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'It's 2022, Phones Should Be Built To Last Five Years or More' 215

Posted by msmash from the closer-look dept.
Robert Triggs, writing for AndroidAuthority: In 2022, there's now a multifaceted argument in favor of a new approach to smartphone manufacturing. One which focuses on long-term support for both hardware and software. Core to this line of thinking is that smartphone hardware has hit a plateau. From the mid-range to flagships, hardware is now more than powerful enough to last several years without going obsolete. The days of rampant year-on-year improvements are long gone, whether you're looking at bleeding-edge performance, cameras, or battery life. This isn't to say we don't yearn for those yearly gains, but they no longer suddenly mark older models for obsolescence even if they materialize. As such, modern smartphones deserve long-term software support above and beyond semi-annual security patches.

Not to mention the increasingly compelling sustainability and right-to-repair arguments regarding raw materials and e-waste. It's increasingly hard to justify the production of throwaway electronics built to last just a handful of years. Simultaneously, sky-high prices and a squeeze in the cost of living have cast new light on the need for easier access to repair programs and spare parts. Not forgetting the popularity of refurbished handsets. Long-term support doesn't have to be an unprofitable venture for smartphone manufacturers either. Official repair channels bring in revenue over time, and it's possible to factor long-term support into the retail price of a handset. Then there's the whole avenue of hardware-as-a-service to explore.
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'It's 2022, Phones Should Be Built To Last Five Years or More' More

'It's 2022, Phones Should Be Built To Last Five Years or More'

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  • Phones (Score:5, Interesting)

    by JBMcB ( 73720 ) on Thursday May 12, 2022 @08:54PM (#62527990)

    My first "smart" phone was a used iPhone 3GS I used for, probably, four years. My next phone was a used iPhone 5 that I used for four years after the original owner, for a total of seven years. Phones can last a long time, you just need to take care of them (the 5 still looks mint after being in an Otter box it's whole life.)

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by fermion ( 181285 )
      My first real phone was a Razr. It last a long time. Back then the contracts including a perpetual hardware charge, so I replaced it jus because I was paying for a new phone anyway

      The current cellular plans do encourage one to keep phones longer. I will have my current phone for 3 years, although it does have minor screen damage. Apple supports phone for at least 5 years. I donâ(TM)t know how long Samsung does or what Google policy is.

      Longevity often also comes at a higher upfront cost. I have no p

  • They do last 5 years (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Berkyjay ( 1225604 ) on Thursday May 12, 2022 @09:00PM (#62528010)

    It's just the software that makes them obsolete usually. I have an 8yo iPad that is still solid. But it's slow AF because the OS now uses twice as much memory.

    • And Apple is pretty good about it compared to most the competition.

      Many/most manufacturers just stop releasing updates after 2-3 years. Then you have to choose between using an internet-connected device loaded with known security flaws, or hacking your device to install a third-party OS of potentially dubious trustworthiness. And that's assuming you're lucky enough to have a supported device, and have the skills to unlock all the "only run our OS" locks built into the phone.

      I've heard good things about so

    • Re: (Score:3)

      by dgatwood ( 11270 )

      I'd be willing to bet the main reason it is slow is because the MLC flash parts are too worn, so its read-write performance is horrible. And this is why soldered-on storage is a bad idea.

      • Some phones (like basically all of LG's) end up with thermal throttling after 2-3 years, because they make them using fundamentally-flawed thermal pads that harden and crumble away over time. A few months ago, my LG-V20 became almost unusable due to stutter and lag. I finally disassembled the heatsink, scraped away the crumbly remains of the old pad, replaced it with thermal grease, and it fixed it completely.

        My personal view is that 2017-18 was the last truly good year for flagship Android phones. Ever sin

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by Ormy ( 1430821 )
          Don't care about IR, and 1920x1080 is plenty for me on a 5.5" screen, otherwise completely agree.

          • 720p was pretty good on a 5.2" screen. I have IR blaster but navigating to the TV remote is probably faster than starting the TV control app anyway.

            • IR blaster is handy in hotels if you want to use the Tv as a second monitor. 99% of hotel TVs have free hdmi ports & support 1:1 mode (where 1 physical pixel onscreen = 1 pixel in Windows), but the menu button on the TV & remote only shows the limited 'guest' menu that omits it. But... with IR blaster and 20 seconds on Google, you can find the right hex code to unlock the admin menu and make it work.

