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Fernandez21

macrumors 601
Jun 16, 2010
4,840
3,183
Who are you BS'ing? I own an iPad 2 and the thing is a dog just browsing with Safari and would sometimes just crash and close the browser on sites like theverge.com. iOS 7 was less laggy but even iPhone 4 I just traded in had the same issue. Lucky I even got $25 for it considering it suffered from the famous screen yellowing over time. The iPad is a curse since it's a family gift so I can't junk it.

I have the original mini which has the same specs as the iPad 2 and it's still running just fine on io9 beta. Now I also don't really push it, that's what my air 2 is for, but I certainly wouldn't call it a dog.
 

I7guy

macrumors Nehalem
Nov 30, 2013
35,158
25,268
Gotta be in it to win it
Who are you BS'ing? I own an iPad 2 and the thing is a dog just browsing with Safari and would sometimes just crash and close the browser on sites like theverge.com. iOS 7 was less laggy but even iPhone 4 I just traded in had the same issue. Lucky I even got $25 for it considering it suffered from the famous screen yellowing over time. The iPad is a curse since it's a family gift so I can't junk it.

Apple did a stellar job on iOS 9; breathed new life into 4 year old hardware. My iPad 2 is a work horse. The iPhone 4 is different as its single core vs double core on the 4s and iPad 2.
 

mi7chy

macrumors G4
Oct 24, 2014
10,626
11,298
I have the original mini which has the same specs as the iPad 2 and it's still running just fine on io9 beta. Now I also don't really push it, that's what my air 2 is for, but I certainly wouldn't call it a dog.

It's a blind dog. I'll go install an app in App store, switch away, switch back and get a blank App store page. Really sad two very basic things it can't do right.
 

I7guy

macrumors Nehalem
Nov 30, 2013
35,158
25,268
Gotta be in it to win it
It's a blind dog. I'll go install an app in App store, switch away, switch back and get a blank App store page. Really sad two very basic things it can't do right.
You seem to have "issues" with your idevices. My iPad 2 is updated manually and I can get 10 updates going simultaneously and switch away and everything updates properly.
 

Fernandez21

macrumors 601
Jun 16, 2010
4,840
3,183
It's a blind dog. I'll go install an app in App store, switch away, switch back and get a blank App store page. Really sad two very basic things it can't do right.
I guess I can see that, like I said I really don't push it. When I do updates, I generally hit update all than just set it down and pick it up later because even just scrolling through the homes screens starts to get choppy. And then when I do use it, it's generally just one app at a time, either just using safari or hulu/Netflix and in those cases it performs just fine and smooth. But I'm not switching back and forth between apps. Did it ever perform well when switching between several apps? I got it as a backup type device fairly cheap so I never really expected much from it.
 

Savor

Suspended
Jun 18, 2010
3,742
918
HTC One M7 was NOT a long-lasting phone. I shared the same problems as the OP including the fast battery degradation (after 18 months), camera, and weaker Wi-Fi range. It no longer falls in my Top 5 favorite phones ever but perhaps one of my Top 5 worst ever. Beautiful but eventually became worse as time goes by.

To answer the OP, it depends. I've only owned the Nexus One which lasted 2 yrs and 9 months. But if course it showed its age through software and hardware after 18 months being stuck on first gen 1 GHz single core Snapdragon with a terrible Adreno 200. I've only had my Xiaomi Mi 3 for 14 months. But it does show some lag thanks to all the torrent downloads and sometimes my touch won't register. It held up well on battery life though.

Tough call. You would have to ask ones with 2+ year old Androids. I think iPhones can be the same way but perhaps last slightly a little longer. No such thing as a smartphone that is 2+ years old and still works perfectly fine and exactly the way you first bought it unless you rarely used it and didn't abuse it much. Most people here are phone enthusiasts. Every few months to less than 2 yrs, they switch.
 

nickchallis92

macrumors 6502a
Mar 4, 2012
906
469
London
My Note 3 is being replaced on Friday with the Edge+ but it still flies 2 years later.

