People Are Keeping Their Phones Longer Because There's Not Much Reason To Upgrade, Study Finds (vice.com) 234
According to a recent study by Hyla Mobile as reported by the Wall Street Journal, a mobile-device trade-in company, the average age of an iPhone at trade-in is now 2.92 years. That's up from 2.38 years in 2016, and 2.59 in 2017, according to the company. From a report: Part of this, according to Biju Nair, chief executive of Hyla Mobile, is because phone plan carriers moved from a subsidized payment model for new phones, to payment plans, as smartphones got more expensive over the years. Now, if you purchase it from a big carrier like Verizon or T-Mobile as part of a plan package, your phone is basically on loan to you from the carrier, while you make smaller monthly payments until it's paid off and you own it outright.
It can take years to pay off a new smartphone (the iPhone XS Max costs almost $1,100), and once you've done it, there's not much incentive to give up that investment -- especially when the newest models aren't much different in terms of specs and performance than the one you already have. Add to this the efforts by right-to-repair groups to raise awareness about the fact that your phone actually doesn't need to go in the garbage every time you crack the screen, and you've got people keeping their phones longer. The way we view new technology has also changed in recent years.
It can take years to pay off a new smartphone (the iPhone XS Max costs almost $1,100), and once you've done it, there's not much incentive to give up that investment -- especially when the newest models aren't much different in terms of specs and performance than the one you already have. Add to this the efforts by right-to-repair groups to raise awareness about the fact that your phone actually doesn't need to go in the garbage every time you crack the screen, and you've got people keeping their phones longer. The way we view new technology has also changed in recent years.
Newer = worse (Score:5, Informative)
I want my darn headphone jack. And I'm keeping it until my phone is unrepairable.
Re:Newer = worse (Score:5, Insightful)
Same here. I have tried using Bluetooth but it isn't reliable and when it fails, you are just out of luck until you have time to troubleshoot/charge/spend$$ on another. With regular headphones, they almost never fail, when they do it is gradual (one ear stops working) and a replacement is fairly cheap and widely available from many outlets (even a drug store in a pinch). (of course, there is a dongle but they are a hassle and the location of the lightning port is not as good as the headphone port is on my current phone)
Until you offer something in a new phone that my phone can't do and I can't live without and am willing to sacrifice convenient headphone performance to do without, I am sticking with my current phone.
Re:Newer = worse (Score:5, Insightful)
I actually pressed reply to correct your thinking on bluetooth, then I realized your correct. I use bluetooth 90% of the time but nothing beats wired headphones for reliability. When I'm doing a live show I have my track preview on the headphone channel. With Muxxx you can send it out over bluetooth but its a pain in the ass to do. An if your bluetooth fails, which happened to me, in the middle of a live show you are fucked. Never had my wired phones fail in a show but if they do I keep a spare set on hand. Just plug them and keep going.
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You can get a dongle. If you go off brand you can probably get one for cheap. Me my old phone dies, so I got a $5.00 Bluetooth adapter for my headphones.
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The screen is a bit too big, but the removable battery is great. I have even had two updates in the last couple of months which is nice.
Android V8.0 at the moment.
The LG apps are rubbish and there is always a better option in the Play Store.
The pre-installed Verizon apps are all annoying and stupid. Most of them don't work properly anyway, so they have all been disabled.
The "4100 mWh" battery I bought
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2.92 years (Score:2, Interesting)
How ridiculous! If I am going to sink $600 - $1000 into a phone, I wan't the damn thing to last a DECADE at least.
This is one of the (many) reasons why I use a dumbphone (for which I paid 30 bucks).
Here is a concise documentary [youtube.com] on the subject.
Newer = worse for Android too (Score:5, Interesting)
The same feature loss is happening on Android phones too. My Samsung Galaxy S5 has both MHL (HDMI) and an IR transmitter. I can both connect it to a TV and control the TV with it. Fantastic for traveling, especially being in the Navy. I can connect my phone with my movies to a TV in the mess, or in barracks rooms when attach posted to a different city, or just when at a friend's house.
In the S6 they dropped support for both, In the S6 they even dropped a MicroSD slot. Of course with that abortion that Android KitKat was where they took away normal user write privileges onto the sd card, the writing was on the wall that they were going to try that. That was an obvious ploy to go the Apple route and make you pay hundreds and hundreds extra.