              A 1080 x whatever display might still "look" smooth at first glance, but the antialiasing greys out a

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by AmiMoJo ( 196126 )

        Also because the battery is knackered. When the battery stops being able to supply enough current for the CPU and GPU to run flat out, they throttle back to prevent under-voltage cut-out.

        iPads are glued together and the battery is not a user serviceable part, despite it being consumable.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by kqc7011 ( 525426 )
      My bought in 2015 Apple 6s+ is still going, battery is getting marginal. I do plan on replacing it this fall / winter though. That is because Apple is supposedly going to stop supporting it. My preference's in order for a phone are, 1. Apple, 2. a large enough screen to be able to read books comfortably, 3. reasonable price, 4. good enough battery life and that's about it. Everything else with the a phone is gravy.

  • Battery Tech (Score:3)

    by bill_mcgonigle ( 4333 ) * on Thursday May 12, 2022 @09:04PM (#62528026) Homepage Journal

    I run older phones with LineageOS but the main problem is the heathens who abuse their batteries and with the waterproofing it takes very expensive equipment to swap them out without risking the screen. A battery rarely lasts well more than three years. This could be much better but manufacturers are disincentivized.

    • The user replaceable battery is the main reason I instill use a mobile from 2016...

    • The equipment to replace the battery is fairly cheap, actually. [ifixit.com] Replacing the glue after the battery has been replaced is a bit harder, perhaps, but not necessary.

      • Re:Battery Tech (Score:4, Interesting)

        by echo123 ( 1266692 ) on Friday May 13, 2022 @07:04AM (#62528932)
        Ummmm, I did exactly as you suggest once, to replace a Pixel 2 battery if I recall correctly. I *did* manage to get the phone apart, and that was the end of that endeavor. Mind you I'm a fairly technical person and don't mind pulling apart machines for a little adventure, however the problem is those parts are so small they make my eyes bleed, (figuratively speaking). Maybe if I had a giant lit-magnifying glass plus tweezers in a vice, plus some experience... Not time I'll visit a shop. LineageOS sounds enticing. BTW, another great way to extend old smartphones is to make them webcams, (I wish I thought to develop this first) [dev47apps.com]. My Pixel3a beats a 'well-regarded' Logitech webcam against a greenscreen w/ OBS meetings handily.

        • I use the macro camera of the mobile phone as a very serviceable magnifying glass. True, it won't work on itself

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by EvilSS ( 557649 )
        Or you could pay Apple $69 ($49 for iphone 8 or earlier) and they will replace it for you, battery included: https://support.apple.com/ipho... [apple.com]

        • Just did this a few weeks ago, dropped it off and picked it up a few hours later. Battery was down to 70% life, now have a new OEM in. Hard to beat 50 bucks.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by AmiMoJo ( 196126 )

      Some manufacturers allow you to set a limit of 80% for charging, which dramatically increases the lifespan of the battery.

      Lithium ion batteries suffer the most degradation when charged above 80% and discharged below 20%. I keep mine between 30% and 70% with the help of an app called Battery Charge Notifier. The battery is now 1.6 years old and when I tested it about a month ago it had more than its original rated capacity left.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Megane ( 129182 )

      the heathens who abuse their batteries

      My problem is the heathens who design phones to charge the battery the moment it gets down to 99%. I recently had to replace the battery in my Moto g6 after only a year and a half because I rarely use it, and mostly just leave it plugged in. If I had been able to tell it not to charge until it gets down to 80%, the battery would probably have been just fine for years. This is not even a new problem; my first "dead in a year" lithium-ion battery was back in 2000.

      At least it wasn't too hard to replace, mostl

  • Buy Apple (Score:5, Insightful)

    by ArchieBunker ( 132337 ) on Thursday May 12, 2022 @09:06PM (#62528034)

    Sorry but if you want a phone that lasts this long buy Apple. I paid $300 for a used iPhone 8 two years ago. The phone is 5 years old and still runs the latest iOS just fine. Battery is at 86% health and hasn't changed since my purchase date.

    Hell you can still run the latest iOS on the iPhone 6S from 2015! Find me an Android from 2015 that's still getting updates today.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by splutty ( 43475 )

      Apple and Google are just as bad in software obsolescence. Your phone might be fine hardware wise, but it'll get completely fucked by software updates.

      And "can still run the latest iOS" is different from "runs it well".

      And my 2015 Android phone still works perfectly fine. The whole idea that you *need* to update is very tiresome.

      Support for old hardware can simply be: "This is the last OS version that still performs well, so you don't get updates for it anymore."

      • And "can still run the latest iOS" is different from "runs it well".

