Apple Dropped Plan to Ship Leased iPhones Already Set Up for Users

Apple once contemplated including a "white-glove" service in its Apple Upgrade leasing program, which would have involved delivering newly leased devices preloaded with the customer's personal data, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. The Apple Upgrade program, launched in the U.S. on July 28, replaces the iPhone Upgrade Program and iPhone Payments, allowing customers to lease iPhones, iPads, Macs, or Apple Watches instead of purchasing them outright or paying through installments.

Leases for iPhones and Apple Watches span 12 or 24 months, while Macs and iPads come with 24 or 36-month terms. At the end of a lease term, customers return the device, pay off the remaining balance, and either keep it or upgrade to a new lease. However, the actual Apple Upgrade program launched last month does not feature this option.

While the concept initially gained traction years ago, it never materialized in the final product. Setting up a new iPhone is often a lengthy process, and including this feature could have simplified the launch day experience for customers. Mark Gurman suggests that the primary reason for Apple's decision to drop this idea was likely privacy concerns.

He believes that providing a device with pre-installed personal data might have raised questions for some customers about how the data was transferred and whether it could be accessed by unauthorized parties.