What is the true cost of an iPhone?

There are over 257 million smartphone users in the United States, with more than 60% of the population using a smartphone. Since its launch in 2007, Apple’s iPhone has grown considerably in popularity, with a 2017 study showing there are almost 86 million iPhone users in the US.

Over the last 11 years, we’ve seen the iPhone continue to innovate the smartphone space – but it is costing us more and more every year for the latest cell phone.

So, how much do we really spend on iPhones over the course of a lifetime? We looked into the cost of an iPhone if you bought your first one at 18, and upgraded right through until you turned 81.

The short term cost might not be considered when you’re upgrading your cell phone – but for the same amount of money, you could have bought a house, depending on the state, or two top-of-the-range Harley-Davidson bikes.

In terms of more luxurious items, you could have bought yourself a jet pack, travelled the world or even bought your own private island!

You can recoup some of the cost of your last phone when you trade it in or sell it privately. There are plenty of ways to sell iPhone handsets; you can use a trusted name like Decluttr to buy your phone from you to then refurbish it.

You can use eBay or Facebook Marketplace to list your phone but you should be aware that there are people who will waste your time. Marketplaces aren’t always safe either – you have no idea who you’re going to meet, or whether the item is legitimate. Using a name you can trust like Decluttr, you know how much you’ll make for your iPhone trade in before you send off your phone and your sale is guaranteed.

If having the latest handset on the day of release isn’t super important to you, you could buy a refurbished device and literally save yourself hundreds of dollars.

The phone will work as you’d expect it to and it may not even have any marks to show it’s been used, depending on its condition.

When it comes to upgrading, you can save some money by buying the smallest storage option (which will most likely be 64GB) as well as reducing the data you sign up for.

For example, if you pay for 20GB of data a month but you aren’t even close to using it all, make some cuts on this to 10GB or 12GB to save a little each month. It’ll make a difference in the long run.

The less you upgrade, the less you’ll have to pay when you do. However, don’t just let your contract overrun the 24 month period because you’ll end up paying way more than you should.

It’s important to know when your contract ends so you can either understand what your options are, with either your current network provider or a competitor. You could keep the cell phone you currently have, and just pay for an airtime plan that could cost you much less a month. Look around for the best SIM only deal.

You should understand how much data, minutes and texts you’re using right now and whether that is enough for you.

Mining metals like gold (AU), silver (AG), platinum (PT) and palladium (PD) has a profound effect on the earth. The building of a smartphone represents up to 95% of the device’s total CO2 emissions for two years.

World Health Even when we’re done with our iPhones, simply chucking them away means these precious metals aren’t being reused and other chemicals tucked inside your little iPhone can cause pollution of air, soil and even drinking water.

More than 415,000 cell phones enter landfills and incinerators every day in the United States. Plus, as much as $55 billion is lost annually from squandered resources such as gold.

As trends shift, we’re seeing larger phones coming on to the market with supersized screens and plenty of power inside. The carbon footprint of a larger device is more than the smaller phones we used to use. Despite the options available like Decluttr to recycle our old phones, less than 1% are being recycled. It’s not just the iPhone itself either.

It’s the data centres we use that bump up the CO2 emissions from smartphone usage too. By 2020, 45% of ICT emissions will be accountable by data centres and servers. ICT represented just 1% of the carbon footprint in 2007 but by 2040, it’s expected to be at 14%.

A brand new iPhone XS Max with 256GB storage option will cost you $1,249 direct from Apple. However, if you were to buy the same iPhone through Decluttr, the refurbished version would cost you $809.99.

If you would rather not invest in the latest iPhone, buying direct from Apple leaves your options for a cell phone pretty limited. Apple no longer manufacture the iPhone X or any iPhone older than the iPhone 7. To get your hands on an iPhone 6s, for example, would mean buying second hand or refurbished. An iPhone 6s with 128GB of memory from Decluttr in Good condition is less than $165!