How To Get A Free Apple iPhone 7: Tips For T-Mobile, AT&T, Verizon And Sprint Customers, With A Catch

With all the hubbub over preordering Apple's latest incarnation of what has become its flagship product, one aspect of trying to get your hands on the iPhone 7 or 7 Plus may have been overlooked: You can get one for free. Kind of.

Of course, as the saying goes, nothing in life comes free, so there is somewhat of a catch — albeit one that anyone with a smartphone on a major network carrier shouldn't be surprised at.

The first thing you need to do to get a free iPhone 7 is trade in your current iPhone incarnation, which is likely an iPhone 6 or 6S, although previous models are eligible, as well, the Verge reported. This is true for all of the major carriers — AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon. But if the phone you trade in has less than 32GB storage capacity, you may have to come out of your pocket to make up a difference.

However, as is pretty much the norm, you will most likely be locked into a brand new two-year deal with your carrier. In addition, if you happen to terminate your contract with your carrier before that time period elapses, you will be left on the hook to pay. The rates are determined based on how much time is left on the contract. Regardless, the phone you trade in will never be yours again, so breaking the contract pretty much only guarantees the deal is definitely not free.

One thing that won't be free with your new iPhone is Apple's new AirPods, the tech giant's wireless earphones product that is only compatible with its latest smartphone. The iPhone 7 will come without its previously standard headphone jack. Instead, the new device is sold with what apple calls Lightning headphones, which works with an accompanying adapter.

The AirPods are set to go on sale next month with a retail price of $159 and a battery life of up to five hours before recharging is required.