My “11” is on its last leg and I certainly don’t want to spend a lot thousand bucks for the latest/greatest. So I go to Amazon and I see various sellers selling “Renewed” iPhones.
Any one know what “Renewed” means? And is it worth taking a chance? Prices seem to run in the $300 to $400 range.
Thanks.
Renewed = refurbished = used.
“Is it worth taking a chance” doesn’t have a factual answer; that’s up to you. 
I’d want some kind of warranty, though.
Another thing to consider is buying a phone from your cell phone company. Lots of times they will give you a credit of $1K or so if you agree to stay with them for 36 months.
Yes that.
FWIW, I bought a used iPhone off eBay a few months ago and it’s fine. I actually wanted to buy an iPod touch, something I could use to access the internet overseas (and by extension make calls through wifi on) but without having to risk border patrol deciding to search or seize my phone to try and get get confidential information about my clients (see, for example).
Anyway, I’m sure mileage varies, but it worked out alright for me.
I think some IPhones are available for roughly $500 new.
Apple themselves sell refurbished iPhones that have been traded into them. They are as-new and have a proper warranty (at least here in Australia). So I’d trust them to buy from, but absolutely not some random on Amazon.
[Moderating]
What “renewed” means is factual, but “is it worth it” is better suited for IMHO. Moving.
The ‘Renewed by Amazon’ program is totally legit though with varying levels of guarantees and warranties depending on the product and condition you select.