Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Who is still using an older iPhone?

Which iPhone are you using daily in 2016?

  • iPhone 6s/+

    Votes: 64 32.2%

  • iPhone SE

    Votes: 10 5.0%

  • iPhone 6/+

    Votes: 62 31.2%

  • iPhone 5s

    Votes: 30 15.1%

  • iPhone 5c

    Votes: 2 1.0%

  • iPhone 5

    Votes: 19 9.5%

  • iPhone 4S

    Votes: 6 3.0%

  • iPhone 4

    Votes: 1 0.5%

  • iPhone 3GS or 3G

    Votes: 1 0.5%

  • iPhone Original

    Votes: 4 2.0%
  • Total voters
    199
  • Poll closed .
KUguardgrl13

KUguardgrl13

macrumors 68020
Original poster
May 16, 2013
2,492
125
Kansas, USA
Just curious who is still using an old iPhone every day in 2016.

Personally, I'm still rocking an iPhone 5! It still does everything I want it to do without too much slow down. No cracks! Just a few minor scratches. I've replaced the battery and the home button.
 
  • Like
Reactions: v0lume4, Beeplance and Retired Cat
Poll only allows one selection.

I have the following in use with activated T-Mobile sims:

6+
6S
6S+

I keep my 5S charged daily but only use it on WiFi.
 
I'm still using the iPhone 5, but I replaced the battery myself, because it wasn't hold a charge very long. I'm ready to upgrade.
 
  • Like
Reactions: KUguardgrl13
iPhone 5s Space Gray 32GB Unlocked.
Best iPhone for my needs, size and reliability with top quality Apple had back then.

When I need a bigger screen on the go I use my iPad Mini 4 or Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 Pro. Later iPhones are ugly to my eyes 6/6s/7 are the same design, uninspired.
 
I have been using iPhones since the first day they were released. Back in June 2007, I stood on line for hours to get the first iPhone on its first day of release. I then used that original iPhone for 4 years until October 2011 when again I stood on line for hours to get the iPhone 4S on its first day of release, and today I am still using that iPhone 4S.

Next week I plan to stand on line again and upgrade to the iPhone 7. :)

We certainly pay enough for these devices, and I think it's a waste of money to upgrade every 2 years, especially when the new iOS can be downloaded each year to your old phone.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Beeplance, geta, TsuaSai and 1 other person
My mother is still using my iphone 4. I only replaced the battery before i gave it to her.

Was still using my iphone 5 until a few months ago, was still running fine. But gave it back to my company, when i wanted to try the S7.

Now waiting for my iphone 7.
 
  • Like
Reactions: BigMcGuire
I normally upgrade every year, but I'm taking a break this year. Now before buying a new gadget I ask myself, "Will this improve my life?" The answer was "yes" with the iPad Pro (12.4) + Apple Pencil and Apple Watch. The former helped me take better notes and the latter helped me manage notifications.

What can the iPhone 7 do for me? Nothing really, I only use my 6S to make calls, read emails, etc. I don't take pictures or play games. Launching an app two seconds faster doesn't help me in the end.

Progress is coming to a crawl and the smartphone market is becoming less exciting by the day.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Donfor and VAGDesign
sunapple said:
That's the way to do it! Keep it fresh for one or even two years and enjoy it like new again when you take off the case. 6 Plus still going strong.
Click to expand...

Gonna see if I can eek out another year (or two). Fingers crossed it survives caseless!!
[doublepost=1473586679][/doublepost]
Robert M. said:
I normally upgrade every year, but I'm taking a break this year. Now before buying a new gadget I ask myself, "Will this improve my life?" The answer was "yes" with the iPad Pro (12.4) + Apple Pencil and Apple Watch. The former helped me take better notes and the latter helped me manage notifications.

What can the iPhone 7 do for me? Nothing really, I only use my 6S to make calls, read emails, etc. I don't take pictures or play games. Launching an app two seconds faster doesn't help me in the end.

Progress is coming to a crawl and the smartphone market is becoming less exciting by the day.
Click to expand...

My thoughts extacly. Why spend £819 on a new phone when it will do nothing more than my current phone and even thinking more superficially it actually looks almost identical!!
 
  • Like
Reactions: Donfor
I would still be using my iPhone 5s had the iPhone SE not come out for so cheap. I'll be keeping this for at least another year, possibly longer if there isn't a major redesign for the iPhone next year with an appealing design.
 
Channan said:
I would still be using my iPhone 5s had the iPhone SE not come out for so cheap. I'll be keeping this for at least another year, possibly longer if there isn't a major redesign for the iPhone next year with an appealing design.
Click to expand...

We are in the same boat! I got my 5S at launch and used it for three years, only just upgrading to an SE a couple of days ago. The battery life dying off was the only reminder that I was using an "old" phone, and it ran so good I had to stop and think sometimes "have I really been using this phone for three years?!"

