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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

How to get an iPhone 7

The iPhone 7 plus is shown during an event to announce new Apple products on Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2016, in San Francisco. (Marcio Jose Sanchez / Associated Press)
Associated Press

Apple has introduced its latest iPhone 7 that features a souped-up camera and a new headphone jack. Looking to upgrade? Here are a few options.

LEASING THROUGH APPLE

Last year, Apple started a leasing plan for iPhones that starts at $32.41 a month. Through that plan, subscribers pay a monthly fee and lease their iPhone, which is upgraded each year. The downside is you don’t own your phone, but the upside is you get a new phone each year. If you would prefer to buy your phone, you can pay for it in 24 payments (i.e. 2 years) under the same plan.

MONTHLY PHONE PLAN

The days of two-year contracts and subsidized phones are over. Most wireless carriers now offer a monthly buy-to-own option as standard. For example, AT&T offers an iPhone 6s plan for $21.67 a month for 24 months. The caveat? If you lose or break your phone, or if it gets stolen, you are still on the hook for paying for it for 24 months, unless you buy insurance, which is usually about $10 a month.

PAYING UPFRONT

A new iPhone 7 starts at $649 for 32 gigabytes of storage, double the base storage of previous iPhones, while an iPhone 7 Plus starts at $769. An older model such as the SE starts at $399. Trading in your old iPhone can garner you about $250 to $300, depending on the make and model, shaving some dollars off that price.