Samsung litersally stuffed every available tech into that handset; a capable snapdragon 800 apu and 3GB of ram. Still runs great.
 

billy the fish

Suspended
Jul 23, 2015
676
407
I can't speak for Android users, but if you mean "last" in terms of receiving software upgrades, then no. You'd be lucky to receive more than one or two major Android versions, whereas you can expect at least four for the newest iPhones.
sure, but it's universally accepted that they make the device so slow you have no choice but to upgrade..
 

mi7chy

macrumors G4
Oct 24, 2014
10,626
11,298
That's just non-sense. I've got several $25 2013 Moto G devices that I grab first before the iPad and iPhone because browser scrolling on it is even faster than iPhone 6, it has proper ad blocker and displays sites correctly.
 

Andres Cantu

macrumors 68040
May 31, 2015
3,328
8,003
Texas
Wow, you say something is subjective, a topic that is practically beyond debate with even the most die hard fans, then go on to give the most subjective comment ever.. Go girlfriend..
Once again, that is your opinion. I say that they "can" be, not that they all are. But I won't argue with your point of view anymore. It's yours and I respect it.
 

Andres Cantu

macrumors 68040
May 31, 2015
3,328
8,003
Texas
And your comment is nothing more then your own subjective opinion also.
You're right, but the other person said that it's "universally accepted" when there are some like myself that would disagree. Just personal opinions, nothing wrong with either view.
 

c8rlo

macrumors 6502
Sep 1, 2015
377
167
FL
i've owned my Galaxy S4 for 3 yrs., never had problems updating and the battery life is still good. only problem i ever had with updating was that on one occasion it automatically updated w/o my approval. i agree with what was mentioned before "that they tend so slow after a major update" and that it conveniently happens when you're close to the end of your contract(hmm). this was all to real with the previous phone(HTC Thunderbolt), which caused my to get the S4.

recently upgraded to the Note 5(my entry into the NOTE series) and loving it. i like the fact that it's not as wide as it's predecessors which is easy to handle with one hand, beautiful AMOLED screen and 4k caption for starters. i'm still keeping my S4 as a backup.

for the OP, my personal experience it was a miss with the Thunderbolt but a hit with the S4.
 

maxwelltech

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Dec 29, 2011
423
104
Irvine, CA, USA
i've owned my Galaxy S4 for 3 yrs., never had problems updating and the battery life is still good. only problem i ever had with updating was that on one occasion it automatically updated w/o my approval. i agree with what was mentioned before "that they tend so slow after a major update" and that it conveniently happens when you're close to the end of your contract(hmm). this was all to real with the previous phone(HTC Thunderbolt), which caused my to get the S4.

recently upgraded to the Note 5(my entry into the NOTE series) and loving it. i like the fact that it's not as wide as it's predecessors which is easy to handle with one hand, beautiful AMOLED screen and 4k caption for starters. i'm still keeping my S4 as a backup.

for the OP, my personal experience it was a miss with the Thunderbolt but a hit with the S4.
Well this is pretty reassuring news. I was worried that all Android phones suffer performance degradation over time like my experience with the HTC One. Looks like this is more of an issue with the manufacturer (HTC) rather than the OS itself.
 

Woodcrest64

macrumors 65816
Aug 14, 2006
1,310
526
Well this is pretty reassuring news. I was worried that all Android phones suffer performance degradation over time like my experience with the HTC One. Looks like this is more of an issue with the manufacturer (HTC) rather than the OS itself.

I have a HTC One M7 and its been going strong since 2013. My only complaint is the camera and the battery life isn't great. My S2 Skyrocket from Samsung from 2011, that poor thing is laggy as heck. I think Android has really improved and it will continue to improve year after year.

