Other iPhone7 owner - which phone to upgrade to?

[NotMyName]

Now forget for a second an instant knee-jerk reaction to shout "the latest and greatest most powerful iPhone there possibly is"....

My brother currently has an iPhone 7. He's not a big tech-guy at all. He likes iPhone's because of their simplicity so he'll be staying with iPhone's (rather than moving to Android for example). He doesn't use iTunes.

All he's really caring about, in his own words, is that it texts, it calls & he can use his Spotify premium on it, and the rest of his apps work on there too (obviously). He's not a huge photographer so so long as the camera is decent enough then it's fine.

His phone contract is due and he's had an offer from his carrier of an iPhone 8.

I'm considering helping him out to try and get his monthly cost down and i imagine this would probably be easier if he moved to an iPhone 8 than the latest-&-greatest (i can't even keep track these days so don't know whether that's the XR, XS or god knows what other version is out (much easier when it went 5, 5S, 6, 6S...))

The question is whether the iPhone 8 would be a fair shout or whether there's any significant reason to move to one of the iPhone's after that. His contract deal is a 24-month one.

Oh and he's also not bothered about keeping the phone on the latest iOS all the time. If the phone works then that's all he's bothered about.

 

[KOTN91]

Now forget for a second an instant knee-jerk reaction to shout "the latest and greatest most powerful iPhone there possibly is"....

My brother currently has an iPhone 7. He's not a big tech-guy at all. He likes iPhone's because of their simplicity so he'll be staying with iPhone's (rather than moving to Android for example). He doesn't use iTunes.

All he's really caring about, in his own words, is that it texts, it calls & he can use his Spotify premium on it, and the rest of his apps work on there too (obviously). He's not a huge photographer so so long as the camera is decent enough then it's fine.

His phone contract is due and he's had an offer from his carrier of an iPhone 8.

I'm considering helping him out to try and get his monthly cost down and i imagine this would probably be easier if he moved to an iPhone 8 than the latest-&-greatest (i can't even keep track these days so don't know whether that's the XR, XS or god knows what other version is out (much easier when it went 5, 5S, 6, 6S...))

The question is whether the iPhone 8 would be a fair shout or whether there's any significant reason to move to one of the iPhone's after that. His contract deal is a 24-month one.

Oh and he's also not bothered about keeping the phone on the latest iOS all the time. If the phone works then that's all he's bothered about.

Why not just keep the iPhone 7 and get a sim only contract, as that would be adequate for his needs and would keep the cost super low. That’s what I did, £17 a month for 30gb data (3 U.K.)

 

[jpn]

i think the iPhone 8 is the best option for him, if he likes the current form factor (size and weight).
its really a great phone.
will likely be able to meet upcoming iOS demands (and his own requirements based on current use pattern) through at least 2020.

 

[NotMyName]

Why not just keep the iPhone 7 and get a sim only contract, as that would be adequate for his needs and would keep the cost super low. That’s what I did, £17 a month for 30gb data (3 U.K.)

I think his phone might be a bit battered to be honest. Whether it lasts another 2 years i don't know. I'll have a chat with him and put your suggestion across.

He's currently on Vodafone's 32GB Red plan where he gets free Spotify. That's the main thing for him by the sounds of it as he uses it a ton.

 

[BugeyeSTI]

I'd say if that's all he needs a phone for he should just keep the 7. He can get apple to replace the battery for $29 until December 31 2018 to extend it's life.

 

[The Oak]

I had an iPhone 7 and my wife a 7 Plus. I would have held out another year if my wife did not break her Plus. The 7's are great phones.

With that being said ... if he "has" to upgrade, the 8 may be the best option for him as it has everything he is used to, namely Touch ID. Going X moves him to Face ID. There are some great deals on the 8 too.

 

[bodonnell202]

Like others have mentioned the best option to keep his costs down would be to keep his 7 and get a discount battery replacement by Apple (prices vary by country, not exactly sure what it is in the UK, but it will go up on Jan. 1, 2019) which should easily give the 7 another couple years of life if it is in decent shape. If the 7 has other issues and he really is in need of a replacement the 8 is a good option which is the same form factor as the 7 with a few upgrades and should do everything he needs for years to come.

 

[avanpelt]

I’m keeping my iPhone 7 and getting the battery replaced in it next week. The phone does everything I need it to do; and none of the new iPhones are worth $750+ USD to me.