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It's an interesting analysis, but I don't see how the results would affect my buying decision at all. What's the actual dollar amount difference in reselling an

by LVB 15y ago

It's an interesting analysis, but I don't see how the results would affect my buying decision at all. What's the actual dollar amount difference in reselling an iPhone for 53% of original price vs Android at 42%? Maybe $50-$80? How much in carrier fees have I spent over that 18 months? Well over $1000. The difference in resale value versus the entire expense of owning these phones is insignificant. Or at least it's not significant enough to outweigh the preference one might have for a given phone. What if the numbers were flipped? How many iPhone owners would choose to switch to Android if they knew they could save $70 over the next year and a half?

freehunter 15y ago
I always hate the argument that phone costs don't matter because carrier costs are so high. You have to pay the carrier cost anyway. Service is a fixed cost, the phone is the variable cost. The only time carrier costs should be added into the equation is when you have to buy an "iPhone" plan that costs more or less than the comparable "smartphone" plan. If your choice of smartphone doesn't change the cost paid to the carrier over the term of a contract, the data point is useless.
vacri 15y ago
They lost me with this: Skip those extra GBs on your iPhone. An additional 8GB of hard drive costs you an extra $100 upfront but only adds $10 to the resale value of your phone. The secondary market doesn't value extra hard drive space on an iPhone, so get the one with the smallest amount of disk space. Hey fellas - there is more to a phone than resale value. If you're only thinking about how much you can sell it for at the end of possession, then I think I'll give your review a skip.
- LVB 15y ago
  I found their opening quotes to be a bit at odds with the rest of their logic: "It's probably hard for a Mercedes owner to describe to a Honda owner how attention to detail makes their driving experience better." Right, and said Mercedes owner probably isn't going to buy a Honda next time just because it holds its resale value better.
  - vacri 15y ago
    Looking at that particular quote is a bit weird for me. I bought a second-hand Honda from a Mercedes dealership (obviously a trade-in), and the one thing the merc salesdude kept rabbiting on about was how reliable and mechanically sound Hondas are. I guess it depends on where you focus your 'attention to detail' :) (The car has been pretty robust, and yes, the passenger capsule wouldn't be as nice as in a merc... but then again, when new these things go for half the price of a merc)

by LVB 15y ago

freehunter 15y ago

I always hate the argument that phone costs don't matter because carrier costs are so high. You have to pay the carrier cost anyway. Service is a fixed cost, the phone is the variable cost. The only time carrier costs should be added into the equation is when you have to buy an "iPhone" plan that costs more or less than the comparable "smartphone" plan. If your choice of smartphone doesn't change the cost paid to the carrier over the term of a contract, the data point is useless.

vacri 15y ago

They lost me with this: Skip those extra GBs on your iPhone. An additional 8GB of hard drive costs you an extra $100 upfront but only adds $10 to the resale value of your phone. The secondary market doesn't value extra hard drive space on an iPhone, so get the one with the smallest amount of disk space. Hey fellas - there is more to a phone than resale value. If you're only thinking about how much you can sell it for at the end of possession, then I think I'll give your review a skip.

LVB 15y ago
I found their opening quotes to be a bit at odds with the rest of their logic: "It's probably hard for a Mercedes owner to describe to a Honda owner how attention to detail makes their driving experience better." Right, and said Mercedes owner probably isn't going to buy a Honda next time just because it holds its resale value better.
- vacri 15y ago
  Looking at that particular quote is a bit weird for me. I bought a second-hand Honda from a Mercedes dealership (obviously a trade-in), and the one thing the merc salesdude kept rabbiting on about was how reliable and mechanically sound Hondas are. I guess it depends on where you focus your 'attention to detail' :) (The car has been pretty robust, and yes, the passenger capsule wouldn't be as nice as in a merc... but then again, when new these things go for half the price of a merc)