Should I buy the new IPhone from Verizon or the apple store? - 1

I posted this previously, but I didn't get to expand. From what I understand, I have three options

1) I can buy it from Apple at a monthly plan, paying 20-30 dollars a month

2) I can use my Verizon upgrade for 200 dollars, but then there are all these extra fees that I'm not aware of, if someone can clarify those that would be helpful

3) I can buy it from Verizon on a monthly plan, paying 20-30 dollars a month

Which one of these options would you choose, and why?

You can bypass buying from Verizon for the installment price and get the same deal directly from Apple on their new upgrade plans which are the same as what the carriers will offer for off-contract prices. I'm on AT&T Next, so my two options are buy the phone via AT&T for the same price as Apple, or buy it directly from Apple for the same price as AT&T and get the same service as I do now and take advantage of trading in my iPhone directly to Apple instead of the the third party carrier. Since Apple Store locations are madhouses during new product launches, I personally would rather go to my nearest AT&T retailer and get my phone there in a much shorter line. That said, I may decide to wait in line at the Apple Store the day I can pick up my iPhone 6S when I pre-order on Saturday just because I'll go in the middle of the afternoon while people are at work or in class, so the line will be a little shorter.

The so called "extra" fees are taxes and surcharges that come from county, state and city taxes and other governmental fees passed on to the consumer, that the carriers USE to absorb as part of your cell phone plan.

Since the carrier no longer have contracts for discounted phones, but they do in fact still have contracts in the form of installment payments and cell phone plans that you MUST have if you are making installment payments, making you locked into TWO contracts.

Also if you bail on either contract, the carriers now Blacklist your phone, making it ineligible to be activated on any carrier. So…

1. Pay your bill/phone in full, either in 24 months or sooner.

2. If making installments on a $500+ phone is the ONLY way you can buy it, get the insurance or extended warranty, that pays for a replacement should the original phone get damaged or lost. Otherwise if the phone is stolen/lost/damaged beyond repair after a week of ownership, replacing it comes out of your pocket at the full retail price of a new phone.

Effectively 1 & 3 are the same thing, which is the way carriers are doing things moving forward with installment plans.

2 represents the old 2 year contract method where you pay $199, 299, 399 for the phone & pay off the rest over the course of 24 months.

NB even if you buy it from Apple you of course would have to chose a carrier to go along with it, seems to be Verizon in your case.