Would it be best to purchase a used iPhone off a private seller or a refurbished phone from a third-party reseller?
If buying from a private seller, what measures would you take to ensure the phone isn't stolen and is fully functioning, etc.
Also, as of now, which used iPhone do you think would offer best value. I'm upgrading from an iPhone 7 Plus.
Read few stories where you buy sealed iPhone, all good for couple months then suddenly dead. The seller has reported it as stolen or it was bought originally with stolen credit card and now the cc owner raising the case.
I've had that happen to me once ages back. Phone was fine for about a month then it was black listed (IMEI Blocked) and reported stolen. So insurance fraud….. they got my money and another brand new phone. Dodgy but lesson learnt..
This thread may be of interest. Sure, the topic is an iPad Pro (rather than an iPhone), but the information is still relevant.
As someone who regularly buys and sells used stuff and has recommended it to plenty of friends and family, if you are having to ask these sorts of questions, then you are better off purchasing new, or purchasing through a platform that has strong buyer protections (e.g. eBay). You don't want to be buying expensive stuff without prior experience in private marketplaces.
No doubt you can get good value used, but you have to be vigilant. Being vigilant takes some level of experience and you can't build it up in a day, even if you have a whole set of instructions to follow. If you want to get into buying/selling stuff on private marketplaces, then start with smaller value goods and then move up accordingly. You quickly learn what certain things are red flags, what kinds of people to avoid, where the best places to meet are. Generally speaking, most scammers tend to have very similar tendencies which you pick up on.
Best value would be iPhone XS Max seen them go for $350 even lower if you get one with a cracked back( don’t get one with broken screen as $$$ to fix)
Check to see if iCloud locked/imei locked/WiFi /Bluetooth /speakers/ microphone and both cameras work
that's an overly optimistic statement, you won't find any xs max with that price with perfect front screen, if you do you'll have to have gumtree/marketplace on your face all the time to see it popped up and get the chopper over the seller place straight up. below $500 is a good benchmark but not $350.
Some decent refurb sellers on ebay with good warranties, can use paypal to reduce risk. Phones prices based on cosmetic condition. Recently got a 256GB iphone X for my son in excellent condition for about $450.
bought an 11 pro max 256gb a month ago from loop mobile. Bit more expensive than gumtree or fb marketplace but it comes with warranty. I purchased a phone in "Good" condition and it looked brand new with battery health at 97%.
Had great experiences with numobile
Plenty of past post on this, just search it up in forums.
Cash on pick up.
Make sure seller can’t lock you device, etc etc…