Expected cost of phone in 1 year from now

[MikeNY]

If the phone goes for like $600 off contract now (guessing?) what is the market and price for it in 9-12 months? I am used to getting a new phone every 12 months but if the technology is not all that much better then I do not need to upgrade but technology is moving fast. What could one expect to sell this phone for in 9-12 months. $200?

 

[brandonx1000]

you never know...i sold a year and a half old incredible for $100...once demand is gone, they drop fast

 

[racedog]

What the market will bear for this phone in a year can be hard to predict. A lot of new and much more powerful phones will be out by then. Sure, it may be a Nexus phone and have first dibs on upgrades but quad cores, even brighter, better screens can be pretty exciting and that will drop the price.

I suspect that it will depreciate at about the same rate as any other phone after about six months. During the first six months it will be highly attractive because of ICS, but hardware wise its nothnig to brag about and hardware will surpass it quickly.

 

[MikeNY]

I am just trying to figure out which is more cost effective. If I buy off contract then sell it and get another phone in a year or if I buy with a 2 year contract for $299? (guessing) then want to upgrade before 2 years I will have to pay the EFT. So trying to figure out which way cost me less.

 

[DolfanCole]

Definitely hard to tell. Maybe go check eBay and Craigslist to see what 1-yr old phones are going for and compare them to their original retail price to get an idea.

Remember too that the ETF is prorated based on the time you do stay on contract. So, after a year, the ETF is roughly half of that at purchase. From this, my guess would be that you'd be better off getting the 2-yr upgrade, cancel and pay the ETF, and sell the phone to help recover some of the costs. For instance, selling the phone for ~$250-300 after a year (if you can get it) will make up for the remaining ETF and part of the original $299 price. But, again, it'll depend greatly on demand.