Other Debating which iPhone to get mom

[nquinn]

Hi, my mom is 70 and we're about to replace her iPhone 8.

Which of these options would you go for? Leaning towards 256gb model so she doesn't constantly use up her storage while taking pics of grandkids. She's only 64gb right now though so I could potentially do 128gb.

- iPhone 14 (new): $929 + tax (ouch). We do have Apple giftcards bought for 15% off so effective price is $789
- iPhone 13 (new): $829 + tax (effective $704)
- iPhone 13 (renewed from amazon in excellent): $740, 90-day warranty
- iPhone 13 (wait for Apple refurb in Feb/March-ish time?): Probably $700ish? Guessing 15% off. 1yr warranty. Effectively would be $595 using gift cards

- 14 advantage: cheaper to repair if she drops it. Disappointing though since same cpu as 13 and expensive.
- 13 advantage: $100 cheaper now
- 13 renewed: cheaper cash up front, but limited warranty and can't take advantage of gift cards
- 13 refurb: seems like the best option, but refurb dates unknown, and they could sell out, esp 256gb models

Performance/etc doesn't matter.

 

[mpavilion]

Why not an SE?

 

[ab2c4]

The SE would be a smart choice. Less expensive And she won’t have any problems using it.

 

[nquinn]

I just think the SE is too dated at this point. She had a 6s and an 8 before. I mean it could be fine, but:

(a) It would be nice to have a larger screen for her eyes
(b) The camera on the SE is so out of date it's an embarassment at its $580 price point for a 256gb model

It's just overpriced and needs a refresh.

 

[turbochgd]

She might really like the larger screen 14 plus if that’s a cost possibility at all. For the larger screens (ruling out the Pro models) after that you’d have to go back to the XS Max.

 

[sjperformance]

Get her 14 plus. My mom is on a regular 12. She’s due for an upgrade in January. She already told me she wants bigger screen. She wants 14 plus. Mom is 57 BTW.

 

[nquinn]

Get her 14 plus. My mom is on a regular 12. She’s due for an upgrade in January. She already told me she wants bigger screen. She wants 14 plus. Mom is 57 BTW.

A 14 plus with 256gb is over $1000. No.

 

[TechLord]

13 new seems logical from the options you gave, but I would honestly consider a 12 new or 12 apple refurb. The 12 is a solid upgrade over the 8 and a fair bit cheaper than the 13. Based on the use case you gave I don’t see much of an advantage for the 13 over the 12.

 

[timeconsumer]

Hi, my mom is 70 and we're about to replace her iPhone 8.

Which of these options would you go for? Leaning towards 256gb model so she doesn't constantly use of storage taking pics of grandkids.

- iPhone 14 (new): $929 + tax (ouch). We do have Apple giftcards bought for 15% off so effective price is $789
- iPhone 13 (new): $829 + tax (effective $704)
- iPhone 13 (renewed from amazon in excellent): $740, 90-day warranty
- iPhone 13 (wait for Apple refurb in Feb/March-ish time?): Probably $700ish? Guessing 15% off. 1yr warranty. Effectively would be $595 using gift cards

- 14 advantage: cheaper to repair if she drops it. Disappointing though since same cpu as 13 and expensive.
- 13 advantage: $100 cheaper now
- 13 renewed: cheaper cash up front, but limited warranty and can't take advantage of gift cards
- 13 refurb: seems like the best option, but refurb dates unknown, and they could sell out, esp 256gb models

Performance/etc doesn't matter.

If needed now/soon I’d go new 14. If she can wait then I’d go 13 (or maybe 12) refurbished from Apple but no guarantee when/if those will be available.

 

[iStorm]

It's funny how a lot of people are recommending the bigger phone because that's what their mom likes. She'll already be getting a bigger screen coming from the iPhone 8. Everyone has different preferences... Both of my parents are almost 70 too. My mom likes the regular sized phone and would not want the bigger one. My dad actually wanted the mini. I was shocked. He wanted to stay around the same size as his iPhone 7. Unfortunately, there weren't any deals on those, so he got the regular sized one.

Is your mom's carrier offering any deals / trade-ins? My parents are on Verizon and upgraded a few weeks ago. My dad ended up getting the 13 for $50 (after $300 iPhone 7 trade-in, and 50% off iPhone 13). My mom got the 14 for $100 (after $700 iPhone XR trade-in). One thing I don't see mentioned here yet is the 14's Crash Detection feature. My mom is pretty excited to have that. Might be something to consider for someone older if they're driving.

 

[nquinn]

It's funny how a lot of people are recommending the bigger phone because that's what their mom likes. She'll already be getting a bigger screen coming from the iPhone 8. Everyone has different preferences... Both of my parents are almost 70 too. My mom likes the regular sized phone and would not want the bigger one. My dad actually wanted the mini. I was shocked. He wanted to stay around the same size as his iPhone 7. Unfortunately, there weren't any deals on those, so he got the regular sized one.

Is your mom's carrier offering any deals / trade-ins? My parents are on Verizon and upgraded a few weeks ago. My dad ended up getting the 13 for $50 (after $300 iPhone 7 trade-in, and 50% off iPhone 13). My mom got the 14 for $100 (after $700 iPhone XR trade-in). One thing I don't see mentioned here yet is the 14's Crash Detection feature. My mom is pretty excited to have that. Might be something to consider for someone older if they're driving.

