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I only upgrade when I have to (that's true for all my Apple toys). And since I don't purchase, bank, or even surf on my SE v2, kinda curious for how long I can continue to use it.
If it wasn’t for the terrible battery life on iOS 15 and the old single camera I would personally still be happy to use my first gen SE. Whenever I pick it up it just feels sooo good to use, it’s made for one handed use and is ultra portable compared to anything Apple has offered since the 14.
I surely would miss many features, like USB C, Face ID, OLED, ProMotion and water resistance, but I survived without them, so that wouldn’t be too bad.
I love the SE 2 as well. I think it’s the best looking phone ever. My mother has an iPhone 8 and it feels superb whenever I use it. The OS surely is slow and battery life is bad, but it’s still a solid device. Would I have to decide between the SE and the SE 2/iPhone 8 I would surely pick the latter.
 
That hasn't been my experience. Even with my old iPhones on the maximum version of iOS I can run on them. Perhaps, the only exception might be my 4s on iOS 9. But I'm not using that phone for anything remotely important.

I suspect that you could be right though if my life was on my iPhone. But, I have lots of Macs for games and streaming, a TV for movies (and also streaming) and a bunch of large displays connected to my Macs for apps and web browsing. My phones function mainly as phones. So maybe that's why (if they slow down) I never notice.
Personally I also think Apple learned their lesson from the 4s and tried to actually deliver updates that don’t brick older devices, until iOS 26 that is.
One of the biggest differences I noticed when upgrading from my 11 Pro to a 15 Pro was how fast shortcuts and automations ran. On the 11 it took a lot of time for certain actions, on the 15 it is as fast as wou would expect it to be.
But honestly, had I not broken the 11 I would have kept it for a year longer at least.
 
Personally I also think Apple learned their lesson from the 4s and tried to actually deliver updates that don’t brick older devices, until iOS 26 that is.
One of the biggest differences I noticed when upgrading from my 11 Pro to a 15 Pro was how fast shortcuts and automations ran. On the 11 it took a lot of time for certain actions, on the 15 it is as fast as wou would expect it to be.
But honestly, had I not broken the 11 I would have kept it for a year longer at least.
Which devices does iOS 26 brick? It's running fine on both my iPhone 11 and 14

My older iPhone still receives the latest iOS upgrades and has 81% battery health according to Apple. However, the CoconutBattery app indicates it has 83.4%. When the hype surrounding the iPhone 17 began, I nearly bought one, but my service provider was late in offering it, giving me enough time to read and watch reviews, and I ultimately changed my mind. I'm glad I did, as now everyone is talking about the iPhone 18. I’m not a photographer, so I don't need the best camera available; the camera in my older phone still takes sufficiently good pictures. Additionally, I don’t care much for Apple Intelligence.
I thought you had, or were getting, an Oppo. Is your iPhone a backup phone, or your main?
 
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Would you buy a new TV or car to always have the latest model year? I don't see why phones should be different. I buy a new one when my old one starts getting flaky - or there is something really important in the latest version that I believe I can't live without (which is bollocks because I was living without that feature all of my previous life.)
 
Honestly I am not that reliant on iOS updates. I am still on iOS 17 and happy, iPhone 11 Pro. Despite 77% battery it holds enough charge for me and works good enough. Currently not inclined to get iPhone 17 Pro since I don’t feel like it would be much different for me. New phone is always new hassle too - buy a case, buy accessories including yet another USB-C charging brick, being overly careful with that, as well as throwing lots of money to purchase it🤣

I am quite sad iPhone downgraded to 4x telephoto. I wanted 5x, real 5x and 48MP like competitors offer. Camera is everything for me so I won’t take compromises. Quite sure they will get back to 5x in next iterations to create some sort of “innovation”, oh and speaking of it… there isn’t a lot. Doesn’t feel like Apple is actually bringing something new to the table, not a single feature worthy to make me upgrade my 6 y.o. phone. Even competition is trying harder
 
Its based on your financials, none of us can make that decision for you.

Being real here, do you like the number 17 or 18 better? If you don’t care, count yourself lucky that you don’t have OCD about such things lol
 
I’ve been really bad these last years accept every upgrade as so many interest free offers on for macs, phones etc…

I need to stop! It’s almost and addiction!

