Gazelle saw 210% more Samsung trade-ins during iPhone 5s launch weekend
Apple experienced a record sales weekend for the launch of the iPhone 5s and 5c, so this news probably isn't surprising. Consumer electronics recycler Gazelle saw a lot of action during the same time, with almost four times as many trade-ins on launch day compared to that same time frame during the iPhone 5 launch last year. It might be a number of Samsung smartphone owners jumping ship to the new iPhones, as Gazelle reported a 210 percent jump in trade-ins of Samsung phones during the launch weekend.
During launch day on September 20, Gazelle made five offers per second between 10 and 11 AM ET. That's a whopping 18,000 people in that hour who decided to trade in their existing phone for cash to use on a new iPhone. The company also reported that the average value per trade-in is US$50 higher this year than last year.
Gazelle also surveyed more than 3,000 consumers about the new iPhones, asking questions to determine why people considered an upgrade to the new Apple smartphones. It found that 36 percent of those who said they were upgrading to the iPhone 5s said they were getting it because they were due for an upgrade, and only 16 percent said they were upgrading for the Touch ID fingerprint scanner.
Among iPhone 5c upgraders, 29 percent said they were going to the colorful phone for the better camera, with an equal number upgrading because of a better price.
