All The Ways You Can Upgrade To The iPhone X

On Tuesday, Apple's Phil Schiller led a presentation introducing all of the new iPhones and products coming out soon. The standout, of course, was the iPhone X which will have a 3D camera, facial recognition, and no signature home button all Apple fans are used to. And like most Apple products, it's sleek and beautiful and yes, you're going to want one as soon as you see your friends texting each other with animoji — the exclusive, personalized, animated emoji that are being added to the Messages app. So how do you upgrade to an iPhone X without breaking the bank?

It's a very, very good question, since it's going to retail for $999. No matter what kind of money you make, that's a lot. It's a basically a small computer, so the hefty understand the price tag is justified, but nearly $1,000 is a lot to shell out for a something that most people are going to essentially just use to take pictures for Instagram and send animated emoji.

Within the past few years, most phone service providers ditched those pesky two-year contracts and have started allowing customers to buy the phone from them and pay for it in monthly installments, added to a monthly bill. So if you want the iPhone X, you first stop might be with your cellphone and data service provider and, from there, see what kind of deals they're drumming up.

But there's another way to get your hands on that fancy phone, too.

Through Apple. Back when service providers started selling customers phones in installments, Apple got in on the game, too. And the Apple installment plan might be your best bet for getting this roughly $1,000 phone come November when it's officially released.

If you go directly to Apple, you can buy the phone and sign something saying that you'll pay it off within 24 months, or two years. With any device — like if you've already bought your iPhone 7 from Apple — and make half of those payments, you're eligible for an upgrade. You basically turn in your old phone and restart the clock. Get it?

It might seem like a clever ruse for Apple to literally control every aspect of your technological life and maybe it is. But! They're reportedly throwing in Apple Care with the installment price which is a really good deal, since it usually costs an extra $129. So Apple's monthly installment price might be a little bit more expensive than what your service provider charges you. But, really, Apple Care is sort of worth it, if not only for the peace of mind it provides.

For one, it doubles the one-year warranty to two years (although if you upgrade every year that might not matter to you. It also covers accidental damage. You get two accident claims for which they'll replace your entire phone for $99 (which is significantly cheaper than another $999) and fix your screen for $29. And you know you're cracking that iPhone X screen almost as soon as you get it. Don't lie to yourself.

But, if you're going to use Apple's installment plan, you're definitely going to want to take advantage of those free accident claims and cheap fixes since when you go to return your old phone and get a new one, it has to be in "good working condition" to upgrade. So, there are some catches, but what did you expect?

There are some other things to consider. If you buy a phone from Apple, for example, it comes unlocked, so you don't have to go through all that nonsense about unlocking your phone from your carrier when you travel overseas. You're also going to have to deal with breaking a payment plan with your current carrier and that could be pricey, depending on what kind of plan you have.

There may also be two phone bills to worry about — you'll pay Apple for the phone every month and pay your carrier for service. If you're the kind of person who likes things streamlined, that could be an issue. Under the Apple installment plan, you can pay about $56 a month for the iPhone X and $35 for the iPhone 8.

But it is good to know that there are a few ways to get your hands on the iPhone X. Now you just have to break it to your checking account.

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