How to Check Your iPhone Upgrade Eligibility (AT&T)

With Apple's formally announced media event on September 10, the expectation is that Apple will be announcing one or more new iPhones. Here's a handy guide to help you determine if your current iPhone is eligible for an upgrade with AT&T.

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Method #1. Perhaps the easiest way to check is to call the number *639# (*NEW#) directly from your iPhone. Shortly, you'll receive a text message from AT&T. Here's how it looked on our iPhone 4S.

Dial *639# from your phone.

Method #2. Another way to check is to use Apple's Apple Store app. On the home (Featured) page is an entry called "Upgrade your iPhone." That takes you to a page where you can also check your eligibility for a new phone. One wrinkle is that, for security, you'll be asked for the last four digits of your SSN. If you'd rather not provide that in an app, Methods #1 and #3 don't require it.

 

Use Apple's Apple Store app.

Method #3. From your Mac, PC or tablet, you can logon to your AT&T wireless account via a browser. Recall that your User ID is your mobile number.

Logon to your AT&T account.

After you're logged in, from the Overview page (tabs at top), in the drop down list labelled "I want to... 

Select from the drop down menu in red

... select "Manage my plan & services." Then click "Check upgrade eligibility" for the desired number. You'll see the verdict like this: 

Result is in blue box.

Note that if your iPhone is eligible for an AT&T upgrade, you have two choices now. The first is the traditional two-year contract extension. The other is AT&Ts new "Next" plan that allows you to get a new iPhone/smartphone every 12 months by paying an additional fee.