If you've ever cracked, smashed or completely ruined your expensive
Apple smartphone, you know how much of a pain it can be. And it's not
that hard to do. Apple's screens have a tendency to shatter when they land on their edge because of the way the screen sticks out from the bevel.
But no matter how you broke your phone, if you don't have Apple Care or insurance, you're going to pay the entire cost out of your own pocket. That's because accidental damage isn't covered by the standard warranty.
Luckily, there's some relief. Apple has announced that it's begun a new trade-in program that will let you exchange your broken phone with a cracked screen, damaged camera or broken button, for credit toward a new phone.
Previously, Apple's Recycling Program only allowed older gadgets with no damage to be traded in, so the announcement should come as a relief to those, like me, who have a number of broken phones lying around the house.
There isn't official word from Apple just yet, but 9to5 Mac suggests that customers can get up to $50 for an iPhone 5s, $200 for an iPhone 6 and $250 for an iPhone 6Plus.
On top of that, a there's also a new program where you can take your iPhone into any Apple Retail Store and they will install a screen protector. Apple has teamed with Belkin for the protector installations, which you can see demonstrated in the video below.
