With yesterday’s announcement of the iPhone 7/7Plus, there are various price changes on older models, sales in the UK, and AppleCare+ you should know about.
Apple has lowered prices on the iPhone 6s, 6s Plus, and SE. The iPhone 6s now comes in just two storage configurations: 3GB, and 128GB, for, respectively, $549 and $649, respectively. Before Wednesday, the 128GB model was $200 more; there was no 32GB option.
With the iPhone 6s Plus, you an now choose from a 32GB model for $649 and a 128GB version for $749. Prior to yesterday. a 128GB model cost nearly $1,000. Also, the 64GB iPhone SE can been discounted by $50 and now costs $449.
Meanwhile, the effects of the UK’s vote to leave the EU are showing up in the price of Apple’s products. The cheapest iPhone 7 is 11% more expensive than the iPhone 6S when it was launched last year. The larger iPhone 7 Plus is 16% more expensive than the 6S was originally.
The likely reason for the price is the weaker British pound, which has taken a beating since the UK voted for Brexit on June 23. The pound fell by as much 14% against the US dollar in the days immediately after the result was announced, and is now trading at about 10% below the dollar compared to pre-Brexit rates.
Finally, AppleCare+ repair now offers new prices for screen damage and regular damage instead of one price for all repairs. The repair service extends complimentary one-year warranty coverage to two years and adds two incidents of accidental damage coverage.
Under the new pricing structure, the service fee for screen damage like cracked screens, touchscreen issues, and damage LCD’s is only $29. All other damage like non-charging batteries and broken buttons are subject to a $99 service fee. Previously phones, no matter the damage, had an $99 service fee but now Apple has broken it up depending on the phone’s issue. This is not just for the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus; it extends the new prices to the iPhone 5, iPhone 5s, iPhone 5c, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, and iPhone SE.
AppleCare+ can be purchased alongside the iPhone or it can be bought within 60days of the original purchase date of an Apple smartphone, though the latter requires a remote diagnostic to be run for purchases online or over the phone or a physical inspection for purchases at the Apple Retail Store.
