After Apple verdict, a rush to unload Samsung phones?
Electronics buyback site Gazelle tells CNET it's seen a 50 percent jump in Samsung trade-ins since last week's big verdict.
Are more people saying so long to Samsung after last week's patent trial loss to Apple?
(Credit: CNET)Last week, a jury found that a number of Samsung devices infringed on Apple's patents, including the Galaxy S II. Is it just a coincidence, then, that consumer electronics resale site Gazelle has seen a huge bump in trade-ins of Galaxy S phones and other Samsung devices?
Gazelle's Anthony Scarsella told me today that the Web site has seen a 50 percent increase in Samsung trades in the days since the verdict was handed down.
"The Galaxy S II has been the most popular model," Scarsella added.
Four of the eight infringing Samsung devices that Apple says it wants banned from store shelves are Galaxy S II variants.
But over at another popular buy-back site, eBay Instant Sale, no impact on trade-ins from the verdict was seen as of yesterday morning, according to a spokesperson for the site.
So with the possibility of injunctions, function-disabling updates, and other uncertainties, are Samsung phone owners jumping ship? Or has Gazelle simply done a better job than the competition of marketing its trade-in service at a time when the Galaxy S3 (not part of the Apple verdict) is riding high and a new iPhone is around the corner?
I've contacted other resale sites for data on Samsung devices since the verdict and will continue to report what I find. Meanwhile, what do you think? Let us know if the Samsung/Apple patent debacle has changed how you think about Samsung devices or affected any of your relationships with your mobile gadgets.
