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Apple's big mistake? They are being too kind to their older consumers. They should cut them loose. The minute an iPhone is discontinued and no longer being sold in an Apple store, boom, the last good version of the OS the phone was designed for is locked and no further updates to newer iOS versions are allowed.
And this strengthens the idea of planned obsolescence. By chance iPhone 6 exits from the line-up after 3 years.... but... what?! the slowdown happens even in iPhone 6s, that are in the current lineup
 
And this strengthens the idea of planned obsolescence. By chance iPhone 6 exits from the line-up after 3 years.... but... what?! the slowdown happens even in iPhone 6s, that are in the current lineup
So providing 5 years of support proves “planned obsolescence “. Somehow that doesn’t track.
 
So providing 5 years of support proves “planned obsolescence “. Somehow that doesn’t track.

It’s not 5 years of support for ME if it slows down after just 1 update. I don’t want that throttle crap on my phone hence I am not updating.
 
There is a proportion of iPhone users that have never used Android and you are in that category but there are also iPhone users who have used both platforms. I am one of them and this forum is full of people like that hence why the alternatives section is so popular. A lot are either ex iPhone users or those who alternate between platforms. I’d say most of the people I know have owned an android device at some point despite now using iPhones and I know android users who were long time iPhone users previously. The market is so rich with choices these days you’ll find less brand loyalty than a few years ago.

You can’t generalise by saying ‘iPhone people’ because that is a description that lacks substance in how you are purporting it. I’m an ‘iPhone person’ as of 2012 onwards but I am well aware what technology is currently in the market. It would be a bit silly taking an interest in tech and discussing it but only focusing on one brand. It would leave me very unqualified in certain discussions here.

There are plenty of agnostic discussion forums that focus on multiple platforms. This is an Apple discussion forum so one would expect there are a lot of people just like me who don't know anything about Android and never will. Same for everyone else I know over the age of 30 who has been very happy with their iPhones since the beginning a decade ago.

So, yes, I can generalize by saying iPhone people don't know anything about Android because it happens to be a fact for probably 95% of us.
 
When the iPhone 7 was current gen Apple was throttling all iPhones back to the 5.
Now the iPhone 8 is current gen Apple is throttling all the iPhones including the 7.

boltjames if the tech in the 8 is superior why did they not throttle the 7 when it was current gen? Seriously. I guess you will tell me "they thought the 7 had superior tech"?
 
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The iPad has a massively sized battery and the Watch has a battery that's massive compared to those that power Casio's for several years, hardly fair comparisons to a laptop that fits in your pocket. Samsung owners tend to run older operating systems just like almost all Android owners do.

I don't think that Apple would take the cheap route on their most important product category. I think that the advances in functionality since iOS 8 have pushed older processors to their limits and that, in turn, requires more battery than the thin designs are capable of handling. So they power manage to let older owners get the newest features.

Apple's big mistake? They are being too kind to their older consumers. They should cut them loose. The minute an iPhone is discontinued and no longer being sold in an Apple store, boom, the last good version of the OS the phone was designed for is locked and no further updates to newer iOS versions are allowed.

Those in-the-know do this already anyway. My iPad Air II is running iOS 10 and I will never push it beyond that. Apple should just make this a rule and not an option.

Don't Agree. Apple should optimize the iOS experience for each device, old and new, so that it runs just as fast as before the update, but ALSO allow the user to selectively turn off/on any of the new features introduced in the new iOS that could cause it to slow down.

Users then would have the option to run slower and have all the thrills, or keep running as snappy as always with everything the way it was before, except for the security updates that also come with the OS that we can't turn off.
 
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It’s not 5 years of support for ME if it slows down after just 1 update. I don’t want that throttle crap on my phone hence I am not updating.
I don’t care if it “slows down”, but actually proven iOS updates do not slow the phone down. I want the support and am willing to up with “slowness”.
 
Don't Agree. Apple should optimize the iOS experience for each device, old and new, so that it runs just as fast as before the update, but ALSO allow the user to selectively turn off/on any of the new features introduced in the new iOS that could cause it to slow down.

That's unrealistic as the complexities involved would not only be difficult to engineer but also to execute in stores, explain to customers, train Geniuses, etc.

Big picture, Apple has no responsibility to ensure a great experience to those who own old iPhones. Car manufacturers cut buyers of $80,000 luxury cars loose after 3 years, there is no reason in the world that Apple can't do the same to people who only spent $199 on an iPhone 6.
 
That's unrealistic as the complexities involved would not only be difficult to engineer but also to execute in stores, explain to customers, train Geniuses, etc.

Big picture, Apple has no responsibility to ensure a great experience to those who own old iPhones. Car manufacturers cut buyers of $80,000 luxury cars loose after 3 years, there is no reason in the world that Apple can't do the same to people who only spent $199 on an iPhone 6.

