Other Why spend $1K every year on a phone?

[MyOikos]

I've been reflecting on the awesome mass of technology at my daily command currently, an iP7+. Why would I want to spend a grand to buy a new phone? Yes, I know my carrier and others offer new-ever-so-often plans that make my annual investment more like $500 a year, but why continue to hang on every rumor of possible upgrades that only make micro-improvements to my daily use. If my next upgrade would have a battery that lasted two days of use without charging or a continuous solar charger, I'd spend a grand. If my next upgrade had a place to add additional sim card for backup and expansion, I'd spend a grand. If my next phone had dual sim cards for work and business and personal lines, I'd spend a grand. And the truth is the next upgrade should have all three of these and more.

I don't expect my next iPhone to take out the trash or feed the dogs, but spending crazy amounts of money to keep up with the latest and greatest little tweak of daily improvement is being a slave to the emperor wears no clothes. Let's expect more real improvements from our upgrades at a more reasonable price.

 

[Phone Junky]

The yearly upgrades are minimal so there’s no point in spending $1K every year. At this point your phone should last 2 years easily, if not 3.

 

[eyoungren]

Why would I want to spend a grand to buy a new phone?

I do not know. Why would you?

My wife and I upgrade every 2 to 3.5 years with our tax refund. We don't sell our old phones and currently we are still using our 6s and 6s+.

It's always been this way for us so your question is not one we ever ask ourselves.

It would be nice to be able to afford phones every year, but we've never had that kind of cash.

 

[macsrcool1234]

i dont think a lot of x buyers are on a yearly upgrade cycle - i plan to use mine for ~3 years.

 

[eplchamps]

i dont think a lot of x buyers are on a yearly upgrade cycle - i plan to use mine for ~3 years.

I’ve upgrade every year or less between iPhones and androids. I’m however sticking to the X for a minimum of two years and maybe longer. The X has what I wanted in an iPhone for a long time- a high resolution screen.

 

[M3ndeX]

The yearly upgrades are minimal so there’s no point in spending $1K every year. At this point your phone should last 2 years easily, if not 3.

I´m still using an iPhone 6 with 16GB.
I´m still doing the same things as an iPhone X user, but slower. It´s not that daily breaker, cause iPhone 6 is still fast after 4 years, never needed to replace the battery, i only have problems with space, but nothing that a 50GB iCloud expand not resolve.

 

[Mactagonist]

The daily suite of Apple products I use (iPhone X, Apple Watch, AirPods) are essential enough to me that I would definitely be willing to spend what it takes to always have the latest. As long as I think there will be a noticeable improvement with the upgrade it is definitely worth it to me.

There is nothing I carry more or use more than that ‘suite’ of products.

And if your iPhone is costing you $1k per year you are doing it wrong. Sell the 1 year old model and deduct that from the purchas price to arrive at an actual cost of ownership. Or use iPhone upgrade program pricing.

 

[designs216]

I've been reflecting on the awesome mass of technology at my daily command currently, an iP7+. Why would I want to spend a grand to buy a new phone...

I actually like it when folks rush out to buy the latest as it creates a very handy secondary market. My family is all rocking very functional 6/6S phones I bought for a quarter of the cost of a new phone. After a few years, I'll sell them for $50-80 and use the proceeds to repeat the process.

 

[pippox0]

I have an iphone7. I have switched from iPhone one to iPhone 4s , then to seven

 

[Ffosse]

I buy 2 new phones a year and sell/hand down the old ones. I justify this because I can afford it.

I won't buy another android device, though, so this means 2 Apple phones.

 

[Jimmy James]

I'll buy a 2 year old release every 2-3 years and sell my current phone. The "new" phone is inexpensive and the sale of my old phone covers it. Even profit is possible with this approach.

 

[Dyn-tec]

I buy every cycle and it doesn’t cost me anywhere close to 1k each year.

I pay full price on day one, sell it the next year and typically get 75% or so, of what I originally paid, back from the sale.

A few hundreds bucks a year with a better battery and some other improvements is worth it to me.

 

[The Game 161]

I would never buy it outright...doing it via annual upgrade from now on.

 

[Dyn-tec]

I would never buy it outright...doing it via annual upgrade from now on.

