Should i buy a new phone?

[Roe]

I currently have a iphone 6, and it hasn't aged gracefully. The batterylife is the span of a fruitfly and its slow and sluggish. Every time there is a new ios update I need to chose to install it or not. Not installing it means some apps not working, and constant annoying reminders, installing it means even slower phone (atleast for a while).

Sometimes it dies on me, and refuse to come back to life without a few hours charging and then some phone voodo. First time that happened was about 30 min before I was going on a 4-5 hour long flight, with all my music on the phone.

I've been putting off the upgrade since I don't want to spend the money, and I think something that expensive should last me longer than this. I'd also prefer to avoid the activity of shopping for a phone, would rather visit the dentist.

Now one of my charger cables died, and since the other one is moody I guess it's time to decide. Buy a (or two) new cables, maybe a new battery, and try to keep this one as long as possible? Or would it be better to just suck it up and buy a new phone?

How old is your (i)phone, and have you done anything to extend it's life?

[Duke03]

Apple was doing $30 battery replacements because they know there is a known problem.  I was rocking a 10 yr old Samsung and got Verizon to sell me a brand new Iphone 6 plus for $250.  This was all taxes and over night shipping.  So if you do decide to get a new phone lean on your carrier.  I had to call 3 different times and threaten to go to a different carrier if they didn't offer me more than the standard discount joe blow can get.

[ketchup]

I would definitely go get the $29 battery replacement from Apple.  That'll speed it up too.  Then get a new AmazonBasics charging cable for a few bucks and you'll be good for another year or two at least.  You'll be able to get current iOS updates until probably late 2020.

[Roe]

Apple was doing $30 battery replacements because they know there is a known problem.  I was rocking a 10 yr old Samsung and got Verizon to sell me a brand new Iphone 6 plus for $250.  This was all taxes and over night shipping.  So if you do decide to get a new phone lean on your carrier.  I had to call 3 different times and threaten to go to a different carrier if they didn't offer me more than the standard discount joe blow can get.

That's a good deal on the new phone! I pay less than $8/month, I doubt they will give me a similar deal.

Will have to look up how much a battery would actually cost here, I read $80 and didn't double check it. $30 would make the decision a bit easier.

[frugaliknowit]

What do you do with your iphone?  If you just talk, text, browse, email, you can get a new android for $150.  Maybe consider breaking the cycle of owning such expensive electronics?

[geekette]

My iPhone 6 with a new battery is just fine, so unless there's something else wrong with the phone, get the cheap Apple battery replacement! 

There's an Apple Support app you can download and live chat directly with Apple support.  They can run diagnostics on your phone remotely, but I'll bet it's the battery anyway.

You can also get an Anker charging cable on Amazon for <$10 (in the US).  Good brand.

[Roe]

Thank you ketchup and geekette for the advice about that replacement! I wrote my serial number, and sadly my phone is not covered. But atleast I now know its actually a iphone 5. Time flies!

[Roe]

What do you do with your iphone?  If you just talk, text, browse, email, you can get a new android for $150.  Maybe consider breaking the cycle of owning such expensive electronics?

That, and take photos, play games, watch videos, listen to pods and music etc. I will still get a cheaper phone than a new iphone, without having done any research im guessing my need for storage is what will determine what my cheapest option will be.