So it's not just Apple that drops really nice features. Android phones are falling over themselves to drop features. In fact, I've noticed there is this life cycle for all goods. You have three stages. Phase 1 is the prototype, phase 2 is the feature phase, and then the phase 3 mass market stage. The prototype phase is where it's new technology, and still working out the bugs. The feature phase is where they throw every feature they can think of at it to encourage wide adoption and because they aren't really sure all the things people will want. Then you have the mass market phase, where they zoom in on the center of the bell curve and getting anything outside that basically requires getting an older model.
I love my phase 2 Galaxy S5. I'll keep it until the oLed degrades beyond recognition.
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Samsung is the one vendor still keeping most of these features around. The latest Galaxy phones (well at least Note9) has dual sim/SD card support, headphone jack, wireless charging, is waterproof, etc. The only missing thing is the IR transmitter I think. Some of the limitations are due to Google's fuckery with Android, mainly to do with SD card access.
Re:Newer = worse for Android too (Score:5, Informative)
Samsung is the one vendor still keeping most of these features around.
IR blasting, removable batteries, physical/reprogrammable buttons, and unlocked bootloaders would like to have a word with you.
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That's why I'm still using my iPhone 6s. That said, today's iPad announcement gives me some hope. I mean yes, they removed the headphone jack, but that's actually a bit of a red herring.
The main problem with the loss of the headphone jack isn't that there's no way to plug in wired headphones. You can, after all, get adapters that let you plug corded headphones into the lightning port. The problem isn't even charging while u
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The main problem with the loss of the headphone jack isn't that there's no way to plug in wired headphones. You can, after all, get adapters that let you plug corded headphones into the lightning port. The problem isn't even charging while using wired headphones, because you can buy adapters for three bucks that solve that problem, unlike the stock Apple version.
I dunno, my apple dongle lives in the pouch that came with my earbuds, along with my two-pin airline adapter (though I haven't needed that in a few years, thankfully). Keeping the buds in the pouch keeps the cord safe and free of tangles, so even without the dongle, I'd be normally carrying the earbuds in it anyway. Heck, the pouch has a little mesh pocket to store replacement ear foamies, which also holds the adapters just fine.
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Same here. I spent a lot of money on nice headphones, and I enjoy music so there's no way I would downgrade to BT. Plus, the fact that I use them for hours a day means keeping the batteries charged would be a pain.
Re:Newer = worse (Score:5, Informative)
I want my darn headphone jack. And I'm keeping it until my phone is unrepairable.
Nobody cares.
I care, and so do millions who are either forgoing upgrading or are increasingly buying portable audio/media players or are buying dongles that allow simultaneous 3.5 mm headphone connections and USB-C or Lightning charging, because it was stupid to remove the ubiquitous 3.5 mm standard in the first place. There is nothing wrong with it.
Re:Newer = worse (Score:5, Insightful)
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It is the usual argument from manufacturers, it is both right and wrong.
Most people really don't care, same for removable batteries, physical keyboards, styluses, etc... What people care about now is a good screen ratio. Manufacturers make phones for the majority and so, omit the niche features and go with the flow (i.e. copy Apple). But in the end, many people don't get what they want and all phones are the same.
It is, I think, a manifestation of Hotelling's law. A game theory principle that says that for
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It is the usual argument from manufacturers, it is both right and wrong.
Most people really don't care, same for removable batteries, physical keyboards, styluses, etc... What people care about now is a good screen ratio. Manufacturers make phones for the majority and so, omit the niche features and go with the flow (i.e. copy Apple). But in the end, many people don't get what they want and all phones are the same. It is, I think, a manifestation of Hotelling's law. A game theory principle that says that for every actor, it is more profitable to go towards the average, even though the net result benefits no one. It is the same law that can explain why the local McDonald's is right next to the Burger King.
It's not only that people don't care, it's that there are tradeoffs If you don't intend to use extra batteries - and most people didn't - a replaceable battery is worse than a non-replaceable one. It makes waterproofing harder, it limits the flexibility of component layout and it takes up room that could have been used for more battery capacity.
Physical keyboards fell out of fashion because they take up a significant part of the possible screen estate, they are less flexible when it comes to layouts (you
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There's nothing new (Score:2)
But the software, if you don't count the 2nd eink display of devices like the yotaphone3.
