What you need to know
- Apple has cut the trade-in price of some of its most popular products.
- The MacBook, iPad, and Apple Watch have all had their values reduced.
- The biggest reductions came to high-value items like the MacBook Pro and the iMac.
Apple has quite drastically reduced the trade-in value of some of its most popular products, according to the company's trade-in website.
The three main product categories that have seen a reduction this week are the iPad, Mac, and the Apple Watch. But first, some good news: the best iPhone you can trade-in, the iPhone 12, remains priced at up to $650 for the 'Pro Max' variant, with all of Apple's phones back to the iPhone 6s retaining their previous value.
Apple has knocked a few dollars off the price of the Apple Watch Series 6, down to $150 from $170, while the SE, Series 5, 4, and 3 have all been reduced by $15-$20 as well. According to the site, Apple is no longer offering a price for the Series 2 Apple Watch (previously $20), but will likely still accept it just for free recycling.
The iPad Pro and iPad Air both saw their prices fall from $680 and $335 to $655 and $290 respectively, with smaller reductions for the regular iPad and the iPad mini.
Unfortunately, the big losers are anyone who was thinking about trading in a Mac with Apple in the near future, with prices for Apple's top-of-the-line desktops and laptops falling significantly.
The price of a MacBook Pro for trade-in has fallen by some $350 to $1,000, the MacBook Air has dropped from $490 to $400, and the MacBook from $315 to $220.
Apple's desktop machines saw even more drastic reductions, likely owing to their larger starting price points. The Mac mini fell from $600 to $450, the iMac from $1,200 to $850, the Mac Pro from $2,720 to $2,000, and the iMac Pro from $2,315 down to just $1,500, a 42% reduction in the possible price.
It's important to note that Apple can only offer estimates for quotes online and that the price of a device at trade-in isn't guaranteed until it has been checked physically by Apple. The prices listed on the trade-in website are the most you can expect to receive for any given device. Apple offers trade-ins in-store or prepaid kits that can be shipped to your home in certain locations. Apple has also amended its trade-in policy to allow customers to trade in products for gift cards even if they aren't making a purchase. Originally, customers could only trade in a device if they were buying a new one.
