Posted on 09/19/2019 8:50:16 AM PDT by C19fan
There is always a bitter sort of irony in watching videos of the unveiling of a flashy new iPhone on your own scuffed and scratched years-old device. As reviews of the new iPhone 11 rolled in this week — and I watched them on my trusty iPhone SE from 2016 — I almost immediately started doing the math in my head to figure out if I could afford the shiny new phone.
But this year's parade of iPhone reviews was a bit different. Where most reviews have traditionally recommended readers upgrade every two years, The New York Times, for example, suggested most people with a 3- or 4-year-old phone hold off on buying a new one. This is a significant change in tone, and it's rooted in the iterative state of smartphone technology: These days, there just isn't much a brand new smartphone can do that your current smartphone can't. But this shift also presents an opportunity to reflect on our buying habits. Why did we ever think it was ok to upgrade devices that cost of hundreds of dollars every year or two? In this moment of increasing environmental awareness, is upgrading your phone unethical?
(Excerpt) Read more at theweek.com ...
I have no problem with the payment plan at 0% interest because I’m using AT&T’s money for 24 months, at which point, I will, continue to do the same for a newer model, also at 0% interest, meanwhile they are eating the inflation cost. Also meanwhile, I am putting that money I would have spent in investments earning a good return. Win-Win. . . And I have the latest technology (most of the time) with a great camera.
For me, that's really the only reason for me to upgrade, if the phone is still working. I replaced my battery about a year ago, so I'll probably keep my iPhone6 for another year or two. I'm not really a huge Apple fan, but they do a darn good job of keeping the phones updated to the latest patches. It doesn't seem like android makers are as concerned about doing regular security updates. That's pretty much what keeps me on the Apple farm for my phone, other than the fact that it has been a pretty reliable device.
Not me, I am not swayed by articles or TV ads.
Dude, if you're spending $2K on a PC, it will last for a decade. I built a new desktop last year, and spent about $1500 to get a serious upgrade (16 freaking cores!). I was willing to spend the money, because I really do expect it to last for 10 years. My last one was about 9 years old before I finally bit the bullet and built my new desktop.
I used an iphone 3GS for 9 years. It didn’t have a front camera. Pre selfie iphone. I finally replaced it with an 8+. I can now take selfies but never have so far. The 3GS was beginning to fall apart but was still functional and I simply use it as a backup music player now.
Wow, not bad. I rocked a 3G for 81/2 years, and a friend took it out of my car by accident, not knowing where it was, I bought a 7, only to have him tell me two days later he had it.it was still in pretty good shape, and if he hadn’t taken it by accident, I probably would still be using it.
I'm 72 years old, retired and raise beef cattle on a rural farm.
Not much technology needed out here. Just to be able to talk to my wife to find out where she's at on the farm acreage and to take photos once in a while.
Beyond that, too many bells and whistles I would never need or use.
I subscribe to the upgrade program, so will be getting an 11, but I have several older iPhones from before that program that I have used for work because I work with classified information and, since I don’t get the Hillary exemption, if I were sent classified email by mistake I won’t have my personal phone taken and destroyed by the gubmint.
Just last week moved from my iPhone 4 to one of the iPhone 5’s we have for work.
The fact that libtards and chest thumping virtue signalers here preen over upgrading a damn phone I am so glad I am upgrading to an 11!
Virtue signaling is the LEFT’s favorite tactic.
Several elections back, the local St. Petersburg Times(?) [aka Suncoast Pravda] had a comparison of two party identified voters; Democrat drove an electric Prius and mouthed a straight-line progressive view while the Republican drove an H2 Hummer. What other views he may have had I don’t recall but it was evident why he was chosen - strictly on the vehicle.
I did a letter to the editor, stating that I put more miles on my bicycle than my 40 mpg diesel in a year and I was (am) a conservative in views and voting. I stated that a single person is hardly emblematic unless he is the actual candidate.
No surprise, the letter never saw print.
Personal phone: Galaxy S6
Professional phone: iPhone 6
They work.
End of story.
Why? Facial recognition on an Apple device is 20 times more secure (50k/1 for touch compared to 1M//1 error rate for facial) than the fingerprint (it doesn’t really read fingerprints but reads instead the ridges and valleys of the fat pads below your skin) reader. You actually have to actively look at the 3D infrared facial recognition sensor with your eyes open for it to unlock your device. As such, it can’t be fooled by a picture or even a mask or a 3D sculpture. There is no actual image of your face stored on your device or sent anywhere off device that could be used by any government agency or other facial recognition system. Instead a mathematical one-way hash representation 3D map is recalculated each time you want to unlock your device and compared to a previously stored and updated map in the Secure Enclave on the device. If the newly calculated 3D map is close enough to the stored 3D map, then the device is unlocked, if not, then it rescans. Too many failed scans the device then demands the user’s passcode.
As for the lack of a home button, once you learn the new paradigm of screen motions without the home button, you wonder why you ever needed one and it feels clunky to go back to an iPhone with the home button, and you’ll appreciate the larger screen area.
does it have a high benefit to cost ratio
does it have a high benefit to negative consequences ratio
does it have a high benefit to risk ratio
does it violate one's important values
does it violate one's basic identity
And even from a Leftist’s perspective - they ought to LOVE Apple - not only are they financially supportive of Left-affirming groups... they are probably THE most environmentally conscious tech company on the planet...
But oh - Apple is STILL a firm believer in capitalism... and the LEFT just cannot stand that.
That’s the great thing about capitalism - buy what you need, what you want, with what you earn. YOU get to decide - not some government regulatory agency. Not your envious neighbor.
And Apple has made some good devices that, if taken care of, often last until software no longer supports it.
I upgraded the hard drive and memory,
I’m going to pass on the next OS—I have too much software that won’t work with it.
+1
I currently use a 4 year old Windows 10 phone.
Since Microsoft will discontinue support in January, I need to shop for some android variant (probably a samsung or a google).
For a group that rejected classic morality, they’re awfully wrapped in declaring it everywhere.
I’ll get the latest greatest iPhone soon, and care not what others think. (Hey, I make a good buck off the iOS ecosystem.)
Mostly because I can pick up the phone or pull it from my pocket while unlocking it in one motion.
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