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iPhone 5 for the long term
- Thread starter surjavarman
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Who keeps a phone 3 or 4 years nowadays
People who don't upgrade to new iPhones every year like its some sort of ritual or hobby.
Pretty much a typical ignorant apple fan response right there "i do it must mean no one else does it''
What? How would a bigger iPhone make the smaller ones obsolete? The 4" iPhone will be around for a very long time. If a larger screened iPhone is developed it will probably be released in conjunction with a 4" phone. Believe it or not, there are million of people who don't want to carry a phablet around.
Obsolete will be decided by the user. Not everyone cares or is ready to spend money on a new phone every year. Some people are still using their iPhone 3GS because a long as it makes class and still works, that's all they need. I used my treo 600 for four years without issues.
Nice post. So at this point would you recommend holding out a little longer for the S4. And does the iphone5 have more longevity than the nexus4. Also keep in mind that the nexus4 is cheaper. Which one would be financially more attractive to get for the long term
The S4 should be an excellent phone, assuming you don't mind the 5" display. If it really does use the PowerVR SGX544MP for the GPU, that will be a heck of a device in terms of processing power. If Samsung commits to long-term support, or third-party support is acceptable in terms of getting Android updates, it's certainly worth considering, given the comparatively very powerful SoC. Hopefully the battery will be user-replaceable. One of the main concerns I'd have is how the AMOLED display would fare over the long term.
The Nexus 4 lacks LTE (except for the limited case of Band 4). I don't think I'd invest in a phone that lacked LTE for a 3-4 year timeframe, personally. I'd probably get the iPhone 5 over the Nexus 4 unless you have an affinity for Android specifically (some people do). Hardware-wise a quad-core Krait is more powerful than a dual-core Swift but the difference will probably go largely unnoticed in most tasks. The iPhone 5 has the better GPU.
If you don't need to buy right now, I'd probably wait to see what the S4 ends up being, and maybe wait for some analysis on the display and get some idea of what support in the 3-4 year timeframe will be like. Aside from the concerns about the display, it probably will be one of the more viable choices for long-term use due to the A15/A7 config. If you're really patient, you could probably wait for the 5S as well and choose between those two.
In my case, I tend to prefer iOS to Android, and I prefer a smaller phone and to offload larger-display tasks to a proper tablet. So, for me, the iPhone 5 still made more sense overall.
If longevity is the priority, waiting for the next iPhone would be wise. S models are Apples best. Plus you'd be starting at the beginning of the phones release cycle. Both the 3s & 4s were better than their counterparts.
Get the Nexus 4, it is half the cost of an iPhone so you can just by the newer version of the Nexus in a year or 2.
My priority is saving as much money as possible. I want to go for the most financially attractive deal.
But I am kind of in a weird situation right now. My smartphone just broke and I kind of want to get a new one but I am skeptical about the longevity of the current devices on the market. I thought about getting a tablet for taking care of my smartphone related tasks but the only one that I want is the ipad mini and that one doesn't have retina. I am willing to wait 1-2 months at most. If its longer than that then I need to look for an intermediate solution such as a tablet.
But I am kind of in a weird situation right now. My smartphone just broke and I kind of want to get a new one but I am skeptical about the longevity of the current devices on the market. I thought about getting a tablet for taking care of my smartphone related tasks but the only one that I want is the ipad mini and that one doesn't have retina. I am willing to wait 1-2 months at most. If its longer than that then I need to look for an intermediate solution such as a tablet.
Th Nexus 4 is kind of different. Although isn't suppose to have LTE connectivity, it is able to connect to some LTE bands. So apparently it has a LTE radio chip.
But yeah!, when it was introduced without LTE it made me lose interest in it.
Most of the top tier smartphones released today have processing power that far exceed what they currently need. Every current app runs without issue on the 4s, and the A6 chip is twice as powerful as it. It will be several years before any apps are released that the iPhone 5 cannot handle.