        Mine does. It runs the latest iOS and was made in 2016. That's 6 years.

        Support for old hardware can simply be: "This is the last OS version that still performs well, so you don't get updates for it anymore."

        Do you know about security updates? Sure a new version of the OS can have new features but getting security updates is somewhat essential.

        • And "can still run the latest iOS" is different from "runs it well".

          Mine does. It runs the latest iOS and was made in 2016. That's 6 years.

          GP comment: A is not B!
          Your comment: A!

          • You clearly did not read what I wrote. My first comment was “Mine does” as it runs it well as it is a 6 year old phone ie “B is true and A is true.”

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by Pieroxy ( 222434 )

        And "can still run the latest iOS" is different from "runs it well".

        My old iPhone 6s runs the latest iOS very well, thank you very much. It was manufactured 7 years ago. Maybe you hate Apple so much you cannot get your head around the fact that, at least on this aspect, it is much better than Android ?

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by Bert64 ( 520050 )

        Old hardware is old hardware... Even Linux which supports everything back to a 486, doesn't work very well on such old hardware unless you're using a specialised distro intended for old hardware. A mainstream linux distro will be totally unusable on a 486.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by raind ( 174356 )
      I am still using my 6s from 2015.
    • Wouldnt touch Apple with a long stick, but havent had troubles with smartphones I have had they all last on the order of 5 years, plus or minus a battery or screen replacement.
    • Get 5 years out of them easy so long as they're willing to replace the battery. It's been like that for a little while now. The mid-range now comes with 6 gigs of RAM. That's to the point where it's more than enough to run any modern operating system. That's why you can't buy a phone with a replaceable battery anymore. It's because the current generation of three or $400 phones will last a long time and it's how they're building obsolescence in.

    • And I'm sure you can without looking it up tell me all the features of the latest version of iOS that you find so important right?

      I still have a Galaxy S4. Runs just fine. It would be nice if it got security updates, but since I don't do banking or have El Salvador's bitcoin wallet on it, I actually don't give a fuck.

      • And I'm sure you can without looking it up tell me all the features of the latest version of iOS that you find so important right

        Mostly for security updates.

    • I don't like iOS but I'd buy an Android phone that promised 5+ years of software support and the availability of replacement batteries. Obviously, I'm ready to pay extra Vs phones who wouldn't have those warranties

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by AmiMoJo ( 196126 )

      If the battery health has not changed in two years, all that tells you is that the battery health figure is bullshit.

      Lithium ion batteries are considered end-of-life when they retain only 80% capacity. It's not just the loss of 20% capacity, it's that they can't deliver as much power as they can when new. On Apple devices that used to manifest as the state of charge dropping abruptly from 80% to 2%, or simply powering off. Apple updated the software to throttle the performance back to avoid that happening,

  • ...Come Again? (Score:5, Informative)

    by Voyager529 ( 1363959 ) <voyager529@ya[ ].com ['hoo' in gap]> on Thursday May 12, 2022 @09:11PM (#62528050)

    My mom is still using an iPhone 7, released in 2016, capable of running iOS 15.x. Does it need a new battery? yeah, it does, and maybe there's an argument to be had that Apple could do everyone a solid by having either free or cheap battery replacements available in-store at the 2-year mark, but other than that? I literally don't understand what the argument even is here, at least on the Apple side.

    This leaves the Android side of the aisle, which has had this song played for nearly a decade now. Android phones getting five years of updates at a software level is a highly exceptional case, and it always has been. The sentiment has made its rounds for years, but like the loss of removable batteries and headphone jacks, nobody cares.

    This leaves our author with the same four options as every other Android phone owner:

    1. Continue to use an older version of Android. The phone won't stop working until the modem is so old the carriers block it; apps that work on Android 6 will continue to do so, and if you're so horridly worried about security, this isn't the option for you.

    2. Head over to XDA and throw a community-sourced ROM on there. It's pretty common for at least 1-2 releases of an AOSP ROM to be available beyond whatever the carrier provides.

    3. Buy a new phone. Sell your old phone on the secondhand market and let someone else who's in the first or second camp be happy with the phone you have.

    4. Get an iPhone. For all of Apple's other faults, my mom's iPhone 7 from 2016 is running the current release of iOS. If you really want five years out of a phone, possibly with a mid-term battery replacement in there somewhere, Apple's got a track record for that.

    Seriously...they'll just let anyone write a blog post over on AndroidAuthority these days.

