Samsung Trade-In Program Fixes The Biggest Galaxy S20 Ultra Criticism
There's no question that flagship phones have become expensive devices, with many of them running $1000 or more. Samsung's Galaxy S20 lineup has not been immune to this price inflation, with the Galaxy S20 5G running $999.99, the Galaxy S20+ 5G priced at $1,199.99, and the Galaxy S20 Ultra 5G rounding out the bunch at a whopping $1,399.99.
Add to that the uncertainly caused by the coronavirus outbreak and the subsequent shelter in place orders many governments have implemented, and it's probably safe to assume that Samsung isn't selling many of those high-end handsets at the moment. Perhaps to help spur sales, Samsung has launched a new buy-back program for the Galaxy S20 that promises to return a half of the purchase price as long as users keep their phones in good condition.
Heading over to Samsung Mobile's US site, we see that this buy-back deal applies to the three phones listed above: the S20 5G, S20+ 5G, and the S20 Ultra 5G. If you select the buyback program, you're promised a "credit" worth 50% of the phone's retail price as long as you can keep that phone in good condition and return it within 24 months. So, in the case of the standard S20 5G, you'd get $500 back, whereas with the 512GB S20 Ultra 5G, you could be looking at as much as $800 back.
It all sounds pretty good, but of course, there are a number of caveats when it comes to what counts as "good condition." In the fine text on that page, Samsung says that the phone can't have a cracked screen or case, must be free of liquid damage, and must be free of "defects that go beyond normal wear and tear." Samsung's requirements also state that the phone must power on, hold a charge, and not shut off unexpectedly, so if you get close to that 24 month cutoff and your battery is starting to fail, it might be worth replacing before you attempt to trade it in.
So, if price is what has you on the fence regarding Samsung's latest, then taking advantage of this trade in deal might be worth it. Check out the timeline below for SlashGear's reviews and hands-on pieces with the devices in the Galaxy S20 line.