+1 (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:+1 (Score:4, Interesting)
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one phrase ... water resistant.
hard to make easily replaceable batteries AND seal the unit from water.
Re: +1 (Score:3)
Same.
I've never dropped a phone down a dunny and we're too povvo to afford a swimming pool.
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Oh no Mr. Bill, you are now back to 100 percent without having to charge.
Big deal that at night you charge your battery and your phone at the same time. How many devices do you have that need charged? But a multi usb charger, and problem is solved.
Re: +1 (Score:5, Informative)
Or do like the rest of us and buy a USB battery pack. You can get one for under $20 that fits in your pocket and can provide a full charge to a phone 4+ times. No need to turn your phone off and take it apart, and it works with all your USB devices.
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Not to mention that, unlike the extra phone battery, a such a pack will work for your NEXT phone and your friend's phone also.
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I do that because there's no other choice but frankly this sucks. A 10ah pack like that is around two to three times the size of my phone, doesn't fit/is too heavy for a suit pocket, and you have to tether it to your phone awkwardly with a cable to charge for at least half an hour or more. A spare battery on the other would fits even in a shirt pocket and could be swapped in like 15 seconds.
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Or do like the rest of us and buy a USB battery pack. You can get one for under $20 that fits in your pocket and can provide a full charge to a phone 4+ times. No need to turn your phone off and take it apart, and it works with all your USB devices.
Let us count the ways that this is inferior to removable batteries...
1.) Rotating them over a single day isn't a terribly common use case. Getting a new battery 18 months in because you're eyeballing a charger by lunch time, is quite common. It's an easy way to help extend the lifetime of a phone.
2.) For those looking to get from one end of the day to the other without needing a charger, battery rotation was only one such use case. Powerbear and ZeroLemon make some excellent extended batteries, with custom
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Yeah, it's not that easy on most phones these days.
Sure, you start by snapping the back cover off, but being careful not to shatter the glass and hoping there's no glue, remove a PCB or two with #000 screws, remove any wiring glued to the back of the battery and you can maybe simply unplug the battery and replace at that point. By the time you've done that, your battery could be at 40% with a rapid charger.
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I only know of one phone that had an external case you could use to charge an internal battery via USB. Most phones don't, so you have to swap the batteries again to ensure you have both batteries charged.
USB power banks are easier, since you can charge it and your phone at the same time using a multi-USB charger.
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Re:+1 (Score:5, Insightful)
Ironically, I feel like you can thank the phone plan carriers for this. There haven't been huge advantages to getting a new phone every year or two for a long, long time. But people did it because, as the summary states, the cost was subsidized by the carriers as bait to get people to switch networks and sign 2 year contracts. Since they stopped doing that and customers started seeing the high price tag attached to those phones they have been deciding that while the $100-$200 upgrade to the newest phone was something they could live with, $500 (or much more, depending on how new a model you want) is not.
Honestly, I feel like the rapid upgrade cycle we saw for several years was the strange behavior and what we're seeing now is just a return to normalcy.
Not a new issue (Score:2, Insightful)
I don't think this is a new issue. I've always replaced my phones when they stop being useful rather than when a new phone/feature comes out. Generally this puts me on track to get a different phone once every four years, give or take a little. I can't imagine shelling out a grand for a phone that is almost identical to the one I had last year.
No reason to upgrade? (Score:5, Funny)
My old phone doesn't have a notch. I want a notch! I need a new phone!
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No you don't. Just do what I did: cut a notch into the screen using a razor blade.
Pro Tip: A black Sharpie [sharpie.com] works too. :-)
are you sure (Score:2)
seems to me the price has a lot to do with keeping the phones longer, especially since the the prices have gotten so high. I was replacing my phone every two years, now it will be three years because of financing through at$t
Yah (Score:4, Interesting)
System is geared for consumption and profit from there. Using old gear is counterproductive to this philosophy - try to win against that, fat chance.
Long term effect of this, I leave it to your fantasy.
Underlying reason, same thing, maybe the fiddler crabs effect, he who has the biggest claws gets the female.....
Apple's goal is that you use old gear (Score:2)
System is geared for consumption and profit from there
Not true for Apple. In this year's iPhone lineup announcement, they stated that they want people using iPhones longer which is why iOS 12 works on all the same devices iOS 11 did. Furthermore Apple is moving to try and end mining and use only reclaimed minerals from older Apple devices turned in when eventually you do need a new device...
