One of the biggest consumer drives in the marketing business is geared toward compelling a shopper to believe, '’the newest product is the best one', but that isn’t necessarily true. What is the best for one might not be for another, and ‘best’ is whatever product is right for the person; whichever one suits their needs and is the most fitting for them. It’s common to want to buy the newest and trendiest product because we've been told by advertisers that we 'need' and deserve' them. However, one may be happier sticking with whatever iPhone is already in hand.
Apple has enjoyed a huge and loyal fan base, and not without cause: they consistently offer products people want and enjoy by using cutting edge technology and our love of new gadgets. In addition, iPhones are always full of fun new things, including new technology, and when that happens, Apple is always willing to shrug off old technology without a backward glance. This makes upgrades seem compelling, but it also makes them expensive because some of the old stuff won't work.
Today, we're going to step back a little to consider some aspects of iPhone ownership.
Function
A big question one should ask themselves when they’re considering the purchase of a new iPhone is whether or not the phone they already own suits their needs. People today live in a consumer culture where one feels like they ‘need’ to buy the latest product, even if none of the new features of the phone are something they truly must have. The most practical choice is for one to keep their current phone, especially if it has been faithfully serving its purposes, until the consumer’s needs change.
Suitability
Many people find that when they unbox their new phone and start to use it, they end up disliking it. This is due to the fact that sometimes the phone just doesn’t suit the user. A massive example of this was ‘bendgate’, the horrific problem many iPhone 6 users had because their carrying habits (iPhone in the back pants pocket) didn’t match the physical durability of the iPhone 6.
As another example, a person with smaller hands may find it difficult or even frustrating to use a phone with a large screen. Conversely, someone with bad eyesight may enjoy having a large screen so they can see it better. If the current phone a person has simply ‘feels’ right to them, they should stick with it.
Good Economics
As time goes on, phones become more and more expensive. The most costly phones today can cost over a thousand dollars. All things considered, it doesn't seem worth it anymore to buy a brand new phone without a compelling reason. It would cost much less to have an old phone repaired multiple times than to get a new one.
Environmentally Kind
When a person buys a new iPhone, what happens to the old one? Some toss the old iPhone in a drawer somewhere and forget about it. If the iPhone is broken, it gets thrown in the trash. Older iPhones are stuffed with all kinds of materials and chemicals such as mercury, lead, and arsenic, that are damaging to the environment, and the thought of how many tons of phones are probably piling up in landfills right now is nothing short of disturbing. A greener alternative to this is to either recycle the phone or get it fixed and get as much use out of it as possible. In the end, when it’s time to hang up that old iPhone for good, please consider returning to Apple. Instructions are provided here, and you might get a gift card, but at the very least, they’ll send you a prepaid mailing label.
Whether one decides to buy a new phone or keep the old one is a matter of choice, but before that happens, there are a lot of different facets to consider. It’s true that some phones are simply a lost cause, but most can last for a very long time and serve their purpose every bit as well as the latest models.
