The biggest feature of the iPhone 13 does not appear in any spec sheet. It is in the exchange offers

This story is part of it Apple Event, our full coverage of the latest Apple news.

From Apple iPhone 13 i 13 Pro the lines seem to offer many welcome improvements. Battery life is longer, there are witty camera tricks, better screens and even some new color options. Although this “S” year update is not as significant as last year’s 5G redesign and inclusion, here it is enough that Apple will probably move many, many millions of iPhones.

Especially if you consider the price of operators in the United States.

All three major wireless providers have begun introducing new offerings to get people to upgrade their old devices to these 5G compatible iPhones. As has been the trend in recent years, these deals are available to both new and existing customers, offering significant discounts on all versions of the new iPhone 13 if you’re willing to upgrade and commit to staying with a operator for several years.

Offers represent an incentive for operators not only to choose customers among themselves, but to block their existing base with longer offers. They opened the bidding gates last year, when companies were eager to get people on their 5G networks and continue to launch the iPhone 13. While it’s a good time for those looking for a good business, consumers should be aware that the terms can be extended up to three years.

Apple went so far as to acknowledge the company’s discounts during its presentation Tuesday with Kaiann Drance, Apple’s vice president of marketing for iPhone products, and noted that there are “some fantastic deals from Apple and our partners.” when mentioning the prices of the iPhone 13.

AT&T is offering up to $ 1,000 off the iPhone 13 Pro or Pro Max and up to $ 700 off the iPhone 13 and Mini, essentially making the iPhone 13 Pro or 13 Mini free. Verizon is offering up to $ 800 off any iPhone 13, covering the basic costs of the 13 and Mini.

Read more: Price and booking of the iPhone 13: how and when to buy new Apple phones

Both carriers will need you to switch to a fairly recent phone and have an unlimited plan (in the case of Verizon, one of their current top-level unlimited offers, such as Do More, Get More, and Play More, or previous plans Above Unlimited and Beyond Unlimited) for full credit. AT&T also requires that the device be in good working order, while Verizon will pick up any phone, even those with broken screens, as long as it has no battery damage.

T-Mobile’s most aggressive offering actually comes from Apple directly. If you’re buying from Apple and trading on an iPhone X or later, the company will give you a credit of at least $ 200 from Apple for the price of the phone and a minimum of $ 200 back from T-Mobile. These numbers can jump quickly if you are trading with a new device and have the top carrier plan, known as Magenta Max.

If you have Magenta Max and are operating on an iPhone 12 Pro Max, you’ll get $ 790 from Apple, with T-Mobile charging an additional $ 500 through invoice credits for a total savings of $ 1,290.

More directly, T-Mobile offers up to $ 500 off the price of any iPhone 13 series phone, as long as it is funded with a quota plan and translated into an eligible device. This offer does not require a Magenta Max plan and will work with any other offer from the company.

Playing for love

In all cases, the problem is that you have to be willing to stick with the carrier of your choice, as the discounts come back to you as monthly credits.

The AT&T deal requires financing the phone for 36 months. Verizon needs to be funded over 24 or 30 months, while Apple’s T-Mobile deal will give the carrier part of the promotion through billing credits for 24 months (the phone change to Apple is can be used as instant credit). T-Mobile’s $ 500 direct promotion requires you to buy an iPhone 13 with a 30-month payment plan.

In any case, if you cancel the service or leave earlier, you run the risk of losing the rest of your bill credits and charging your outstanding phone balance.

“Now that U.S. carriers are really launching 5G networks, they’re trying to strengthen their subscriber base to keep competition at bay,” says Avi Greengart, an industry analyst at Techsponential. “They are all ensuring that these agreements bear fruit by linking them to their more expensive service plans, which require changes and extending subsidies for two or even three years.”

In addition to current upgrade offers, some carriers like T-Mobile have added new incentives to keep people connected to their networks for even longer periods of time, far beyond the iPhone 12 or 13.

Called “Forever Upgrade,” starting Friday, the carrier guarantees an exchange value of up to $ 800 for those on your network who buy a new iPhone 12 or 13 and have their highest-end Magenta Max plan. (another older, alt-end T-Mobile or Sprint plans are also eligible).

As with all other offers, there is a problem. In addition to the requirements of the plan, this $ 800 exchange value will not materialize unless you wait two years and keep the device in good working order. At this point, you can re-operate with the iPhone you are getting now and allocate that money to a new device, keeping the cycle running.

Anshel Sag, a senior analyst at Moor Insights and Strategy, said carriers’ offerings like those offered by T-Mobile “are designed to build consumer loyalty” and prevent people from leaving.

And because many of these deals require a higher-level unlimited plan, Sag notes that carriers are “happier to keep these customers instead of letting them go to someone else who has more iPhone deals. aggressive “.