Apple has for a long time been much better about updating old devices and so far the durability is excellent. Of a
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Seem to be a humble user....
Two examples, brand names not mentioned:
- map software for a GPS handheld device, worthless now, becaus
That's the truth.I kept my 5S for that very reason (Score:2)
The iPhone 6 generation, 7 generation, and 8 generation were nothing but larger and faster. TouchID was the generational change and Apple didn't offer another generational upgrade until FaceID. By then I had already moved to the Galaxy s8+ and while not nearly as refined as the iPhones, I think they offer better customization and features.
Everyone has a Smart Phone. (Score:2)
Now that nearly everyone has a Smart Phone to a point where we just call them normal phones.
And by phone there is a tiny chip that is connected to a radio broadcaster and receiver, and the rest is a computer crammed into as small of a form factor as possible.
But Unlike the Black Berry days or the first iPhone to around I would say the iPhone 4 or 5 where having the newest smart phone meant you had a lot of extra power in your pocket where you could do so much more then your peer with the older version or wi
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Most things have been 'good enough' for a while (Score:5, Interesting)
My laptop (M6700) was released in 2012, my phone (Note 4) is from 2014 and my desktop (4770k) is from 2013. They're all sufficient, even in late 2018.
In the case of the Laptop I can't find never Laptops that perform as well or have as much room to expand for anywhere near the price I paid.
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My laptop (M6700) was released in 2012, my phone (Note 4) is from 2014 and my desktop (4770k) is from 2013. They're all sufficient, even in late 2018.
In the case of the Laptop I can't find never Laptops that perform as well or have as much room to expand for anywhere near the price I paid.
Laptops are definitely getting worse. My old one from 2010 was faster, cheaper, and had a much nicer screen than my new one (2016). Everyone I talk to has the same list of complaints.
The only advantages of the new one are it's lighter, and the battery lasts longer.
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I feel similarly to you (I have a m4800... I really wanted a m6800, but at the time the m6800 had a "5-8 week" lead time). Current laptops just aren't inspiring.
The main things that will finally motivate me to buy my next laptop:
* 17-19" primary display... preferably 3840x2160, minimum 2560x1440... w/gSync and 144hz+ max framerate. This time around, I'm not compromising on the gSsync requirement (I'd accept freesync, but my other non-negotiable requirement is NVIDIA RTX... and AFAIK, NVIDIA are still asshol
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https://www.originpc.com/gamin... [originpc.com]
There you go!
I mean, I don't know if dual GTX 1080's are close enough to RTX series cards, though I do know that the 2080's are coming in the next month or two. Also, I don't think an 802.11ad laptop chipset is an option at the moment, though I'm sure retrofitting one into an m.2 slot in a year or two will be a trivial upgrade. I don't know if the 3840x2160 screen is 144Hz, but it does do G-Sync. The i9 option is sustained 3.6GHz with a 5GHz turbo mode, a bit shy of your 4GH
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Hmmm... I'll definitely have to look into that.
Judging from about 2 minutes worth of Google-grazing, it looks like the FHD panel is officially 144hz, but the 3840x2160 might only be 60hz max. Apparently, as of late 2017, 4k panels capable of 144hz were criticized for having poor contrast. Seeing how small and niche the market for 4k@144hz panels still is, I give it 50-50 odds that the panels available today are probably still the exact same panels available last year. On the plus side, both the FHD and 4k p
Re: Stroke. (Score:2)
In the case of the Laptop I can't find never Laptops that perform as well
In the case of the laptop I can't even find laptops that perform as well.
Apparently I had a stroke mid comment.
What I need from a phone... (Score:2)
1) Ability to make calls/SMS;
2) Being able to check my emails when out is convenient.
That's it.
No bloatware, no camera, no fingerprint reader, no goddamn hole in the screen- I'm sorry "notch", no foldable screen and for god's sake stop trying to make them so thin and "bevel less".
Got my first smartphone a little over a year ago, the only reason I'd upgrade for a new one is if this one gets destroyed in a freak accident or planned obsolescence kills it.
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New capabilities (Score:2)
I upgraded this year from a 2012 Galaxy Note II LTE to a LG V20. The main incentives were h.265/HEVC video playback support, fingerprint sensor and a much more capable audio system. The biggest thing was the Note's inability to play HEVC as there is no workaround for that (I can just about tolerate a tiny micro USB DAC angling from the phone and face recognition for unlocking is not great but is OK). I expect and hope it's another few years until I again feel that the device is an obstacle. Naturally Nou
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er... dangling, not angling.
