Fly, cheaper: how smartphones and tablets lose value when reselling

A real geek is not subject to fashion trends, but you can’t trample against technological progress: software and requirements for gadgets are changing so rapidly that even top models become outdated in a couple of years. This implies the urgent need to periodically update the hardware fleet, especially when it comes to mobile devices. And what to do with an already unnecessary gadget? You can forget in the far drawer of the table, you can give, or you can sell. Having crossed this path repeatedly, I have long been thinking about how I will subsequently sell it when choosing and buying new equipment. Especially for his hublog, the Hand-to-Hand portal prepared a small entertaining analytics: how quickly and how much gadgets lose in price - smartphones and tablets - and how to shop so that there is less to lose on resale.

For comparison, we took the 10 most frequently found in the secondary market smartphones and tablets released in 2012, in good condition with natural signs of wear (a few minor scratches). The data, of course, was collected on the basis of offers from the Hand-to-Hand website as of November.

The main conclusion is disappointing: for a smartphone older than a year, the price drop is considered not in percent, but in times.

Another interesting observation: on average, tablets get cheaper much slower than phones - probably due to more functionality.

At the same time, Apple technology loses less gadgets of other brands in price - here the brand image and a reasonable support policy play a role. Android smartphones are depreciating quite quickly, even popular and expensive models. Accordingly, Apple tablets are in a double winning position.

Software matters: let's say the low price tag of the iPhone 3GS is due to the lack of iOS 7 and an outdated screen. Lack of support for the latest OS versions affects the price. Perhaps this is one of the reasons for the poor performance of droids over long distances - a rare manufacturer releases more than one OS update for its products.

Seller Tips

If your gadget has not been preserved in perfect condition without a scratch, the best tactic for selling it will be to reduce the price relative to similar offers by several hundred rubles. For the same tablets, a discount of 500 rubles is not a strong blow to your pocket, but a very significant advantage against similar offers. It happens that buyers are interested in the reasons for such dumping - if your conscience is clear, you can safely say that you are driven by a desire to sell goods as soon as possible.

You can set a price higher than the average market price only in two cases: if the device’s condition is close to perfect, you’ve kept the factory packaging and accessories, or you’ll give away additional accessories (in good condition), such as convenient covers, docks or large flash drives.

In other situations, packaging affects the price very slightly. Usually they pay attention to it only when buying an almost new product - so you shouldn’t immediately throw out the box (it will come in handy when returning / exchanging a gadget).

For two-year smartphones, the availability of packaging is not a reason to raise the price. But for some iPad 3, the box completely adds 500 rubles. The same applies to the configuration - for fresh devices, the lack of complete accessories, such as a cord, charging, ears and something else - an occasion to reduce the price by 10-15%. For older gadgets, this is not so important, because the price tag is already at the level of 5,000 rubles.

It is also worth recalling that the availability of high-quality photos, a detailed description, additional buns and alternative communication methods (Skype, ICQ, mail) significantly accelerate the sales process. From my own experience I can say: a competent price offer + a generous and honest description allow you to part with an unnecessary piece of iron in a day or two.

The worst way to sell your old smartphone: to set a price higher than average simply because you yourself once spent on this gadget, accompany an ad with one muddy dark photograph, make a description of one and a half lines, and leave no other means of communication than the phone. Such an announcement risks turning into a dull long-liver of the last pages of listings.

Share your experience and ask questions in the comments, and we will try to report useful information from the private ads market more often.