanded the program to the online store so all customers can now take advantage of it.
Apple’s plan to sell used iPhones in India to bring new customers into the Apple ecosystem has met with strong opposition, reports Bloomberg. A newly-formed lobbying group has sent a letter to the government asking it to deny Apple the official approval it would need to begin the sales – and one of the companies behind the group is Samsung.
“Why even consider allowing import of used phones when import of other used goods such as cars are precluded by 300 percent duty levies?” asked Ravinder Zutshi, chairman of the newly formed Mobile and Communications Council, which issued the letter. The group’s members include the largest Indian phone brands: Micromax, Intex and Samsung …
If everything goes as planned, Apple is set to hold a spring event in March to introduce the Apple Watch 2 along with some other new hardware and software goodies. That’s only about a year after the original Apple Watch went on sale, but roughly 18 months since the first-gen model was actually announced.
As a mostly satisfied Apple Watch 1 customer, March or April doesn’t strike me as being too soon for the Apple Watch 2. Personally, I’m excited to see if the next model can handle apps better with a needed speed boost and maybe lose a little overall thickness and display bezel.
But while I’m basically already lining up to buy the next Apple Watch, I probably won’t spend the extra $200 on a stainless steel model this time if it’s is going to be an annual product upgrade. And for most Apple Watch customers, buying a new model will probably be an every 2 or 3 year event if that.
Apple Watch has a lot of opportunity to get better over the next few years, though, just like the original iPhone advanced dramatically between iPhone 1 to iPhone 4. A proper Apple Watch Upgrade Program could easily encourage current owners to buy the latest hardware every year (everyone using the latest generation helps the overall product’s reputation) and encourage new customers to splurge on higher-priced models. There would be other benefits as well …
Shortly after Apple launched its iPhone Upgrade Program, Forbes reports that Samsung is planning to launch a similar finance plan for its Galaxy smartphones.
Samsung may be launching this leasing program in the next several months, although that timeline may accelerate, the executive said.
Carriers have been moving away from so-called subsidized contracts, where the cost of a new smartphone is hidden in the monthly service plan fee and the cost of a new device appeared to be anything from free to $200. With true purchase costs now much more visible, manufacturers have a strong incentive to offer attractive financing in order to encourage regular upgrades.
Samsung, though, has a stronger motivation than Apple. While Apple has been enjoying record iPhone sales, Samsung has been struggling to compete with both Apple and Chinese Android handsets – its smartphone business seeing a 37.5% drop in operating income in Q2 and the company reportedly planning to lay off 10% of its workforce.
While the terms of Samsung’s financing are not known, it’s likely the company will adopt a similar approach to Apple, where you pay off the cost of the phone over two years but can upgrade to a new model every year. Apple’s plans start at $32/month.