Apple fans race to buy £249 iPhone as price plummets ahead of iPhone 17 launch

Apple looks set to unveil the new iPhone 17 in the coming days, but ahead of the big reveal shoppers are snapping up a big discount on an earlier model. The latest deal has seen prices slashed by almost half as the iPhone 13 is reduced from £480 to £249 at Wowcher.

This model has 128GB of storage and a choice of colours including starlight, black, red, green and pink, each of which comes with a 48% discount. The deal comes as Apple’s live stream event will be held on Tuesday, September 9, where it is expected to launch the iPhone 17 range.

However, like any new Apple release, the upcoming model will likely have a hefty price tag. Previous models such as the iPhone 16 have launched at £799, making Wowcher’s iPhone 13 deal all the more appealing.

The iPhone 13 was released in 2021 and will remain compatible with the latest iOS updates through to 2027. The main thing to note is that the Wowcher deal is for a refurbished device in ‘acceptable’ condition, meaning it may show some signs of cosmetic wear.

Shoppers can upgrade to better conditions including ‘good’ and ‘very good’ from £300, which still beats Currys’ own refurbished model in ‘good’ condition for £349. Regardless of the condition, Wowcher assures that the device offers full functionality and has been refurbished with ‘Apple-compatible’ parts.

Other refurbished options include the iPhone 12 from £165 and the Samsung Galaxy S21 from £175 for those who prefer Android. For those preferring to buy brand-new without breaking the bank, Sky Mobile is offering the iPhone 16e for £18 when spreading the cost – its lowest ever price.

But for those sticking with Wowcher’s iPhone 13, there are some minor caveats worth noting. Shoppers must pay an £8.99 delivery fee with their purchase, while the box and accessories the device comes with may be generic rather than original Apple products.

The iPhone 13 is powered by Apple’s A15 Bionic chip, boasting a Super Retina XDR display and ‘advanced’ dual-camera system capable of capturing photos and videos with Night Mode, Cinematic Mode, and more. It also provides up to 19 hours of video playback on a single charge and has an IP68 dust and water resistance rating.

Over at Amazon – where a new iPhone 13 comes in at £425 – customers have awarded the phone a 4.6-star rating. One buyer said: “I must say I am amazed. Premium quality and feeling, great camera performance, now I understand why people pay a lot for an iPhone.”

Another said: “Upgraded my iPhone SE 2020 for this. It’s so powerful – great longer battery life and so much faster. By no means cheap, but it feels much more robust in the hand, has twice the storage capacity at 128GB, and looks amazing. I’m not too fussed about the apparently great camera but I guess that will be nice too.”

Not everyone is impressed, as this user said: “I find the feel of the phone uncomfortable to use compared to earlier models. The edges and side buttons are sharp rather than smooth and rounded as previous makes such as the iPhone 6 Plus were. The old home button was more comfortable to use rather than continually swiping up and catching the edge of the phone.”

While another five-star review said: “Easy to use, battery life lasts a long time – approximately a day – and fast at running games. This is an amazing phone for the price.”