According to a report from Decluttr, a website that specializes in selling gadgets, they have put together some numbers that show how much a phone depreciates in value after a new model has been launched. For devices like the iPhone 12, the company reports that they usually lose about 12% of their value after the first month of the iPhone 13 launching, and 20% after three months.
The report also states that most people tend to sit on their old device for an average of 10 weeks, in which its value could then decline as much as 33%. If you are someone who trades-in their phone often, this could amount to $2,700 lost over their lifetime. The report asked customers why they waited so long, and a number of them said that they did not know that trading late could result in its value depreciating.
So what does this mean? If you are thinking of selling off your iPhone 12 for the iPhone 13, then you might want to consider doing so before the phone is launched where you could possibly get the most value out of it. This is presuming you have a spare phone to use in between, but it’s something to consider.