  • This is actually a bigger issue than most realize. It's not about cost or convenience, but eWaste. A device leeches lots of toxins in landfills and they don't biodegrade, just accumulate. Tech companies cannot be trusted. They will make their devices unnecessarily disposable as they have, with Apple leading the way. Since no other manufacturer seems to take repairability too seriously, we will have to rely on gov regulation, most likely from the EU.

    For example, every phone owner should have to pay a

    • Re: (Score:3)

      by boaworm ( 180781 )

      Tech companies cannot be trusted. They will make their devices unnecessarily disposable as they have, with Apple leading the way. ...

      They are leading the way! (but not the way you say)

      https://www.apple.com/recyclin... [apple.com]

      https://www.apple.com/environm... [apple.com]

      You are barking up the wrong three

      • Long-term use is more Gaian than recycling, which still takes energy and makes toxics. The best recycling is never throwing something away. To burn Aldous Huxley ... mending is better than ending (phuck the ecahhhhnamy based on endless growth).
      • The first iPhone was released 15 years ago. They're just now letting users replace batteries. For the first 4 or 5 generations, Samsung allowed users to change batteries and upgrade storage. Now Samsung realized they can do whatever shitty thing Apple does, like not allow battery replacement, remove the headphone jack, etc and customers will tolerate it because...well, largely, there are few alternatives. When every device is disposable, customers can't really choose, can they?

        I avoided iPhones in f

    • Re:We'll need gov regulation (Score:5, Insightful)

      by Gavagai80 ( 1275204 ) on Friday May 13, 2022 @12:32AM (#62528448) Homepage

      For example, every phone owner should have to pay a disposal fee when buying their device.

      That's how it works in California, e-waste recycling is funded by fees on purchases of the devices. Europe just makes the manufacturer pay the fees instead. Wikipedia says "In Europe, the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive requires member countries of the European Union to allow consumers to recycle electronics free of charge. This is funded by national "producer compliance schemes", into which manufacturers and distributors pay an annual fee for the collection and recycling of associated waste electronics from household waste recycling centres." But you can rest assured the manufacturers up their prices to pay for that fee, so it effectively works out the same.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Pieroxy ( 222434 )

      My old iPhone 6s runs the latest iOS just fine and is 7 years old. No Android phone can compare. So you are right, Apple is leading the way, but not the way you think.

    • For example, every phone owner should have to pay a disposal fee when buying their device.

      No. Forced fees do not promote a reduction in e-waste. They make people feel entitled to waste.

    • For example, every phone owner should have to pay a disposal fee when buying their device. If your device's battery cannot be changed without voiding the warranty, you need to pay a 20% penalty for disposal costs. If every EU citizen had to pay an extra 20% for an iPhone, that would spur Samsung or one of Apple's other competitors to make a more user-servicable phone,

      You can take your iPhone into the Apple store and for between only $50-$70 they will replace your battery for you.

      Geez, it's no big deal.

  • Simultaneously, sky-high prices and a squeeze in the cost of living have cast new light on the need for easier access to repair programs and spare parts.

    Problem: they're too expensive.

    Official repair channels bring in revenue over time, and it's possible to factor long-term support into the retail price of a handset.

    Solution: make them more expensive.

    • Re:Affordability (Score:4, Insightful)

      by Tony Isaac ( 1301187 ) on Thursday May 12, 2022 @11:44PM (#62528348) Homepage

      Phones don't need to be so expensive. Motorola proves this with their Moto G line, which sells for less than $200 unlocked. Their phones have plenty of memory and storage, and run all the Android apps you could want. Honestly, I have no idea what the extra $800 gets you, in one of the flagship phones, other than bragging rights.

      • A better screen (possibly AMOLED instead of IPS).
        Higher backlight intensity that can make the phone usable outside.
        A larger screen.
        A larger battery for those that use their phones heavily.
        If you're into taking pictures, somewhat better image quality in any case - and much better image quality in some cases.
        If you're into filming, better movie quality.
        Maybe stereo sound.
        Some water resistance.
        A screen that won't scratch so easily.
        If you are into looks, the flagship phones have "premium" materials.
        Higher CPU a

        • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

          by Tony Isaac ( 1301187 )

          AMOLED - so what? Does that really matter for a typical phone user?
          Higher backlight intensity - I doubt it. I like a bright backlight, but I never set it to full brightness.
          A larger screen - true, but worth $800 more? Get a tablet (for a lot less)!
          A larger battery - a Moto G only needs charging every 2-3 days, even with heavy use. How often do you charge your fancy phone?
          Photo quality - excellent on Moto G
          Movie quality - how many people actually need high quality movie capability? In any case, Moto G takes

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by Megane ( 129182 )

            AMOLED - so what? Does that really matter for a typical phone user?