I'll stick with my belief that it's an honorable goal, and what users want.
 
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I'll stick with my belief that it's an honorable goal, and what users want.

I agree, but I also believe that Apple is probably growing weary of the endless harassment by owners of these old iPhones and if the DOJ really probes them and makes trouble over these allegations they'll have all the rationale in the world to follow the automotive business model and the traditional consumer electronics business model and just cut loose anyone who is out of warranty.

Old battery? Slow iPhone? Unexpected shutdowns? Too bad. Find a repair center and pay up. Or buy a new iPhone. Or buy some Android. These growing pains were to be expected, the clash of cultures and economics were bound to put Apple here anyway. Right now you have the last vestiges of the "free iPhone with 2 year contract!" crowd in their old 5's and 6's bumping up against the new model of the "buy your own $1000 iPhone" crowd and they each have different ideologies and values. Apple should shed the used iPhone group and cater to the new iPhone group. One is going to make them a lot of money, the other is going to leech off of them causing nothing but drama for years.
 
I agree, but I also believe that Apple is probably growing weary of the endless harassment by owners of these old iPhones and if the DOJ really probes them and makes trouble over these allegations they'll have all the rationale in the world to follow the automotive business model and the traditional consumer electronics business model and just cut loose anyone who is out of warranty.

Old battery? Slow iPhone? Unexpected shutdowns? Too bad. Find a repair center and pay up. Or buy a new iPhone. Or buy some Android. These growing pains were to be expected, the clash of cultures and economics were bound to put Apple here anyway. Right now you have the last vestiges of the "free iPhone with 2 year contract!" crowd in their old 5's and 6's bumping up against the new model of the "buy your own $1000 iPhone" crowd and they each have different ideologies and values. Apple should shed the used iPhone group and cater to the new iPhone group. One is going to make them a lot of money, the other is going to leech off of them causing nothing but drama for years.

Just a note - Our family of five has been buying contract free iPhones at full price for the past 6 generations of iPhone (including the iPhone 5, 5s, 6, 6s, 7, and X, where the 4s was our last subsidized iPhone). So I'm not sure the ideology difference is the issue in my case.

I've spent a small fortune on Apple products over the past several years, and I expect to be treated as a valued customer. (Proof below).

I have a daughter with an iPhone 6, another daughter with an SE, a son with a 7+, and a wife with a 7, while I use a 7+ and X (but kept an old 6 and an old 5s as a spare in case of emergency, while using a 4s with no SIM as an iPod in my bedroom). The daughter with the 6 will possibly get an 8 or X this summer, and the other one is praying for an SE2. We also use 6 iPads (mini-retina thru Air 2), two 15" MacBook Pro, a 13" MacBook pro, a 27" iMac, two 13" MacBook Air, a 12" MacBook. Add to that 4 active Apple Watches (S0, S1, S2, and S3 LTE). We also use 2x 1st gen ATV, a 2nd Gen, 3x 3rd gen, 3x 4th Gen, and a 4K ATV. And the list goes on and on including multiple iPods, several Airport Expresses and Airport Extremes and 1 Timecapsule. Plus my younger brother is on my family ATT plan with an iPhone 5. If Apple made a RAID NAS We'd be using one of those instead of a 20TB Drobo 5N and a 16TB QNAP. WE ARE ONE DEDICATED APPLE USING FAMILY!
[doublepost=1515992269][/doublepost]PS: When they come out with an iPad Mini 5 we'll take three immediately on pre-order.
 
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Just a note - Our family of five has been buying contract free iPhones at full price for the past 6 generations of iPhone (including the iPhone 5, 5s, 6, 6s, 7, and X, where the 4s was our last subsidized iPhone). So I'm not sure the ideology difference is the issue in my case.

I've spent a small fortune on Apple products over the past several years, and I expect to be treated as a valued customer. (Proof below).

I have a daughter with an iPhone 6, another daughter with an SE, a son with a 7+, and a wife with a 7, while I use a 7+ and X (but kept an old 6 and an old 5s as a spare in case of emergency, while using a 4s with no SIM as an iPod in my bedroom). The daughter with the 6 will possibly get an 8 or X this summer, and the other one is praying for an SE2. We also use 6 iPads (mini-retina thru Air 2), two 15" MacBook Pro, a 13" MacBook pro, a 27" iMac, two 13" MacBook Air, a 12" MacBook. Add to that 4 active Apple Watches (S0, S1, S2, and S3 LTE). We also use 2x 1st gen ATV, a 2nd Gen, 3x 3rd gen, 3x 4th Gen, and a 4K ATV. And the list goes on and on including multiple iPods, several Airport Expresses and Airport Extremes and 1 Timecapsule. Plus my younger brother is on my family ATT plan with an iPhone 5. If Apple made a RAID NAS We'd be using one of those instead of a 20TB Drobo 5N and a 16TB QNAP. WE ARE ONE DEDICATED APPLE USING FAMILY!
[doublepost=1515992269][/doublepost]PS: When they come out with an iPad Mini 5 we'll take three immediately on pre-order.

