Now's the right time to buy the iPhone 13

At its annual fall press event on Wednesday, Apple announced the iPhone 14, 14 Plus, 14 Pro, and 14 Pro Max. Ironically, that makes now the best time to buy 2021’s iPhone 13, at least if you care about value over state-of-the-art features.

iPhone 13 - 12-09-2022 06:11

As is usual after new iPhone announcements, the prior year’s model is now available at a discount. Straight from Apple, the standard 6.1-inch iPhone 13 starts at $699, and the 5.4-inch 13 Mini runs for $599. Both devices are $100 lower than before, making them cheaper than the new $799 iPhone 14 and $899 14 Plus while still delivering plenty of power.

Third-party retailers like Amazon, Best Buy, and Walmart are holding on to their old price tags as of this writing, but they’ll soon follow suit, and probably offer a better deal in some cases. If you’re willing to accept a little risk, meanwhile, a flood of used or refurbished iPhone 13s is about to hit sites like Amazon, eBay, and Facebook Marketplace as people upgrade. Eventually, Apple itself will start selling refurbished models, though I wouldn’t hold my breath if I were actively shopping for a phone.

If you want an iPhone 13 Pro or Pro Max, though, you’ll have to go with third parties. Apple has killed off new sales, perhaps understandably betting that if you’re considering a Pro, you have the money for the newer models.

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