iPhone 5S: Tip Save $7 to Buy Any iPhone at Release

The iPhone 5S isn’t official, but for the last six years Apple’s announced a new iPhone, which means no matter if Apple calls a new iPhone the iPhone 5S or the iPhone 6, we should see a new iPhone later this year.

Analysts point to a September iPhone 5S launch, and if that’s the case we expect a late September or early October iPhone 5S release and pre-order kickoff.

We can count on Apple to offer similar iPhone 5S prices, with an on contract price from $199 to $399 and off contract prices from $649 to $849. It would be a surprise to see Apple change this pricing dynamic on carriers like Sprint, Verizon and AT&T. T-Mobile will likely offer a new iPhone at the off contract prices.

Because Apple will likely keep the price the same and is likely planning an iPhone 5S release for early fall it’s easy to plan ahead to avoid a big bill when the iPhone 5S finally arrives.

 

This is especially important for users who plan top upgrade from the iPhone 5 to a new iPhone, or for users who purchased an iPhone 4S late in the release cycle and won’t be eligible for a subsidized upgrade.

If we assume the iPhone 5S release will land in late September, say September 30th, saving $7 a day would cover the cost of a full upgrade to an off-contract iPhone 5S with 64GB of storage, assuming Apple stays true to pricing.

If you start saving for an iPhone 5S upgrade today, and really why wouldn’t you, here’s what you need to save each day.

On Contract:

• iPhone 5S 16GB – $1.67
• iPhone 5S 32GB – $2.51
• iPhone 5S 64GB – $3.35

Off Contract: 

• iPhone 5S 16GB – $5.45
• iPhone 5S 32GB – $6.29
• iPhone 5S 64GB – $7.13

Suddenly a two hundred to eight hundred-dollar purchase becomes much more reasonable. If you are due fo an upgrade it’s less than $2 a day to save for the rumored iPhone 5S 16GB.

The prices drop considerably if you plan to trade in your old iPhone. iPhone 4S and iPhone 5 trade-in prices will surely change in the next three months, but we saw trade in prices of up to $400 the day before the iPhone 5 announcement in 2012.

Gazelle is currently offering over $300 for the iPhone 5 and over $200 for an iPhone 4S. While these prices will likely drop by September and October, users can easily count on $100 to $200 for an older iPhone.

Savvy shoppers could actually knock the price of an iPhone 5S on contract down enough that they only need to save $1 a day until the iPhone 5S release rolls around.

The iPhone 5S is rumored to arrive with a similar design to the iPhone 5, but it could feature a fingerprint reader for security and some exclusive iOS 7 features. Other rumors suggest Apple is planning a higher resolution Retina Display for the iPhone 5S.