Apple says trade-in, financing options makes iPhone 'super affordable'

Credit: Andrew O'Hara, AppleInsider

The chief executive made the comments during the company's third quarter earnings call with investors, first responding to a question from analyst Katy Huberty.

Cook referenced the company's June rollout of interest-free financing offers, and added that the payment option complements the company's existing trade-in programs.

On trade-ins, Cook said the option is becoming a more common "trend," and added that it's terrific because it's great for the environment and acts as a subsidy.

Taken together, Cook said that trade-in and interest-free financing both make its devices "super affordable," and that Apple is "happy with what [they're] seeing in that regard."

Cook added that both programs are doing well "in a number of geographies," including China — whether a large portion of the installed user base still uses pre-iPhone X devices. The Apple executive positioned those options as a way to get users in the region, and elsewhere, to upgrade to newer devices.