I'm not upgrading until L5 GPS chips are available (Score:2)
My phone is due for an upgrade - HTC One M8. The battery only lasts for about 3-4 hours of web browsing now, and there's no new android upgrades, but otherwise there's not really anything wrong with it.
But since I plan on keeping my next phone for 4-5 years, I'm not going to upgrade to a new one until it supports the new L5 GPS standard that allows accuracy down to 30cm. People say "why do you care?" but the answer is for lane-level navigation with google maps. Sure it's not there yet, but it will be eventu
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People say "why do you care?" but the answer is for lane-level navigation with google maps.
Google Maps doesn't even really use GPS to figure out what road you're on (Interstate vs. frontage road). They still use some of the same clever tricks as this ancient navigation system [fastcompany.com] that didn't even have GPS. Compass and momentum sensors are matched to the shape of the road. Turns are mostly detected the same way. Location is calibrated by GPS only occasionally, because it's a huge battery hog.
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Compass and momentum sensors are matched to the shape of the road. Turns are mostly detected the same way. Location is calibrated by GPS only occasionally, because it's a huge battery hog.
Eh, I don't really think that's true.
If it were, picking you phone up or throwing it around in the car would disrupt the navigation, making it think you were turning corners when you weren't etc. I've never gone out of my way to try and fool the system, but I've also never had it glitch out in the times that I have moved my phone around in the car.
Also if you look on google maps there is a blue radius that it draws to represent your approximate location, and that radius can shrink and grow as its GPS signal
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First off, it throws out obvious junk data. Secondly, that blue radius grows and shrinks more based on how recently it grabbed GPS data combined with its confidence with the algorithm rather than how strong the signal is. Google Maps also uses cell tower triangulation part of the time to keep up with position because it's cheaper battery-wise.
Anyway, just read Google's own patent application that explains how snapping to roads works and what the prior art is:
https://patents.google.com/pat... [google.com]
Especially loo
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Google Maps' location service usage totally mystifies me. I've had multiple times over the past few months when Google Maps and/or Waze both SWEAR that "GPS is not available" (or act like it's unavailable), yet ChartCross GPS Test Pro reports that I have more than a dozen GPS+Glonass satellites in view & can figure out where I am with sub-10m accuracy.
I've noticed in particular that both apps get really, REALLY confused if you're someplace that has poor/no internet connectivity (like I-75 across the Flo
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It takes time to acquire and process signal. It's probably just saying "signal lost" rather than explain the details that no location data is available yet because it's still working on it. This is as opposed to the cell tower assisted GPS that's also used for E911.
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No, this is on the same device that's running Google Maps & Waze, at the same TIME it's running Google Maps & Waze. Maps/Waze will complain that there's "no GPS", I'll switch to ChartCross GPS Test+, get a location fix within 10 meters within a second or two, kill & re-launch Maps or Waze, and they'll STILL complain that there's "no GPS".
From what I've read, it's partly because Maps & Waze don't view the phone's "GPS" as a particularly high-resolution source of data. Apparently, they don't e
...and water is wet... (Score:3)
Any new technology goes through a ramp-up period where the next iteration is substantially better than the previous one. At some point, a new technology with a fixed set of purposes asymptotically produces fewer and fewer returns at each iteration, until the manufacturer struggles to provide enough newness to convince people to upgrade. And sometimes, in the process, even goes backwards in some areas. (going from 3d icons to flat icons, removing transparency from frames, etc.)
PCs went through this several years ago. Currently available hardware is way more capable than most people need, and operating systems have gotten as good as they're going to get for present use cases. As users, we're still looking for that Minority Report touch interface, but it doesn't look like we're ever going to get it. So PC and tablet markets stagnate.
Phones have reached the same stage. They're "good enough", and there's no longer any compelling reason to pay hundreds of bucks on the next tiny iteration.
What can move things forward is a "killer app", a new purpose for a particular class of device, that requires new hardware and software to support. (For tablets, this would be an interface that allows competent content creation -- again, see "minority report" -- but tablet manufacturers are only selling to content consumers, apparently.). Virtual gaming allowed phones to limp forward another cycle or two, but currently there's really no compelling feature that needs to be added or improved.
