Samsung Galaxy Nexus vs Iphone 4S values 1 year from now

[ItalianDroid]

I currently have the original Motorola Droid and have an upgrade I will be using in December. I don't feel like waiting any longer for the next best device, but it does feel like the next era of great mobile phones will be arriving sometime early next spring. Quad Core, new LTE Antennas, etc...

Here is a scenario that I would like to get an opinion from you guys.

If I purchase a $299 Galaxy Nexus or a $299 Iphone 4S, which phone will I be able to sell next September, for example on Ebay, and get the most money for it?

Reason why I ask is because if I decide to buy a new phone next fall, Iphone 5 or the next best Android device, it will have to be off contract. That means I'll probably have to dish out at least $600 or more. I would like to apply the money I get from selling my next upgraded phone towards the purchase of the the IPhone 5 or the next best Android phone.

Based on the $299 selling price of both phones, what values do you think I can get for either one sometime next September?

Thanks,
ItalianDroid

 

[Mooondog]

Surely the 4S. Not because it's better. But because there is more demand for it.

However, I can't imagine the difference being substantial.

Not sure what you'd get for it. Look at current iPhone 4 sales on ebay to get a rough idea though.

 

[kharrigan]

If I purchase a $299 Galaxy Nexus or a $299 Iphone 4S, which phone will I be able to sell next September, for example on Ebay, and get the most money for it?

I assume that you'll be able to sell either on eBay, so it shouldn't matter which way you go.

As for resale value, I just looked at the last ten completed sales on eBay for both the 16GB Nexus S and 16GB iPhone 4. As both phones were on AT&T and a year old, taking an average should reflect a reasonable sales price for both phones.

The average sales price of the one year-old Nexus S and iPhone 4 are $293 and $330 respectively as of today.

What I'd do is to enter into a 24m contract at $299 for either phone, sell the phone when the iP5 or new Nexus comes out, and enter into another 24m contract at $299 for the new phone. It's likely that at the end of the day you'll breakeven financially and have the newest phone.

What's not to like?

 

[chmcke01]

I assume that you'll be able to sell either on eBay, so it shouldn't matter which way you go.

As for resale value, I just looked at the last ten completed sales on eBay for both the 16GB Nexus S and 16GB iPhone 4. As both phones were on AT&T and a year old, taking an average should reflect a reasonable sales price for both phones.

The average sales price of the one year-old Nexus S and iPhone 4 are $293 and $330 respectively as of today.

What I'd do is to enter into a 24m contract at $299 for either phone, sell the phone when the iP5 or new Nexus comes out, and enter into another 24m contract at $299 for the new phone. It's likely that at the end of the day you'll breakeven financially and have the newest phone.

What's not to like?

Thats something I was thinking about, I could add a line for $10 a month for two years and just not even use it and still be cheaper than buying a new phone off contract.

 

[Neon01]

Thats something I was thinking about, I could add a line for $10 a month for two years and just not even use it and still be cheaper than buying a new phone off contract.

Lol, great idea! I didn't think of that, but you're right. Wait though...wouldn't they make you pick up a data plan to match the phone you're buying on contract?

 

[Pr3mier]

Lol, great idea! I didn't think of that, but you're right. Wait though...wouldn't they make you pick up a data plan to match the phone you're buying on contract?

That's what I thought..
I say the iPhone4s has more resale value.
I plan to renew a 2 year contract with an iP4s and resell it.

 

[Neon01]

As for resale value, I just looked at the last ten completed sales on eBay for both the 16GB Nexus S and 16GB iPhone 4. As both phones were on AT&T and a year old, taking an average should reflect a reasonable sales price for both phones.

The average sales price of the one year-old Nexus S and iPhone 4 are $293 and $330 respectively as of today.

Great assessment, though I wonder if it'll actually be a little closer (or even in the Galaxy Nexus' favor) since the rumored iPhone 5 is likely to come out within the next year. The point being that the IP5 will probably bring prices on the IP4S down more than the IP4S did to the IP4, given that it'll likely be all new hardware and such.

Despite this, I'm not sure if I agree with the prices you've listed. A scan of the ebay completed listings for "Nexus S" on either Sprint, TMo, or ATT yielded prices ranging from $140 to about $225, and most of the truly "used" ones were in the $170-190 range, in excellent condition with packaging. The same search for "iphone 4" on either ATT or Verizon yielded prices in the ~$220-$340 range, with most nice used examples in the $260-280 range.

So at the current time, I would definitely say the iphone 4 held value a lot better than the Nexus S, but as I previously said, I think the iphone 5 is going to have a much heavier (detrimental) impact on prices of the 4S.

Then again, unlocked devices always carry a premium, so that will certainly factor here as well. This will likely work in the G Nexus favor since most people would just buy the iphone 4S on their carrier since the big three all have it now.

 

[someguy01234]

You have to think about the enjoyment factor of using the phone in that 1 year period as well. For me, once I experienced the basic construct of the iOS, there haven't been much from the iPhone 4 and 4S that is a wow factor. Android 4 is a bigger step up in features imo, but then the iPhone gives you social status.

Now if Siri was some kind of prostitute that you can talk to as a psychiatrist about your life problems, then I'd be more interested. If I was a programmer I'd do something about this.

 

[Andrew Ruffolo]

You may be surprised how much nexus devices sell for.

Swappa (Android) Buy and sell Android devices

I sold my Epic 4g on here not to long ago. Sold relatively quickly.

 

[kharrigan]

Android 4 is a bigger step up in features imo, but then the iPhone gives you social status.

IMHO, smartphones no longer give social status... unless their less than 1 month old, of course.