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Other iPhone Upgrade Dilemma: Every Year or Every Few?

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applefanb0y

macrumors member
Original poster
Apr 9, 2022
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I’ve been thinking about the whole “when to upgrade” question, and I’m curious how others see it. On one hand, upgrading every year has its perks-resale values stay strong, you always have warranty cover, and you’re using a phone that’s basically brand new. In some cases, the gap between what you sell for and what you spend on the new one isn’t as big as people assume.

On the other hand, holding on for a few years spreads the cost over time, avoids the hassle of reselling every year, and means fewer accessories and cases go to waste. Plus, if your phone still runs well, upgrading can feel more like a want than a need.

So the trade off is clear: Do you pay a little each year and always stay current, or stretch your phone’s life and accept a steeper resale drop later?

How do you all decide? Do you chase the yearly refresh, or ride it out for 2-3 years (or longer) before jumping in?
 
Personally the adults tend to upgrade every 2 years. But we pass our phones down to the kids and turn their 4 year old phones in for the trade-in. They usually get essentially the same trade-in value through our carrier that way. We find the batteries on the kids’ phones are really ready for an upgrade after 4 years.
 
I used to upgrade every 2 years until the iPhone X. I kept my X for just shy of 6 years and then replaced it with the 15PM and was rewarded with very noticeable improvements in every respect. I like the feeling of a worthwhile upgrade by waiting longer than upgrading every year of two and barely noticing any difference from the previous phone. I'm going to upgrade every 5 years, maybe more or possibly less depending on the what is offered by future models..
 
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I'm not into spending the money for a new iPhone every year. I've gone through the 3g, 4, 5, 6, 7+, 11, 12 Pro, and the 16PM.
Out of cycle I bought an original SE as a second phone.
The only ones I upgrade fast were the 3G (underpowered), 11 (I decided I wanted the telephoto/5G).
But resale hasn't been an issue for me. The 3G I didn't hand down. The 12 Pro I've kept as backup. The rest found other use with family.
 
Always go as long as I can. I tend to make sure I select the phone I really want, and use it forever. I went 4.5 years from Xs max to my 15 pro. And I'm hoping to get a decade out of this one. Storage was the only issue with the Xs so now I've got 512gb. Enough to last
 
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LionTeeth said:
Always go as long as I can. I tend to make sure I select the phone I really want, and use it forever. I went 4.5 years from Xs max to my 15 pro. And I'm hoping to get a decade out of this one. Storage was the only issue with the Xs so now I've got 512gb. Enough to last
Click to expand...
Any opinions on making the most of resale right now vs keeping it long enough where you are pretty much paying the entire amount out of pocket?
 
I can usually upgrade for pretty cheap. Every year. So as long as that stands true, I will likely be in the upgrade every year camp. I wouldn’t be terribly unhappy waiting a year though.
 
I do very little for myself, but having the iPhone on launch day is a very joyous experience for me. I am on the iPhone Ugrade Program and trade last year's model in to close on the loan and get the new version. There's always incremental changes, a lot of times, I roll with the new colors. Do I need to? No. Do I notice signifcant changes every year? Again, no. But I do enjoy it and it's one of a very limited number of things I splurge on. So - do you.
 
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mathiasinthe314 said:
I do very little for myself, but having the iPhone on launch day is a very joyous experience for me. I am on the iPhone Ugrade Program and trade last year's model in to close on the loan and get the new version. There's always incremental changes, a lot of times, I roll with the new colors. Do I need to? No. Do I notice signifcant changes every year? Again, no. But I do enjoy it and it's one of a very limited number of things I splurge on. So - do you.
Click to expand...
Same here! It’s the ONE thing I do for myself all year. Times are very bleak nowadays and we all deserve to grab sparks of joy however we’re able.
 
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I used to upgrade every year - but it felt more financially feasible to do ($700-800 purchase and selling my existing iPhone for just 500-600). It was at most a $200 upgrade every time (I'm in Canada FWIW).

Since the iPhone X, I've gone every other year (X, 11 Pro Max, 13 Pro, 15 Pro Max). These things have been near $2K CAD with tax. And compared to earlier iPhone years they have much more longevity.
 
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profets said:
I used to upgrade every year - but it felt more financially feasible to do ($700-800 purchase and selling my existing iPhone for just 500-600). It was at most a $200 upgrade every time (I'm in Canada FWIW).

Since the iPhone X, I've gone every other year (X, 11 Pro Max, 13 Pro, 15 Pro Max). These things have been near $2K CAD with tax. And compared to earlier iPhone years they have much more longevity.
Click to expand...
isn't it equally feasible now?
 
I told myself that I used to upgrade every year but that’s not strictly true. Looking back, these were the ones I owned:

OG iphone
3G
3Gs
4s
5s
6
6s
8+
Xs
11 Pro
12 Pro Max
14 Pro
15 Pro Max

Other than the earliest years, where every upgrade was significant, the longest run of yearly upgrades for me was 8 through 12.

These days, yearly upgrades seems bonkers to me. The year to year upgrades are generally minor. 2 years is the minimum but with the improvements in cooling in battery on the 17 Pro Max I’m hoping to keep it for 3-4 years. It’s too much hassle to swap out for a new phone every year, and there is no other tech that I replace yearly either.
 
applefanb0y said:
isn't it equally feasible now?
Click to expand...

