Apple to launch Upgrade leasing program on July 28

Apple will launch a new Apple Upgrade leasing program on July 28 according to a Bloomberg report, in partnership with Klarna, offering lower monthly payments on iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch purchases with 24- or 36-month terms. The move ends new signups for the existing iPhone Upgrade Program and arrives as the company has raised hardware prices.

Source:9to5Mac

Post

Apple to launch Upgrade leasing program on July 28

TL;DRAI · 60 sec read

Apple will launch a new Apple Upgrade leasing program on July 28, according to a Bloomberg report published today. The report says the initiative marks one of the biggest-ever changes to how the company sells devices.

Apple Upgrade offers lower monthly payments than current financing. The program will be powered by a partnership with Klarna and requires a soft credit check for shoppers. It functions like a subscription for eligible hardware purchases.

The report says the initiative marks one of the biggest-ever changes to how the company sells devices.

iPhone and Apple Watch leases run for 24 months while Mac leases run for 36 months. Users can pay off the device early, upgrade to a new model early, keep it at the end of the term, or return it. Certain transactions incur an additional fee.

Ineligible devices exclude several current models. The Apple Watch SE, base model iPad, iPhone 16, and MacBook Neo will not qualify for Apple Upgrade. The program does not include AppleCare coverage.

From The CircuitryThe Feed — live briefs across tech, all day.See what’s happening →

iPhone Upgrade Program signups will end with the new launch. Apple plans to discontinue new enrollments for its existing iPhone Upgrade Program once Apple Upgrade debuts. The new service differs by omitting bundled AppleCare.

Apple plans to discontinue new enrollments for its existing iPhone Upgrade Program once Apple Upgrade debuts.

Launch timing aligns with recent Apple price increases. Apple raised prices for iPads and Macs last month. New iPhones expected in September are also projected to carry higher prices, and Apple Upgrade is positioned to help customers manage those costs.

The report states the program will be advertised specifically for its lower payments compared with existing financing options.

Why this mattersAI · ~100 words

Tap a lens to see what this story means for you.

Reader-supported

DonateBuy me a coffee →Follow@thecircuitry_ →Follow@thecircuitry.to →

Reader-supported · The Brief

Liked this? The Brief brings you the whole day in tech, verified, every morning. Two minutes, free forever.

HELP US IMPROVE

Reader-supported

The Circuitry is a passion project I've always wanted to build, and I love the work behind it.

Running it costs real money. APIs, hosting, time. To keep improving the site and growing this into something useful for everyone, those costs have to be covered.

Any contribution is appreciated. If not, no pressure. Thanks for reading.

Buy me a coffee

Apple Leasing iPhone

MORE IN TECH

VW Plans 100k Job Cuts, May Halt EV Production at 4 Plants

Volkswagen's supervisory board has unanimously approved the Future Plan 2030, which includes an additional 50,000 job cuts worldwide to reach a total of around 100,000 and leaves four German plants without secured future vehicle production after 2031-2034. The move aims to reduce costs and improve competitiveness against Chinese rivals, with alternative uses for the factories to be examined by June 2027.

OpenAI GPT-6 Astra Scores 62.7% on ARC-AGI-3

OpenAI's GPT-6 Astra has posted state-of-the-art scores of 62.7% and 99.9% on ARC-AGI-3 depending on the harness used. The results narrow the measured gap to human-level agentic intelligence on a benchmark designed to track progress toward AGI.

Claude, ChatGPT and Grok hit by widespread outage

Claude, ChatGPT/Codex, and Grok suffered a widespread outage on September 3, 2026 with elevated errors confirmed by OpenAI, Anthropic, and xAI. Services began recovering after about 30 minutes though Grok lagged, coinciding with OpenAI teasing its GPT-6 Astra launch.