What does that cost you? Is the phone yours to sell at the every year?

When I looked at it last it was like leasing a car...didn’t make sense to me.

When I last looked it was like 50.00 a month, so 600.00 a year....then u turn in and your old phone, get a new one, and pay another 600.00 every year...

 

[The Game 161]

What does that cost you? Is the phone yours to sell at the every year?

When I looked at it last it was like leasing a car...didn’t make sense to me.

You are basically paying the price over the total of a year then handing it back and getting the new model a year later. Or you can keep it for two years and keep the phone. It basically solves the issue of not having to sell your phone each year. I just couldn't be bothered doing that.

 

[Dyn-tec]

You are basically paying the price over the total of a year then handing it back and getting the new model a year later. Or you can keep it for two years and keep the phone. It basically solves the issue of not having to sell your phone each year. I just couldn't be bothered doing that.

So you pay full price, then give the phone away?!? That sounds ridiculous?

I think I am confused...not trying to sound like a jerk. But if you pay full price, why do you haven’t to give the phone back in a year?

Selling takes all of 5 minutes on eBay..

 

[upandown]

With upgrade programs it's generally half the cost of the phone each year. After 12 months and paying half you return the phone to the carrier and they give you a new one. If you buy a new phone every two years then your paying the same amount over the course of 2 years and getting a new phone every 12 months.

It mostly works as advertised except for paying the taxes on the phone. And add in apple care and then you are indeed paying more every 12 months. But it's still a decent option.

 

[The Game 161]

So you pay full price, then give the phone away?!? That sounds ridiculous?

I think I am confused...not trying to sound like a jerk. But if you pay full price, why do you haven’t to give the phone back in a year?

Selling takes all of 5 minutes on eBay..

put it this way

the cost of the phone is say

1,150

you are basically paying £1,044 for the 256GB iphone X

while having unlimited everything on your contract so you aren't just paying for the price but your sim contract.

You sell your phone each year you will likely get half of what you paid for if that..

If you do it via the apple upgrade it's zero interest which for many is a win/win for those who don't want to pay upfront.

So while you may be paying close to full price and giving it back after a year you are still getting the new phone straight away with no upfront cost.

I can see why some think this isn't great but for those who can't pay the price at once it's a good option.

 

[now i see it]

As long as  is in business, they will make a new model iPhone every year that's a little better than the previous model. Also, over time, new phones will get more expensive. Just because a company produces an improved model each year, certainly doesn't mean you have to buy one.
 has millions of customers using all sorts of older model iPhones. Some are still using iPhone 4. At some point, everyone will eventually need to get a new phone, but certainly not every year.
Your upgrade schedule should be dictated by the functionality of your device: if it works fine and your satisfied (enough) with it, there's no good reason to give  more of your money.
My thoughts for upgrade are if I'm just too frustrated with the iPhone I have or there's a new technology that's really great that my older iPhone won't do - then buy a newer model. Don't get wrapped up into the hype of every new model - and for goodness sakes NEVER UPGRADE THE OS BEYOND THE NUMERICAL VERSION IT SHIPPED WITH. iOS upgrades are the number one source of "malware"- forever crippling your phone.

I think the next iPhone to buy will be the one that can use 5G technology (if there's 5G transmitters installed in your area.

 

[kazmac]

I unfortunately went through an iPhone model a year from the 6 to the 7+ - several lemons and none of them are as useful or nice to use to as 5 was for me. If there's a SE2 that hits all my bells and whistles including a better screen and the same price as now, I will upgrade some time next year. I will hang onto my 7+ as a back up, but the price points, my disinterest in the bells and whistles and software bugs just make me not want to upgrade to any newer iPhone now.

I am happy my 7+ works and that will be the last time I spend $1k on a phone. I have more important things to buy with that money.

If people want new phone each year, that's their business. Me, I am learning to enjoy and respect what I have and when it comes time to upgrade I will. For Apple to truly snag my dollars for anything now, they need to fix their software for iOS and macOS pronto. If they keep sitting on their laurels, I'll keep waiting for an iPhone that has what I need for the price I want to pay.

 

[tonybarnaby]

What does that cost you? Is the phone yours to sell at the every year?

