Author Topic: Which iPhone should I get?  (Read 3522 times)

familyandfarming

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Which iPhone should I get?
« on: October 07, 2019, 08:09:21 AM »
My iPhone 6 is starting to have issues. It has been a champ as it was first my youngest daughter's college phone and is now mine. I'm looking to replace it with another iPhone. I'm very willing to replace with an iPhone 7 through 10 new or refurbished, rather than an 11, but I just don't know! Is the iPhone 11 a better value? I use my iPhone in all the usual ways; podcasts, web searching, email, apps and such.

Many of you out there in MMM land have much deeper insights about iPhone value than me. Of course, it goes without saying I want the best value on an iPhone that will last forever-ish!

ketchup

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Re: Which iPhone should I get?
« Reply #1 on: October 07, 2019, 09:28:43 AM »
A 7 is probably the way to go.  They can be found for about $200 these days.  You can probably count on it being supported for at least the next two versions of iOS, so probably the earliest EOL would be around fall 2021.  Possibly longer though, since the 2019 iPad still uses the A10 SoC first used in the iPhone 7.

35andFI

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Re: Which iPhone should I get?
« Reply #2 on: October 07, 2019, 10:46:09 AM »
What kind of issues? If it's battery related, you can buy a replacement battery kit from ifixitfor $30.

I have the 6s and will be planning on doing this myself once my battery gets to the point where I can justify the swap.

2sk22

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Re: Which iPhone should I get?
« Reply #3 on: October 07, 2019, 10:52:01 AM »
My iPhone 6 is starting to have issues. It has been a champ as it was first my youngest daughter's college phone and is now mine. I'm looking to replace it with another iPhone. I'm very willing to replace with an iPhone 7 through 10 new or refurbished, rather than an 11, but I just don't know! Is the iPhone 11 a better value? I use my iPhone in all the usual ways; podcasts, web searching, email, apps and such.

Many of you out there in MMM land have much deeper insights about iPhone value than me. Of course, it goes without saying I want the best value on an iPhone that will last forever-ish!

I just bought my mom a new low-end iPhone 8 - I think its a great value at $450

SweatingInAR

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Re: Which iPhone should I get?
« Reply #4 on: October 07, 2019, 11:06:49 AM »
My SO just upgraded from a 6s to an 8. 6s was only a 16GB model, which was horribly limiting as iOS updates and bloated apps keep rolling in.

The premium of 8 vs 7 on ebay was worth it to me if it earns another year of service. I managed to get a 64GB (base model) 8 for $275 from a reputable reseller. There are a few very shallow scratches all around, but good enough.

We waited for an 8% ebay bucks day and got 5% rewards by using a Discover card through paypal.

Downside: the ebay bucks were quickly gobbled up accessorizing.... (headphone adapter, wireless charger, new case and screen protector)

Discover isn't 5% on paypal anymore, but Chase Freedom is.
« Last Edit: October 07, 2019, 11:12:57 AM by SweatingInAZ »

terran

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Re: Which iPhone should I get?
« Reply #5 on: October 07, 2019, 11:09:12 AM »
Agreed, what seems to be the problem? I've still got a 5s that's running fine.

We usually buy used whatever model was released about two years ago for around $300 and then keep 5 years. So if we were buying one now it would probably be an 8.

Dave1442397

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Re: Which iPhone should I get?
« Reply #6 on: October 07, 2019, 11:16:01 AM »
Rumor has it that there's an iPhone SE 2 coming out. Whether it's cheap enough to purchase new is still a question, but it may be cheap enough to drive down iPhone 7/8 prices.

https://www.macworld.co.uk/news/iphone/iphone-se2-3500611/

GizmoTX

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Re: Which iPhone should I get?
« Reply #7 on: October 07, 2019, 12:57:39 PM »
A year ago my 6 wasn't holding a charge very long. I took advantage of Apple's $29 battery offer (now expired) & it was like getting a new phone. I plan on using mine until a critical-to-me app can't run on iOS 12. Apple just released a security update for it so it should be covered for a while. I don't want a phone as big as the 11 but I think 7/8 will be too quickly obsolete.

familyandfarming

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Re: Which iPhone should I get?
« Reply #8 on: October 07, 2019, 06:33:23 PM »
The battery is fine as I changed it with the $29 deal. 16 GB of storage is now too small for me. Don't tell me to get rid of the huge video/photo messages from my children. I can't! My headphone jack is also getting loose. Does anyone else HATE holding a phone to their ear? I do!

