In today's world, everyone seems to need a smartphone. The most popular smartphones are the Apple iPhone and Samsung Galaxy. These are great phones, but buying them outright or even on a plan is an expensive exercise.

Buying a used smartphone will save lots of money and prevent the rare earth materials they contain (such as lithium, yttrium and lanthanides) ending up in landfill.

There are some things you should consider when buying a used/refurbished smartphone to ensure you are getting the best value for money:

1. Make sure the phone supports the latest iOS software
   Unless you just want a phone for emergency use for your kids, generally you want your phone to have the latest iOS from Apple installed for both performance and security reasons. Apps need to be adapted or optimised for the latest iOS version, so your favourite app or game may not play on a phone that does not support the latest iOS if they have not been updated in a while. Before you purchase, check to ensure that the apps you use the most will still work on your new phone (see our compatibility chart at the end of this article).
    
2. Make sure the phone is not carrier locked
   It's not such a major issue in Australia anymore, but phones imported from overseas may have this issue. Always check that the item mentions being unlocked somewhere in the title or description to avoid any surprises - look for "carrier unlocked" or "no carrier lock". If you can't find this in the description, contact the seller and ask them, and if they can't (or won't) confirm it's not carrier locked, find another supplier. It can be a frustrating and time-consuming exercise to remove a carrier lock!
    
3. Check that the phone is not stolen
   When buying from a reputable website (such as Connecting Up or Reboot-IT), this will never be a problem as we will always have assurances from the supplier that the items have clear IMEI’s. The IMEI is a unique number stored on the smartphone that identifies it individually. When reported stolen, the IMEI will be marked as such. If buying privately, you can do a basic check on IMEI check websites such as http://www.lost.amta.org.au/IMEI or with your network carrier (e.g. Telstra, Optus, Vodafone).
    
4. Ask about the battery life
   Phones can be refurbished but batteries cannot! Battery performance does slowly diminish over time, however, even a three- or four-year-old phone should still have perfectly good battery life. Professional sellers will have a process that checks the battery life of each phone, so ask what condition the battery is in and make sure it still has a strong charge. Ensure you also check the warranty/return policy if the battery's condition is different to what they say.
    
5. Decide what storage capacity you need
   This is true for both new and refurbished smartphones. If you use a lot of different apps or store lots of photos and video content, you will want a phone with a large capacity. If you just use your phone for calls, casual browsing, and a reasonable number of apps, 16GB may be all you need. One easy way to tell is if you get "storage almost full" or similar warnings on your existing phone. If you do, you should get a phone with more capacity. If not, check your storage by going into settings. If you are close to running a full disk, you may still want to upsize to avoid future storage capacity issues.
    
6. Check what warranty is being offered
   Most retailers of used smartphones will offer a warranty of some sort. The minimum warranty you should expect is three months, with many suppliers offering six months. Many sellers will also offer an option for an extended warranty which may be well worth it, especially if getting one of the later phones. Make sure you check what the warranty covers. Generally, it will cover the hardware and software in the phone but will exclude accidental damage or battery/software issues caused by the user.

The refurbished Apple iPhones and Samsung Galaxy smartphones we sell go through extensive functionality tests, battery checks, IMEI checks, carrier lock checks and all have been cleared and flashed with the manufacturers operating system. We also offer a 6mth warranty and FREE shipping Australia wide. We do everything we can to give you guaranteed quality when you buy refurbished through us.

Apple iPhone model compatible with iOS11

• iPhone X
• iPhone 8
• iPhone 8 Plus
• iPhone 7
• iPhone 7 Plus
• iPhone 6s
• iPhone 6s Plus
• iPhone 6
• iPhone 6 Plus
• iPhone 5s
• iPhone SE