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Samsung Plans To Sell Refurbished High-End Smartphones In 2017 (reuters.com)
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Reuters: Samsung Electronics Co Ltd plans to launch a program to sell refurbished used versions of its premium smartphones as early as next year, a person with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters. The world's top smartphone maker will refurbish high-end phones returned to the company by users who signed up for one-year upgrade programs in markets such as South Korea and the United States. Samsung would then re-sell these phones at a lower price, the person said, declining to be identified as the plan was not yet public. The person declined to say how big a discount the refurbished phones would be sold at, which markets the phones would be sold in or how many refurbished devices Samsung could sell. It was not clear to what extent the phones would be altered, but refurbished phones typically are fitted with parts such as a new casing or battery. Refurbished phones could help vendors such as Samsung boost their presence in emerging markets such as India, where high-end devices costing $800 or so are beyond most buyers. Samsung's refurbishment program, details of which the person said could be finalized as early as 2017, could help the firm generate revenue from dated high-end smartphones returned by users upgrading to newer versions.
. . . the success of this program will depend on the models sold, and the price. I already see refurbed Samsung S3's, S4's, and S5's for a reasonable price. If they stay competitive with the market, and I'm thinking Refurbed S6's at a ~$350. price point, this could be successful. But they're going to have to leverage some added value: say, a decent warranty and perhaps the latest build of Android to differentiate themselves from the existing refurbished markets. . .
They should sell refurbished products for cheaper elsewhere too. It's not like less wealthy people only exist in asia.
"where high-end devices costing $800 or so are beyond most buyers"
You could say this about most of eastern europe, including the states in the EU. The average salary in my country is around 7000 USD / year so not many people can afford even 400 phones.
First order citizens are the ones with the new smartphones, second order citizens are the ones with once refurbished phones, third order citizens are the ones with twice refurbished and so on. Smartphone voting and banking is only possible with the latest security updates installed, leaving the second order citizens and beyond increasingly without the rights and basic services. All Hail to the Glorious Nation of Smartphonya!
It'll be another opportunity for Samsung to ignore the warranty they supposedly provide on refurbished products.
Invalid Checksum. Retrying.