Times have changed. In the Steve Jobs era, prices for Apple products always seemed to be uniform. Today if you're in the market for an Apple product, it behooves you to look around for the best deal. The ongoing discounts seem unprecedented. Most recently Walmart has slashed the price of the 16GB iPhone 5s to $119 with a two-year contract. And the iPhone 5c? It's down to $29 for the 16GB model with a two-year contract. According to CNN Money, Walmart announced these price cuts on Wednesday, but I couldn't quickly find them online. In addition to the lowered price on the iPhone, Walmart also lets you trade in your old gadgets for a gift card. So you could effectively lower your price even further.
And speaking of trade-ins, according to TechnoBuffalo, Target announced that starting Sunday, March 9, they'll be offering trade-ins on used iPads through March 15. They'll give you at least $150 for an iPad 2 or newer. Plus, when you buy a new iPad, they'll give you a $30 gift card. The deal is only available in stores. Click here to see participating locations.
Target is also offering a trade-in for old smartphones if you buy an iPhone 5s or 5c. Between now and March 22, they'll give you a trade-in allowance for the estimated value of your old smartphone PLUS $50 off the purchase of the iPhone. Currently Target is selling the iPhone 5s for $150 and the 5c for $50, so this is quite a good deal. Note that it's only available for phones for the Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint networks.
Meanwhile, according to AppleInsider, Apple's share of the smartphone market in the US continues to grow, and rose to 41.6 percent for the three-month period ending in January. That puts it ahead of the pack, with Samsung in second place at 26.7 percent.