Wondering if Apple trade in is a scam

Me, too - nearly the same scenario. They offered $390 and then told me it has white spots - which I have never seen - and "revised" the offer to $140. Like I'm going to give them nearly new, $1,700 computer for $140. And what does it say about Apple if they can't make a product that will last a couple of years without having "white spots" (whatever that means)? No thanks - I'll use it as a back-up or donate it rather than let some scam artist rip me off. Really bad look for Apple.

I had the same experience with my daughters 2017 Mac Book, they offered $340 for a trade in for a new Mac Book, after sending it in I received the revised offer of $140 due to 3 white dots. I declined and had it sent back to me. Upon receipt I didn't see any white dots and contested Phobio using the number included on the sheet with the returned Mac book. I was told that the 3 white dots was incorrect and the reduced cost was due to de-lamination of the screen, when I asked for more details that really meant the marks from the keys on the screen. If you hold a flashlight up to your screen with no display on you will probably see markings/outlines from the keyboard. No we have 3 other Mac book products in our house so I went and they all have the same markings from the keys but this is not visible at all when the display is on. It is a by-product of the Mac book design and in my opinion, very misleading to consumers. I spoke to Apple and they said Phobio is in charge with the return parameters and that I could send the Mac book in again and then get Apple involved, seemed like a waste of my time. I took the Mac book and sold it on eBay for double the offer received. As a customer and stock holder in Apple I'm extremely disappointed in how this is a mute issue on their part.

they edited my comment as well when I mentioned taking a c t i o n. Very interesting and telling on the part of Apple. There IS something going on here. and Apple is not stepping up and making sure their products are being produced/manufactured properly if they see and know of the continuous screen issues (3 white spots and more) OR backing their products value OR making sure their 3rd party contract is adequately and honestly doing a quality job. E t h i c s are in play here.

Yes, that is what was explained to me as well. The buttons rub, the simple action of opening and closing lid can scrape away the "protective" screen coating and then they do not value it. They are not backing their products. $590 down to $210 is a HUGE downgrade in trade-in value for a simple screen rub that they know happens and will replace screen and resell LIKE NEW. They know the issue, they know the solution. They do not make good on their products. As a stock owner and life long customer and promoter of Apple/Mac products I too am VERY disenchanted with ALL of this.

As several folks on this thread have already noted, the promise of a trade-in allowance can factor hugely into the decision of whether to buy a new Apple computer versus simply muddling along with the one you currently own. And so, no - Apple is in no hurry to shut-down that highly effective selling ploy.

Interesting. Of course I tried the trade in with an old phone 1st so any new MAC has been put on hold. I’m sure

my MAC has 3 white spots but I I’ll learn to live with then since they aren’t visible to me.

Completely agree. Yes, I have spent two days around 3 + hours each going back and forth trying to get answers. I even told them about all the complaints with exact same stories.... something stinks here and it's not the customers.

Traded in my 16" MacBook Pro, in excellent shape (except low battery), for new 16" MacBook Pro. My Mac appraised for $390. Waited two weeks from shipping, for response to credit amount, only to be notified $140 – because had 3 white spots or more on display. Very disappointing, but even more disppointing that the new 16" MacBook Pro received had been on shelf since 2019. It will only operate on battery for about 4 to 5 hours, and that's being cautious, to take all energy conserving measures. I think I'll have my old Mac returned; a gift to some person happy. What to do about this new MacBook??????????????

@cornell258

Seriously, the claim that a new battery lasts 12 hrs, is if you run NOTHING at all if you ask me.

If you are running Chrome for instance, 5 hrs on battery seems only a bit less than normal lolol. Chrome is a huge power hog. Use Safari instead.

Definitely a scam. We have our employees trade in their computers during upgrades. 3 Macbooks so far and 1 iphone. Every single one has 1 or 2 broken pixels and the trade-in value is docked by about 50% as a result. There are no broken pixels detectable by the human eye at least. Sadly this is not run by a third party but by Apple. Screwing us to make more $$.

And as of last night the "B" key on my 2 month old $1,800 MacBook Pro is sticking. Have to push down firmly on it, which pretty much kills any possibility of speed-typing. One reason I upgraded is because I hated the keyboard on my two year old Mac. Wish they would focus more on quality and less on their phony trade-in scam.

Well, I actually spoke to an Apple representative (for some other question I had) and when I brought this up as well they were very surprised and told me to submit a complaint about this. I suggest that, to make them aware of this lousy trade in experience we are ALL having, we all file a complaint and hopefully (hopefully) the more people complain, they will finally do something about it. (what they don't know, they won't change so not saying anything will definitely not help).

And on my side I sent a phone with initial estimates price of £310 rejected for small crack on camera glass, upon having the device sent back to me it appeared with another “new” defect of a scratch the full length from one corner to another. Almost as if it was opened using a blade.

I agreed to a trade in of my iPad Pro for $260. It was in perfect shape and sure enough I got the same scam played on me. They wouldn’t specify the reason but the offer was reduced to $0. After 3 attempts to find out exactly what their “issue” was with my iPad Pro I rejected the offer and am waiting to hopefully get my old unit back in the condition it was sent in.

Apple uses a 3rd party for this program and as a result communication is pathetic in trying to resolve any issue. Never again. Sell your unit locally and make more $. The effort is worth it.

After I rejected the scam trade-in offer they did return my computer and it was in good shape cosmetically - they didn't harm in any way. However, it was completely bricked and although I followed all of the various procedures described online in the Apple support area to reinstall an operating system, none have worked so far. I've received a variety of error messages - untrusted certificate, unable to reach the server, etc.. So I'm calling support directly. I figure they owe me. Especially since the new computer - the one they hooked me into buying with the phony assurance I'd receive $390 for my trade-in - is still well within the initial free support period. I'll let you know what happens.