“Do you really need a new iPhone? They’re so expensive now, and yours is… fine,” Jason Cross writes for Macworld. “It’s fine. You’ve never been one of those people who needs a new phone every year, or every other year, anyway. How do you know when it’s time to take the plunge and ditch your old iPhone for a new one?”
“We’re definitely not one to encourage the cycle of nonstop iPhone upgrades. Hanging on to your phone for a long time is a good thing,” Cross writes. “But just as some users feel compelled to upgrade way too often, others stubbornly refuse to get a new phone until their current one literally won’t function at all, and might need a little help accepting that their old phone is holding them back.”
“If one or more of these signs apply to you,” Cross writes, “perhaps it’s time to replace your iPhone.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Here’s another reason: Your old iPhone has an antiquated Home button! Once you use an X-class iPhone (or iPad) you can never go back. The gesture-based flow of iOS is just too smooth and efficient to ever deal with the constant interruption of the Home button anachronism, “Click me, click me, click me…” ad infinitum.
I like my home button just fine MDN.
As per the number of votes for this. MDNs blind fandom discredits. I still feel the HB has a role and it’s only the ‘market drive’ for a bigger screen that pushed this. Face ID ain’t as good as touch. Despite being more advanced. Steve wouldn’t have done it.
Face ID is most definitely faster, more accurate, more robust and more reliable than TouchID. This is not just anecdotal evidence; there is research that confirms it. My own experience is also very much inline. TouchID doesn’t work through gloves (duh!), doesn’t work when your finger is wet, or when it is too dry (in the winter cold), and even when all is good, it may misfire and you have to put your passcode. Face ID works literally every time. In the nine months since I switched to X, I have yet to experience a glitch unlocking.
As for Steve, he hated buttons with passion. This is well documented. I’m pretty sure he would have loved a completely buttonless iPhone.
There’s one sign I’m sure of. If Apple’s share price keeps falling, then anyone who has an iPhone should replace it. Hehe.
Honestly, I think consumers should hold on to their iPhones as long it functions well enough for their needs. If Apple supports upgrades on an iPhone for five years, then why not use it for that long. If it needs a new battery halfway through that time, then get that. It’s foolish for a person to spend money on a premium product and dump it while it’s still working well. That’s why I buy Apple products. They’ve always lasted me a long, long time. My desktop Macs always ran 24/7/365 for years and served me well. If a person takes good care of a good product then they should use it for as long as they can.
Touch ID has been reliable for years, so I see no reason for anyone to upgrade to Face ID as the only reason. Many tech-heads say they’d rather have fingerprint readers in the display rather than Face ID, so not everyone is in agreement that Face ID is in every way superior to use.
Couldn’t agree more. Within a year or two Apple will introduce in screen Touch ID alongside Face ID. And within a year of that they’ll bin Face ID. A finger is so much more simple and convenient. The damn thing is in your hand.
My wife has an SE that is a bit long in the tooth.
But it makes and receives calls just fine, Voice Mail works well, as does texting. She has continued taking pictures with it and uses other basics, like the alarm clock, world clock, etc.
There is no reason for her to want another iPhone. She can have one when she wants it, but frankly, she could care less. That presents Apple’s problem: There are millions of people who are satisfied with the iPhone they have and see no reason to spend more money on a new one. Like back in the day before mobile phones how often did you get a new landline phone?
Apple obviously would like every iPHone owner to “Buy a new one every year.”
But the reality is that phones are so good today that many of us don’t upgrade our iPhone any more often than we get another vehicle.
Apple can not sustain its growth by relying only on iPhone growth and I think they now understand it.
What Apple needs to go is consider that as people keep their iPhones for 5-6 years, that they need to have more easily and quickly repaired iPhones. Why? Why you also ask?
I took my 5s in to the Apple store to get the battery replaced a year ago. Now the replacement battery a year later is just as bad as the original 4 year old battery was.
Times change. Customer’s needs change. The world moves on. So what?
It seems logical to me that Apple should sell an iPhone WITHOUT A BATTERY! Whoa you say. Heresy!
It is the same with cars in that you don’t buy gas or tires or batteries from GM or Ford. Batteries are expendable.
Let the buyer of an iPhone buy what he wants and then buy Apple’s or a third party’s snap on battery pack/protector device.
Didn’t Steve Jobs use the Think Different metaphor? And the reason is because the world changes. The iPhone electronics are probably good for at least a decade for most users. The battery not. In fact, different users use far different amounts of battery capacity and demand different amounts of usability.
Time to listen to Steve Jobs’ word over and over again & rethink the real world.
Another stupid take by MDN. Bet you replace your vehicle every time a new model offers another electronic gimmick on the dashboard too.
Touch ID is faster for those who know how to use it.
Waiting for new SE and/or any 4″ option to buy.
If Apple ever releases a 5G capable iPhone I’ll think about replacing my perfectly good 6S Plus. Then again, the carriers will find a way to charge a super premium for access to 5G for a few years.
It no longer works? Doesn’t hold a charge? Foolish article
I find my iPhone 6s Plus is more useful than MDN’s take.
For many old folks like me, touch id never worked well because my fingerprints have worn thin. Face ID works so well it’s unbelievable. Light or dark, it’s fast and easy—I hardly even notice it. It’s the best thing about my XR.
I’ve read MDN for years but never posted, but seeing folks knock Face ID has prompted me to make my first.