            It means they get the fun of screen burn-in after a few years when the pixels start to wear out.

            So what's with people who watch movies on their tiny little phones AND demand "quality"? DVD picture quality is just fine unless you have a 50+ inch screen or sit too close. Maybe they really just want to look for skin problems on actors or read signs in the background. The audio quality is much more important to me, and there ain't no subwoofer or rear speakers on a phone, something that I've had since '98 or s

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Bert64 ( 520050 )

      Expensive devices which last longer can work out cheaper over their entire lifetime, but this assumes you have the disposable income to pay the up front cost or a financing option which allows you to spread the cost.

  • Five? (Score:3)

    by MpVpRb ( 1423381 ) on Thursday May 12, 2022 @09:58PM (#62528164)

    How about 10 or 20? Unrepairable, throwaway products suck

  • I still have my red Xr, original battery, latest version of iOS, seems to be just fine.

    That's 4 years, counts for something I guess.

  • I mean, seriously, they are just designed to break so that the owner has to buy a new phone.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Pieroxy ( 222434 )

      I mean, seriously, they are just designed to break so that the owner has to buy a new phone.

      Buy a case or bring your phone in for repairs if broken. There really is no need to buy a new phone.

      • My wife had cracked the screen on her phone. Repairs were close to $100, on a low-budget phone (nice screen but very little flash memory, and an Android version that allowed only some application to be moved to SD-Card). Repair was hardly worth it, as I had to free some more storage space monthly.

  • Planned obsolescence (Score:3)

    by WierdUncle ( 6807634 ) on Thursday May 12, 2022 @11:51PM (#62528362)

    Though electronic products can easily be made that will last for many years, this does not suit the business model of a typical mobile phone company. As a mobile phone producer, what do you do when everybody has got a mobile phone? Do you just close down, because people have stopped buying your product? There is economic pressure to get people to upgrade on a regular basis, on whatever pretext can be devised. From what I have read, this first came about in the US motor industry in the 1920's, as a result of successful production of affordable vehicles saturating the market.

    The classic planned obsolescence engineering model is to design products to fail within a definite time scale. This keeps the "churn" going, as customers buy new products, to replace their old worn out products. I have to say that I have never designed in a finite service life in this sense. I am not sure how I would go about it, as most electronic devices do not wear out as such, unlike mechanisms. One product I designed was a radio remote control, where the battery was not replaceable. The economic argument in that case was that soldering in the battery saved significant costs, compared to having a removable lid and some kind of connector. This could be seen as a benefit to users of the product, because they could get their product at a lower initial cost. I think the business case was that users of electronic products do not tend to keep them for a lifetime, so all you have to do is provide an adequate product life, for the average customer. This might upset the Right to Repair enthusiasts, but does make at least some economic sense.

    Another aspect of planned obsolescence is fashion cycles. This obviously applies to the clothes manufacturing economy. You don't want to be seen wearing last season's style. This means that many clothes are discarded well before they have any need to be repaired. Fast fashion is a major contributor to plastics pollution. Without going into the history of fashion in too much depth, there has long been a drive for prosperous people to display their wealth, by buying the latest fashionable items. This need to display spending power can be exploited by producers, to get customers to replace their goods regularly, even though there is no physical need to do so.

    There is considerable scope for economic and environmental research on this subject. Throwing away goods before any reasonable end of service life is obviously wasteful, and can harm the environment. An example that comes to mind, which bucks this trend, is the idea of re-usable plastic shopping bags. You pay 10p (or whatever) for a robust shopping bag, and use this for months or years afterwards. I think it fair to say that in the UK, this has been wildly successful in removing a major source of plastic pollution.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Bert64 ( 520050 )

      Business is the key point, under a capitalist system businesses will do what benefits them because if they don't their competitors will.

      The only way that a built to last product could work, would be as a subscription model where you pay monthly/annually for the device and the manufacturer has to constantly support it. In this instance a reliable device would be beneficial as repair/replacement costs would be borne by the manufacturer and not the end user.

      But even then, users in many cases aren't going to wa

      • The only way that a built to last product could work, would be as a subscription model where you pay monthly/annually for the device and the manufacturer has to constantly support it.

