WTF? Sprint buying back Epics now?

[bfguns]

I got a txt msg from Sprint:
Somewhat disturbing...

"sprintfreemsg: Your old samsung epic 4g is valued @140.00 thru 12/03. Visit Sprint Buyback Program: Home for T&Cs or to opt out."

We spend money on new phones, and Sprint wants to buy our phones back?

EPIC FAIL!

 

[dabadman]

Weird.....

 

[eerongal]

sprint's buyback program lets you recycle old cellphones. They take a ton of different models, but not all, and this list is always changing. They must have just been letting you know the epic is now part of the buyback program, at least thats how it seems.

If you're in the contact list, they send you messages about this stuff. On the page you linked, at the bottom it says "Remove me from the contact list: Opt Out" you can click that if you dont want them to update you anymore about it.

 

[boomerbubba]

This is no big deal. Sprint is just advertising its Sprint Buyback program, which offers very low prices for used phones as a sort of "trade-in" incentive. Anyone could get a much better price on eBay or Craigslist, of course, but it's easy. That's business.

 

[Mikey47]

The funny part is how they call a less than 3 month old phone "old".

 

[acegolfer]

The funny part is how they call a less than 3 month old phone "old".

I don't see how anyone can claim it's a new phone, if you bought it 3 months ago.

 

[boomerbubba]

I don't see how anyone can claim it's a new phone, if you bought it 3 months ago.

Actually it is similar to a new car, which depreciates immediately after it is retitled and driven off the lot. It now is a used car, and its trade-in value is substantially less than the new-car price had been. Furthermore, phones depreciate MUCH faster than cars do because of rapid technological innovation and greater risk.

Sprint is offering a lowball wholesale figure to buy a used phone. The quoted offer is below what the same phone would fetch in the retail resale marketplace (eBay, Craigslist, etc.) if the seller went through the hassle of advertising and selling it. And even on eBay, a "Sealed, New in Box" phone commands a premium price over a mint-condition, barely used device.

That is how supply and demand works. Just business.

 

[anon(47596)]

$140!? That only $10 less than the $150 discount you'd get when you renew your Sprint contract. So those that are over their 30 day return period can get another phone for basically $10 more than the "new contract price."

I'm not switching but it's kind of nice the option is there.

 

[boomerbubba]

$140!? That only $10 less than the $150 discount you'd get when you renew your Sprint contract. So those that are over their 30 day return period can get another phone for basically $10 more than the "new contract price."

I'm not switching but it's kind of nice the option is there.

But then you have no phone, you are still on the hook for the two-year contract extension, and you used up your upgrade subsidy! You only think the "new contract price" is what you paid for the Epic. You really committed to that initial price, plus the monthly subsidy that is built into your contract.

To get another phone, you would have to pay full retail price for it, which for the Epic is $500, and any other top-rank smartphone is priced in that neighborhood. Or you would have to pay an early termination fee of $200 to cancel the contract and start over.

If you do want to switch phones, you would be better of selling your Epic on eBay, where it would bring more than twice what Sprint is offering.

 

[MissJennell#IM]

But then you have no phone, you are still on the hook for the two-year contract extension, and you used up your upgrade subsidy! You only think the "new contract price" is what you paid for the Epic. You really committed to that initial price, plus the monthly subsidy that is built into your contract.

To get another phone, you would have to pay full retail price for it, which for the Epic is $550 IIRC, and any other top-rank smartphone is priced in that neighborhood. Or you would have to pay an early termination fee of $200 to cancel the contract and start over.

If you do want to switch phones, you would be better of selling your Epic on eBay, where it would bring more than twice what Sprint is offering.

I don't think you are getting what they are saying.

 

[vansmack]

Apparently you folks aren't gamers.

Buy a game on opening day and you can sell it back in the first week for $20 off, if you're lucky. Seems like nothing until you look at it in perspective - that's 1/3 off, not too different than this....

There's a market for everything.

 

[boomerbubba]

I don't think you are getting what they are saying.

What do you think "they" are saying? If you mean the comment by jbluther, I can't see that it makes any sense at all. If you understand its logic, perhaps you can paraphrase it in a way you think makes sense.

