Apple Card Monthly Financing No Longer Available for SIM-Free iPhones

Apple today updated its U.S. Apple Card Monthly Installment plan to require those who use the feature to purchase an iPhone that is linked to AT&T, Verizon, or T-Mobile. With this change, the ‌Apple Card‌ Monthly Installment plan can no longer be used to purchase a SIM-free ‌iPhone‌.

apple card feature2
All iPhones purchased through the ‌Apple Card‌ Monthly Installment plan are unlocked so carrier switching is available at any point, but at purchase, customers will need to have a plan with a supported carrier. Buying a SIM-free ‌iPhone‌ and linking it to a carrier like Mint Mobile will no longer be possible using installments.

Apple announced these changes in an updated support document back in June, and the monthly installment plan has officially been updated. Prior to now, ‌Apple Card‌ installments could be used to purchase an ‌iPhone‌ online with the option to connect to a carrier at a later date, which allowed customers to buy an ‌iPhone‌ and then link it to any carrier of their choosing.

Apple already required customers using ‌Apple Card‌ installments to choose one of the main three carriers when in stores, and now the online policy matches the in-store policy.

With the ‌Apple Card‌ Monthly Installment plan, ‌Apple Card‌ holders can pay for their devices over a 24-month period with 0% APR and 3% Daily Cash back on payments.

Apple today is also changing the monthly installment term for the Apple Watch, and customers will be required to pay off the device over 12 months instead of 24 months. Apple now uses a 12-month term for Apple Watch, Macs, displays, and iPads, with the 24-month term limited to the ‌iPhone‌.

Popular Stories

iPhone SE 4 Vertical Camera Feature

iPhone SE 4 Rumored to Use Same Rear Chassis as iPhone 16

Friday July 19, 2024 7:16 am PDT by
Apple will adopt the same rear chassis manufacturing process for the iPhone SE 4 that it is using for the upcoming standard iPhone 16, claims a new rumor coming out of China. According to the Weibo-based leaker "Fixed Focus Digital," the backplate manufacturing process for the iPhone SE 4 is "exactly the same" as the standard model in Apple's upcoming iPhone 16 lineup, which is expected to...
iPhone 16 Pro Sizes Feature

iPhone 16 Series Is Just Two Months Away: Everything We Know

Monday July 15, 2024 4:44 am PDT by
Apple typically releases its new iPhone series around mid-September, which means we are about two months out from the launch of the iPhone 16. Like the iPhone 15 series, this year's lineup is expected to stick with four models – iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max – although there are plenty of design differences and new features to take into account. To bring ...
bsod

Crowdstrike Says Global IT Outage Impacting Windows PCs, But Mac and Linux Hosts Not Affected

Friday July 19, 2024 3:12 am PDT by
A widespread system failure is currently affecting numerous Windows devices globally, causing critical boot failures across various industries, including banks, rail networks, airlines, retailers, broadcasters, healthcare, and many more sectors. The issue, manifesting as a Blue Screen of Death (BSOD), is preventing computers from starting up properly and forcing them into continuous recovery...
iphone 14 lineup

Cellebrite Unable to Unlock iPhones on iOS 17.4 or Later, Leak Reveals

Thursday July 18, 2024 4:18 am PDT by
Israel-based mobile forensics company Cellebrite is unable to unlock iPhones running iOS 17.4 or later, according to leaked documents verified by 404 Media. The documents provide a rare glimpse into the capabilities of the company's mobile forensics tools and highlight the ongoing security improvements in Apple's latest devices. The leaked "Cellebrite iOS Support Matrix" obtained by 404 Media...
Apple Watch Series 9

2024 Apple Watch Lineup: Key Changes We're Expecting

Tuesday July 16, 2024 7:59 am PDT by
Apple is seemingly planning a rework of the Apple Watch lineup for 2024, according to a range of reports from over the past year. Here's everything we know so far. Apple is expected to continue to offer three different Apple Watch models in five casing sizes, but the various display sizes will allegedly grow by up to 12% and the casings will get taller. Based on all of the latest rumors,...
tinypod apple watch

TinyPod Turns Your Apple Watch Into an iPod

Wednesday July 17, 2024 3:18 pm PDT by
If you have an old Apple Watch and you're not sure what to do with it, a new product called TinyPod might be the answer. Priced at $79, the TinyPod is a silicone case with a built-in scroll wheel that houses the Apple Watch chassis. When an Apple Watch is placed inside the TinyPod, the click wheel on the case is able to be used to scroll through the Apple Watch interface. The feature works...

Top Rated Comments

stark93 Avatar
12 months ago
wtf … Why? This was almost the only reason I have an Apple Card.
Score: 42 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BreakingKayfabe Avatar
12 months ago
Crazy that the carriers have this much pull with Apple.
Score: 33 Votes (Like | Disagree)
AlinomyTomy Avatar
12 months ago
Jesus, I’m sitting here with my Apple Card anxiously awaiting the new phones to replace a backup 6 I’ve been on for the last month, and Apple pulls this? The Apple Card just lost a ton of value to me, personally.
Score: 26 Votes (Like | Disagree)
macizcool Avatar
12 months ago
I started an “Apple Savings Account” which is an account setup just for buying Apple products. I have $40 transferred to it every paycheck. This is my own way of doing 0% financing.
Score: 25 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jz0309 Avatar
12 months ago
That’s a really stupid move, have been buying unlocked phones for a long time…
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
xxray Avatar
12 months ago
This is really frustrating. Us prepaid users always get the bottom of the barrel when it comes to stuff like this. Reminds me of when sim-free iPhones weren’t available until a month or two after launch. What’s the logic behind this move?
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)