At least, no feature that the manufacturers *want* to add or improve. Battery life still sucks, and batteries tend to wear out and are getting harder and harder to replace. And manufacturers still want us to pay a high boutique premium for storage, at a time when flash is dirt cheap. Instead of providing phones that last a week on a charge, which would actually be useful, manufacturers seem to be convinced that we want credit card thinness as a feature. (I do not. Thin phones are hard to hold and more prone to breakage.)
And so, the industry stagnates, while manufacturers continue trying to whip the horse forward, not realizing it died some time ago.
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I can see places they 'could go' personal bio-metric gathering and health monitoring are interesting applications that are mostly unexplored, but there needs to be some breakthrough's in sensor tech. Also, function as the hub for other wearable devices , like AR glasses would probably require further upgrades in bandwidth speed.
Battery life is already a limiting factor though, there has been no real improvement in batteries in more then 30 years.
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> Battery life is already a limiting factor though, there has been no real improvement in batteries in more then 30 years.
Well, there has, but manufacturers have chosen to leverage new battery technology to produce thinner and thinner batteries, not to improve battery life past not-quite-one-day.
I'd buy a phone as thick as my old Palm Treo, if it lasted a week of heavy usage on one charge. And this in theory should be possible. But that's not what's being sold.
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What I *really* want is a phone that lasts as long on one charge as my 1990's era pager did on one AA battery.
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Reminds me of 1970's and 80's pagers. Two rechargeable, removable batteries, which had to be charged daily.
But rechargeable batteries sucked back then. Which is why anyone serious about on-call coverage carried one of those pagers that would last three weeks on a single disposable AA battery.
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there has been no real improvement in batteries in more then 30 years
This is very wrong. 30 years ago NiCd was the best rechargeable battery technology on the market, soon to be replaced with the significantly-better NiMH. Li-ion batteries (early 90s) were a huge improvement over NiCd and NiMH in energy density, lack of "memory" and safety. We're still using them, but the details of the chemistries used and manufacturing processes have changed, resulting in steady but significant improvements year after year in energy density and cost. Li-ion energy densities today are 4X
Cos they don't want to buy a suitcase for it (Score:2)
Phones are getting bigger - want was called phablet size is now phone size. Even cheap $200 phones have at least a 5.5" screen. The manufacturers say it is because that's what people want, but I think it's the converse - they want people to buy new phones so they mass produce big ones. Anyhow, maybe people are holding on to their old phones cos they can actually carry them around.
They should use the edge-to-edge screens to reduce the size of phones, say a 5" screen in what used to be a case for a 4.5" scre
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Phones are getting bigger - want was called phablet size is now phone size.
They should use the edge-to-edge screens to reduce the size of phones
This is how the above happened. Same huge screens but in the previous gen's smaller form factor.
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Now that I know what smartphones really are for... (Score:5, Interesting)
Now that I know what today's smartphones really are for, which is the selling of my personal information, I feel there is no compelling reason to purchase a new one. My next cellular phone will be either a simple flip-phone with no "apps", or a smartphone which is a true PC in a small, "phone"-factor format that runs my choice of Linux OS which *I* can control. Anything other than that, and I'm not going to purchase one. I lived the first 30 years of my life without a cell phone, I'm sure I can live the remaining 30 years without one.
Samsung Galaxy S3 - still works, does all I need (Score:3)
Shocking, I know, but I don't feel the need for a new phone. I still love the AMOLED display with its vibrant colours.
The fact that it has a headphone jack and replaceable batteries just reinforces my commitment to this "ancient" phone
Nexus 5 is good enough for me.. (Score:2)
I refuse to buy these overpriced "flagship" phones, nor will I do any kind of cellphone contract, so I'm perfectly happy with a 2013-vintage
Nexus 5 on the Ting MVNO. My phone bill for my phone and my wifes phone for the month is usually around $40, and thats with my using nearly 2Gb of data for the month. When this Nexus 5 croaks, I'll likely move up to a Nexus 6...
Get OFF my lawn... :->
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Nexus 5 still works great for me as well (after a battery replacement). The market has struggled to produce another phone with stock Android, Qi charging and less than 140 mm in height (my limit for one-handed use).
The only recent competitor I have found is the Nokia 8 Sirocco, but it's price point is three times what the Nexus 5 was offered at. That's a lot of money just to bump the Android version.