I think it would be hard to sell privately 1 year later for just a $200 loss. But in terms of 1 year vs 2 years maybe still same relative loss. For ex, 15 Pro Max 2 years ago was few dollars less than $2000 CAD. Friend of mine sold his 1 year ago to upgrade for $1400 CAD. When I look now I see I can sell mine for maybe $1100. But I also don't have the same desire to upgrade every year. This year I definitely do, and I'm sure if we start seeing some significant changes (Fold, 20th anniversary, etc) I'll really be interesting in upgrading.
 
LionTeeth said:
Always go as long as I can. I tend to make sure I select the phone I really want, and use it forever. I went 4.5 years from Xs max to my 15 pro. And I'm hoping to get a decade out of this one. Storage was the only issue with the Xs so now I've got 512gb. Enough to last
Click to expand...
I'm surprised someone in MacRumors plans to keep their iPhone for a decade...
 
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Back in early days I upgraded every 2 years. Since iPhone X era, I am targeting 4-5 years. I always get the phone day one. I do it rarely it makes the experience even more enjoyable and noticeable!

Basically I did this : 4S > 5S > 7 128GB > 12 256GB > 17 Pro 512GB. I wanted to upgrade last year but I was really not convinced with the 16 series : base model without 60hz + it's was all in about Apple Intelligence which was available pretty late in my region on top of that (France, EU). Feel like the 16 series was kind of bad value and bad timing.
With the 12 GB RAM in the 17 Pro, I am targeting 4-5 years again before wasting my time/money to think about upgrading.
 
I switch ever year (sometimes more often) because at is fun and gives improvements, I also think the difference in cost is negligible in the long run.
 
My first iPhone was the 4s. Back then carriers gave you a free phone and let you upgrade. I've never kept an iPhone more than 2 years. My wife and I were the first ones to hop on the Apple Upgrade Plan when it came out. Made upgrading easy and painless - I think we shoveled away $500-$600/year to "upgrade" - not terrible for a heavily used device.

However, now that phones are north of $1600 and changes are so minuscule .... we have kept our 15 Pro Maxes and we have no intention of upgrading. This will be the first time we've kept an iPhone more than 2 years. Our 15 PMs work just fine, do everything well. Even with the trade in - still way too expensive for what little you get.

We will probably upgrade next year or not...

Surprised how many people in academia keep their phones forever.
 
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I remember going from the 3G to the 4 and thinking that was a significant upgrade. (And I think the iPhone 4 was the best looking iPhone ever.)

But now - with no subsidy from carriers (unless I go on a much more expensive plan), and smart phones having become a mature product, I'm on at least a four year cycle. I last upgraded from the 12 Pro to the 16 Pro Max, and I did notice a difference, but less than I thought.

My next phone won't be until 2028. Maybe longer.
 
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Good thread! I can say that I have upgraded every year since iPhone 1. By selling my previous years model I ended up spending a few hundred dollars and got the latest/greatest. By holding on an additional year(s), you just end up lowering the value of your device. However, it also depends on where you live. The US has amazing upgrade deals often.

This year I'm legit on the fence. My 16PM is still at 100% battery capacity (although let's see what it says after iOS26) and is in perfect shape.

The Air is a beta phone, I'm not interested. The Pro/PM is nice but I'm turned off on the aluminum sell job Apple is doing after selling me on Titanium to upgrade to the 15 Pro Max.

The 17 is most intriguing to me. I think it's a perfect phone for what I need. Apple really surprised me with this model.
 
Upgrade yearly: the cost of buying a coffee every day of the week.

Upgrade every two years: the cost of “almost” a coffee every day of the week.

Upgrade every three years: the cost of a coffee six days a week.

Upgrade every four years: the cost of a coffee five days a week.

While the cost is negligible from a grand scheme of things, I don’t feel much improvement year over year beyond the initial 10 minutes of excitement and the hours of frustration setting up the phone again.
 
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Poochi said:
Upgrade yearly: the cost of buying a coffee every day of the week.

Upgrade every two years: the cost of “almost” a coffee every day of the week.

Upgrade every three years: the cost of a coffee six days a week.

Upgrade every four years: the cost of a coffee five days a week.

While the cost is negligible from a grand scheme of things, I don’t feel much improvement year over year beyond the initial 10 minutes of excitement and the hours of frustration setting up the phone again.
Click to expand...
Excellent post.

And .... why does it take HOURS to set up a phone? Last year or year before I had to wipe my phone because of a problem I had and I was astounded how even hours later I was still fiddling with my phone to get it back to where it was - with a same day iCloud backup restore. This actually still has a major deterrent for me wanting to update my iPhone (I've got almost 400GB on my iPhone).
 
LionTeeth said:
Oh they get lots of my money on other products lol but even with my phone longevity plan I am still interested in the company and their products, new releases etc
Click to expand...
I absolutely respect people who keep their phones even half that long. It is something I'm striving to do with my 15 PM. It still has 103% battery health and does everything I need. Why upgrade? Keep posting - helps people like me be better :D
 
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