trade-ins

With the anticipation of a new iPad being just around the corner, more people have been trading in their first- and second-generation Apple tablets, eBay says.

This afternoon, the company said it's generated more than 125,000 tablet trade-in offers this month, with 97.6 percent of those consisting of Apple iPad models. That number is up tenfold from the number of offers during the same month last year, eBay said.

Those offers are for the online commerce site's Instant Sale program, which differs from its auction services by giving gadget owners a way to trade in items … Read more

I am the first to admit when I am wrong. And indeed, I made a mistake a few weeks ago when I mentioned in this column a certain Web site as a place to sell an old iPhone without checking the reputation of the site mentioned.

In the October 4 edition of Ask Maggie, headlined Where to unload your laptop for top dollar, I listed the Web site CashForiPhones.com as a place to sell a used iPhone. Since then, I've learned from various readers and through my own investigation, that this particular Web site has a reputation for … Read more

Gadget buyer Gazelle, which purchases gadgets in return for cash, today said it's seen an 80 percent increase in BlackBerry trades since last week, up from record highs earlier this month.

The metric follows an extended outage of Research In Motion's e-mail and BlackBerry messaging services, which left users unable to communicate with one another or send and receive e-mails globally. To placate angry users, RIM offered users $100 in free "premium" applications. The spike also coincided with the release of Apple's new iPhone 4S.

Gazelle's "Chief Gadget Officer' Anthony Scarsella told CNET … Read more

If you were hoping to get top dollar for your old iPhone before upgrading to the new 4S or perhaps one of the first Android Ice Cream Sandwich phones, it's now safe to say you've missed the boat.

It's not exactly a surprise, but still interesting to see just how quickly the trade-in and resale values of even pristine iPhone 4 models has fallen in just a few weeks. Right after the iPhone 4S was unveiled, I reported on a special offer from eBay's Instant Sale site offering $357 for a 32 GB iPhone 4 in excellent condition. The offer price for a unit fitting the same description has since dropped by over a hundred bucks.

On the regular eBay auction site, an iPhone 4 might have fetched over $400 that same week--more if it were unlocked. Now a used iPhone 4 isn't getting much more than $275 tops.… Read more

Apple's next iteration of the ever-popular iPhone is expected to be announced today. And eager fans are already asking questions in anticipation of buying the new device.

Where is the best place to sell old iPhones to fund the purchase of a new one? And will an AT&T version of the device that's expected to support the faster network technology HSPA+ really offer a noticeable performance boost over 3G versions of the same phone from Verizon Wireless and Sprint Nextel?

These are just two questions I tackle in this installment of the Ask Maggie column. Look … Read more

With the release of Apple's next iPhone expected to be just around the corner, at least one third-party trade-in service is seeing what it calls an unusually high amount of trading activity from people trying to offload last year's model.

Gadget buyer Gazelle, which purchases iPhones, iPads, and devices from other manufacturers, today said it's seen an 84 percent "spike" in people trying to sell off their used iPhones to the service compared to the same time two weeks ago.

"This launch has been so delayed and overdue, there's definitely a lot more of a hype," said Anthony Scarsella, Gazelle's "chief gadget officer" in a phone interview. "For us, this is really an unprecedented behavior, as gadget owners always wait--usually until a new product is announced--to trade in."

Scarsella suggested that the spike is even more peculiar given that the iPhone is a type of device where people usually only sell it after getting their hands on a replacement.

"This is especially true with mobile phones, because you can't really trade in your phone and go without it. With a tablet, and other categories, you can trade in your camera, wait two months, and buy a new camera. But with a cell phone, it's kind of like you need one on you at all times," Scarsella said. … Read more

Verizon Wireless is offering some incentives to convince basic feature phone owners to upgrade to a smartphone.

Verizon spokeswoman Brenda Raney told CNET that customers with basic phones who are eligible to upgrade between now and the end of the year can currently upgrade to a smartphone. Such customers have until September 30 to make the switch.

In return for trading in their current feature phone, subscribers will receive a $100 gift card from the carrier via its Wireless Trade-In Program. The gift card can then be used for any type of purchase at Verizon, including paying off a bill. … Read more

Amazon announced today it is expanding its trade-in program to allow customers to swap their used electronics for Amazon gift cards.

The online retailer said it will accept used tablets, cell phones, MP3 players, cameras, and GPS devices, regardless of where the items were purchased. Would-be electronics recyclers can search Amazon's Trade-in page for items being accepted for credit. Offered trade-in values range from 25 cents for a variety of cell phones to $480 for Apple's iPad 2.

Customers indicate the condition of the item ("Like New," "Good," or " Acceptable") and print … Read more

PlayStation 3 trade-ins have hit higher-than-expected levels at some retail outlets following Sony's PlayStation Network troubles, a new report claims.

According to gaming publication Edge, U.K. retail sources say they've seen a "massive increase" in PlayStation 3 trade-ins over the past several weeks. In one location, a source claims, PlayStation 3 trade-ins are up "over 200 percent." Half of those folks are taking cash for the trade, the publication's source says, while the other half are opting to buy Microsoft's Xbox 360.

A source from another game retailer told Edge that … Read more