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The iPhone 7 was the biggest disappointment for me. I had some problems and bugs all the time

The iPhone 7 felt a bit like the 6S at the time, but without the headphone jack. It ended up being an iPhone that was used for many years though and a very solid business phone as pretty much every company phone seemed to be an iPhone 7 up until a few years ago. Quite a dull release, even back then though and I think the 6S brought a much bigger improvement jump over its predecessor. There’s a reason the 6S is still referenced fondly by users and tech reviewers.
 
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One more reason why I regretted getting the 7 was because of “hissgate”. I had it and it was very much audible when recording a video in a rather quiet place.
 
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XR. I changed phone contract and had foolishly got a Galaxy Note 9 after having a XS Max. I didn't like the Note 9 so traded it for the XR. Really didn't like it so sold it and got another XS max 🤣
 
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Great topic OP!

For me it was going from iPhone X to XS. The X was spectacular vs my 6S and I absolutely LOVED that phone. Then I fell for Apple's promises of the improved camera in the XS over the X. Well - the camera was improved somewhat, but my pictures weren't discernibly better in many situations despite all of Apple's marketing claims.
 
I kinda regret getting the iPhone 11 Pro Max instead of the regular Pro, just because it's a little too large and heavy...

...but otherwise, no, I don't regret any of the iPhones I got. ✌️
 
Never regretted a purchase, but the least exciting I guess was the 14 Pro since I came from a 13 Pro.

I went from a 3G to 3GS which was a huge bump in speed and camera quality.

Then went from the 3GS to the 4 and I shouldn’t even need to explain why that was worth it.

4 to the 5S so a little bit taller screen, Touch ID, performance boost, better camera, and one of the best designed iPhones of all time, IMO.

From 5S to the 7, which was nice for the updated specs but was a total downgrade in design.

7 to the 11 Pro. I waiting so long because I hated the notch but it was feeling like the time to upgrade so I did and it was a great phone despite the notch. And that midnight green was beautiful.

11 Pro to 12 mini because I missed having a small phone.

12 mini to 13 Pro because I got it as a gift, and it was the green one so back to a similar color that my 11 Pro had. It was nice having really good battery life again even if I didn’t care for the size of the phone, and that smooth 120 Hz refresh rate.

And finally 13 Pro to 14 Pro, because I finally finished school, had a good job, had some money to blow, and I was digging that purple color and Dynamic Island. I know it takes more space than the notch but I still think it looks better.
 
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The iPhone 5 was my most jinxed iPhone ever (huge upgrade from my iPhone 2G though when it worked, I was tempted by the 4 but got cold feet reading all the 'Antennagate' at the time on here (hindsight is a wonderful thing, I really shouldn't have been put off by that considering I've always used my iPhones in a case anyway!)

It is the only time I have had to complain to 'tcook@apple.com', I've still got the email in my archive!

Good evening

I originally purchased the 'iPhone 2G' on launch day November 9th 2007. For many years I was happy with this phone and kept it for many years until I was able to purchase an iPhone 5 shortly after the release date of September 21st 2012.

Unfortunately, the first unit I bought the screen had an issue with not being properly sealed and I promptly returned it and received a refund at the time. I then bought a new iPhone 5 unit a few months later and this worked fine until shortly before the end of my 1 year warranty when it had issues with charging and poor camera quality. I sent this unit into Apple Service via the mail system (Serial) and a refurbished unit was sent back out to me (Serial).

Shortly after using the refurbished unit for a few hours it was found the touch screen would suddenly stop responding to all input even after a restart and full software restore of the phone. This problem is intermittent (The touch screen can work fine for hours / days then suddenly stop responding for hours / days). I booked an appointment with the Apple Store on January 22nd 2014, where a full screen replacement was suggested and carried out. I have no complaints over this level of service.

Unfortunately, despite the screen replacement the problem still exists as proven by this video taken on February 10th 2014 :

(video long gone sadly!)

I booked another appointment at the Apple Store for February 12th 2014 where a member of staff advised me my phone was out of warranty (This should not be the case as although my original warranty has expired the refurbished unit sent as a replacement should I am led to believe have a 90 day warranty on it) and the only thing they could do was to replace the screen again (This does not seem to be the cause of the issue). I was unable to replicate the issue to the member of staff on this occasion as at the time the touch screen was responding however I did show them the same video of the issue and also it would be logged in my service history that the previous member of staff witnessed the issue).

It is hard for me to make the time to continually visit Apple stores and contact support and get no end result, all I am wanting is a reliable iPhone! (As you can imagine it is quite inconvenient when your touch screen stops responding in the middle of a 4 hour train journey for example). Would it be possible for you to investigate my case and arrange for a replacement iPhone 5 to be shipped out to me? (Ideally I would like to receive a replacement unit and then send my defective unit back, I am happy to provide billing details as 'insurance' if this is necessary).

My contact details are as below

Many thanks for your assistance

No personal reply from Tim of course but in fairness that eventually did lead to them agreeing to replace the entire unit for another refurbished unit and the touch screen worked flawlessly...hurrah!

...until I dropped it a few months later in the pub on a solid floor and smashed the screen (the first and only time I've ever smashed a iPhone screen to this day)

...which I got replaced at a third party repair shop easily enough

...by then the battery was poor though, I could easily burn through nearly a full charge by lunchtime!

