Will the phone upgrade treadmill ever stop?

Sh1tbag OToole · 28-05-2016 01:06PM #1

Not so long ago I was using a PC that was made 10 years ago and it was still quite usable. Have a laptop that is 8 years old but it is starting to fall apart now.

Phones and tablets though are a different story, after two years they usually fall apart, can't be updated and generally become crap. This is how it used to be to some extent with PC's and laptops as well but things have improved as far as I can see.

Still a far cry from the analogue phone system, where you can just plug in a 80-year old phone and make a call on it. I hate spending a load of money every few years to get a palm-sized device that looks the same as the old one simply because the old one became unusable.

Will we ever get to the point where the physical limit of what can be packed into a phone is reached or where the devices are just 'good enough' and there is no point in packing more in? The death of Moore's law has been looming for years but each time it draws close Intel brings out another box of new technology from it's basement and all the other manufacturers play catch-up

Kidchameleon · 28-05-2016 01:18PM

3d processors will be a fad for a few years. Physical phones will disapear eventually (10 years or so) replaced by overlay glases. These glases will then give way to ocular implants. All processing will be done remotely

Your Face · 28-05-2016 01:22PM

Man is obsolete.

Alf Stewart. · 28-05-2016 01:24PM

I remember when this whole site was just empty megabitings.

Dirty Dingus McGee · 28-05-2016 01:25PM

You don't have to buy a new style phone.

I have a normal mobile phone that you just make calls and texts on.No amount of new technology is going to make a phone like that obsolete.

briany · 28-05-2016 01:26PM

I've been waiting for modular phones to come out for a while but the whole thing seems to be stuck in limbo as far as a worldwide rollout is concerned. I'm one of those people who thinks that phones are designed to fail on you in one way or another, a good example of planned obsolescence. Project Aura is promising with basically building a phone out of 'blocks' as is the Raspberry Pi phone projects I see around the Internet.

the evasion_kid · 28-05-2016 01:33PM

Your Face wrote: »

Man is obsolete.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkyUMmNl4hk

28-05-2016 01:39PM

I must be 3 years with my Nexus 5 phone at this stage, when I originally payed 350 or whatever quid for it I said to myself if it lasts 3 years I'll be happy, and it has - I can't afford another phone at the moment if it were to die...

My 8 year old Macbook gave up the ghost a few weeks ago, purchased second hand, I had it 3 or 4 years...

I had an Acer laptop that lasted about 7 years previous to that...

I think the last thing I bought that went tits up was a launch day Xbox 360

Soooooo, I need a new Mac (for music nowt else) and maybe a phone when this eventually dies a death...

FortySeven · 28-05-2016 01:40PM

If the battery was easily replaced I would happily keep this HTC one forever.

kneemos · 28-05-2016 01:42PM

Kidchameleon wrote: »

3d processors will be a fad for a few years. Physical phones will disapear eventually (10 years or so) replaced by overlay glases. These glases will then give way to ocular implants. All processing will be done remotely

Always either 10 or 20 years for the big innovation.

Just buy Samsung,they last forever.

qo2cj1dsne8y4k · 28-05-2016 05:18PM

Everyone says oh iPhones are a pile of ****e. I got my first iPhone in 2008. I changed it to an new iPhone in 2012. I had the screen replaced and the battery replaced and the phone is good as new. There's not a scratch on it. I'll change it in sept/oct when the new iPhone comes out but in 8 years I've had two phones.

Oedo · 28-05-2016 05:22PM

Do a factory reset and your phone will probably be as good as new (excusing the scratches and scuffs).

My phone was becoming very laggy and slow and I factory reset it and it's nice and fast again.

kavanada · 28-05-2016 05:25PM

^^^Trig?! 😉

RobertKK · 28-05-2016 05:33PM

My iPhone 6 plus fell onto the ground last December and the screen is cracked in several places, but it works perfectly.
I didn't bother getting it repaired as it will be cheaper to wait and get an upgrade.

endacl · 28-05-2016 05:38PM

RobertKK wrote: »

it will be cheaper to wait and get an upgrade.

Sincerely doubt it, depending on plan and contract.

Eugene Norman · 28-05-2016 05:43PM

I change every two years. Obsolescence because technology is getting better is a good thing. The only reason you would keep a MacBook from 2010 is because of the slowdown in moores law.

That's bad news.

entropi · 28-05-2016 05:45PM

As much as Moore's Law continues to stand, if quantum computing ever makes it to handheld devices (if they'll even exist at the same time that is), that may just stop such upgrades, save for design changes.

PirateShampoo · 28-05-2016 05:50PM

LexieOnRale wrote: »

Everyone says oh iPhones are a pile of ****e. I got my first iPhone in 2008. I changed it to an new iPhone in 2012. I had the screen replaced and the battery replaced and the phone is good as new. There's not a scratch on it. I'll change it in sept/oct when the new iPhone comes out but in 8 years I've had two phones.

