Asking because… On one hand I do see smartphones being released left-and-right, and they are rather integral to modern life
On the other hand I’m still chugging alone with my Pixel 6a that I bought 3 years ago with a replaced battery and a somewhat clogged charging port… and all my previous phones I only replaced when they have serious deficits that make them difficult to use
Wondering when you all replace phones. Please definitely mention it too if you ended up repurposing the old phone for something else
i’m still using an 2013 phone. the touch panel is kinda fucked and I do have a replacement phone already but I’m too used to it, so probably gonna use it till it physically breaks down or the cell towers die. would be cool af if i can make it till 2038 lol
If you feel that you need a new phone, but your recent one ist still working (no cracked screen, still sufficient battery life) it could help to tweak the UI settings. Change the appearence of the clock, pick another highlight color, delete apps you don’t really use, rearrange apps, change the wallpaper, etc. This way, your phone will feel new to you, despite being still the old one. Also, maybe a new phone case could help.
Try to unclog the charging port with a sewing needle. Switch off your phone and pick dust and lint carefully with the needle. Try not to touch.the contacts inside the port.
On average every 5 years. The battery life is always the issue. I will get a fairphone next time…
When someone is giving away a better phone than mine. A lot of hand me downs out there.
Only when it’s unusable. I recently got a new phone, my old one was an iPhone XR but the last few months it just randomly restarts and overheats like crazy.
I did a battery replacement a year ago but I think it was time. I also got a cheap Samsung, I’m not about to pay the money that Apple is charging customers just so I can make phone calls and use maps
My previous phone was a Xiaomi on which I installed LineageOS. I was very happy with it, but my GF’s son had a very very old phone, so I changed it after only 3 years and replaced it with another Xiaomi. I’m deeply unhappy this time because they’ve made it practically impossible to unlock the bootloader without using dodgy unverified tools. It’s only a year old and now I’m replacing it with a second hand Pixel.
Before the first Xiaomi, I had a OnePlus that I kept for six years.
5 years if I can’t flash open rom and nearly 7 years if I can.
I’m about to replace a once year old phone because I can’t flash the ROM, and I hate Xiaomi’s native apps and don’t trust them anymore.
When it stops working.
When it breaks. I don’t remember how long I’ve had this one but it was made in 2019.
As long as the one I have works, I keep using it.
When I was younger I got new cheap Tracfones at least once a year cause I didn’t take very good care of them. Nowadays I’ve had 2 phones since 2020 with the second being one I got last year since my previous one nearly shattered after dropping it at work (it was a moto g power).
went from pixel 2016, pixel 2 2018-22?, and then disasterous PIXEL 5A 2025 it died in Jan.
got a ONE PLUS 12 R currently.
2006 - 2G Siemens
2016 - 3G Samsung (2G turned off)
2022 - 4G ZTE (3G turned off)
- 2006 or so
- 2009 or so,
- 2012? 13? gifted to me
- around 2017, first smartphone, my previous’ phone speaker broke, got a used one
- 2019 or so, used phone’s battery died badly, friend gave me this reconditioned one
- 2025, previous phone’s screen turned purple, idk what’s up with that
I use my phones until they’re limping and pleading me to just let them die. At that point I look on the used market and buy the best previous-gen phone I can find for the cheapest price, then repeat. I’m not a fan of cell contracts - I like to buy my phone outright to keep my monthly bill as low as possible.
Up until now I was only buying used Pixels so I could install Graphene, but if Goog ever locks the bootloader or anything like that I will move to something else supported by Graphene.
Or maybe just revert to dumbphone and start carrying a small ultralight laptop around for internet stuff. Probably less doomscrolling that way.
I was just thinking the same. Simple oldstyle flip phone and a tablet or tiny laptop.
My wife has had her Samsung Note10+ for 8 years, battery just hit the wall where its charge drops too rapidly to be a reliable phone.