...then just to top it all off I had it stolen from my pocket without even noticing on the way home from work a couple of months after the screen replacement - even worse I didn't have a screen unlock code set up (let alone Find My iPhone!) on it at the time as I had turned it off temporarily on my previous unit due to the touch issues and forgotten to put it back on so was quite paranoid about all my personal data for quite a long time, although I suspect the thief wiped the phone pretty much straight away

In an opposite view to many people on here as a result of all this I then had a much happier experience for many years after being 'forced' to then fork out for a iPhone 6 Plus which lasted me many, many years with no real issues apart from the whole battery saga at the time, but that ended up being resolved with the whole reduced cost battery replacement scheme

My friend then sold me their iPhone X which again lasted many years until I decided to more recently treat myself to a iPhone 14 Pro Max brand new with AppleCare theft and loss so I'm sorted now for many years!
 
14 Pro Max. Wish I’d hung on to my 13 Pro Max. Got on better with the camera system on the 13 PM and the battery health was still 100% when I sold it after 12 months. 14 PM at 99% by Jan ‘23 with exactly the same usage and charging routine. Suspect the battery in the 13 PM was bigger than spec‘d though - so it just seemed that it was degrading slower….
My exact experience! Now using a regular iPhone 14 which I much prefer over the 14 PM. Hopefully someday we will see a telephoto lens in the regular iPhone! (Good on Samsung for their camera choice in the Galaxy S23)
 
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My regret was being too impatient and ended up buying iPhone 12 Pro 128gb only to see 12 Pro MAX arrive about a MONTH later. Several months later I got a Note20 Ultra because of that BIG screen, stylus, and its amazing Space Zoom. Love it!! Used it for a year til iPhone 13 Pro Max 256gb got my attention. Turns out to be my best purchase ever due to its amazing battery longevity.

I won't sell Note20 Ultra - still on security updates but will not get Android 14. Thanks Samsung! Just finally upgraded my 12 Pro from 14.8.2 to 16.3.1. Not bad.
 
This might seem odd, but I don't remember regretting any of them. I typically waited 2-3 years between upgrades, so usually the improvements were more obvious.
 
My 8 was a bit of a disappointment coming from the 6. Sure it was a bit faster but otherwise it felt the same. I wouldn't say I regret going from my XS to a 14 Pro (speed, 2x zoom lens), but I am disappointed with the enormous camera bump and hard edges on it. My XS felt so nice in my hand, the XS was an excellent iPhone.
 
So inferior cameras and screen in an old phone are more tempting than the most current thing?
You complain about features not changing much but think about giving the ones you got up for something less?

You miss my comment? Cost is the prohibiting factor here. I really could care less about the cameras. Most of the features are turned off unless you turn them on.

It's more about not spending $1,500 dollars on a phone. Granted that phone does a crap ton of stuff. It's just not worth it to me anymore.
 
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You miss my comment? Cost is the prohibiting factor here. I really could care less about the cameras. Most of the features are turned off unless you turn them on.

It's more about not spending $1,500 dollars on a phone. Granted that phone does a crap ton of stuff. It's just not worth it to me anymore.

I think a lot of iPhone users are getting fed up with the increasing costs of getting the latest device. There are definitely some cost advantages of getting the previous years iPhone as these phones are good enough for a few years anyway. Features are only inferior to newer models if you are directly comparing them side by side and very few people are bothered about doing that in my experience.
 
I think a lot of iPhone users are getting fed up with the increasing costs of getting the latest device. There are definitely some cost advantages of getting the previous years iPhone as these phones are good enough for a few years anyway. Features are only inferior to newer models if you are directly comparing them side by side and very few people are bothered about doing that in my experience.

I totally agree. It’s safe to say that the 13 series will stand against the test of time. When I had the 11 PM I thought it would be everlasting because the battery life was so good, to the point where iOS 14 was released and it broke the amazing battery life on the 11 PM. But my 13 PM has been doing exceptionally well on iOS 16, lasting for an entire day with 9+ hours of SoT with 50% of battery left. If it can perform at this rate even when iOS 17 comes out, I’ll be very happy to keep it beyond 2023.
 
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You miss my comment? Cost is the prohibiting factor here. I really could care less about the cameras. Most of the features are turned off unless you turn them on.

It's more about not spending $1,500 dollars on a phone. Granted that phone does a crap ton of stuff. It's just not worth it to me anymore
What features do you have to turn on?
The „Pro font“ in the camera app? DI? ProMotion?
I can’t think of many features I’d have to turn on manually.
I surely miss your point.

The cost of an iPhone didn’t change much since the X in the states. The differences are made pretty clear in my opinion. The 13P is a big upgrade from a Xs, the 14P not from the 13P, but that’s self explanatory. A 1.5k phone can be used for more than a year or two.
I don’t think the problem is the phone but your expectations. If you aren’t happy with the jump from Xs to 13P/14P, that doesn’t mean that the Xs was peak iPhone. Far from it imo.
 
12 Mini - I did it hoping it would discourage me from using it so much but the battery is worse than I thought, currently at 79% health, and I regret not having a Pro camera. I think I can hold on until September and get either a 14/15 Pro.
 
By far the 13 Pro... Too heavy, too big, and the OLED screen really has damaged my eyes. That's exactly why I bought a new SE today, and I plan to sell the 13 Pro soon.

I see many people complained about the 7. To me, the iPhone 7 was a great phone, except for its poor battery. I took some of the best photos on the 7 - better than the 13 Pro believe it or not. Upgrading from the 5C to 7, I couldn't be happier lol.
 
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The iPhone 5C is definitely my biggest regret. I “upgraded” from an iPhone 5. Total waste. The iPhone SE3 is my second regret. I like touch-ID a lot and all, but the problem is that you sacrifice everything else on the phone to have that feature. Mediocre battery, tiny screen, etc.. My iPhone 5, iPhone XR and iPhone 14 Plus have all been huge winners.
 
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