        It is interesting to note that the 18th century industrialist Matthew Boulton did exactly this, with marketing of the new steam engine designed by James Watt, The selling point was the great increase in fuel efficiency, resulting from Watt's use of a separate condenser in his design. Coal was a regular expense for running a steam engine, so saving money spent on coal paid for the capital cost of the new steam engine, and left the steam engine user with a profit. I have not looked much further into the busin

  • Built to last is one thing, but manufacturers should also support those phones from the software point of view for an equal amount of time. Increasing durability without software support would be a pointless exercise.

  • Phil Schiller told me that using 5-year-old tech is "sad". I don't want to be sad.

  • Any article that starts with "it's ..." (Score:5, Informative)

    by bb_matt ( 5705262 ) on Friday May 13, 2022 @12:56AM (#62528478)

    ... is usually going to be bunk.

    This one is no exception.

    Millions of people, if not a billion, have phones older than 5 years.
    FFS, it's exceptionally common in families, for parents to pass down their older phones to the kids.

    What are people _doing_ to their phones, that they last only 5 years?

    The fact is, they are just being stupid for the most part and are buying into the hype that marketers sell them.
    More money than sense.

    Of course, the other factor is mobile phone contracts - and people equating a typical 24 to 36 month contract to "I must get an upgrade" at the end.
    No, you don't have to, you are just falling for the hype.
    You justify it because "Well, I'm already paying $50 a month, I may as well get the new model"

    And this hype is now driven mainly by software updates - and has been for 5 or 6 years.

    I'm on year 4 with my galaxy s9 and see no reason to upgrade - none.
    When I finally do, it'll be for a second hand model, because no way am I forking out $500 plus for a phone, when I can get almost identical specs for $200.

    • I'm on year 4 with my galaxy s9 and see no reason to upgrade - none.

      While I sympathise with your cause as of last month you are no longer receiving security updates on your Galaxy S9. Worth considering if you do anything important with your device.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by AmiMoJo ( 196126 )

      Usually it's the battery that limits the lifespan of a phone. Replacements can be expensive, and may require the owner to be without the phone for weeks.

      There are enough barriers that people just get a new phone.

  • Ok, software support needs to be discussed, but: take decent care of your phone, and many (most?) of them are built well enough to last. I think the bigger problem is simply people chasing the glitz. I stopped using my Google Nexus 1 only because Android + Apps had grown too large to fit in its memory. I used it for many years afterwards as a non-phone, for example, as a remote-control for home automation. One of my kids is still running around with an iPhone 6. The screen is cracked, but it otherwise stil

  • My first smartphone was samsungs galaxy S2 in 2011, that lasted me till 2017 when its out of date android version was no longer supported by many apps and it was becoming unbearably slow on some web pages (not entirely the phone's fault). I bought a used Oneplus 5 which I am still using after changing the battery.

    So phones can last a few years in some cases but if you're expecting the manufacturers to design them for robustness and longevity, I have a bridge to sell you. If it is not profitable for shareh

  • There is a reason phones seal the case shut and glue the battery & screen down. There is a reason they are so thin that they'll break with a small amount of force or shock. There is a reason that support is limited and why new models featuring more up to date software continuously roll out. It's certainly not for the benefit of consumers that's for sure. Instead it's for the manufacturer's bottom line.

    Planned obsolescence is baked into these companies profit models. The only way it will be broken is i

  • Why do I need software support ... (Score:3)

    by thegarbz ( 1787294 ) on Friday May 13, 2022 @04:40AM (#62528744)

    Beyond security patches? I mean what does a new OS bring me? New features stopped being important or relevant years ago. Focus on getting security patches done and leave the rest of my OS alone. I don't need the latest shinest piece of software crammed down on my phone to make it "better".

    A large portion of security updates have been decoupled from the OS as well and are pushed through Google Play so in many cases there isn't even a reason to push security updates out via bi monthly patches.

    *yawn*.

  • We hit the plateau well before 2022, once upon a time I would upgrade every year, the only reason I am upgrading my current Android phone this year is because it has been abandoned from patches and software updates. rather pissed I need to replace it, and no I can't leave it as is or root it with another image as either gets me barred from work MDM.

  • Nothing else to be said.

  • The BlackBerry Service Fee was a model that worked for a long time. It was a minimal charge added to your bill if you had a blackberry and thus made use of the BlackBerry service.

    I don't think it's a bad idea if you pay $1 or $2 each month on top of your $40 cell phone plan that goes to the hardware manufacturer to maintain support.

    Obviously, we'd have to find a way to make sure the phone actually receives timely updates for that fee. Maybe the fee drops if the manufacturer decides to no longer support it.

    T

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