Zero down gets you an iPad at T-Mobile

If you’re looking to get your hands on a brand new iPad Air 2 or iPad mini 3 ASAP for no money down, you may want to check out T-Mobile’s offers.

Announcing the opening up of its preorders ahead of the new tablets hitting shelves, the cellular service provider is giving would-be tablet owners the chance to pick up a 16GB iPad Air 2 or iPad mini for an upfront cost of zero dollars — so long as they’re willing to sign up for 24 monthly instalment payments.

The price plans break down as below:

• iPad Air 2 16GB – $0 down, $26.24 a month
• iPad Air 2 64GB – $99.99 down, $26.24 a month
• iPad Air 2 128GB – $199.99, $26.24 a month
• iPad mini 3 16GB – $0 down, $22.08 a month
• iPad mini 3 64GB – $99.99 down, $22.08 a month
• iPad mini 3 128GB – $199.99, $22.08 a month

If you’re interested, visit this page to register your details for a T-Mobile email alert when preorders start proper. T-Mobile also notes that non-preorder sales of the new iPads will begin within a week.

Apple’s own prices for the iPad Air 2 start at $499, while the iPad mini 3 begins at $399. That means you’re definitely better off buying from Cupertino if you can afford it (the iPad Air 2 works out at $20.79 per month for the 16GB model, while the iPad mini 3 breaks down as $16.63 on a 24-monthly basis), although T-Mobile’s offer represents a good one if you don’t want to plonk down that kind of cash upfront.

And — hey — it’s never a bad thing to support a company led by an Apple supporter who may just be the most straight-talking tech CEO since Steve Jobs.

Luke Dormehl

Luke Dormehl is a U.K.-based journalist and author, with a background working in documentary film for Channel 4 and the BBC. He is the author of The Apple Revolution and The Formula: How Algorithms Solve All Our Problems … and Create More, both published by Penguin/Random House. His tech writing has also appeared in Wired, Fast Company, Techmeme and other publications.