The Sprint Buyback offer is easy to understand: The carrier is offering to buy used phones at a low wholesale price, much lower than they would bring in the used retail market. (In the case of an Epic, $140 vs about $330-$380 on eBay) Similarly low prices are offered for a list of other used models by various makers.

Meanwhile -- no matter how the used Epic is sold, or whether the dog eats it -- that does not relieve the customer of his hefty contractual obligation each month. He would have to pay $200 to terminate the contract, or buy a new phone to use the service he is on the hook for. And a new smartphone from Sprint (a $450 Evo, for example) would not be offered at the subsidized price someone else would get with a contract renewal. The customer would have to pay the full retail price for the Evo. because his contract is already in place and he is still paying off the subsidized sale of the original Epic.

 

[Aero]

$140!? That only $10 less than the $150 discount you'd get when you renew your Sprint contract. So those that are over their 30 day return period can get another phone for basically $10 more than the "new contract price."
I'm not switching but it's kind of nice the option is there.

It is about HALF what you can sell it used on ebay. How is sprints offer a "nice option"?!?

Adn yor math is off. $500 - $140+ $360 (also more than you can get a New in Box on ebay for).

 

[Aero]

I don't think you are getting what they are saying.

WTF. I don't think you "get" the math. "they" are mistaken about the math and how sprint works and boomerbubba was noting the correct information.

Sprints buy back runs from about 10% to 50% of what you can sell a phone for on ebay. If you use buy back this does not automatically make you eligible for any discounts off of the list price as the other poster had implied..

 

[anon(47596)]

If you're eligible, you get $150 off the full price of a phone when you renew your contract. What's missing here is the mail-in rebate.

Let's say you want an Evo.

$450
-$140 for "selling back" your Epic
------
$310

Can you get a $100 mail-in rebate if you don't renew your contract? I kind of doubt it. Too bad you can't sell back your phone to Best Buy or Radio Shack that doesn't bother with the rebate. Keep in mind, you're NOT renewing your contract when you buy a phone at the unsubsidized price.

My original point was that as a Sprint customer, the best you're going to get from Sprint on your next phone is $150. *If* you want to get rid of your Epic now, I don't see waiting 2 years (or 1 year for you Sprint Premier members) to save $10 and renew for another 2 years.

 

[caliskimmer]

This basically just means that the Epic is now part of the buyback program. No biggie, don't panic! Your phone is still a prized possession that many other may really want to get

 

[MissJennell#IM]

WTF. I don't think you "get" the math. "they" are mistaken about the math and how sprint works and boomerbubba was noting the correct information.

Sprints buy back runs from about 10% to 50% of what you can sell a phone for on ebay. If you use buy back this does not automatically make you eligible for any discounts off of the list price as the other poster had implied..

I actually can do the math. I didn't say his math was right. Just that I didn't think they got what he was saying.

 

[boomerbubba]

If you're eligible, you get $150 off the full price of a phone when you renew your contract. What's missing here is the mail-in rebate.

Let's say you want an Evo.

$450
-$140 for "selling back" your Epic
------
$310

Can you get a $100 mail-in rebate if you don't renew your contract? I kind of doubt it. Too bad you can't sell back your phone to Best Buy or Radio Shack that doesn't bother with the rebate. Keep in mind, you're NOT renewing your contract when you buy a phone at the unsubsidized price.

My original point was that as a Sprint customer, the best you're going to get from Sprint on your next phone is $150. *If* you want to get rid of your Epic now, I don't see waiting 2 years (or 1 year for you Sprint Premier members) to save $10 and renew for another 2 years.

As I said above, if you want to ditch your Epic and buy a new Evo today, you would be better off selling the Epic on eBay for about $350, then buying the Evo. Your net cost for the trade would be about $100, vs $310 if you sold the used Epic to Sprint.

 

[shaundizzle]

All you guys are confusing me. If you sell your epic to sprint you won't be able to buy the evo for ten bucks. Your epic contract won't be upgradeable.

If your talking about when your contact is up it probably wont happen either. Because by then the phone will be out dated and they'll take it for 50. Only iphone s and the nexus one seem to keep their value

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