IPhone prices soar amid TikTok app access restrictions
Americans have limited access to the TikTok app due to nationwide restrictions. As a result, offers for iPhones with TikTok installed have started appearing — with some prices reaching downright surreal levels.
On 19 January 2025, TikTok stopped working in the USA. As it turns out, this was only a temporary unavailability, as Donald Trump "granted" ByteDance an additional 75 days to finalise a sale agreement in the USA.
iPhone with TikTok for a fortune
TikTok has started working again but is currently not available for download from Apple's App Store or Google Play. Given the situation, new users or anyone who uninstalled the app earlier are the worst affected.
The most desperate might consider purchasing an iPhone with TikTok already installed. Of course, for the privilege of using the app in such difficult and uncertain times, one might have to "pay a bit extra."
On the eBay platform, among others, an iPhone 16 Pro Max with TikTok installed is listed for £4,000, and an iPhone 16 Plus for over £2,500. And that's not all — the offer also includes older models at correspondingly higher prices. The scale of this phenomenon is noteworthy.
Not only TikTok
It is worth noting that it is not only TikTok that is in the sights of the US administration, but also other apps belonging to ByteDance's parent companies. These include Lemon8 and the popular CapCut used for video editing.
The fate of TikTok in the USA remains uncertain, and the situation is changing dramatically. Importantly, the app has "problems" not only in the USA. A good example is the Albanian government's decision to impose a one-year ban on TikTok for all citizens.