Thanks for all of the insights! I'm gonna keep this phone going, but the end is near...I've been throwing apps out like a woman in a sinking canoe, but it's not enough!

ketchup

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Re: Which iPhone should I get?
« Reply #9 on: October 07, 2019, 08:17:02 PM »
16 GB of storage is now too small for me. Don't tell me to get rid of the huge video/photo messages from my children. I can't!
Why can't you?  Save them somewhere else, and you'll get that storage space back.

jpdx

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Re: Which iPhone should I get?
« Reply #10 on: October 07, 2019, 10:16:26 PM »
I'm in the same boat. iPhone 6 is starting to become frustratingly slow, and it does not support cellular band 12.

I've explored upgrading to a newer used iPhone, and will probably land on a 7. The specs on the 8 have not advanced significantly from the 7, and the newest phones are priced for people who will probably never retire.

Taran Wanderer

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Re: Which iPhone should I get?
« Reply #11 on: October 07, 2019, 10:54:53 PM »
I really like my 64GB iPhone 8. Speed is good, battery life continues to be great 18 months in, the upgrades work fine (just upgraded to 13.1.2), I’ve never had a problem with space (not a lot of music on my phone), the camera is great.  No complaints here.

NextTime

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Re: Which iPhone should I get?
« Reply #12 on: October 08, 2019, 10:13:41 AM »
I really like my 64GB iPhone 8. Speed is good, battery life continues to be great 18 months in, the upgrades work fine (just upgraded to 13.1.2), I’ve never had a problem with space (not a lot of music on my phone), the camera is great.  No complaints here.


I agree. My iPhone 8 plus is two years in and going strong. I don't take a lot of pictures so 64GB is plenty for me.

I had the 6 plus prior to this and it barely lasted 18 months. That touch disease was a serious issue and their response to it was pathetic. I should have bailed on Apple and finally made the switch to Android, but I'm a pussy and too embedded into the ecosystem.

Taran Wanderer

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Re: Which iPhone should I get?
« Reply #13 on: October 08, 2019, 09:16:02 PM »
I really like my 64GB iPhone 8. Speed is good, battery life continues to be great 18 months in, the upgrades work fine (just upgraded to 13.1.2), I’ve never had a problem with space (not a lot of music on my phone), the camera is great.  No complaints here.


I agree. My iPhone 8 plus is two years in and going strong. I don't take a lot of pictures so 64GB is plenty for me.

I had the 6 plus prior to this and it barely lasted 18 months. That touch disease was a serious issue and their response to it was pathetic. I should have bailed on Apple and finally made the switch to Android, but I'm a pussy wimp and too embedded into the ecosystem.

There, fixed that for you.

;-)

familyandfarming

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Re: Which iPhone should I get?
« Reply #14 on: November 30, 2019, 08:40:37 AM »
After much thought, I got an iPhone 11. I know, you're thinking, "What the heck! That's not frugal!" But I think it is. After calling Sams on November 8th to check how many phones were available (lots), I stood in line November 9th at Sams Club (met some fantastic people) and got the 11 with a $400 Sams Club gift card. Deal! I do shop at Sams for bulk items, so this is a win-win. I looked around at the Black Friday ads, and there was nothing close to this deal.

I also noticed that most of the people in line with me all had iPhone 6 & 5's in their hands. Fellow Mustachians?

Syonyk

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Re: Which iPhone should I get?
« Reply #15 on: November 30, 2019, 07:02:54 PM »
So you spent a huge chunk of change on a phone and got a fraction back.  Still seems... an expensive way to go about solving the problem.

Depending on your comfort level with critical-security-updates-only, the 6 is still useful.  Though I would argue that being on a normal OS update stream is the right answer these days.  Everything is broken, as a rough approximation.

The older phone batteries are pretty straightforward to replace, and make a big difference.

There, fixed that for you.

If you're looking at TCO numbers, I'm really not sure I can agree with you - mostly because modern Android devices have climbed in price to be comparable to iPhones, and it's fairly rare to get an iPhone that turns out to be a turd.  Android devices are really hit and miss in terms of build quality, and a depressing number of them end up with fatal flaws that lead to a remarkably short service life.