Comment removed (Score:5, Informative)
80% more expensive than the 6s (Score:2)
With a stupid notch and no headphone jack. I'll be sticking with the 6s for a while yet. I've just put Lineage on an S4 and it runs very nicely so I've got that as an alternative.
I'm waiting for 5G (Score:2)
Phones got worse in recent years (Score:2)
Every newer phone got worse in one to all of the above categories, so my money goes into other things.
Can Apple continue to defy gravity? (Score:2)
When unit sales went south, I-phone prices went up. Inevitably, that means unit sales go even more south. That is almost the same as saying, I-phone loyalists keep their phones longer. Except I-phone loyalists are also defecting to mid-priced Android brands, or less costly Android flagships.
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Except it didn't just find that chocolate and beer are popular.
It is giving actual hard numbers on the average length of ownership before phones are traded in, as well as a guide at the rate that number is changing.
That's what research is for - to give actual details, not just gut feelings.
Phones are the new used car (Score:2)
2. When a piece breaks, you try your hardest to replace it
3. They are designed to fail in progressively shorter timeframes
Not like a car:
1. Car manufacturers send recall notices and pay the shop bill to correct critical product defects for the life of the vehicle.
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no my first car was $500 in the 1980s but my moto x pure was $300.
it's two years old and the claimed "successor" model has smaller screen, crappier camera and same specs otherwise....hah!
Also... (Score:2)
iPhone 4S (Score:2)
I'm still using it from 2015 that I got for free! :D
There is literally no longer a phone to pine for.. (Score:2)
They took away headphone jacks on most high end nerd / beast models.
They've added idiotic curved displays, I do NOT want one of these.
They took my damn home button away, and presumably the fantastic wonderful context / multi-task and back buttons being in CONSISTENT DEDICATED LOCATIONS (literally one of the primary reasons I switched Apple to Android 8 years ago)
I'm ok with the built in battery, not a fan but ok.
I'm fine with the sizes of the displays but those 3 things above (particularly 1 and 2) I will N
Re:Why not use them until they die? (Score:5, Insightful)
For many people their phone _is_ their camera, and just visit anywhere people go for entertainment or tourism to see the extent to which they use them. Cameras on phones matter.
Then again, my phone is over two years old and its camera is still perfectly adequate. A camera isn't a good reason to upgrade, but may be a differentiator when the time to upgrade comes.
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The thing is, cameras can only get so good before you run into physical limits and adding pixels doesn't help anymore. If you want a better image, you will need a camera with a better lens.
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Re:Why not use them until they die? (Score:4, Informative)
But do they care ... most picture aren't taken to be good, they are taken to remember or commemorate a moment or event, or to communicate to someone else something about yourself.
It is kind of like the whole loss-y compression debate, for most people, most of the time , there is a good enough, and unless you are a professional , or someone who make money at it you are unlikely to have interest in paying the required premium to get passed 'good enough'.
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Rugged phones are a thing. Look into Moto Force or Galaxy Active.
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I had a $200 Qualcomm QCP-1920 from 1998 through 2015 from nTelos (originally PrimeCo in my area) until they sold their local spectrum Sprint and they said my phone wouldn't be supported. I bought a Kyocera Hydro VIBE [kyoceramobile.com] on sale for about $150 from Ting [ting.com] (which also uses Sprint in my area) in August 2015 and am still using it with them. I'm not a heavy smartphone user and my bills are around $15/month -- which is what I was paying with nTelos/PrimeCo w/o the per-minute costs.
I'm pretty happy with both the p
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... and is certified waterproof to 3m for 30min.
Sorry, I mis-typed. That should be 3ft not 3m. [ Thankfully I don't do unit conversions for ESA or NASA :-) ]
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My only complaint is that the phone is running Android 4.3 (Jelly Bean) and there are no updates available. Not sure if I can root it and/or install something else.
Note: Spec sheet says 4.3, but phone actually says 4.4.2.
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I have my fingers crossed for the RED Hydrogen One. If it ends up being easily-rootable, I'll probably be getting one to replace my Nexus 6P (one of the best Android phones, ever... but its battery problems are really starting to annoy me, and unfortunately it's just not quite up to the task of running Daydream VR and ARCore (it has the raw specs "on paper", but literally can't take the heat).