I’m self employed so just got a SIM card to separate work from personal and I use an old 6s plus for work and that’s been an eye opener as it can do everything I need!
 
Personally, I upgraded to my 15 Pro Max and have said it’ll be my final upgrade until Apple releases a foldable. I’ll be giving them until next fall, and either be getting the foldable iPhone or switching to a Fold 8 / Pixel 11 Pro Fold. I’m done waiting for them to “just get it right” when it’s actually been feeling like they haven’t made one because “we’ll come on, those sheep will buy our recycled iPhone 12 design another year, so let’s do it for the shareholders”
 
Would you buy a new TV or car to always have the latest model year? I don't see why phones should be different.
Vehicle manufacturers don't update or redesign a car model on a yearly basis like Apple does with an iPhone. A vehicle model can go 3 to 4 years virtually unchanged until it reaches the middle of its production run at which point it receives a small refresh/update called a mid-model or minor model change (MMC). That facelift will then carry on for another 2 or 3 years before the manufacturer releases a fully redesign version of that model called a Full Model Change (FMC).

But to answer your question, yes, there are people out there who always want a new(er) looking car. That's why 25% to 30% of shoppers opt to lease a vehicle for 36 or 48 months instead of buying it. By the time the 36 or 48 month lease is up that model with have received either an MMC or FMC. That person can then trade in the old design for its MMC or FMC, or for an entirely different make and/or model.
 
I don’t I grade until I absolutely have to or I am super excited about a new option. I loved my iPhone 13 Pro. LOVED it. I am so disappointed with the 17 Pro. I’ve had a lot of issues.
 
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Vehicle manufacturers don't update or redesign a car model on a yearly basis like Apple does with an iPhone. A vehicle model can go 3 to 4 years virtually unchanged until it reaches the middle of its production run at which point it receives a small refresh/update called a mid-model or minor model change (MMC). That facelift will then carry on for another 2 or 3 years before the manufacturer releases a fully redesign version of that model called a Full Model Change (FMC).

But to answer your question, yes, there are people out there who always want a new(er) looking car. That's why 25% to 30% of shoppers opt to lease a vehicle for 36 or 48 months instead of buying it. By the time the 36 or 48 month lease is up that model with have received either an MMC or FMC. That person can then trade in the old design for its MMC or FMC, or for an entirely different make and/or model.

There was very little change between the 12 and 16, other than cameras and processors.
 
The only reason I moved from my 7+ to a 15+ at the end of 2024 was that I needed two apps that were only supported on a newer iOS. I would still be on a 7+, but for that reason.
A brother in the jungle. That's awesome. Which kind did you have? I had the jet black. 128gb back then was enormous, I don't remember ever coming close to hitting the max, but of course that was what almost ten years ago.
 
A brother in the jungle. That's awesome. Which kind did you have? I had the jet black. 128gb back then was enormous, I don't remember ever coming close to hitting the max, but of course that was what almost ten years ago.

I went for the pink one. It was a toss-up between pink and gold. I needed something that was easier to see in subdued lighting. It has 128 GB also. I loved that phone; I kept it in a belt clip... my co-workers would tease me about having a phablet on my belt. :) They all had these tiny Samsungs and constantly complained how small the screen was. I think they were actually envious of the 7+'s larger screen, but were loath ever to admit it.
 
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Yes. I’m currently using an iPhone 11 (the regular model). I usually upgrade when the iPhone stops receiving major iOS updates, or if it becomes too laggy and slow to use comfortably, which doesn’t really happen these days. Except maybe with iOS 26, which has made this phone slower.

I haven’t used Apple Intelligence, so I don’t know whether it would be useful for me. On the other hand, I don’t really have any challenges or problems that I would need AI to solve.
 
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As a current owner of iPhone 11 Pro Max, I feel like Apple should have kept it on iOS 18.x instead of giving it iOS 26.x which reminds me of iPhone 4s getting iOS 9.x when it should have stayed on iOS 8.x

I know at some point I will be forced to upgrade so I will try to avoid iOS 26.x as much as possible and try to look for iPhone models still running iOS 18.x which means iPhone Air and iPhone 17 series out of the question.
 
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