Yes, I'm bitter about the Nexus 5X, home of the bootloop.  But my iPhone 6S has substantially outlasted a pair of 5Xs, one of which has been back for warranty replacement once and is dead again, and the other is just a scrap device for talking to the car.

MoneyQuirk

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Re: Which iPhone should I get?
« Reply #16 on: December 01, 2019, 11:06:34 PM »
Honestly, there haven't been significant changes since iPhone 6 except for some nitty gritty stuff (better camera, different messaging features).

Therefore, unless you have a need (or the money really isn't a concern), I'd just default to getting an iPhone 7.

Currently I have an iPhone 8 and each upgrade I look at "should I upgrade?". I then review the features and they offer basically nothing new that the last phone didn't do.

Honestly, I think they're nearing the limits of what else they can provide. My phone can already do basically everything I can possibly imagine it would do (it's a full laptop in the palm of my hand). Therefore, I think they need to create a new need to fill (maybe with virtual reality?)

ketchup

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Re: Which iPhone should I get?
« Reply #17 on: December 02, 2019, 08:08:44 AM »
Honestly, there haven't been significant changes since iPhone 6 except for some nitty gritty stuff (better camera, different messaging features).

Therefore, unless you have a need (or the money really isn't a concern), I'd just default to getting an iPhone 7.

Currently I have an iPhone 8 and each upgrade I look at "should I upgrade?". I then review the features and they offer basically nothing new that the last phone didn't do.

Honestly, I think they're nearing the limits of what else they can provide. My phone can already do basically everything I can possibly imagine it would do (it's a full laptop in the palm of my hand). Therefore, I think they need to create a new need to fill (maybe with virtual reality?)
Apple themselves is nearly admitting this.  The 2019 "new" iPad they released has the same SoC as the iPhone 7.  Apparently the newest generation of iPhones are a only little more powerful but a good deal more power efficient so they get better battery life.  A nice incremental update but hardly worth going apeshit over.

Cadman

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Re: Which iPhone should I get?
« Reply #18 on: December 02, 2019, 09:35:51 AM »
FYI, Walmart is offering $400 and $450 gift cards on ATT and Verizon iPhone upgrades through the end of today on the XR, XS and XS Max. That brings the XR down to $299. Check your local store for availability and details.

Duke03

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Re: Which iPhone should I get?
« Reply #19 on: December 02, 2019, 07:52:47 PM »
Not sure who you have service through, but I just got off the phone with Verizon.  My wife's 6 plus was on wits end.  Battery life was non existent and the camera was so shaky you could not take a picture.  I told her I'd be willing to get her an 8 plus as her Xmas present as long as Verizon was willing to play ball.  They had the phone listed for 599.99.  I called Verizon and first thing out of my mouth was I wanted to cancel our service and move my phone numbers.  We've been a customer for 15 years so of course the CSR was bending over to see what the issue was.  I just said our service was too expensive and she needed a new phone and it seemed like a good time to switch providers.  The CSR agreed that our bill seemed high and put me on hold.  She came back and claimed that if I promised to stay at least 24 months with just a verbal agreement they'd take our bill from $157 a month down to $91 and we'd still keep unlimited everything.  That sounded good and I told her as long as they'd work with me on the new phone I'd stay.  They ended up selling me a brand new 8 plus for $237.48 overnighted to my house tax and all.  It was one of those rare customer service calls that probably only happen once a decade where you actually feel like you where treated right for once.

Syonyk

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Re: Which iPhone should I get?
« Reply #20 on: December 02, 2019, 08:15:13 PM »
If you're replacing the camera module, you're as far in as you need to be to replace the battery anyway.

maginvizIZ

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Re: Which iPhone should I get?
« Reply #21 on: December 03, 2019, 11:32:40 AM »
Buying a $750ish phone out the door with a $400 gift card, is hard to argue on that.  Nicely done.

From what I've researched, and have been doing, its about a $200 hit of depreciation buying a brand new phone (try selling it after 3 months, you won't get the $750).  After that initial hit, it seems to be $100-$125 per year of depreciation.  Swappa.com is a cool site showing price trends.

I just recently bought an iphone 8 for $250 (use your mustashian powers to get deals), then sold my iphone 6+ for $150 (use mustachian powers to sell at top dollar).  Losing $100 every 2 years is fine.  Come next winter I'll sell the iphone 8 for $200 and get an iphone X for $250. Watch me. :)