Eagerly awaiting the new
iPhone? Then sell your old one
now.
The trade-in value of an old
iPhone declines sharply before
the launch of each new one,
and Apple is expected to unveil
the iPhone 6 in just a couple of
weeks -- on Sept. 9.
In the past, prices for old
iPhones have dropped 20% a
month before and after the
company's announcement,
according to Gazelle, a company
that will buy your old iPhone
from you.
The company calls Apple's
launch day, which typically
happens in September, "Gazelle
Christmas," said Alyssa Voorhis,
the company's senior tech
analyst.
As of Tuesday, a customer could
fetch up to $290 for a 16 GB
iPhone 5S in good condition.
Prices vary depending on what
carrier it supports.
This year, Gazelle is allowing
customers to lock in a
guaranteed price for their older
iPhone now and send it to
Gazelle later, after buying the
new version. So don't worry,
you won't have to be left
without a smartphone while
waiting for the iPhone 6.
A growing number of people
are figuring out that their old
gadgets are worth some cash.
The company has a 125% jump
in trading-in customers this
year, compared to last year. On
Aug. 18, the first day customers
could lock in a price at Gazelle,
the company made more than
two price offers every second.
A lot of the increase is due to a
growing awareness of the
service, said Voorhis. But there
may be another reason Apple
fans are ready for an upgrade
this year. It's likely the new
version will have an entirely
different body.
"Historically, there's a lot of
excitement when that
happens," Voorhis said.

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