Although it's a poor decision, there are still people buying iPhone 4's, and those will be around for 2-3 years from now, so it's not like the 5 is going to be obsolete. The biggest driver now is the cellular networks, especially in heavily trafficked areas where you really need LTE, and new bands of LTE as they come online (WCS on AT&T, AWS on Verizon, etc), but considering that the 3GS still fundamentally works just fine, if a little slow, I don't think there's any reason the iPhone 5 won't be just fine in 4 years. Not so for Android phones, their software support pretty much ends after a year to a year and a half, and they are feeling very old and outdated by the end of their 2-year life.
To correct you:
1) Yes, AT&T will kill their EDGE, but not until 2017
2) And two, AT&T, T-Mobile and Sprint are going to release LTE-Advanced (which is true 4G) and 5G is at least six years from now
Well my 1.3 ghz dual core iPhone 5 beats my brother's quad core Galaxy Note 2 in just about every speed test. Espcially in the browser pinching to zoom and text clearing up is much faster on the i5 then the Note 2. There is no reason why the Droid DNA and these new S4 pro smartphones have checkerboard and white boxes when you pinch to zoom in and out on the browser... Think im lying? Try it , go to a website like cnn.com or some big website and pinch to zoom all the way in. Then pinch to zoom out you will see exactly what im talking about...this doesnt occur on the i5 ever.
Apple's A6 is actually a very fast chip and should be supported by Apple for another 3 major software updates for the i5. LTE also future proofs this phone by alot.
Who keeps a phone 3 or 4 years nowadays
exactly I upgrade every two years or just a few months afterwords 3 years is my max as soon as a device stops getting software upgrades its time for a upgrade for me.
Who keeps a phone 3 or 4 years nowadays
+1. If you're with one of the major carriers, it's silly not to take advantage of the $450 they're willing to give you back every two years in the form of a highly subsidized phone upgrade. You should be able to sell your current two year old phone for the price of the upgrade and march into the future without any net cost for new hardware (other than your high service contract fees).
Rumor has it that LTE advanced could launch later this year. We'll see:
http://http://miami.cbslocal.com/2012/12/06/att-announces-4g-lte-advanced-for-2013-verizon-5g-next/
So you are saying its better to spend $200 every 2 years (cause its free cash) and waste a fortune on monthly fees for the rest of your life. Rather than an unlocked phone that you can take anywhere you want with a cheap data plan that meets your specific needs.
Verizon iPhone 5 16GB with 2GB data plan and 2-year contract:
$199 + ($100 x 24 months) = $2599
Unlocked iPhone 5 with Net10 over two years:
$650 + ($45 x 24 months) = $1730
That's a difference of $870 saved every two years.
Multiply that over 10 years and it adds up to a savings of $4350.
Subsidized phones and expensive monthly plans are the equivalent of high interest rate loans, and the irony is people had to have good credit to get the phone at the subsidized price because of the contract involved. That's what is silly.
It makes much more sense to buy the device outright and take it wherever you want.
My treo 650 is what got me hooked on smartphones. I loved that phone. I was just looking & laughing at the tomtom navigation kit for the treo that I still have in my office.
Seems like so long ago that I was using it. But it was only like 6 years ago. It's crazy because we are only at the birth of these devices. In another 4 or 5 years we are going to look back at the iPhone 5 and be slightly amazed that it was so "cool".
Agreed. It is likely that your battery will give up the ghost before that time frame.
No. I agree that if a good, cheap calling/data plan is available from a smaller carrier, using an unlocked phone with that plan will be cheaper in the long run. I just haven't yet found a plan like that that works well for me. If I'm going to stay with AT&T or Verizon, it definitely makes sense to upgrade as often as possible and pocket the subsidy.
Even if you cancel your contract the day after you upgrade and sell the new phone, the early termination fees will be less than the subsidy you just put in your pocket.
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If you don't upgrade every 2 years, your throwing away money. The subsidized price of the phone is built into the enormous amount of money the major cell phone companies ( Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint) charge per month. If you don't upgrade, your overpaying for a service without the benefit of using a new, subsidized phone.
Right. Even if you want to keep using your old phone (maybe because it's jailbroken) it still makes sense to get the upgrade right away and sell the phone. You will get very close to the full retail price, pocket the subsidy and restart the upgrade clock right away. Then you can buy a new phone whenever it makes sense for you.