Important Steps before buying an iPhone
This article is about a few things we must know and take care of before buying an iPhone.
In the Used iPhone market, there are incredible bids, but it's important to be able to recognize them.
As with all used items (from a simple t-shirt to a car), if you know what you're doing, it's easy to find cost-effective opportunities.
Specifically for used iPhones, there are a few things you need to check before you find this sweet deal.#1 - What kind of iPhone user you are?
It may sound like a strange question, but it is very important to know the needs that your iPhone should cover as it will help you to find the best choice for a used iPhone.
As you may already know, iPhones (especially the used ones) have different types of locks. Some of these can make it useless, and others can simply limit its functions.
For example, if an iPhone is locked in a network, it can only work with that mobile network. When you try to operate it with other networks, the signal will disappear and you will not be able to make phone calls.
In general, a Locked iPhone is much cheaper than iPhones that are Network Unlocked due to this restriction. But, if you are planning to use an iPhone in its Lock Network, you can save a few hundred dollars by buying an iPhone that is locked to that particular network.
If you are someone who travels a lot (Due to work or fun), buying a Locked iPhone is a definite NO-NO. You need an iPhone that can work with ANY network worldwide.
So first you have to decide what kind of iPhone user you are and then start looking for iPhone deals.#2 - How to Identify an iPhone's state?
The second step is very simple since you have to find an online store (or a regular) and start searching the iPhone that is ideal for you.
If, for example, you live in the US and you are currently a Sprint USA subscriber, then a Sprint USA Locked iPhone will be ideal for you.
So, all you have to do is 1) find out iPhones that are locked in Sprint USA, 2) compare their prices, 3) check their appearance for cracks or scratches and 4) buy it, right? NO!
As I said, there are many iPhone locks, so you need to perform additional checks. Fortunately, an IMEI Check iPhone service does exactly that.
It will inform you about the following iPhone's statuses:
If it is locked or unlocked.
In which Mobile Network it is currently locked to.
If it is reported as Lost, Stolen or Fraud to a Mobile Network.
If it has Unpaid Contract Bills or other Outstanding Financial Balance to a Mobile Network.
If it is still Under Contract to a Mobile Network.
If the previous owner of that iPhone has still his iCloud account linked to it.
I will not go into much detail, but as a general rule, the best results of the above checks are:
The above results mean that an iPhone is ready to operate with ANY Mobile network worldwide.
As I explained, those fully Unlocked & Clean iPhones are much more expensive than a Network Locked ones.#3 - Buying a Network Locked iPhone & then Unlocking it
This is the strategy I propose to our users, as this way you can find the most cost-effective deals on used iPhones.
I've already created a very detailed article titled "How much does it cost to unlock an iPhone" which you should definitely read before buying a locked iPhone.
Below, I will give you an example of an iPhone 8 64GB Black in excellent condition and unlocked, comparing it with a locked one.
You will see the big price difference and if it is in your best interest to buy a locked iPhone and then unlock it.#3.1 - Price of an iPhone 8, 64GB, UNLOCKED with an excellent condition:
The final price (From a trusted and Top Rated user on eBay) is $489.7 for a fully unlocked iPhone (However, it is still crucial to perform a full iPhone IMEI Check to learn about its Blacklist, Contract, Financial and iCloud status).#3.2 - Price of an iPhone 8, 64GB, AT&T USA Locked with an excellent condition:
The price is only $329.0 which means that only the Lock status of that iPhone dropped its price by around $160. Now, unlocking an AT&T USA iPhone is extremely cheap (Around $20-$30) which means that the total price will be around $359. You will save almost $150, just by picking the right locked iPhone.#3.3 - Price of an iPhone 8, 64GB, T-Mobile USA Locked with excellent condition:
The price is only $339.0 which is slightly more expensive than an AT&T USA Locked iPhone. The price for unlocking a T-Mobile USA iPhone can get between $80 to $100. The total price will get to $439 which is still $50 lower than the Unlocked version. However, with only such a small difference, it is always recommended to purchase a fully Unlocked iPhone, since you will avoid waiting for a few days (Up to 12-15 business days) for the unlock to get completed.Conclusion on buying used iPhones
As you already saw, by only taking into account the Network Lock of an iPhone, you can quickly save a lot of money.
Imagine doing this with the other parameters too, like Blacklist, Financial and Contract Status (This kind of filtering is not recommended for amateurs, you need to know what you are doing).
To sum up the whole procedure:
I hope that tutorial helped you and you save a few hundred dollars for your "new" used iPhone.
Author Bio:
Name: Zisis
I studied Automation Engineer and took my Master's Degree on Wireless Communications. Computers, Programming & Gadgets is something that I have always found interesting, so digging around Apple products was a "natural path" for me. I am writing about iPhones around 8 years and focused on iPhone Unlocking for last 5. I have been active for many years on Quora, Reddit and other public Q&As websites offering solutions for iPhone Tips, Unlocking, Jailbreaking, Fixing and more. My goal is to help people answering on their own the "How to Unlock iPhone" question without having to have a technical background, which is the reason of UltraSnow.EU existence.
An excellent article on iPhones especially for the people who are using it or want to buy one. There was and still is a craze for iPhones. It is the most sought after gadget in the world. I remember when the new versions of iPhones were released people in foreign countries made a beeline in the early morning to get it. The craze was unimaginable. Buying a second-hand iPhone also makes sense as it saves a lot of money. In our country also the use of the iPhone has phenomenally increased and with cheaper models on the anvil, it is going to increase further.