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Other Opinion: Apple should stop making iPhones every year

Joosst

Joosst

macrumors regular
Original poster
May 10, 2012
105
240
I thing it’s kind of crazy and pointless to introduce a new phone every year. We really don’t need it.

The impact on the environment of everyone needing the newest phone every year is absurd. There was a time when technology could last for at least 10 years.

The concept of a smartphone has matured. I would be fine with Apple bringing new phones every 3 to 4 years. At least they could bring something truly new.

I don’t think many people here will agree with me. (I also still proudly own an iPhone SE, mostly because I don’t like Face ID). But I wanted to put it out here, wonder if people agree. If only a little bit?
 
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All investors beg to differ, and Wall Street will NOT tolerate two-year upgrade cycle even if Apple want to.

The only exception is if apple makes lacklustre products enough times that investors think they can’t do better like that and pressure for change. Idk if that will happen.
 
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Need no, want yes. I upgrade yearly with friends / family it’s been a fun tradition since the iPhone 4. My old phones don’t fill landfills, other people get them and enjoy them.

The iPhone 14 Pro has me very excited even though I have the 13 Pro. The new display island / notification area is really practical to me as is the always on display. These two features have never been on any iPhone.

Present day, 10 years is an eternity in terms of tech. To each his own.
 
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I think there is a large enough market where a manufacturer can release a new phone every year, and it will fit within enough people's upgrade cycle to sell a lot of iPhones each year.

Additionally, they also have to keep up with other manufacturers that release flagship phones every year.
 
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Joosst said:
I thing it’s kind of crazy and pointless to introduce a new phone every year. We really don’t need it.

The impact on the environment of everyone needing the newest phone every year is absurd. There was a time when technology could last for at least 10 years.

The concept of a smartphone has matured. I would be fine with Apple bringing new phones every 3 to 4 years. At least they could bring something truly new.

I don’t think many people here will agree with me. (I also still proudly own an iPhone SE, mostly because I don’t like Face ID). But I wanted to put it out here, wonder if people agree. If only a little bit?
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If you don’t need a new phone every year, then stop buying them every year. A company should not change it’s release schedule to nurture irresponsible consumers.
 
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I believe most people replace their phones on a regular schedule. Apple is welcome to release a phone in between my schedule like the 12 and 13 as I know I'll skip them and end up with the 14. I'm on the 11 Pro BTW so it is great. My elderly parents were on the 6S so the upgrade last year to 13 was great. They can wait for the 16 or 17 😁.
 
I mean, you can choose not to buy a new phone for 3-4 years. Why take away the option for those who want a new phone every year? Personally, I’m usually more in the middle in terms of upgrading (every 2ish years).
 
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Joosst said:
I thing it’s kind of crazy and pointless to introduce a new phone every year. We really don’t need it.

The impact on the environment of everyone needing the newest phone every year is absurd. There was a time when technology could last for at least 10 years.

The concept of a smartphone has matured. I would be fine with Apple bringing new phones every 3 to 4 years. At least they could bring something truly new.

I don’t think many people here will agree with me. (I also still proudly own an iPhone SE, mostly because I don’t like Face ID). But I wanted to put it out here, wonder if people agree. If only a little bit?
Click to expand...
We don't, which is why we can safely ignore the announcement and keep our current iPhone. I'll be doing that this year as I'm still very satisfied with my 13 Pro Max :)

But if we're talking about Apple being more of an environmentally-conscious company, IMO they can start by extending MacOS support periods and not forcing people to return to the office, things that investors care less about but should still make a small difference.
 
You're going to see disproportionate numbers on sites like MacRumors or any tech site you visit online where it seems like everyone is going to upgrade and get the new device.

In the real world, most people are content with their 2-5 year old phone and look to upgrade on a more reasonable cadence. Perhaps back in early days of smartphones it was more prevalent, but I don't see those same consumer habits existing today.
 
it’s hard to say exactly how wasteful yearly iPhones are since they’re not all being thrown away and every year they’re made from more recycled components.

More wasteful was removing the headphone jack or changing the lightning connector every so often. Tons of material that can’t be recycled in exchange for a new revenue stream.
 
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Joosst said:
I thing it’s kind of crazy and pointless to introduce a new phone every year. We really don’t need it.

The impact on the environment of everyone needing the newest phone every year is absurd. There was a time when technology could last for at least 10 years.

The concept of a smartphone has matured. I would be fine with Apple bringing new phones every 3 to 4 years. At least they could bring something truly new.

I don’t think many people here will agree with me. (I also still proudly own an iPhone SE, mostly because I don’t like Face ID). But I wanted to put it out here, wonder if people agree. If only a little bit?
Click to expand...
I disagree based on Maths.

As we speak, there are more than a billion active iPhone users. Assuming the average user holds on to their iPhone for 3-4 years. We are looking at about 300 million people upgrading every year. You may not need a new model this year, but even as we speak, I am sure that there are hundreds of millions of people on older generations looking to upgrade. It's the same story next year, and the year after next, and there will come a time when your iPhone likewise is more than a couple of years old and you are in the market to upgrade, and I am sure you will want to be able to buy the latest model on the market, not one that's already 2-3 years old.

The issue with releasing a new iPhone every few years is that Apple simply wouldn't be able to make that many units to meet the initial pent up demand from a significant portion of their user base rushing to upgrade. You then get a few years of lull demand because the model isn't as new. It's actually pretty wasteful to just let your manufacturing capacity lay idle like that after a year.

It just makes more sense to spread out the upgrade cycle annually so there is consistency in their sales and supply chain. Based on this reasoning, I feel it still makes sense for Apple to stick to their annual iPhone upgrade cycle, just because of the sheer size of their install base.
 
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It’s funny you say that seeing as the new iPhones (Pro mainly) are the most innovative in years and years
 
Joosst said:
I thing it’s kind of crazy and pointless to introduce a new phone every year. We really don’t need it.

The impact on the environment of everyone needing the newest phone every year is absurd. There was a time when technology could last for at least 10 years.

The concept of a smartphone has matured. I would be fine with Apple bringing new phones every 3 to 4 years. At least they could bring something truly new.

I don’t think many people here will agree with me. (I also still proudly own an iPhone SE, mostly because I don’t like Face ID). But I wanted to put it out here, wonder if people agree. If only a little bit?
Click to expand...
And others like Samsung are bringing about 15 to 20 new phones EVERY YEAR!
Same about Laptops, TVs, SmartHome-devices, ...

Thats how capitalism works. Standing still means going backwards. Like it or not, but it's not going to change unless the whole economic system (worldwide) is about to change....
 
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