iPhone X pre-orders don’t start until October 27th, and by every account, it’s going to be sold out in minutes. Most estimates we’ve seen suggest that you’ll be very lucky to get a phone in your hands November 3rd — unless you’re a member of Apple’s iPhone Upgrade Program.
Apple is rolling out a special service for members of its Upgrade Program, which will let customers fill out all the paperwork necessary for upgrading in advance. That should allow those customers to “speed through checkout” faster than the rest of us, markedly improving their chances of getting an iPhone X on November 3rd.
According to AppleInsider, Apple has sent out an email notification to customers enrolled in the iPhone Upgrade Program, telling them to pre-apply so that they have less paperwork to do on October 27th:
Get a head start on your upgrade to iPhone X on 10.23.
If you’re part of the iPhone Upgrade Program and eligible to upgrade, use the Apple Store app on your iPhone to get ready for pre-order so you can speed through checkout on 10.27
The iPhone Upgrade Program is Apple’s version of carrier lease/finance programs. Under the terms of the agreement, customers pay a monthly fee and get a new iPhone every 12 months, as well as AppleCare+ coverage. Plans start at $34.50 a month for an iPhone 8, but the iPhone X is significantly more expensive at $49.91 a month. If you factor in the cost of AppleCare, though, things look a lot closer to carrier deals.
The iPhone X is known to have some supply-line issues that will likely see incredibly tight supplies of the phone when it first launches. Problems with the Face ID TrueDepth camera sensor are being blamed for a low yield rate, or the number of acceptable devices that come off the production line. If you want to ensure you get a phone on November 3rd, it’s going to be important to use every trick in the book, including using the Apple Store iOS app for pre-orders, and making sure that any paperwork that can be done beforehand is already filled out.
