Now it is mostly consumerism: fancy displays, colorful designs, and new features. It is not always about perfecting a design anymore, but rather sidelining it for the next year, because new designs are what people buy expensive phones for.
iPhones are durable as well, despite how they look. I have the older ones, the iPhone 7 and 8, and I like them a lot, although they have terrible battery life.
I have an iPhone 11 now, which my brother gave me after he bought a newer one. I don’t really see the need to buy or upgrade from it. It has a decent battery, a decent camera, and despite the glass back, it feels sturdy.
I feel like a phone should not be replaced every year. It is a complicated system of boards and components, and it should be used carefully and kept around for as long as possible. Some people even create DIY projects from old phones, giving them a new transparent body, reusing the parts, or simply collecting the components.
There is something nice about giving an old piece of technology a second life instead of immediately replacing it.
Those companies had successfully brainwashed their consumer. The fear of missing out. I remember folks went to queue for brand new device during the lockdown. To me, I feel like we don't even know our financial health can survive the pandemic, and those people just had to get the latest device. Maybe they are being too optimistic.
I only had one or two Apples previously as I had switched to Samsung. I think my last one lasted me about 5 years. I want my smartphone to last as long as possible. It's just too burdensome to replace them so often. It's unacceptable for me. I bought all the protection casing, lens protection for the phone before I started using it.
Do you have any ideas what we can repurpose those old device into? Samsung does accept trade in but the price is just so ridiculously low that I rather not sell them.
There are simpler ways of changing the OS or getting a better phone without spending a fortune. Get a second hand iPhone or Pixel. I would avoid Samsung if you want something that lasts a long time. In my opinion, iPhones tend to last the longest.
I have an iPhone 11 Pro Max with a still decent battery life. It was previously used by my brother, and now I use it. I think it could easily last another 2–3 years without any major problems, and I can still use it as a Mac companion as well.
So, for a phone that came out in 2020 and is still going strong in 2026, that’s pretty impressive. It still has an amazing camera too.
I also don’t think buying a mid-range phone at its full price is always a great deal, just like buying the newest model isn’t necessarily worth it either.
If your country has a decent second hand market, I’d honestly look for a flagship from 2–3 years ago. You could get an older Samsung flagship, an iPhone 12 or 13, or a Pixel. Most people wouldn’t even notice much of a difference between them in everyday use.
You can get a phone with proper flagship build quality, good cameras and enough performance to last you well over five years. You don’t always need the newest phone to get a good experience.
I saw someone used their old phone as part of their desktop with shortcuts. Is that what you call a companion? I'm really curious about that. What else can it do?
Do you think it's possible to convert it into a storage cloud, something like that. That I don't have to pay for online storage and get my photos and videos stored?
A phone lasting 6 years is really impressive as you had said.
I always wait for a bit before I get a newer model. Never buying it during the launch.
I don't really trust to secondhand ones because as careful as I am, there tend to be some minor accidents. It probably happened more often to others.
Now it's like they had secretly installed a self-destruction bomb inside.
Now it is mostly consumerism: fancy displays, colorful designs, and new features. It is not always about perfecting a design anymore, but rather sidelining it for the next year, because new designs are what people buy expensive phones for.
iPhones are durable as well, despite how they look. I have the older ones, the iPhone 7 and 8, and I like them a lot, although they have terrible battery life.
I have an iPhone 11 now, which my brother gave me after he bought a newer one. I don’t really see the need to buy or upgrade from it. It has a decent battery, a decent camera, and despite the glass back, it feels sturdy.
I feel like a phone should not be replaced every year. It is a complicated system of boards and components, and it should be used carefully and kept around for as long as possible. Some people even create DIY projects from old phones, giving them a new transparent body, reusing the parts, or simply collecting the components.
There is something nice about giving an old piece of technology a second life instead of immediately replacing it.
And I also feel attached to them as well.
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Those companies had successfully brainwashed their consumer. The fear of missing out. I remember folks went to queue for brand new device during the lockdown. To me, I feel like we don't even know our financial health can survive the pandemic, and those people just had to get the latest device. Maybe they are being too optimistic.
I only had one or two Apples previously as I had switched to Samsung. I think my last one lasted me about 5 years. I want my smartphone to last as long as possible. It's just too burdensome to replace them so often. It's unacceptable for me. I bought all the protection casing, lens protection for the phone before I started using it.
Do you have any ideas what we can repurpose those old device into? Samsung does accept trade in but the price is just so ridiculously low that I rather not sell them.
There are simpler ways of changing the OS or getting a better phone without spending a fortune. Get a second hand iPhone or Pixel. I would avoid Samsung if you want something that lasts a long time. In my opinion, iPhones tend to last the longest.
I have an iPhone 11 Pro Max with a still decent battery life. It was previously used by my brother, and now I use it. I think it could easily last another 2–3 years without any major problems, and I can still use it as a Mac companion as well.
So, for a phone that came out in 2020 and is still going strong in 2026, that’s pretty impressive. It still has an amazing camera too.
I also don’t think buying a mid-range phone at its full price is always a great deal, just like buying the newest model isn’t necessarily worth it either.
If your country has a decent second hand market, I’d honestly look for a flagship from 2–3 years ago. You could get an older Samsung flagship, an iPhone 12 or 13, or a Pixel. Most people wouldn’t even notice much of a difference between them in everyday use.
You can get a phone with proper flagship build quality, good cameras and enough performance to last you well over five years. You don’t always need the newest phone to get a good experience.
0.00 SBD,
0.02 STEEM,
0.02 SP
I saw someone used their old phone as part of their desktop with shortcuts. Is that what you call a companion? I'm really curious about that. What else can it do?
Do you think it's possible to convert it into a storage cloud, something like that. That I don't have to pay for online storage and get my photos and videos stored?
A phone lasting 6 years is really impressive as you had said.
I always wait for a bit before I get a newer model. Never buying it during the launch.
I don't really trust to secondhand ones because as careful as I am, there tend to be some minor accidents. It probably happened more often to others.