I'm getting the upgrade itch but I'm trying to hold off till next year to see what HTC does with the M10 and what Samsung does with the S7. I really do like the stereo speakers of the M series from HTC. Hard to pass that up. Though the thing I like about Samsung over HTC is the wireless charging. It certainly is great to have choices ;)
 

ozaz

macrumors 68000
Feb 27, 2011
1,615
577
My Galaxy S4 is almost 2 years old and I'm happy with it. I had one hardware problem just over a year in but that was covered by a standard 2 year warranty. Any battery degradation is a non issue because you can just put in a new one. I generally get 1.5 days or more with my 3rd party oversize battery. It is generally fast enough for me. Sometimes it takes a few seconds to respond after unlocking but I think this is general touchwiz sluggishness rather than age. No new phone this year has ticked all the boxes for what I want and I think I could probably use the S4 well into next year. My main issue is I have one with only 16gb internal storage. This is getting irritating even though having SD card is better than no SD card.

My last iPhone was a 4S. This lasted 1.5 years before I decided I had to move on. The WiFi chip kept breaking down after upgrading to a new iOS version (I think this was an issue others were having at the time), and because the warranty was only one year it was getting costly to fix. The 16gb internal storage was also becoming an issue, but unlike with the S4 I have now, I couldn't use an SD card to store some of the content.

Some on this thread have been comparing Android phones with iPads. For my own use this would be an inappropriate comparison. I think my iPad has the potential to last far longer than my phone simply because I am far less demanding of my iPad.
 

oldmacs

macrumors 601
Sep 14, 2010
4,941
7,182
Australia
Apple did a stellar job on iOS 9; breathed new life into 4 year old hardware. My iPad 2 is a work horse. The iPhone 4 is different as its single core vs double core on the 4s and iPad 2.

I truly hope that this is true.. The reviews/most videos I've seen of the iPad 2 on iOS 9 show it lagging a lot, especially when you tap and app and it goes black and lags before opening, that would drive me crazy as iOS 8 rarely does that on my iPad 2.
 

Twixt

macrumors 6502
May 30, 2012
471
11
Hi,

I have been using my HTC One M7 as my go-to phone for the past two years, and it is clearly showing its sign of age. The camera is seemingly becoming worse, the screen takes 2 minutes to react to inputs, and the battery can't last 3 hours of continuous use. I do not know if this is just specific to the HTC One or is it common to all Android phones. In comparison, my 4th gen iPad is still functioning flawlessly even though it is close to 3 years old.

Of course, with the imminent announcement of the new iPhone, it is time for me to evaluate which phone I should buy. In terms of specs and pricing, the Galaxy S6 clearly wins. However, I am concerned by how long can Android phones continue operating optimally without the hassle of constantly clearing RAM and disconnecting the internet.

For Android users out there, what are your experiences of using phones that are a few years old?

I had a 32GB 3GS which lasted me 4 years as a main phone, I still use it as a spare phone notably when travelling.
About Android, I regret there is no customizable mode where we decide which service is running from start and which isnt, like ultra power saving mode where you have limited number of apps and connectivity.
 

happycadaver

macrumors regular
Sep 1, 2012
191
61
Germany
If you handle your phone with care, every phone lasts. If not, you're doing it wrong. It's really that simple. Over the last 20 years, none of my phones had any defects at all.
 

pdqgp

macrumors 68020
Mar 23, 2010
2,131
5,460
My Note 3 is going strong, runs perfectly and shows no signs of wear or issues. I'd love to upgrade but I'm not sure I see a need. Again, part of the reason I think Apple leads the way is people like me.....I can't find a reason to upgrade as my 3yr old phone still competes with the new stuff extremely well.
 

MRU

macrumors Penryn
Aug 23, 2005
25,370
8,952
a better place
My 2 month old S6 Edge 64gb that has been babied just died :( The fancier they are built, the quicker they fail :( I now this unlikely to be indicative of the whole, but probably not the best time to answer this thread :(
 
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