Apple Says iPhone 5s Now Obsolete as iPod Touch 6 Becomes 'Vintage'

[jmgregory1]

I can’t believe it was just 7 years ago that Apple stopped selling the 5s, as it feels like a different lifetime ago to me. I thought the 5 series was ok, but not as unique as the 4 series, which was one of my favorites, even with its initial antenna attenuation issues. I do still have a 5s (gold) sitting in my desk drawer (with a broken screen) that one of my kids had used after I passed it down to him. I pull it out occasionally, just to remind myself of how small the old iPhones were.

 

[I7guy]

Bye bye 5s it was nice knowing you. Memories of an era gone by.

 

[MrENGLISH]

I must be part of the minority but I never cared much for the 5/5S/SE1 design. While it looked nice from the front and sides, the back looked ugly to me and felt like a step backwards from the 4/4S. My Space Gray 5 body easily scratched unlike any other iPhone I have ever owned before or since. Do you guys remember when iPhone 5 was shipping to customers with scratches from the factory? I'll never forget that. My disappointment in the 5 is what caused me to give Android a try when the HTC M7 came out. I ended up moving back to iOS when the iPhone 6 Plus released but that is a whole other story on its own.

 

[Dydegu]

I miss the S years.

 

[m_emelchenkov]

RIP. The last normal phone. For sure, iPhone 4 form factor was a way better. All next models (except SE1 in case of 5) are handheld computers , not phones. Why not iHandheld then.

 

[magicMac]

why is the iPhone 4 (8GB) still in the vintage list and not obsolete ?

I understand Apple continued manufacturing it in developing markets like India and Brazil for a while after it was officially discontinued in 2014. Going by the 7 year rule for Obsolete - where were apple still selling the iPhone 4 in 2017 ??

 

[danny842003]

RIP. The last normal phone. For sure, iPhone 4 form factor was a way better. All next models (except SE1 in case of 5) are handheld computers , not phones. Why not iHandheld then.

Probably because they are in fact phones?

 

[iObama]

A customer was using tap pay and I asked him is that a iPhone 5S and he said yes it’s still working with the Verizon network even though new phones must use voice over LTE, apparently it’s using an older protocol to connect to their network.

Using an iPhone 6 128 GB to do Facebook marketplace and OfferUp and Nextdoor.
Facebook is starting to wain with compatibility issues and stopped receiving updates but Messenger is still getting updates. Some links in the Facebook app don’t work anymore but I’m still selling things with Nextdoor and OfferUp. I’m glad they’re still supporting the older devices.

I offered my GF a newer iPhone but she still likes her first generation iPhone SE and its size, and as long as the carrier supports it and I can get batteries she’s fine with that.

Don't your eyes hurt?

 

[bunce66]

The iPhone 5S was an absolutely gorgeous design. The chamfered edge, the champagne color, the metal Apple logo. I still have mine in my tech drawer. I wish modern phone designs felt this “inspired” these days.

The current ones are pretty close in many ways. The dark ages of iPhone design was the 6-8, X, XI Xr, etc. All ugly in comparison.

 

[ignatius345]

Loved it yes but unfortunately it was too small.

No. No it wasn't. It was already pushing the limit of the screen size that an average person could comfortably reach their thumb to hit any part of the screen without juggling the phone awkwardly -- which was the original ergonomic standard from the first iPhones.

 

[eatrains]

Back when Apple made phones and not phablets...

 

[femike]

The iPhone 6S will be next. I'm still using it as my daily driver as it does everything I need it to do, with no lag at all.

 

[antonrg]

Such a Gorgeous phone. I had mine in the gold colour. It was such a gem of a phone.

 

[DaveN]

The iPhone 5s was my first smart phone and I still have it. I’m now on an XSmax and am surprised the 5s lasted so long!

 

[Tyler O'Bannon]

Loved that phone. The A7 was a big deal. Went to the 6, the 7+, and all Max’s from there This was the last small iPhone I had. Good mems.

 

[subjonas]

It's the last flagship iPhone I bought because they got huge and unsafe to hold after that. It was also the most elegant design.

 

[allenvanhellen]

The iPhone 5S was an absolutely gorgeous design. The chamfered edge, the champagne color, the metal Apple logo. I still have mine in my tech drawer. I wish modern phone designs felt this “inspired” these days.

The champagne would have looked cooler with black glass instead of white.

 

[questionwonder]

I'd pay $2K for a iPhone with no camera notch.

 

[svish]

5s was a very good iPhone. Next it will be the turn for 2017 iMacs to be classified as vintage.

 

[acorntoy]

Aww look at the widdle camera.

The only year when I didn't have an iPhone, got a 5 on release and went through -5- Apple replacement devices because they all had dust in the camera within two months. Dropped it for an HTC One (which ironically then had the worst phone camera i've ever had) and got addicted to big screens. Didn't go back to Apple until the 6+.

 

[acorntoy]

The iPhone 6S will be next. I'm still using it as my daily driver as it does everything I need it to do, with no lag at all.

It's based off of last sold date, not release date. If I remember correctly the 6S was still officially sold through third party carriers (boost,cricket) for several years after Apple "discontinued" it so it likely has many years of support to come.

 

[ronno]

I'd pay $2K for a iPhone with no camera notch.

Why? Do you not use a case? With a case the bump just disappears into the camera opening and it’s no issue.

 

[ksec]

If only there is some Battery Technology improvement, solid state battery inside iPhone 5s and a A17 chip would be perfect.

 

[XboxEvolved]

bought it at launch and besides remembering how amazing Touch ID was, I knew from the moment they announced it’s chip Apple would eventually go all ARM with Macs to and I had several tech “experts” do mental gymnastics to try and convince me that it was impossible.

 

[acorntoy]

Why? Do you not use a case? With a case the bump just disappears into the camera opening and it’s no issue.

I haven't used a case since the 6+. I -hate- cases. with the max I already have an oversized phone, I dont want to add a hefty rubber case to the phone.

The durability of the glass is quite impressive nowadays vs the past phones. The camera hump is annoying but not something i'm willing to cry about. The problem nowadays isn't the screen cracks but they've made the glass so resistant to cracking it'll scratch with the lightest pressure.