Apple (AAPL 0.20%) is extending its in-store trade-in program to cover Mac computers for the first time.
Starting next week, retail customers across the U.S. and Canada will be able to come into a store and swap an old Mac for credit toward the purchase of a new one. Customers not in the market for a new computer can trade-in a Mac for an Apple gift card, reported Bloomberg, citing people familiar with the matter.
IMAGE SOURCE: APPLE.
Apple already allows customers to trade-in their iPhones, iPads, and Apple Watches in-stores and trade-in Macs online. But doing the latter isn’t easy. Customers have to send Apple the old Mac and wait for a gift card to arrive in the mail. The new Mac trade-in program comes to Canadian stores on June 18, noted Bloomberg.
The move on the part of the tech stock comes as it's readying a new generation of Macs that will reportedly run on its internal microprocessors in 2021. It’s also happening amid increased demand for PCs in general as work-at-home becomes the new norm in the post-COVID 19 world. By enabling customers to get money off a new Mac via a trade-in, it could spur demand for Apple's PCs.
In addition to offering the trade-in, Apple is making it more manageable for customers to purchase these $1,000 plus computers. Bloomberg reported earlier this week Apple will allow Apple Card holders to finance the purchase of Macs, iPhones, and other devices interest-free for as long as 12 months. Payments are made directly to the Apple Card. The tech stock also announced a new 13-inch MacBook Pro in early May that runs on its latest processor and boosts graphic performance by 80%.
