EBay wants to help you land a Verizon iPhone by offering cash for your old smartphone

By Aemon Malone February 10, 2011

Interested in picking up a shiny new Verizon iPhone 4 in the coming weeks? Well, if you’re unsure about what to do with your current smartphone, eBay would like to help. Earlier this week, the online auction site launched a two-week promotion as part of its Instant Sale service that offers cash for smartphone trade-ins.

EBay is offering a “$200.00 minimum cash guarantee” to people who trade-in an iPhone 3GS, an iPhone 4, a Motorola Droid X, a Samsung Galaxy S Vibrant or a HTC Evo 4G. Users willing to part with a 16GB iPhone 4 can earn up to $400 and over $500 for a 32GB iPhone 4. Those prices were only offered for fully functional, non-broken devices rated in excellent condition.

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On its website, eBay claims that AT&T iPhone 4 users interested in jumping to Verizon can earn “enough to cover not only your new phone and your termination fees, but your new accessories as well.”

EBay isn’t the only option for those looking to trade-in their smartphones. Best Buy and Verizon are both offering similar programs. However, at the moment, eBay’s Instant Sale seems to offer the best deals. For example, for a 32GB iPhone 4, Best Buy’s online trade-in service offers $217, or $337 in gift card value. And Verizon’s trade-in program currently offers $265 for the same phone.

EBay will also take non-functioning or damaged devices off of your hands for you, too — just don’t expect anything close to $200. The Instant Sale service offers free shipping and free data removal and the smartphone trade-in offer runs until February 22.

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