When I looked at it last it was like leasing a car...didn’t make sense to me.

When I last looked it was like 50.00 a month, so 600.00 a year....then u turn in and your old phone, get a new one, and pay another 600.00 every year...

Keep in mind you have to pay for Apple care if you do iphone upgrade program, so that adds to the cost.

 

[puma1552]

I've been reflecting on the awesome mass of technology at my daily command currently, an iP7+. Why would I want to spend a grand to buy a new phone? Yes, I know my carrier and others offer new-ever-so-often plans that make my annual investment more like $500 a year, but why continue to hang on every rumor of possible upgrades that only make micro-improvements to my daily use. If my next upgrade would have a battery that lasted two days of use without charging or a continuous solar charger, I'd spend a grand. If my next upgrade had a place to add additional sim card for backup and expansion, I'd spend a grand. If my next phone had dual sim cards for work and business and personal lines, I'd spend a grand. And the truth is the next upgrade should have all three of these and more.

I don't expect my next iPhone to take out the trash or feed the dogs, but spending crazy amounts of money to keep up with the latest and greatest little tweak of daily improvement is being a slave to the emperor wears no clothes. Let's expect more real improvements from our upgrades at a more reasonable price.

Seems Apple's already conditioned you to the idea that a phone should cost a grand, whether you buy one or not.

There are dual SIM rumors swirling, so you might be spending a grand this year.

 

[rbrian]

I had a crappy “smart”phone, which was nowhere near as good as my friend’s brand new iPhone 3GS. It wasn’t even much cheaper. When my contract was up, I bought a 3GS of my own. It was a revelation!

Then the 4 came out, with that beautiful retina screen ... about 3 weeks later. I decided never to get caught in that situation again, and when my contract was up, switched to a sim only plan, and bought a 4S outright. I sold the 3GS on eBay. Then the 5, which finally had a screen I could watch videos on comfortably, since it was 16:9, so no black bars. Then the 5S, with Touch ID. I gave the 5 to my mum, to replace her original Nokia 3210, which no longer held a charge. Then the 6, with a much bigger screen, and I gave the 5S to my sister. Then the 6S, for no good reason except inertia. I wasn’t going to by the 7 at all, but the 3rd hand iPhone (3GS? 4?) my nephew was using was too old to play Pokemon Go, so I bought the 7, gave the 6S to my sister, and my nephew got the 6.

The 7 isn’t significantly better than the 6; sure it’s better in many incremental ways, but not £700 better. I was all set to buy the X until they announced the price. Now I’m sticking with the 7 until I find an Android phone that has what I want for a minimal price. There are plenty around £200 which have almost identical specs to my 7, but with a headphone jack and expandable storage. When that price range gets OLED screens, and Android gets updated to deal with the inevitable notch properly, then I’ll change. It shouldn’t be more than a year or two.

 

[saltd]

Most “normal” folks keep their iPhones for 3 years or so. The people on this forum represent only a minuscule fraction of iPhone users who live to upgrade every chance they get.

I keep my phones for 2 years, then sell then for half of what I paid. Works out very well for me. It just means I need to take good care of my phone, which I do.

Why would anyone would buy a $1000 phone every year and then upgrade without liquidating the old device? I don’t know, but I doubt many people are doing that.

 

[Dyn-tec]

put it this way

the cost of the phone is say

1,150

you are basically paying £1,044 for the 256GB iphone X

while having unlimited everything on your contract so you aren't just paying for the price but your sim contract.

You sell your phone each year you will likely get half of what you paid for if that..

If you do it via the apple upgrade it's zero interest which for many is a win/win for those who don't want to pay upfront.

So while you may be paying close to full price and giving it back after a year you are still getting the new phone straight away with no upfront cost.

I can see why some think this isn't great but for those who can't pay the price at once it's a good option.

I will agree with you on that. It is a way for people who want the latest phone, that maybe don’t have the cash available to purchase it outright.

My opinion was more from “what is the cheapest way to own a new phone every year” aspect. I realize everyone’s situation and phone priorities are different.

Obviously the best financial decision is to buy a phone and keep it til it dies...but of course, none of us are going to do that

Cheers