Great post, I thought I had a ton of Apple product going back over the years with my family of 5 but you take the cake.

And I agree that it would be great if Apple could keep all of our legacy products in perfect running order as the years go by. But if it means that they take the eye off the ball of innovation and/or are harassed by people who aren't as dedicated as you and I are and don't put any dollars in the Apple till while leeching off their good-will on their second-hand and third-hand $50 Craigslist iPhone's, a line must be drawn.
 
There are plenty of agnostic discussion forums that focus on multiple platforms. This is an Apple discussion forum so one would expect there are a lot of people just like me who don't know anything about Android and never will. Same for everyone else I know over the age of 30 who has been very happy with their iPhones since the beginning a decade ago.

So, yes, I can generalize by saying iPhone people don't know anything about Android because it happens to be a fact for probably 95% of us.

That’s just a very biased view and a statistic you’ve made up to try and give weight to an unrealistic claim. It’s pointless even discussing this any further.
 
I agree, but I also believe that Apple is probably growing weary of the endless harassment by owners of these old iPhones and if the DOJ really probes them and makes trouble over these allegations they'll have all the rationale in the world to follow the automotive business model and the traditional consumer electronics business model and just cut loose anyone who is out of warranty.

Old battery? Slow iPhone? Unexpected shutdowns? Too bad. Find a repair center and pay up. Or buy a new iPhone. Or buy some Android. These growing pains were to be expected, the clash of cultures and economics were bound to put Apple here anyway. Right now you have the last vestiges of the "free iPhone with 2 year contract!" crowd in their old 5's and 6's bumping up against the new model of the "buy your own $1000 iPhone" crowd and they each have different ideologies and values. Apple should shed the used iPhone group and cater to the new iPhone group. One is going to make them a lot of money, the other is going to leech off of them causing nothing but drama for years.

This is all irrelevant and a diversionary tactic to avoid discussing the actual topic.
 
In my personal opinion it's in Apple's best interest to try their best to avoid selling very short lived phones, it's simply the cost of being a premium brand. The slowdowns that sometimes happen with older devices on newer OS versions does not feel premium, and so people that bought what they thought were buying a premium device and just had it gimped by a "very persistent" IOS update service are understandably disappointed. Add to that the short life of some batteries and the rage get's real.
 
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In my personal opinion it's in Apple's best interest to try their best to avoid selling very short lived phones, it's simply the cost of being a premium brand. The slowdowns that sometimes happen with older devices on newer OS versions does not feel premium, and so people that bought what they thought were buying a premium device and just had it gimped by a "very persistent" IOS update service are understandably disappointed. Add to that the short life of some batteries and the rage get's real.
The iPad could be called a longetivity product but iPhone sure as hell isnt one what with the throttling,slowdowns and battery replacements,drain.

Apple cleverly did not include iPhone 8 and X in their battery replacement program even when they will get the throttle update in Sept 2018. The X would eat into their profits as it uses a special 2 cell battery.
 
Why are you showing me the Spectre article?

Throttlegate. Even my 7 Plus throttles slightly at times in geekbench.
This has nothing to do with slowing down “all” phones. This has to do with phones with aged batteries. Your claim iOS updates slow a phone down doesn’t hold water.

https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...ices-according-to-benchmark-analysis.2075795/
[doublepost=1516016905][/doublepost]
The iPad could be called a longetivity product but iPhone sure as hell isnt one what with the throttling,slowdowns and battery replacements,drain.

Apple cleverly did not include iPhone 8 and X in their battery replacement program even when they will get the throttle update in Sept 2018. The X would eat into their profits as it uses a special 2 cell battery.
Define longevity. My 6s will easily last 4 years if I don’t accidentally damage it.
 
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This has nothing to do with slowing down “all” phones. This has to do with phones with aged batteries. Your claim iOS updates slow a phone down doesn’t hold water.

The only thing approaching "evidence" that we have on this topic are the app-launch statistics produced by Ars Technica et al. These consistently show increases in app launch times with later versions. The reasons for that are a separate matter.

Everything else is just anecdote.
 
boltjames if the tech in the 8 is superior why did they not throttle the 7 when it was current gen? Seriously. I guess you will tell me "they thought the 7 had superior tech"?

I believe Apple is looking at the phones on a case by case basis based on technical performance factors and not by launch date. The 7 likely had its power management protocol tweaked when their data told Apple that 7’s with weakened batteries were at risk of a shutdown in cold temperatures and that was that.

Apple power manages extremely well, to hundreds of millions of people its a benefit, not a detriment. The slowness is mostly imaginary, milliseconds that can’t be felt. Stop letting a number on a screen of an app bother you. Stop using geekbench. Problem solved.
 
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