I could look at carrier deals, but getting locked phones fricking sucks for travel. It's such a scam esp if you have post-paid contract plans.

We're on AT&T if anyone knows of good unlocked deals though.

 

[nquinn]

13 new seems logical from the options you gave, but I would honestly consider a 12 new or 12 apple refurb. The 12 is a solid upgrade over the 8 and a fair bit cheaper than the 13. Based on the use case you gave I don’t see much of an advantage for the 13 over the 12.

That's true, but I guess I figured the better battery life of the 13 might be nice and it's already 1yr old.

Also don't forget the best advantage of the 13 is that the camera sensor size was increased (similar to 12 pro).

 

[ian87w]

13 refurbished is probably best deal if you want a recent phone, but I would also consider the 12 or even the 11 Pro Max.
Apple US has a refurbished 11 Pro Max 256GB for $729.

 

[iStorm]

I could look at carrier deals, but getting locked phones fricking sucks for travel. It's such a scam esp if you have post-paid contract plans.

We're on AT&T if anyone knows of good unlocked deals though.

True, but phones aren't locked for the duration of the contract/payment plan anymore. AT&T (and Verizon) will unlock it 60 days after activation.

 

[nquinn]

True, but phones aren't locked for the duration of the contract/payment plan anymore. AT&T (and Verizon) will unlock it 60 days after activation.

Ah didn't realize that but that's still insanely annoying if you have a trip coming up. Like.. what's the point if you are under a 1yr contract ?!?

 

[TightLines]

I could look at carrier deals, but getting locked phones fricking sucks for travel. It's such a scam esp if you have post-paid contract plans.

We're on AT&T if anyone knows of good unlocked deals though.

Try looking at Consumer Cellular… they are a AARP provider and hav inexpensive plans… i think they are tied to the AT&T network.

As far as device is concerned… if they are old school, then the SE isn’t a bad option… it still has the home button, etc… short of that.. the iPhone 13 mini is nice… and you can’t go wrong. The prices for last years model haven’t come down yet i don’t think…

 

[Andres Cantu]

Sounds like the perfect choice would be the SE 4 that's coming out next year with the body of an iPhone XR but updated internals.

But since that's not out yet (and if you can't wait for it), I would go for the 14, even if it's a bit more expensive than the 13, especially since she's not upgrading very frequently and so she can have a more modern device for longer.

 

[nquinn]

Sounds like the perfect choice would be the SE 4 that's coming out next year with the body of an iPhone XR but updated internals.

But since that's not out yet (and if you can't wait for it), I would go for the 14, even if it's a bit more expensive than the 13, especially since she's not upgrading very frequently and so she can have a more modern device for longer.

Unfortunately need something pretty asap

 

[Andres Cantu]

Unfortunately need something pretty asap

The yeah, $789 for 14 vs. $704 for 13 is not much of a difference when you consider she'll have the phone for around 5 years (going based on the 8 being released in 2017 and it being 2022).

 

[estabya]

The yeah, $789 for 14 vs. $704 for 13 is not much of a difference when you consider she'll have the phone for around 5 years (going based on the 8 being released in 2017 and it being 2022).

I voted for the 14 and agree with this. For $84 I’d just go for the newest device so she gets updates as long as possible. As good as the cameras and fast as the chips are these days, she probably won’t feel the need to upgrade for a very long time.

 

[nquinn]

I voted for the 14 and agree with this. For $84 I’d just go for the newest device so she gets updates as long as possible. As good as the cameras and fast as the chips are these days, she probably won’t feel the need to upgrade for a very long time.

A 14 would get no more longevity than a 13 in any way. It is like 2% faster, and is the same generation SoC so would get the same iOS support for a long time unless Apple pulls something sketchy and says something like iOS 23 supports the 14 but not 13. Seems highly unlikely since the hardware is basically identical.

Also realized I only have $900 of gift cards (for effective purchase of 765 + $84 left for remainder/tax = 849) vs $746 so $103 difference.

 

[JamesMcFlyJR]

A 14 would get no more longevity than a 13 in any way. It is like 2% faster, and is the same generation SoC so would get the same iOS support for a long time unless Apple pulls something sketchy and says something like iOS 23 supports the 14 but not 13. Seems highly unlikely since the hardware is basically identical.

Also realized I only have $900 of gift cards (for effective purchase of 765 + $84 left for remainder/tax = 849) vs $746 so $103 difference.

4gb of ram in iPhone 13 vs 6gb of ram in iPhone 14

Apple has dropped support based on ram before

 

[happy orchard]

A 14 would get no more longevity than a 13 in any way. It is like 2% faster, and is the same generation SoC so would get the same iOS support for a long time unless Apple pulls something sketchy and says something like iOS 23 supports the 14 but not 13. Seems highly unlikely since the hardware is basically identical.

Also realized I only have $900 of gift cards (for effective purchase of 765 + $84 left for remainder/tax = 849) vs $746 so $103 difference.

Maybe the $103 is worth the crash detection In the 14?

 

[nquinn]

Maybe the $103 is worth the crash detection In the 14?

Meh. I was thinking the best benefit is the cheaper repair ($170 vs $450) if back glass is broken. Kind of a built-in warranty in case it is dropped in a sense.

 

[nquinn]

4gb of ram in iPhone 13 vs 6gb of ram in iPhone 14

Apple has dropped support based on ram before

I did consider that. Slightly slower igpu too. If they do it, it would simply be to accelerate sales and pretty unlikely they need the power, but who knows.