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[2020.11 update 3] RebatesMe offers $11 cash back per Cricket purchase, currently the highest. Giving Assistant is very unstable, and the account may get banned [see the Visible article for reference]. In that case, RebatesMe is recommended.

[2020.11 update 2] Cricket also has a Chase/BofA offer, $30 off. It can be triggered by both device purchases and bill payments. If you have it, combining everything makes this arguably the cheapest iPhone SE2 ever [about $75 before tax, about $80 after tax]. If you want to take it to an Apple Store for trade-in (can be exchanged for a $210 Apple gift card), do not buy the 128GB model; trade-in does not care about storage, so the cheaper one is the better choice.

Image from blog author wangbo

[2020.11 update] Cricket (requires port-in) has listed the iPhone SE2 (locked) 64GB today for only $50 [$100 before tax], and the 128GB model is $99 [$150 before tax]. Note that the phone must be used for 6 months to unlock it, and you must pay the first month’s bill when purchasing. Here are the key money-saving points:

If you’re just after a phone, it comes to roughly $50 + $60 - $10 = $100 before tax. You can take it directly to an Apple Store for trade-in; at the moment you can get a $210 gift card (locked phones are allowed), which means you effectively make more than $100. You can also use it with a SIM interposer or without cellular service; iPhones are great deal-chasing tools, so having one doesn’t hurt.

If you actually need to use it, I recommend doing steps three and four properly; Cricket is still pretty good. After 6 months, it can be unlocked.

If you are not in a hurry, wait a few days; the author will write a full guide, though it may be OOS (Out of Stock) by then. Shipping is next-day delivery. If checkout fails, switch to PayPal Key; because it is treated as a debit card, it often works wonders.

The author bought directly in the Rakuten app; after-tax price, delivered the next day

The blog has recently published quite a few phone-deal posts, which readers have liked. So here is a 101 roundup post to collect them, and also briefly cover a few things that are not suitable for a full article.

Unlocked phones

Prioritize unlocked phones. If you don’t want to chase these deals, you can consider stockpiling Amazon gift cards, Apple gift cards, and BBY gift cards to buy directly from the official websites. There are many ways to buy Apple gift cards and BBY gift cards at a discount.

Visible phone deals

This is an old promotion; iPhones are still a big necessity. Note that some cashback sites may miss the transaction, but most are fine at the moment.

TracFone phone deals

This promo is actually pretty good; the only hassle is waiting for unlocked phones sold by Amazon on Amazon to drop in price.

Google Fi phone deals

If Fi is a must-have for you, or if you consider Fi Credit equivalent to cash, then this promo is a great fit. Feel free to share your experience and referral in the original post.

Carrier-locked phones

Shopping season is here, and there are many good deals, especially on contract phones (locked). For example, there are many contract-phone deals for the iPhone SE (2020).

You can absolutely order these contract phones cheaply through cashback sites and various discounts. In addition to buying a SIM interposer to unlock them, you can also skip that and take them directly to Apple’s website (or trade them in at a physical store for gift cards) or Google’s website for trade-in. You can roughly get them for $100 and trade them in for $200-$300. HT: blog author Wangbo

For example:

Cricket is pretty deal-friendly; for example, you could get an iPhone 7 for $30 and buy an iPhone 8 Plus cheaply [expired].

Remember to maximize the purchase method; you’re an old hand, so you surely know the drill, so I won’t demonstrate it here.