The technology world is frustrating. New technology comes out seemingly every month, and when it does older devices drop in price. This is extremely maddening, especially if you’re looking to upgrade a device. Despite this, though, there’s some technology that still fetches a high price.
Here are a few tech items that have held their value.
Apple products
Despite Apple churning out new products annually, its prices hold up remarkably well. Even older, classic iPod models are fairly expensive, depending on their age. Last-gen laptops cost as much as new models of laptops by other companies. If you’re hoping for a cheap unlocked phone, forget it — you’re looking at spending a couple of hundred dollars at the absolute least. iPads have held their value throughout the years, regardless of what generation they are.
LED, LCD, and OLED TVs
Just a few years ago, TVs were massively overpriced. These days, though, they’re affordable. More importantly, they hold their value. If you spend $400 or $500 on a TV larger than 32 inches, there’s a good chance that when you go to sell it in a few years you’ll regain most of the money you spent on it, assuming it’s in great condition. If you’ve got a CRT television, though, you may want to go ahead and just throw it out.
LCD Monitors
Similar to high-definition televisions, LCD computer monitors hold their value over time. These monitors often display in 720p. Since they display things so perfectly, they’ll still fetch a triple-digit price when you go to resell them. Companies and individuals alike can use them as a second monitor, so there will always be a market for them.
GPS systems
There will always be a need for GPS systems. When you find yourself overseas in an unfamiliar place like Jordan, the first thing you should do is look online and see if anyone has used GPS systems for sale. You’ll likely pay a high price since they rarely lose value, but they’re essential if you have no idea where you’re at. There’s no subscription service for GPS systems, so you’ll just need to plug them in and go.
E-Readers
While it seems like there are new e-readers announced every year, one thing remains the same: they’re all able to read books. Regardless of whether it’s backlit or connects to the Internet, it can read books. To some, that’s all that matters. That’s why it still has a high resale value. If you include a treasure trove of books with it, you’ll be able to ask for a higher price.
Smartphones
The iPhone isn’t the only smartphone that holds its value. Many smartphones retain their value because of their ability to unlock and function on another carrier. Even when they’re not in service, people can still use them to get access to the Internet by Wi-Fi. They’re also completely functional devices when they’re not in service and can do many things, like play music, take pictures, and more.
There’s a lot of technology that depreciates over time, but fortunately there’s some that you can invest your money in and see a decent return when it comes time to sell it. These items all provide a need that people will pay for — and they’ll pay handsomely. Is there a device that you’ve recently been looking to purchase but have held off because of the high price? Are you looking to offload a device in order to upgrade to a brand new one? If so, how much of your initial investment are you hoping to get back?
ereaders, really? Maybe for a few months, but as soon as ADobe rolls out their new DRM and publishers adopt it , old ereaders will stop working for new books.