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iPhone 17 preorders come with bundles of benefits from telecoms

Published: 12 Sep. 2025, 18:12

SHIN MIN-HEE
[email protected]

An iPhone Air is displayed during Apple's event at the Steve Jobs Theater, in Cupertino, California, on Sept. 9. [REUTERS/YONHAP]

Preorders for Apple’s latest iPhone 17 series began Friday with the official launch set for Sept. 19. The three mobile carriers in Korea — SK Telecom (SKT), KT and LG U+ — are rolling out a slate of promotions to lure subscribers.

SKT is set to provide three months of free access to iCloud+ 200GB, normally priced at 4,400 won ($3) per month, to preorder customers. The same benefit applies to existing iCloud+ subscribers.

Customers who activate their new phones by Oct. 31 will be entered into a raffle for a chance to win AirPods Max, Apple accessories, Apple Pay T-money coupons and travel vouchers worth 2 million won.

SKT is also offering a trade-in program that offers discounts of up to 70 percent on new iPhone purchases when customers hand in their old phones.

KT will return 50 percent of the new iPhone’s sales price upon activation. This program is bundled with insurance that covers up to 600,000 won, as well as allowing customers to switch to a new model when returning their device after 24 months of use.

For 1,000 customers who preorder the iPhone Air model on the KT website, their phones will be upgraded from 256GB to 512GB storage free of charge.

LG U+ offers a 70 percent payback for the iPhone 17 product line for customers if they hand in their old phones by the end of the year. The carrier will also cover the entire 24-month installment costs for an AirPods 4 for customers who subscribe to a plan priced at 105,000 won a month or more.

For LG U+’s online customers, the first 1,500 customers who buy the iPhone Air will receive a free storage upgrade from 256GB to 512GB.

All three carriers guarantee same-day delivery services on the iPhone’s official launch day.

In Korea, the iPhone 17 is priced from 1.29 million won for the base model, 1.59 million won for the iPhone Air, 1.79 million won for the iPhone 17 Pro, and 1.99 million won for the iPhone 17 Pro Max.

BY SHIN MIN-HEE [[email protected]]