According to a study by analyst Timothy Acuri of Cowen and Company, Apple’s iOS devices carry significant resale premiums over their competitors, with iPhone carrying an average premium of $128 over competitors, while the iPad is on average worth $67 more, AppleInsider is reporting. The analyst pointed out that this premium is “effectively a subsidy for consumers”, making it easy for customers who want to upgrade to Apple’s latest devices.
The data was collected by analyzing resale values of 40 different smartphone models and 23 different “premium” tablets released over the last four years. “Our data suggests this is largely independent of the duration the product has been on the market, even (3 to 4 years) out when virtually all other competing values have virtually no value,” Acuri said.
“In his eyes, the data shows that the market places a great value on gaining access to Apple’s hardware and software ecosystem. It also suggests that resales of Apple products could become a key driver for product upgrades, and could be a key factor in Apple maintaining pricing premiums. There are a number of companies online, such as Gazelle, NextWorth, uSell, Amazon and eBay, that offer cash or gift cards in return for trade-ins of Apple products”.
The analyst also pointed out that listing iPhones and iPads on eBay or Craigslist will yield the highest return on these devices.