The 5S was a terrific phone and I could have gotten a fourth year out of it easily, but the price and performance of the SE was too good to pass up. I'm loving it so far and I fully expect three more years of smooth operation. The useful lifespans of Apple's phones are almost too good now, to the point where a lot of iPhone users can get a new iPhone and not have to upgrade for three years. I think that's the main reason iPhone sales are slipping and not because of "lack of innovation" like a lot of folks around here would think. These phones just run well for longer periods of time and most don't have a need to upgrade.
 
  • Like
Reactions: BigMcGuire, Math889 and Channan
ClutchThese said:
I can't stand the sluggishness when new iOS versions come out. I can only imagine how slow the 5 is at this time.
Click to expand...

You'd be surprised.

I'm another iPhone 5 holdout. iOS 9.3.5 works just fine on it.

Remember that the 5 was the first to have an Apple designed ARM architecture and 1GB of RAM. It was vastly overpowered in its time, which has allowed it to keep running well even as iOS has gotten more resource hungry. I'd like to keep using my 5 as long as Apple maintains iOS support for it.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Beeplance, rui no onna, KUguardgrl13 and 2 others
FrozenInferno said:
We are in the same boat! I got my 5S at launch and used it for three years, only just upgrading to an SE a couple of days ago. The battery life dying off was the only reminder that I was using an "old" phone, and it ran so good I had to stop and think sometimes "have I really been using this phone for three years?!"

The 5S was a terrific phone and I could have gotten a fourth year out of it easily, but the price and performance of the SE was too good to pass up. I'm loving it so far and I fully expect three more years of smooth operation. The useful lifespans of Apple's phones are almost too good now, to the point where a lot of iPhone users can get a new iPhone and not have to upgrade for three years. I think that's the main reason iPhone sales are slipping and not because of "lack of innovation" like a lot of folks around here would think. These phones just run well for longer periods of time and most don't have a need to upgrade.
Click to expand...

Retired Cat said:
You'd be surprised.

I'm another iPhone 5 holdout. iOS 9.3.5 works just fine on it.

Remember that the 5 was the first to have an Apple designed ARM architecture and 1GB of RAM. It was vastly overpowered in its time, which has allowed it to keep running well even as iOS has gotten more resource hungry. I'd like to keep using my 5 as long as Apple maintains iOS support for it.
Click to expand...
Just look at the charts for processor performance Apple likes to use. When you see the new iPhone is "only" 40% faster than the last one, it doesn't sound that impressive until you realize the amount of increase they achieved in the last year alone is a major chunk of the increase since the first iPhone.

And when a majority of the main features of the new software update are just new Messaging app features that require so little extra processing power, you realize the hardware is increasing at an exponential rate compared to the software. The software improvements can't keep up with the hardware improvements.

It won't be long until we have 5 year old iPhones still running perfectly smooth on the latest software.
 
  • Like
Reactions: BigMcGuire
I am in my third year of using the 5S. Before that I had a 3GS and kept it for 4 years.

Phones are so expensive these days that I really like to feel I am getting a good improvement in specs and that it would actually benefit me before upgrading. My previous upgrade felt worthwhile so far.

Currently, my biggest issue is storage My 5S is 16GB and I have to keep deleting stuff every couple of weeks and it is rather peeing me off. Ofc the battery is not as good as it used to be, but it is still performing alright and the phone does not feel sluggish and I am not a big picture taker, so happy with the camera.

Due to the storage issue I am thinking that it is now time to upgrade to the 7 and will likely go for the 128GB version. It would be so nice not having to worry about storage space.

The jury is still out for me though and I am sure that some of my friends will be upgrading asap and I will have a fiddle around with theirs before I take the plunge.

If I don't upgrade this year, it will def be next year!
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: KUguardgrl13
Nozuka said:
My mother is still using my iphone 4. I only replaced the battery before i gave it to her.

Was still using my iphone 5 until a few months ago, was still running fine. But gave it back to my company, when i wanted to try the S7.

Now waiting for my iphone 7.
Click to expand...
Not to derail the thread, did you not like the S7? A buddy offers me an S7 or Note when ever I speak with him.
 
Still using the 5s but I don't really consider it old. Still does everything I need to do. That said, I still plan on upgrading to the 7 sometime in the next few months.
 
I just moved from the 6 to the SE a couple of days ago. It's nice to be back to the smaller form factor.
 
ClutchThese said:
I can't stand the sluggishness when new iOS versions come out. I can only imagine how slow the 5 is at this time.
Click to expand...
I still have the iPhone 5 that I installed iOS 10 beta on. It's fine. It's not any slower than iOS9. The only jarring thing is the double click on home button to unlock since the 5 doesn't have Touch ID.
The iPhone 5 is still a highly capable phone thanks to its 1GB of RAM. The only thing is it's the it's the last supported 32-bit iPhone. We know it's going to be dropped soon, but it would be sad if Apple dropped it simply to focus on 64bit.
[doublepost=1473612236][/doublepost]
Nozuka said:
This. The same thing happened on computers.
Click to expand...
Especially with enough RAM and SSD.
I have a 2012 Macbook Air that is still running like a champ. The only problem is its aging battery.
 
  • Like
Reactions: rui no onna and KUguardgrl13
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back