So, a very close relative of mine passed away and I have possession of their phone. At first I immediately thought to keep it and preserve it, but now I’m wondering the viability of doing so due to the battery? It’s an iPhone 6, about 3 years old or so. How long could it theoretically even function/turn on? And even if functionality was lost, would the battery eventually rupture?
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iPhone 6(S)/Plus Relative passed away, keep phone?
- Thread starter RTB30
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Probably be fine for 10 years or so. There is still the first iPhones floating around out there that work and they are over 10 years old now.
Electronics are not really sentimental items. Earings, bracelets, their favorite books, a hair brush, a picture they loved, or something they made, etc. Things that were special to that person, things that held meaning to them. For example, I have a simple piece of posterboard with something a relative wrote on it. And, a mirror, with a couple poems that meant something to that person. Those are worth far more than their phone would have been. Because it meant something to them. And, I understand what it meant to them. And, when I see it, I think of what their values and life was about.
For a different person that passed away, I let others go after things like collectables, etc. I kept a plastic outdoor chair. Worth about $5. Why the chair??? Because that is what my friend always sat in outside while we talked to each other from our porches. It had meaning. I probably couldn't give it away. But, it has value as a memory such that I'll probably have it when I die.
A phone is like a television. Just property that has material value, and no real sentiment. Unless that person looked at that phone with great emotion.
Personally, if you need a phone, then that's your decision to make. And, hopefully not an issue with other members of the family. I let everyone else fight over money and material. I prized what they didn't even see.
If there is content of meaning to the family on the phone, then sure, keep it around. If it's only for it's value as a phone, then decide however you feel. Whether it is by need, greed, or whatever. But, I doubt you'll be sitting there looking at a phone in 10 years thinking about all the wonderful memories shared between you, that person, and their phone.
If the phone is not of "need" to anyone, and has no contents of sentiment stored on it, then I would probably sell it and buy something of help to the family. Perhaps a token of sentiment for the mother, sister, brother, etc. or the entire family as a whole. Something that is an expression of that person's character, morals, values, interests, etc.
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