Think technically you've had 3.

qo2cj1dsne8y4k · 28-05-2016 05:51PM

:rolleyes:

PirateShampoo wrote: »

Think technically you've had 3.

No?
iPhone 3.
iPhone 5.
Waiting for the iPhone 7.

Dropped my phone and smashed a screen
Battery wasn't staying charged so I changed the battery (after 3 years).

2.

tomwaterford · 28-05-2016 05:54PM

RobertKK wrote: »

My iPhone 6 plus fell onto the ground last December and the screen is cracked in several places, but it works perfectly.
I didn't bother getting it repaired as it will be cheaper to wait and get an upgrade.

It's chaeap enough for a screen

I'm after getting several

PirateShampoo · 28-05-2016 05:55PM

LexieOnRale wrote: »

:rolleyes:

No?
iPhone 3.
iPhone 5.
Waiting for the iPhone 7.

Dropped my phone and smashed a screen
Battery wasn't staying charged so I changed the battery (after 3 years).

2.

Is it really the same phone after you've changed the battery and screen?

It's a bit like getting your Noes and Tits done trying to pass them off as your old ones.

qo2cj1dsne8y4k · 28-05-2016 05:58PM

Well here, If I can change a screen and a battery every 3/4 years and not have to upgrade, even better!

Gunslinger92 · 28-05-2016 06:06PM

Mr.S wrote: »

I change phones every year or less, between upgrades and buying outright and reselling, you never spend that much money. Plus it's nice to have the latest over priced smartphone YET still no phone has a decent ****ing battery.

Sigh.

I find the battery life on the iPhone 6s excellent

Zillah · 28-05-2016 06:07PM

In September I'll have had my Galaxy Note 3 for 3 years. Once I was finished the mandatory 2 year contract I dropped it down to 25 quid a month. Battery is still great. I feel pretty much zero desire to upgrade - phones haven't done a single new thing in years. I am not spending 600 quid for a phone that will possess advantages that exist only on paper.

Gonna run this thing into the ground.

endacl · 28-05-2016 06:14PM

Zillah wrote: »

In September I'll have had my Galaxy Note 3 for 3 years. Once I was finished the mandatory 2 year contract I dropped it down to 25 quid a month. Battery is still great. I feel pretty much zero desire to upgrade - phones haven't done a single new thing in years. I am not spending 600 quid for a phone that will possess advantages that exist only on paper.

Gonna run this thing into the ground.

Same with my 4s. Don't want to upgrade because a 4s is a good size for a phone. I don't want a pocket telly.

When this dies, I'll be downgrading to the dumbest of dumb phones. Something I only have to charge once a week. At which point I'll lose the data plan, the monthly bill will be even cheaper, and I won't waste so much time on here.

Permabear · 28-05-2016 06:18PM

This post has been deleted.

endacl · 28-05-2016 06:23PM

Permabear wrote: »

This post had been deleted.

Not this consumer. I want a 'phone'. Useful features to include, and be limited to:
1. Make and take calls.
2. Send and receive text messages.
3. More than a days battery life from a charge.
4. No... That's it really....

riclad · 28-05-2016 06:49PM

Buy an android phone ,you can change the battery ,put in an sd card .
my phone is a year old,
it does everything .
I see new phones ,with special camera modes,hdr photos etc etc
A 5 inch android phone can do anything .
I see no reason to buy a new phone every year.
iphones are a status symbol ,
and if you want the new os to run fast you might want a new phone,
plus there apple fans who just buy anything apple makes .
140 Euro will get you a good phone that,ll last 3 years at least .
I see no need to get the latest os ,by buying a new phone .
I used an iphone,
i see no big difference between android vs apple ,
apart from you cant remove the battery in an iphone.
phones are like laptops ,
a 2 year old phone,laptop is powerful enough for most people

Eugene Norman · 28-05-2016 07:03PM

PirateShampoo wrote: »

Is it really the same phone after you've changed the battery and screen?

It's a bit like getting your Noes and Tits done trying to pass them off as your old ones.

It's the same phone with a new screen and a battery. stupid argument. It's like saying somebody who replaced his car battery and wind screen has a new car.

Eugene Norman · 28-05-2016 07:04PM

endacl wrote: »

Not this consumer. I want a 'phone'. Useful features to include, and be limited to:
1. Make and take calls.
2. Send and receive text messages.
3. More than a days battery life from a charge.
4. No... That's it really....

The problem is calling these computer devices in our hands "phones". You have a phone, most people don't.

Winterlong · 28-05-2016 07:06PM

I love new sh1t so I do.

Will the phone upgrade treadmill ever stop?

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