Mobile service provider Verizon Communications has said it will accept older models of the iPhone and exchange these for its newest version, the iPhone 6, and a two-year contract with the wireless carrier.

The news from Verizon came hours after Apple revealed the handset Tuesday.

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With the cost of the iPhone at US$199 with a two-year contract, critics theorize the latest version of the handset won't be as competitive since more and more carriers separate the cost of the devices from service charges while eliminating contracts.

By revealing the actual cost of devices such as the iPhone, carriers offering equipment financing schemes are making high-priced hardware look less appealing to the average customer.

And to make expensive devices more palatable to the public, plans like Verizon's let consumers pay for the handsets in installments so the massive blow to a buyer's wallet turns into smaller lumps easier swallowed.

Verizon said interested individuals may trade-in working models of the iPhone 5s, 5c, 5, 4s or 4 for a gift card worth US$200 to pre-order the iPhone 6's 16 GB version. Apple's larger iPhone 6 Plus, however, is not supported by the offer.

Compared to its other competitors, Verizon has been more hesitant in diving into equipment financing. The new offer shows the company's reluctance to change older contract models that shackle subscribers to the provider for a fixed period of time.

"There is an inherent risk in the shift to installment billing that it creates more loyalty to the device than to the carrier," said Jan Dawson, an analyst at Jackdaw Research.

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"Verizon sees the value of the two-year contract in that tying a device to a two-year plan can prevent churn."

Tagsverizon, iPhone 6 News, iPhone 6 Plus, contract, iOS 8, Apple iOS 8