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I just don't see phones regularly lasting 8-10 years. I use my iPhone daily and don't have a strong urge to upgrade just for the sake of upgrading, but even I t

I just don't see phones regularly lasting 8-10 years. I use my iPhone daily and don't have a strong urge to upgrade just for the sake of upgrading, but even I tend to replace my phone ever 2-3 years - it just makes financial sense to do so, and battery replacements can only go so far with that. As phones become more and more powerful over time, I can see my phone replacing my iPad or (perhaps) even my laptop - but I don't see them lasting as long as that. They're smaller (and therefore more prone to being dropped), with you constantly, and are mostly glass. Even with technological progress aside, I would expect most people to go no more than five years between replacements.

zozbot123 8y ago
You know, not all phones are like the iPhone. There are baseline/midrange phones with more battery charge capacity than even an iPhone XS Max! And a headphone jack! And an IR blaster, even. And an OEM system which can be officially unlocked! (which might help you make the battery even more long-lasting, by keeping its state of charge well below 100%.) Yes an iPhone will have a planned time-in-service of a mere 5 years no matter what, but a modern baseline/midrange phone can be expected to last a lot more than that. (Aside from factors that can't be meaningfully planned for, such as changes in mobile network standards.)
ndnxhs 8y ago
Just about anything can last that long if maintained. Current phones struggle to last that long simply because that's what works best for companies and there is little consumer demand for change. Our current lifestyle of buying a new phone every 3 years is incredibly selfish and is destroying our planet.
- tonyedgecombe 8y ago
  Actually I think buying a new car every three years is much worse.
dTal 8y ago
iPhones are mostly glass, due to the inexplicable decision to make the back out of glass - a material so fragile as to be a metaphor for fragility. Most phones only use glass for the screen. I always joke that the next iPhone will probably be made out of porcelain. I'm not even sure that would be worse.

zozbot123 8y ago

You know, not all phones are like the iPhone. There are baseline/midrange phones with more battery charge capacity than even an iPhone XS Max! And a headphone jack! And an IR blaster, even. And an OEM system which can be officially unlocked! (which might help you make the battery even more long-lasting, by keeping its state of charge well below 100%.) Yes an iPhone will have a planned time-in-service of a mere 5 years no matter what, but a modern baseline/midrange phone can be expected to last a lot more than that. (Aside from factors that can't be meaningfully planned for, such as changes in mobile network standards.)

ndnxhs 8y ago

Just about anything can last that long if maintained. Current phones struggle to last that long simply because that's what works best for companies and there is little consumer demand for change. Our current lifestyle of buying a new phone every 3 years is incredibly selfish and is destroying our planet.

tonyedgecombe 8y ago
Actually I think buying a new car every three years is much worse.

dTal 8y ago

iPhones are mostly glass, due to the inexplicable decision to make the back out of glass - a material so fragile as to be a metaphor for fragility. Most phones only use glass for the screen. I always joke that the next iPhone will probably be made out of porcelain. I'm not even sure that would be worse.