The 3G iPhone is (apparently) on its way. 1st gen iPhones are being remaindered and are otherwise thin on the ground. TUAW reader Joël Huxtable writes to ask "what will we do with the old iPhone?" Well, Joel, we're glad you asked. Here are a few thoughts about what you can do with that old phone.
eBay it. The iPhone may soon be previous gen but it still has pretty good market value -- especially if you're willing to take the risk of auctioning it off to overseas clients. I expect to see some enterprising people realize this soon and start a buyback service specifically intended to put blocks of unlocked previous-generation iPhones together for sale overseas in countries without official iPhone support.
iPod it. Once you've pwned your iPhone, it becomes not only a perfectly good iPod touch but one with built-in speakers and a microphone. You don't need an active AT&T account to keep using that iPhone as one of the best iPods ever built.
Kid it. I don't know about your kids but mine are constantly after me to use the iPhone. It offers a perfectly portable sub-laptop solution for hooking into the Internet at Wi-Fi hotspots. It takes a lot of the burden off our main computer and allows my kids to watch endless Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus clips.
I'm sure there are plenty of other uses as well in addition to selling, re-purposing or sharing the iPhone. You can probably set it up as a SETI host or cryptography number cruncher. Got more ideas? Let us know about them in the comments.
Update: I am not now and have never been on an iPhone contract. I use prepaid (AT&T GoPhone). The rates are pretty stinky but with good WiFi and now VOIP, I'm not hurting for minutes. When I bought my new refurb 8GB, I swapped out the SIMs and then activated with iLiberty+. It's working fine--sends and receives calls and SMS. I did not activate through iTunes.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
4-18-2008 @ 10:39AM
King Fysel said...
That "pwned" link ain't working.
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4-18-2008 @ 10:45AM
Angel said...
There are gonna be tons of iPhones on eBay once the 3g version comes out.
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4-18-2008 @ 10:47AM
Chris Coleman said...
Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't 3G pretty much the standard everywhere but in the U.S.? From what I understand, the lack of 3G networking on the iPhone has led to it being less successful in places like Germany. With the introduction of a 3G iPhone, I can't imagine that the rest of the world would really care that much for used 2.5G models.
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4-18-2008 @ 10:49AM
c01dphu510n said...
When I get 3G iPhone, I plan to do the following with my 8GB:
1. Test out all new hacks, programs, etc. before h4x0ring my *good* iPhone.
2. Unlock it finally and use it when I travel overseas.
OR
1. Give it to my significant other for use on AT&T in the US.
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4-18-2008 @ 10:50AM
N. Ziarek said...
World's sweetest web server with a realtime display of active sessions and bandwidth.
Or give it to my wife -- unless the new one has video chat, in which case I'd have to get two to make it useful. Right? Right!?
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4-18-2008 @ 10:56AM
Austin said...
I plan to eBay mine once the 3G phone comes out. To get the best resale value, I am holding off on sending in my phone into Apple for some under warranty, minor repair. Then when I get a fresh iPhone back, I will get the best resale value and hopefully only be out a few dollars. And honestly, if you sell your phone right when the 3G phone is announced, the market value isn't affected instantly. Most people are stupid and won't get wind of the news for a few weeks.
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4-18-2008 @ 10:58AM
Josh said...
Or, use it as your house phone. VoIP client is basically inevitable.
I'll probably "wife" mine, though.
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4-18-2008 @ 11:18AM
h8rain said...
All of my gadgets get "wifed" when I am done with or replaced with new ones (phone, camera, ipod, etc).
4-18-2008 @ 11:05AM
alpineflip said...
Will the 2g iPhones not work as a phone once 3G is released especially unlocked for different carriers or will they still support both networks? The way I read it seems like 2g will be incompatible after 3g which I understand is better but there is a lot of locked and unlocked phones currently out!
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4-18-2008 @ 12:23PM
Michael Rose said...
The 2.5G/EDGE iPhone will not be obsoleted for either phone or data when the 3G model comes out. It will still work just fine on every network that currently supports it.
4-18-2008 @ 11:08AM
NNTPgrip said...
Unless it's got something else besides a 3G radio, i'll wait until HSDPA is a little more prevalent. It will most likely be the end of '09 before Norfolk/Virginia Beach gets it, so by that time my 1st gen iPhone will be worth nothing.
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4-18-2008 @ 11:14AM
NNTPgrip said...
Actually, I might be up for it right away since I checked and we do have 3G coverage. Damn, when did get recognized as a real semi-metropolis? Did someone kill Pat Robertson?
4-18-2008 @ 11:21AM
h8rain said...
I just looked, and my house/work is like 1.5 miles ...... OUTSIDE of the 3g area. Of course that could get coverage by the time a new iPhone comes out.
4-18-2008 @ 11:12AM
Steve Jenkins said...
craigslist is calling my name. Or I may teenager it. 16 year old wants one bad.
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4-18-2008 @ 11:25AM
Dalton said...
Mine is definitely going to the wife. She'll be moving to AT&T. Will she be getting locked into a contract? And what about me? Do I get the usual price plus a new 2 year contract, or do I have to pay extra?
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4-18-2008 @ 12:53PM
Dan said...
Two words: family plan
4-18-2008 @ 11:30AM
Matt said...
... or sell it to me!
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4-18-2008 @ 11:31AM
Rafael said...
Im gonna "mom" mine. I've been trying to convince my mom to go mac since I switched just over a year ago, so hopefully the iPhone will be enough of a push for her to make the full transition.
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4-18-2008 @ 11:37AM
Ryan Smallegan said...
This may be the one time it is ok to gift a used device. I don't think anyone is going to turn down a used iPhone.
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4-18-2008 @ 11:41AM
nscheffey said...
No offense, but "iPod it" doesn't really make sense as a solution. Why would I want an iPhone and an iPod?
Kid it/significant other it seems like a good idea. Has anyone transferred ownership of an iPhone before? Is it difficult?
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